Follow the Leader: Playing Catchup in the Start-Up Process
When you think of creating a business, there are many buzzwords or terms that may quickly come to mind; such as, “start-up”, “entrepreneurship”, “Big Idea”, etc. Like these components and buzzwords, start-up companies have numerous “father figures” that young entrepreneurs look up to: Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, etc. Except, some of the people that don’t receive as much focus as those visionary figures are those who are first brought on board in the start-up process. These characters have a very different perspective to this process, as their role in the business is accelerated, prompting them to play a game of catch-up and fit in. This is where I come in.
When I was first brought onto the team of my first “‘preneur”, it was a bit overwhelming. I often had thoughts like, “The only work experience I’ve had thus far has been part-time summer jobs and a couple brief internships, how am I going to fit into an environment where I’m expected to be an effective, contributing member to a team?” And this was not a team in the sense that I was used to, as in sports or clubs, but a team with the goal to design products and generate revenue. I juggled different tasks, such as: gauging what my role in the company will be, learning as much as I can about the market we are targeting and where our service can fit in that market, determining what my routine responsibilities will be within the company, etc. Some of these tasks were challenging, as I was forced out of my comfort zone. I had to learn to voice my thoughts and opinions with other individuals who I wasn’t quite comfortable with yet. Luckily, thanks to effective interpersonal communication and strong foundations of company culture, I was given the confidence and the tools to accomplish these initially daunting tasks, and I was able to overcome the early butterflies of being inserted into an environment that was foreign to me. Although our team is still working through the basics of the start-up process, there are constant evident improvements not only to the products and services we provide to potential customers, but to our interpersonal relationships and company culture as well.
If you’re interested in learning more about our team and how Abstract Assembly is working to revolutionize the engineering process, be sure to hit up our website and Facebook page here!
