From Careers Fair to Startmate Intern
Yan is a second year UNSW Commerce/Computer Science student who’s been interning at Startmate since January 2020 after a chance encounter with now CEO Michael Batko at Textbook Venture’s annual career’s fair. We asked Yan a few questions regarding her experience and the key takeaways from her journey.
Startmate is one of Australia’s leading start-up accelerators that backs the most ambitious founders by providing them with resources and top mentors.
What sparked your interest in entrepreneurship and how do you find yourself at Startmate?
Frankly speaking, entrepreneurship had never crossed my mind as a first-year university student. At university, the opportunities that are front and centre at events are usually the Big Four, Big Tech, the Big Six — the list goes on. Many of the role models in my personal life also fit this convention of success.
However, despite knowing nothing about start-ups, I decided to take up the opportunity after a friend told me a spot had freed up last minute to attend Textbook Venture’s 2nd Startup Careers Fair in 2019.
I remember being immediately struck by the event’s fast-paced and high energy set-up. The first person I talked to that evening, and the most memorable, was Michael Batko, now CEO of Startmate. I decided to reach out to him the following day to connect, and the rest is history!
Tell us a bit about your role at Startmate.
Since joining Startmate 3 months ago, I’ve learnt-by-doing on both our business and community operations front. I’ve helped out with investor databases, initiated and managed partnerships with other companies, and was given the chance to organise our Fellowship interviews end-to-end — all of which has been insightful and extremely enjoyable.
Could you share any key learnings from your experience so far?
My biggest learning at Startmate has been that no one right answer exists. Ultimately, your perspective on multi-faceted problems will add value if you speak up. Before I started my role, I was plagued by self-doubt — I was sure that I lacked the right experience and felt like an imposter joining such an agile, high-functioning team. Yet, from day one, I saw how the unique angle each person in my team brought added value — even mine! The chance to observe and rub shoulders with formidable founders, lauded operators and sought-after VCs have similarly shown me a wide spectrum of how excellence can be achieved. Different perspectives are invaluable and it follows to never be afraid to add your own spin on things, or to stray from what’s always been.
“Put yourself out there. The most rewarding experiences I’ve had came from having a go.”
Reflecting upon how I ended up at Startmate, it began with spontaneously attending an event, then reaching out to a guy I found interesting, even though I felt out of line doing so, before accepting a role that was unlike anything I’ve done before. I’ve found that consistently putting my hand up for tasks, asking to contribute to different projects and reaching out to people to simply learn and chat, can leave you pleasantly surprised by what you learn from it. It turns out that the times I’ve ‘lucked out’ and had the most rewarding experiences simply came from having a go.
Why do you think students should get involved in the startup space? And for those interested, do you have any tips, tools or resources?
“The innovation that exists at the core of the startup space is an exciting glimpse into what the world is moving towards.”
I think the startup space can be a special opportunity for anyone, but even more so for students. The size and nature of startups often means your work has the potential to have a very tangible impact. This is something I’ve found to be immensely satisfying and rewarding, as well as instrumental to building my autonomy and confidence as a student.
On top of that, the innovation that exists at the core of the startup space is an exciting glimpse into what the world is moving towards. From deep tech to reinventing highly established and traditional industries, the pace and volume of change shown by startups is likely what the rest of the world will be adapting to in the future — this makes the startup space easily one of the most exciting places for a student to be.
What do you see yourself achieving in 5 years?
Despite being big on planning (Excel for e v e r y t h i n g), I’ve become a proponent of going with the flow and taking up all the chances that come your way. So, whilst I don’t have an exact idea of where I’ll be in 5 years’ time, I hope I’ll have had experience in a range of roles — operator, VC, community — and have made great progress in identifying and building my personal capabilities.
Want to know how you can take the first step to find your dream VC/start-up experience like Yan? Be sure to follow Textbook Venture’s Facebook page and subscribe to our newsletter to find out about more exciting opportunities with amazing VCs and startups making a difference.
