ALAN SCHAAF

The reason I want to be able to teleport is that I don't like waiting around. It's one of my pet peeves. I also don't like traveling, because I don't like sitting on a plane for six hours, doing nothing, essentially wasting time. You know what would be awesome? Bam, I'm in New York.

When I come into the office, the first thing I do is I plan out what I want to accomplish that day. I write it down in my notebook and make sure I accomplish it before I leave that day.

GIFs work because the punch line is instantaneous. It's entirely different from almost any other form of content on the Internet, which takes time to consume.

How do I find someone for a position I've never worked with - or worked under, even? I feel like I'm not qualified to make a lot of these decisions.

At Imgur, we need a solid product that works on various platforms, so we're looking at iOS, Android, front end, back end, and devops.

We try hard to provide the best user experience possible, and that means the best ads possible, so we work with the brands to come up with the best images.

Imgur offers a rare place for people to express themselves in a real way without the fear of social judgment. Everyone has an equal chance of sharing their story to millions of people because it's not about who you are but about the quality of your content.

I'm the type of manager who doesn't really like the word 'manage.' Nor do I really like the word 'boss.' I like to look at myself as more as a leader.

We want to be like a YouTube for viral images.

Geek culture is all about being super passionate about your interests and not afraid to express them, even if your interests are unpopular.

We want to be the best place on the Internet. That's where the focus is at.

We're trying to be a content destination for viral images and to be an entertainment destination in general.

Imgur isn't about following a celebrity, and it's not about following a person in real life. You don't have to build up a massive following and use that to get your distribution.

I'm proud that I've been able to attract an incredible team to work with me.

In many ways, products are a reflection of their founders, and I consider myself a geek. But aside from that, Imgur just organically evolved into the epicenter of geek culture.

People come home from work, and they just want to unwind.

Over the years, the Internet has been going down the path of becoming a more personalized experience.

Imgur is all about images, some of which may be photos but don't have to be.

I'm probably most proud of the fact that we are bootstrapped and that we are able to do not just the typical Silicon Valley startup thing. We are basically throwing away all the typical conventions of other startups.

My favorite interview question is, 'If you could have a superpower, what would it be?'

I ran a profitable boostrapped company for five years, then raised $40 million from Andreessen Horowitz.

The office has a really fun 'community' feel, kind of like Imgur itself. The things that you see that are on the walls and on our desks came directly from our users.

In the early days, it was enough for Imgur to have a team that was focused on building product and engineering. But I realized early on if we were going to be successful, we needed someone who would be a bridge between the company and community.

Let's get real: the .GIF format is outdated and is not really that great for the modern web anymore. It was created in 1989, and it wasn't even created for the purpose of animation.

Not only do Imgurians get the opportunity to find the content that they love but also serve up their favorite content to others who visit their profiles.