Earlier this year, I took part in an experiment unlike anything else I’ve ever done.

By the time it was finished, I described it as the single most valuable and enjoyable thing that I’ve done in my professional career.

Startmate, the community at the very heart of Australia’s thriving start-up ecosystem, kindly decided to open its doors, its network and its expertise to 6 of the brightest minds from outside the world of tech (and somehow, I was lucky enough to sneak in).

They called this experiment ‘The Startmate Fellowship’ and in a nutshell, it was a life changing experience of mentoring, skill building and tight knit relationships that will last forever.

(Spoiler alert: I certainly wasn’t the only one that loved the Fellowship so it’s back and applications are open right now for round 2!)

So here’s a quick rundown of how it all went down:

Stage 1 — the application

Shortly after Startmate announced the Fellowship, the AFR picked up the story and the whole thing spread like wildfire. It quickly became clear that there is a giant stack of young professionals across the country keen to find their sweet spot in start-up land but unsure where or how to start.

600 people got cracking on their applications and this was quickly narrowed down to 6 Fellows.

Helping to select the inaugural cohort of Startmate Fellows were legends of Australia’s start-up and VC ecosystem from Blackbird, Canva, SafetyCulture, Atlassian, Propeller (and the list goes on).

Seeing the names of the interviewers instantly made me feel equal parts nervous and inspired. However, very quickly, I was overcome by this sense of calm as I realised that no one was there to cut me down, each and every person had given up their time to mentor and guide me. It was a fantastic insight into Australian start-up culture — it’s not a competition, it’s about sharing insights and helping one another to succeed.

Stage 2 — San Francisco

Woohoo! A couple days after selection day I got the call that I was in and next stop was San Francisco. I had my expectations up in the clouds, but nothing could prepare me for what was coming.

Intimate mentoring sessions with the best investors, operators and founders in the world. Each session was an opportunity to learn from their successes (and their mistakes) and provided an incredible injection of ambition. No small talk, no fluff, just a constant flow of nuggets of pure gold that re-framed the way that I think about start-ups and life more generally.

What made this week even more life changing was sharing it with a special cohort of talented Fellows and the ambitious SYD19 Startmate Accelerator cohort, all of whom would quickly form a tight bond and become friends for life.

Stage 3 — mentoring

After returning from San Francisco with my pulse racing and adrenaline rushing through my veins, it was time to learn from the very best this country has to offer. Over the course of a month, the Fellows worked on projects and received feedback, guidance and mentorship from leaders at Canva, Atlassian, SafetyCulture, Baraja, Expert360, Sendle and many more.

In one month you certainly won’t learn everything there is to know about start-ups, but what you will learn is where your blind spots are, how to fine tune your skillset and that there is a giant support network constantly on hand to help you to succeed.

No one in the Australian start-up community is more than a message or phone call away and it is genuinely mind-blowing how willing and giving of time the community is.

Stage 4 — the world is your oyster

By the time the Startmate Fellowship had wrapped up, there was just one thing I was left feeling — empowered. To this day, I feel like the world is my oyster and that absolutely anything is possible. Whether that is securing a job at a world leading tech company or building something from the ground up that changes millions of lives, the Startmate Fellowship helps you to recognise and appreciate that you really can do it.

While the Fellowship itself does come to an end, the network and mateship certainly does not. I’ve got a powerful and supportive community for life to call on when I need it and to continually give back to.

Wrapping up this ramble before you fall asleep

I’ve done enough rambling for now and hopefully you get the point — the Startmate Fellowship is pretty damn special. It is a risk free opportunity to learn, feel inspired, motivated and empowered.

So, if you’ve read all the way to the end, here’s my call to action:

If you have EVER wanted to break into the world of start-ups but weren’t sure where to start, the Startmate Fellowship is your golden ticket. Throw your hat in the ring and submit an application. I promise you won’t regret it.

If you’d like to learn more about the Startmate Fellowship from someone who (unlike me) can actually string coherent sentences together, check out this article by the amazing James Tynan (Startmate, CEO).

You can also click here to watch a livestream where myself, Nicole Liu, Zac Thorneycroft and Jess Liu sat down with the incredible Tip Piumsomboon from Blackbird Ventures to reflect on what we learned from the Startmate Fellowship.

If you’re still not sure whether the Startmate Fellowship is for you and want to chat about it, you are more than welcome to get in touch anytime and we can organise a call.