This is an era where the budding organizations have almost outnumbered to the established ones. Still, there is a conflict of thought when it comes to working with a startup. As it is assumed that making a successful career in a startup can be a mountainous task. But on the flip side, one can have a booming career in a startup. I have been working with a startup since last two years. In this blog, I will share few mantras on how to have a successful career at a startup.

Adaptability is the key: Rightly said by an American Author “H. Jackson Brown Jr”- “When you can’t change the direction of the wind- adjust your sails”. Unlike the already established companies that have well-defined processes and procedures where they follow a set routine, startups are subject to amendments and alterations relatively quick. 

Faces and phases change frequently in startups. Whether it is job titles, reporting structures, tasks or employees. The change can be frustrating especially when you have got used to certain situations and scenarios, but to triumph in a startup you should be swift enough to adapt.

Flexibility: Startups can entrust you with multiple roles with varying responsibilities. One should be flexible enough to suit the requirements efficiently.  You might face chaos while multi- tasking but it will broaden your vision regarding vivid fields. One should be ready to mold themselves as per the requirement of the organization.

Work- Ownership: You’ll be required to do pretty much everything by yourself when you work  for a startup. This requires a lot of self-motivation as no one has much time and space to educate you on petty issues. The urge to learn plays a key role here. Every startup looks for such young and enthusiastic professionals.
The growth can thus be exponential in startups in comparison to a steady graph of established counterparts due to the presence of self-motivated minds working together.

To anticipate a sizeable chunk in your plate: Startups normally have fewer helping hands for their cause. So you can expect more appetite of work than your palatability. You should thus be prepared to work day in and day out to meet the ever increasing expectations. However, efforts never go in vain. You will definitely learn a lot in the process and mature as an individual both on a personal and professional front.

Accessibility to veterans: Most of the startups begin with a few brilliant individuals and an amazing idea. Unlike corporate giants, the learned of the industry are easily accessible with whom one can interact and learn from on a daily basis.

Such ignited minds are rarely available for interaction in big organizations. Apart from the technicalities, one can even learn the nitty-gritty of the daily business tasks. Their hard earned experience and guidance can play an important part in shaping an employee’s thought process.

Ready for extremities: There is always an element of risk involved while working with startups in contrast to a secured foreseen future in an established organization. Working with a startup will be a new and exciting experience compared to a clichéd one. Though you may have to compromise on luxuries which otherwise you would have availed in the big giants. You’ll be putting in longer days and shoulder additional responsibilities, which may not be a part of your routine work. If you keep the challenges aside, starting your career with a startup can provide you with quick learning and growth opportunities.

Preparedness for the element of risk involved: It is always a risky affair to be involved with a startup as its future can be a bit uncertain. Either it can reach pinnacles of glory or may see a downfall. Startup comprises of a bunch of illustrious investors and a handful of brilliant and self-motivated individuals. As every single individual among these is a vital cog for a startup, there is a heavy dependency on each one of them. Thus quitting of a single individual can affect a startup. Cash flows of startups may not be always smooth because of which one might experience ups and downs with regards to perks and remunerations. But working at a startup offers a different type of reward which is more satisfactory, it cannot be measured in monetary terms but rather in skills attained and opportunities seized.

At the end, there are pros and cons of both startups and the established organizations. But instead of reluctance which at times provokes people to reject the attractive and lucrative offers from startups, one can consider the above mantras and back oneself to blossom along with the mushrooming organizations.

What it takes to be a successful startup

Just a couple of years ago it was difficult for a guy to get married if he worked for a startup – founders were the worst hit! Fortunately, now Indian startup ecosystem is witnessing a hyper-growth phase. Let me share the Insiders’ Guide to a Successful Startup with you. The year 2014 saw the largest ever Venture Capital infusion in the Indian startup ecosystem with India ranking the fourth largest hub in the world with over 3000+ startups in the country, and the story continues… The feel-good factor shatters when we see the statistics – over 90% of startups, in general, have failed.

There must be some core ingredients that work in favor of successful emerging companies. So, what are the magic ingredients of a successful startup?

People, Process and Product, “The 3Ps”, are the basic necessities of any organization. But more importantly, in my view, there are four important elements that go a long way in building a successful company: Dream, Courage, Energy, and Attitude.

Dream, not of an individual; but rather of a team! It’s the vision that keeps a startup motivated and the synergy of a high-class team towards achieving that dream is the heart of a successful startup.

Courage to accept risks is the backbone. It is this courage that helps to go beyond the normal flow, thread unexplored areas and build something that creates an additional value to the ecosystem. Risks are inherent to the startup, but courage would bridge the gap between a startup and a successful organization. Ability to gauge the yield point of the risk, beyond which recovery in case of failure would be impossible, is also important.

Energy of the team is a lifeline and determines how far and how fast the startup can go.  Every Startup has to keep on fueling this energy within the team. Healthy work environment, organized operations, sense of belonging and good management culture act as a catalyst for this energy; without them any startup is bound to fail.

Attitude is the brain of any startup. Humble, nimble, perceptive and foresightful attitude can never let a startup fail. A startup should be humble in relationships, nimble in operations, perceptive of its financial & compliance standing and foresightful of market & ecosystem trends.

Any startup with a good oversight of these magic ingredients can never fail!

Our success is backed by our enthusiastic team

Different shades of a Startup

In an era of bulk campus placements, getting an opportunity to work with the giants of the industry is not rare. In my final year, a lot of corporate giants visited my college to hand pick a decent chunk of engineers. Post the placement season from the remaining lot, quite a few pursued post graduations and other certified courses amidst which I had the option to start my career with a startup or wait for some tech biggie to hold my hand. I chose to start with a startup.

The count of ones who start with the minnows is far too less but a million dollar question is why are these startups not preferred to start with?

When the very thought of joining a startup crossed my mind, these were few perceptions which I had or rather everyone has about a startup.

• Paid peanuts in a startup
• Multi- tasking involved
• Slow start to one’s career
• Lack of hands-on training

Being associated with a startup from the past 8 months, I realized that  behind all these challenges there are hidden positive counterparts which are negatively neglected, but if considered are interestingly thought provoking. For all my friends who are in a never ending dilemma to choose startup as a career platform or not, let me share my thoughts that I have acquired from Day 1 till Day 244.

As a beginner, I learnt how to be a part of everything that is happening at my office and complete a task within limited time and resource. I believe it helped me boost my self-confidence and also improve my competencies.  The fact that one himself has to find the way out and few helping hands are extended makes one a strong decision maker and in turn increase one’s real experience (not in terms of years spent but in terms of business acumen) unlike the high paying counterparts where the decisions are imposed and not inferred. A feeling that one has the ability to make it big at this level.

I can thus conclude that the simplest theory of life applies even in this context “You can’t judge a book by its cover.” Rest is self-explanatory……

Beyond the myth lies the biggest question for a Rookie.

To start an exciting career with a startup get in touch with us here: careers@inuxu.media