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So you’ve landed that startup job. Here’s what you should do so you don’t get left behind.
Whether you’re a fresh graduate with zero work experience or a seasoned alum of the traditional corporate world, you may find that working at a startup can be quite jarring. Startups, after all, are quite different from your traditional multinational companies and even SMEs; everything, from the product to the process to the team, is still in the development stage and every member of the team get to experience the growing up pains of being a part of the company.
But for all its hardships, working at a startup is very much rewarding. You just have to survive it. How, then, do you do that? Here are a few things:
If you feel like you’ve bitten off more than you can chew, chew faster.
Operations-wise, things happen fast in startups. Startups are flexible and prone to product pivots, team reorganisations, and process changes as it tries to figure out which works best for the business. This means that changing teams, designations, and/or responsibilities twice in a span of a year is not unheard of, nor is a pivot in the overall business model. This also means that it is highly likely that people don’t end up doing what they were initially hired to do.
Work fast. Make informed decisions but make them quickly. And if you find yourself thrust into a business development job four months after accepting a content development one, do your best to learn what you need to do at the shortest amount of time. And speaking of learning…
Do these two things: learn while you work and learn on your own
Unlike large corporations where there’s usually a standard training programme for employees, startups seldom have the budget or even people to develop a semblance of a training programme. If you’re hired by a startup, it means that your employers trust you with the task of helping the company be a success. And that includes trusting you to be aware of your strengths and ensure that your weaknesses don’t remain weaknesses.
Be proactive about your own learning. Start reading relevant books and articles. Watch how-to videos online. Find mentors and pick at their brain. Make use of whatever resources are available (and there are a lot) to grow as the company grows. Remember that no one is irreplaceable, not even founders.
Don’t be remiss about communication and collaboration
Small teams, cross-functional projects, and flexible workplace setups. Compared to traditional businesses, startups have freedom and flexibility when it comes to how their employees work. For startups, productivity and effectivity precedes proximity and having team members strewn across the region is a common occurrence.
While it’s tempting to go at it alone, don’t. Keep in constant communication with your team and collaborate as much as possible; update and be updated of what is happening in the company and take advantage of the brilliance of your colleagues to help you process and develop ideas. Use the tools at your disposal – there are a lot of communication apps and channels so you really have no excuse.
Be guided by the company’s vision
Startups, as with all companies, are built because of a vision by the founders. This vision is where innovation revolves around and for startups, whose employees come from different backgrounds and the product may be first in the market, it is what keeps the company focused and grounded despite possible unfavorable environments.
Live for the mission. It is easy to get drowned by the noise and be distracted by the myriad things you need to do but always keep in mind the reason for the company’s existence. Measure the things you do based on whether or not it leads you to the ultimate goal of helping the company achieve its mission.
Take part in developing the company culture
Culture is a popular word these days and for a good reason, too; it largely determines whether the company can retain a good employee or whether an employee can stand to stay in the company. How the company operates is affected by its culture and the people in it behave toward customers, each other, and situations plays a huge role in its success.
Embrace the culture. If you’ve been hired, the people behind it saw that you fit and have the potential to improve on the company’s culture. You have the chance to help make the company become one that you and other people would enjoy working in. Take it.
Also read: Girls are actually happy to work in STEM. So what can we do to make them stay in this field?
Go in with an intrapreneur mindset
By definition, an intrapreneur is someone who employs entrepreneurial skills to improve and innovate their work processes. For some companies, this is an actual position, and the intrapreneur is tasked with developing processes for the whole company. But anyone can be an intraprenuer, and the beauty of working at a startup is that any change can easily be implemented with results easily felt and measurable.
Be an intrapreneur. If you think that there’s a more efficient way to do things, pitch it to your colleagues. Find ways to increase your productivity and share it with the team or suggest an easier way to collaborate. You are there to help build the company and that includes making it work better.
Also read: Match point: What tennis can teach us about entrepreneurship and leadership
Remember that questions are more than okay
If we haven’t said it enough, we’ll say it again: startups work fast. New technologies are explored and developed all the time, the market can be fickle, and sometimes all it needs is a day for companies to be a success or a failure.
Don’t shy away from asking questions. If something confuses you, clarify. If something bothers you, get other people’s thoughts about it. If there’s something you don’t know, ask someone who does. If you have an idea you aren’t sure how to process, ask your team members to help. Remember that there will always be someone who can provide a fresh perspective of things.
Think less of fears as actual fears but as life’s taunts
As mentioned, people who get hired in startups often end up doing something quite different from what they were hired to do. This usually happens when said people dispay a proficiency for certain tasks that are needed by the company and they are often faced with doing things that are out of their comfort zones. Like public speaking, for example, which is fine for some but downright frightening for others.
If life keeps taunting you with things you’re afraid of doing, get one over it and do them. That responsibility thrust upon you that you think is a great opportunity but had been hesitant to accept because of fear of failure? Pitching an idea to the team? Speaking at an event? Don’t let life bully you. Do them. You and your company would thank you for that.
Be your company’s greatest walking advertisement
Startups need all the help they can get; it is always a scramble to get investors, clients, and the right people to join the team. What some people fail to take note of, however, is the current team is one of the reasons all three of those are acquired. Investors look at not only the product and the market but also the team behind it, customers care about customer service and support as much as the product, and potential hires look at how the current team is faring before deciding to join the company.
Be enthusiastic whenever anyone asks you about your job. You are a salesperson, in all aspects of life, whether you like it or not. How well you explain your job and what the company does, and how happy you are in your explanation speaks a lot about the company. You never know when you’re talking to the next big investor, client, or talented hire.
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Feature image credit: samuraitop / 123RF Stock Photo
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