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MenuWould I be able to find a job based on the skills I learned being an "entrepreneur" if my startup doesn't succeed?
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Just because your startup didn’t or won’t succeed doesn’t mean it was a failure or you are. In the start up lifestyle you get to learn things that other individuals at larger corporations don’t. You understand what it is like to raise money, work with little to no money, and really pour your soul in to your company. If your startup comes to an end, many companies would love to hire someone with your passion and who is willing to do the small stuff to get to the top. Entrepreneurs think differently than others so it is great to have that point of view in any office setting. I don’t think you should have a problem finding another job in the start up world or continuing as a financial analyst but many companies would love to have you on their team to bring a different dynamic to their company. If you want to discuss anything further feel free to set up a call with me ☺
I have been where you are. I've had a "pay the bills" job but felt more alive when I was doing my own thing. Initially, when I launched my coaching business, it fell flat. Disappointed and embarrassed and having exhausted my reserves, I went back into traditional employment. When life brought me back around to coaching, I was scared to death to try again.
What I learned however was the key to my success was in my failure. So I dared to look. And I dared to ask myself the hard questions. In my case, it was not having established a pool to draw clients from.
So I focused my efforts on building my reputation as a coach and getting in front of people whom my message resonated with.
Before you throw in the towel, I encourage you to dig a little deeper. If you need some help with digging and an objective set of eyes, contact me.
Regardless, lose that feeling! Your skills are completely transferable and can help you to gauge if the job is a good fit or not. Simply highlight the skills you've gained on your resume and your job interview that would make you an asset to that company. The right one will not hesitate to scoop you right up!
I've seen varying opinions on this. My take is that as long as the startup experience compliments your skill set it makes sense for you to tie that into a job hunt. Being a Founder/CEO of a startup alone doesn't buy you much, but being able to show successful business development, creating marketing initiatives, overseeing product development, project management and more will be beneficial. You'll have to tailor it toward the job you want. Overall, my entrepreneurial experience has opened more doors than it closed. I'd imagine you'll have a similar experience.
Feel free to reach out with any questions.
Having started several companies in my time, as founder or cofounder, some of which failed, I find it depends on a number of factors in addition to the above.
The one constant is you have gained valuable insight into other arena that you otherwise wouldn't have got had you not tried to grow the startup. This means you'll be able to communicate effectively with parties in those fields better than any other financial analyst.
Your ability to find a job based on your newly acquired skills depend, just like anything else, on the market for them. Your understanding of growth strategies may help with various marketing and managerial roles, analysis in pre-sales processes, customer insight and crucially, end-to-end customer journeys (quote to fulfilment and beyond). This can mean you more effectively communicate and work with those traditionally specialist fields.
After 5+ years, I'd argue a failure may be OK depending on it's growth profile. If it was 1 or 2 then it is often seen as a folly and perhaps to be expected, since most startups fail in that period if they're going to. Also, if it didn't ever make a lot of cash with no attempt at growth, it is also seen as a folly. If it made you lots of money, but the market turned under you, then I think it can be explained.
The question then becomes how much does the company value the new you?
Let me know if you want more information on anything covered here.
Most startups fail...so if businesses see your failure as a flaw then you probably don't want to be working for them as well. There was a reason Facebook's internal mantra use to be Build Fast and Break Things (until they scaled). At the end of the day your failures are what will really define you. How do you bounce back? What did you learn? I believe you would be able to find a job easily. However, the question, a person on a marketing, sales, pm team may really wonder is why you leave your passion of being an entrepreneur to sit at someone else's desk other than to collect a check? It has nothing to do with failure and everything to do with are you really passionate.
