5 skills to excel in Start-up world

The Pandemic accelerated digital transformation and as the lockdown eased, the Indian economy saw rapid changes and development. As start-ups mushroomed, roles, skills, requirements reformed. Start-ups recruit individuals with a diverse range of skills and knowledge. One aims to be an expert in one field while also being proficient in at least another. The ability to collect client input and convert it into meaningful available alternatives is the basic key talent in every profession. An increase in digitalization is leading firms and educational institutions to shift to work-from-home (WFH). It’s an approach or attitude more than a skill. Most jobs come with a decent job description but when it comes to start-ups, the lines between roles blur with tasks often being shared by two or more people.

It all advanced due to the pandemic situation that gave way to what is called the internet culture or internet economy. Now many of the start-ups have begun working completely online. So, when you talk of skills required for start-ups, apart from your technical skills, you should be aware of the internet culture and possess the skills required to adapt to the start-up environment. Here’s a look at some of the most important skills you’ll need if you want to work in a start-up.

Also Read: 6 effective steps to increase productivity and efficiency at work : Dhruvil Sanghvi

Multitasking:

Start-up workplaces are fast-paced, and companies favour people who can manage numerous activities at once. It’s an approach or attitude more than a skill.  You get a sense of success when you multitask. Your confidence grows when you complete multiple tasks in a short span of time.  Although most jobs come with a decent job description, when it comes to start-ups, the lines between roles blur with tasks often being shared by two or more people.

“The key is not to prioritise what’s on your schedule but schedule your priorities.” Stephen Covey

Being resourceful and taking initiative:

When you take initiative, you accomplish things without being asked, solve problems that others may not have noticed, and go above and beyond to learn as well as improve. That’s when you have got this. Think out of the box and seek out. The reasoning here is that in start-ups – at least at the beginning – HR is highly valuable at the same time, there is also scarce resources. But as the business scales, new roles and profiles emerge. So, if you are up to being a jack-of-all and managing with the resources at your disposal in the early days, you may be able to pick your role when the start-up turns into an enterprise.

Being Scalable:

Some tasks are manual while others can be automated. Then there are those tasks that are not worth automating. Understanding this difference is important in a start-up. If you’re doing a routine task like regularly sending the same email to multiple people, you might want to automate it. But if you are sending a promotional email to select HNI customers, you would prefer to send these manually. As you go about your work, you should identify those tasks that can and should be automated and then make suggestions so that you can speed up your work and be available to pitch in when the need arises.

Agility

Agility has been more popular in recent years, particularly in the field of learning and development. Learning agility is a skill that may be learnt, developed, and improved. This trait is learned and developed through book reading and classes. Your agility will help you deal with unpleasant surprises and help you grow. When compared to business divisions that hadn’t completely implemented an agile approach before the current pandemic, 93 % of those are seen to have fared better. Now, people with this trait are seen to be good leaders.

So, when you talk of skills required for start-ups, apart from your technical skills, you should be aware of the internet culture and possess the skills required to adapt to the start-up environment.

Curiosity:

If you think you are not curious, think again. Harvard Business Review says curiosity can be developed and that it is as important as intelligence. So go right ahead and ask as many questions as you like. Find out where your work originates and where your completed tasks lead. See how many other areas of the start-up are connected with what you do. This type of curiosity will give you context and help you perform better. It will also enhance your knowledge and make you versatile.

Positive Mindset:

Positive thinking is a strong tool that may help you in several ways in your working life. A positive mindset leads to improved performance. Instead of making excuses for poor performance, a positive thinker would devise strategies to complete his or her work. So along with curiosity, you should also have the will to do any kind of work that you may be called upon to do. Besides, it can make you very popular not only among those with whom you work closely but also others who may interact with you occasionally including the founder and CEO.

Start-ups are a great place to learn and grow. So, if you are aspiring to work in a start-up, develop and hone these skills in addition to your technical skills. And then surge forward to success.