Eight lessons in eight months and counting…
[Note from Sylo’s editor: The below is republished with permission from Shaan’s LinkedIn.]
About six months ago, I penned down my thoughts on why I joined a tech startup. I was new to the startup culture then, two months old; but after spending eight months (and trust me, eight months in a startup means a couple of years in a regular corporation!), I felt responsible to revisit this topic and share my experience with you all.
Firstly, NO REGRETS! I still stand by my decision and feel, I took the right call when I decided to join Sylo. Secondly, I’ve tried to sum up my experience in eight key points or lessons that I have learned in this stint. These lessons have been instrumental in making this one hell of a journey; absolutely and truly! Here they are:
Lesson 1: Technology + Creativity = Magic
This isn’t a groundbreaking point; we all know that. But do we keep it in mind day-to-day? If yes, then why isn’t there another corporation like Apple? Or, why don’t we see more campaigns like, The Hologram March or Roads That Honk? The problem is, we get busy doing ‘regular stuff.’ But I’m grateful that this was the first thing I got reminded of when I came on board, and this is what we are practising every day!
Lesson 2: Blockchain Is Underrated
Bitcoin, cryptocurrency, ICOs and a few scams. Blockchain isn’t ALL about that! Transparency, secure communication, quality assurance, authenticity, better productivity, cost-efficiency etc. are blockchain’s true contributions to society. I can write long articles on each of these topics stating how blockchain can bring a tangible difference to a consumer’s life! Just because the technology seems complex, people underestimate its incredible benefits.
Having said that, blockchain marketers also need to understand that we are partly responsible for consumers’ apathy towards blockchain. People need to see simple, functional benefits, not its technological complexities. So as blockchain marketers, we should stop selling the technology to them and rather focus on selling its benefits!
Lesson 3: Smaller Teams Can Beat Big Corporations, Hands Down!
A small team can actually pull off bigger and more complex tasks, faster and more efficiently than big corporations. It’s a fact! My two cents on that is, an agile approach and a fluid strategy are key to running any task efficiently and successfully. With a lean team/structure it’s much easier to carry out these practices.
But a big corporation has hierarchy, protocols, office bureaucracy, and many such layers that slow things down. Agility and fluidity get sidelined. It’s like a race between a Greyhound and a German Shepherd. No matter how malnourished and lanky the Greyhound looks, it still beats the stronger-looking GSD. That’s why some big companies these days are trying to adopt this ‘startup culture’! So next time you hear the term, you know what it means.
Lesson 4: There’s A Direct Correlation Between Creativity And Diversity
I’d always heard of it but I’ve experienced it firsthand at Sylo. We are a team of 25 diverse males and females coming from 14 different nations! As a result, two things happen. 1) We get a couple of extra disruptive ideas on the table whenever we brainstorm. 2) Building on an idea gets easier since solutions keep coming in from different minds! And do I even need to mention the kind of potluck parties we have!??
Lesson 5: Strategy Anecdote — Harder The Problem, (Often) Simpler The Solution
I’ll start with a real-life incident about a school in a small town. It was well-maintained by the school authority. However, behind the school where the property ended, a few ignorant locals started littering and using that space as a dumpster. So the area and the outer wall of the school started getting dirty. The school authority put up posters requesting people not to litter, repainted the wall, spoke to the municipal council, and even to the police, but nothing worked.
Finally, someone came up with a genius plan. No, it was rather a simple plan! They painted images of different Gods on that wall. And it worked like magic! The God-fearing people stopped littering at once, as they didn’t want to upset the Gods. The area was cleaner again and the wall started looking even prettier with all the hand-painted images.
I have had a similar journey here. It’s a dynamic industry to work in with complex problems to deal with. But the solutions often turned out to be dramatically simpler!
Lesson 6: The Journey Feels Better Than The Destination
In eight months the team’s achieved at least a dozen different objectives. And the most exciting thing for me has been — going through the journey to solve those problems rather than celebrating our successes and achievements! Not sure though if that’s a thing with everyone, or it’s just me (the eternal nomad)!
Lesson 7: Attitude Is Key; Attitude + Resilience Is ‘Master Key’
“I can do it” makes even a mountain move. But “I can do it, and I won’t stop until I do it,” makes every mountain move! Attitude and resilience make a deadly duo that often shift paradigms and I’ve seen that happen here!
Lesson 8: Unlearn To Learn, And Learn To EVOLVE
Learning is a way of life, isn’t it? And to learn better we need to unlearn first. That’s why, ‘learn to unlearn’ and ‘unlearn to learn’ are two very important phrases. However the process shouldn’t end within that loop. It should be followed by another very important step. EVOLVE! If you unlearn to be able to learn better, but don’t use your learning to evolve, then what’s the use?
And unfortunately, you can’t evolve automatically just because you have learned different or new things. Like unlearning, evolving is also a self-imposed process. You need to use your critical thinking to process all that you’ve learned to be able to evolve as a professional, as a human! If you don’t, learning is futile!
Well, I think that should be enough for this piece. I have learned a few other things as well, but these eight lessons have been essential for me to grow as a professional and a person. I hope you find these lessons useful too. And I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.
This journey will continue and I promise to come back to you with more such lessons, at some stage in the future. Until then, take care, stay hungry, and keep learning!