As a four-time entrepreneur, three of which were new startups, I can relate to your dilemma. If you can answer the question about why you are no longer involved with the startup in a way that is positive and makes sense, it's probable you will not be penalized. It's also possible to list your skills on a Resume or LinkedIn Profile in such a way as to focus more on highlighting your skills while focusing less on the companies you worked for or owned. Look up the career definitions of the skills you've acquired and decide whether you meet the professional expectations of those skills, if so, then list the skill and give specific examples of how those skills were used. Remember these things during the interview process as well. Besides applying for positions at well-established companies, consider applying at startups seeking the kind of talent and skills you've acquired and developed - they may be more likely to understand your career track.
As others have noted upon answering your question, I also find that the entrepreneurial experience opens more doors than it closes.
If you would like to set up a call with me to discuss startup opportunity sources, or wording of your Resume/LinkedIn profiles, or other follow-up questions, I am available.
I totally recognize myself in your description. You can read the article I've written on Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/my-5-mistakes-entrepreneur-coming-from-corporate-serena-de-maio
People learn from mistakes + building a company teaches so much that only fools will treat it as a negative on your CV.
And you don't want to work for / with fools, do you ;) ?
Good luck,
Serena
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I'm answering your question assuming that you hope to be able to replicate it's own success in your own mobile app. There are a couple of factors responsible for it's growth that are instructive to anyone building a mobile app. "Leveraging the intimacy and privacy of the mobile phone." We now have an *intimate* relationship with our phone like no other device in the history of technology. Every internet company that started before around 2010 has built their core interactions around "the old web" one which was accessed primarily via a browser on a computer. Companies that start with a clean slate, should be building their interactions around how to do whatever the app is supposed to do while leveraging what is unique to people's relationship to their mobile devices. Photo-sharing has become a core part of the way we communicate now. Snapchat built something that provided an experience that leveraged the feeling of privacy and intimacy that is unique to mobile. "Provided an escape from the "maturity" of other online services." Too many parents, aunts, uncles and other "old people" have encroached into the social networks of teens and young people. As a result, they've had a desire to find places to express themselves in places inaccessible by older generations. An important distinction is that it's not just parents and relatives that young people are trying to avoid, but also employers & colleges who are increasingly using "mature" social networks to review applicants. "Leveraged PR even bad PR" The fact that the app got so much press about it being used to sext was perfect PR for the company, as it essentially reinforced the brand experience that it has today. Essentially, "if it's safe enough to send a sext, it's safe for any kind of communication I want to have." And although the safety and security of Snapchat is actually not as advertised, it still enjoys the reputation of having less impact than any primarily web-based service. Building a successful mobile application is one of the hardest challenges to face designers, programmers and entrepreneurs in the history of writing software. Happy to talk to you if you're considering building a mobile app, about what I've learned about the "table stakes" for success.TW
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How do you make money to survive while you are building a business? What are some quick ways to make money with less time commitment?
I love this question. If you have to work on the side while building your business, I recommend doing something you absolutely hate. That keeps you hungry to succeed on your own. You'll also typically save your energy for the evenings and weekends where you'll want it for your business. Don't expect to make much money at your "other job" but you can work it to pay the bills while you build your business. This approach also forces you to build incrementally, and it keeps you frugal. This is not necessarily ideal. Having a bunch of money set aside sounds nice and luxurious, but not having the resources puts you in a position where you have to figure it out to survive. I love that. I started my business eight years ago on $150 and today we do a million a year. Don't wait until you have the resources to start safely. Dive in however you can. And avoid shortcuts. Don't waste your time scheming to make bigger money on the side. Do something honest to live on and create a business that drives value.CM
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I have this social media idea,but no coding skills. How do I get someone to do the coding (cant afford to pay them) and not give away half of my idea?
Dilip was very kind in his response. My answer might be a bit on the "tough love" side. But that's for you to decide. My intention, just for the record, is to help you (and those like you) on your path to success. And that starts with having a viable philosophy about entrepreneurial-ism and business. And I'm going to answer this because I get asked some form / version of this question very frequently from newcomers to entrepreneurial-ism. The scenario goes something like this: "I have a great idea. It's amazing, I love it, and I just KNOW it's gonna make me a ton of money. But I have no money right now so I can't afford to (fill in the blank with things like "to build it / create it / market it / etc" or "to hire the required staff needed to work in my business to sell it / develop it / etc"). And I don't want to tell anyone about my great idea because I'm worried someone will steal it and make MY million / billion dollars. But I can't afford to legally protect it either... So how do I launch without the skills to personally create the product AND no money to hire anyone else to do that either??" The answer is ... You don't. Look - let's be honest. All you have is an idea. Big deal. Really. I'm not saying it's not a good idea. I'm not saying that if properly executed it couldn't make you a million / billion dollars... But an idea is NOT a business. Nor is it an asset. Until you do some (very important) initial work - like creating a business model, doing customer development, creating a MVP, etc - all you really have is a dream. Right now your choices are: 1. Find someone with the skills or the money to develop your idea and sell them on WHY they should invest in you. And yes, this will mean giving up either a portion of the "ownership" or of future income or equity. And the more risk they have to take - the more equity they will want (and quite frankly be entitled to). 2. Learn how to code and build it yourself. MANY entrepreneurs without financial resources are still resourceful. They develop the skills needed to create what they don't have the money to pay someone else to do. 3. Get some cash so you can pay someone to do the coding. You'll probably have to have some knowledge of coding to direct the architecture of your idea. So you will likely still have to become knowledgeable even if its not you personally doing the coding. (This is not meant to be a comprehensive list of options... And I'm sure some of the other experts here on Clarity have others to add - and I hope they do) To wrap up - Here's my final tip to you that I hope you "get"... It's FAR more valuable to have an idea that a very specific hungry crowd is clamoring for right now - One that THEY would love and pay you for right now - Maybe even one they'd pre-order because they just have to have it - Versus YOU being in love with your own idea. [Notice I didn't say "an idea that some as-of-yet-undetermined market would probably love"] I wish you the best of luck moving forward.DB
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What is a better title for a startup head....Founder or CEO? Are there any pros/cons to certain titles?
The previous answers given here are great, but I've copied a trick from legendary investor Monish Pabrai that I've used in previous startups that seems to work wonders -- especially if your company does direct B2B sales. Many Founders/ CEOs are hung up on having the Founder/ CEO/ President title. As others have mentioned, those titles have become somewhat devalued in today's world -- especially if you are in a sales meeting with a large organization. Many purchasing agents at large organizations are bombarded by Founders/ CEOs/ Presidents visiting them all day. This conveys the image that a) your company is relatively small (the CEO of GM never personally sells you a car) and b) you are probably the most knowledgeable person in the organization about your product, but once you land the account the client company will mostly be dealing with newly hired second level staff. Monish recommends that Founder/ CEOs hand out a business card that has the title "Head of Sales" or "VP of Sales". By working in the Head of Sales role, and by your ability to speak knowledgeably about the product, you will convey the message that a) every person in the organization is very knowledgeable about the ins and outs of the product (even the sales guys) and b) you will personally be available to answer the client's questions over the long run. I've used this effectively many times myself.VR
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Business partner I want to bring on will invest more money than me, but will be less involved in operations, how do I split the company?
Cash money should be treated separately than sweat equity. There are practical reasons for this namely that sweat equity should always be granted in conjunction with a vesting agreement (standard in tech is 4 year but in other sectors, 3 is often the standard) but that cash money should not be subjected to vesting. Typically, if you're at the idea stage, the valuation of the actual cash going in (again for software) is anywhere between $300,000 and $1m (pre-money). If you're operating in any other type of industry, valuations would be much lower at the earliest stage. The best way to calculate sweat equity (in my experience) is to use this calculator as a guide: http://foundrs.com/. If you message me privately (via Clarity) with some more info on what the business is, I can tell you whether I would be helpful to you in a call.TW
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