Job Search Strategies’ Post

I’m often asked what’s the secret to choosing a great co-founder. Honestly, I just got lucky with Alexander and Andreas (very lucky). But there are three qualities we share that I think every founding team should have: 1. Vision. I’m not talking about a shared vision for your success. I’m talking about a shared vision for your customers’ success. Whatever problem you’re solving, you all need to have an obsession with improving the lives of the people your product or service is for. 2. Versatility. if there’s a job that needs to be done, and you don’t know whose responsibility it is…it’s yours! Co-founders at startups have to be salespeople, ops leaders, designers…sometimes all in one day. 3. Values. One thing that’s guaranteed for you and your co-founder is this: you’re going to have heated debates. The thing that keeps these debates from feeling fraught is shared values that underpin them. When you’re aligned on values, you don’t question each other’s motives. Rather you respect each other’s opinions. When starting a business there aren’t many decisions more important than choosing your co-founder. Getting it right increases your chances of success…and enjoyment. Are you part of a founding team? What qualities have helped you work well together?

Before you jump into starting your own business, working for someone else can be a really smart move. Here's why: 1️⃣ Being an employee yourself teaches you what it feels like to be on that side of the business. This experience is gold when you're trying to create a great place to work for your own team later on. Understanding what keeps employees happy and productive can help you build a strong company culture from the get-go. 2️⃣ Having a solid work background in a related field can really boost your credibility when you're ready to start your own thing. Taking risks and building confidence in a job where there's a safety net helps a lot. Plus, if you do a standout job, you'll have a track record that can inspire trust in future partners or investors for your own business. 3️⃣ The people you meet while working elsewhere can be super helpful when you're starting your own business. The connections you make can lead to great business ideas, customers, or even partners and investors down the line. These relationships can be key to getting your startup off the ground. 4️⃣ Working for someone else gives you a real look at how much effort it takes to run a business. It's a lot more than you might think. Having your own business means putting your heart and soul into it, which can be incredibly rewarding but also exhausting. This experience can teach you about the dedication you'll need to have for your own venture. Spending some time in the workforce before starting your own business can give you valuable insights, build your network, and prepare you for the dedication needed to be successful on your own. It's a step that can really pay off in the long run. P.S. Share this to spread in your circle ♻️. Follow Mudassir Mustafa for more insights like this. --------------------------------------------------------- 📌 Subscribe to my newsletter to learn about building, scaling, and exiting businesses. Link in the Comments!! #founders #startup #prodcircle

You’re not going to be able to sell your house with that” — a comment I didn’t ask for from someone whose opinion I didn’t care about, lol. Why didn’t I care? Simple. I don’t plan on selling my house. Understanding intentions and end goals is crucial before diving into any startup work. If your aim is to exit sooner rather than later (or at all), we need to focus on building a comprehensive business package. That means shifting the founder away from grunt work—it’s neither sellable nor scalable that way. However, if you envision this as your life’s work, we delve into culture and solidify the unchanging ‘why’ as your business evolves. Here, founder involvement in operations is pivotal. Know your path before giving or seeking advice. It sets the course for success.

I promised you something unique…. And here it is! 🎉 Join me for a fun, interactive and engaging workshop exclusively for founders that will raise awareness to critical areas that can create conflict as you scale and grow. ⭐️The Foundermentals: Keeping the Peace!⭐️ The secret to frictionless founding and conflict and tension-free teams to skyrocket your startup without sabotage! 🚀 Uncover the ‘human roadblocks’ of building a business which can disrupt team dynamics, create friction with founders and ultimately impact acceleration and success. 🎯We will explore ‘co-founder dating’ and compatibility and why this is key to growth. 🎯The importance of culture design and how to craft it. 🎯Attracting and hiring an aligned and motivated team. 🎯How to prevent and address conflict with co-founders and teams. 🎯Tools to have tough conversations and discuss ‘the elephant in the room’ without provocation. 🎯How to communicate well to minimise conflict. In a nutshell, how to bulletproof your business and mitigate the risk of friction and tension from impacting acceleration, growth and your next funding round. Location: Home Grown Club, 44 Great Cumberland Pl, London W1H 7BS Date: 12th March Time: 10:00 am - 1:00 pm (registration from 09:30 am) Cost: £ 250.00 Book now to avoid disappointment! Spaces are limited! DM me for further details or book through the Eventbrite link below. #workshop #conflict #cofounder #founder #cofounderfriction #conflictprevention #thefoundermentals

5 tips from Founders on: How to.. Deal with setbacks and rejection It’s inevitably part of any founder’s journey: No success without setbacks and rejections. When Sander Peltenburg and I started asking founders about their greatest setbacks and how to deal with them, we gathered a long list of experiences. The most mentioned: 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭-𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐟𝐢𝐭: Might sound easy and logical, right? However, maintaining the good spirit required to continue going can be challenging. What about when you're finally on the road to product-market fit and your sales are lifting off, but then Corona hits, rendering two years' worth of logistics, partnership building, and sales useless? @Sander can tell you all about it. 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠: Yes, you know rejection is part of the journey. But hearing ‘no’ numerous times after endless pitching and reaching out to investors, or facing a major setback in the final stage of negotiation with your run rate running out, simply hurts. We spoke to a founder who, at the notary, got a call from its ‘future’ investor that due to last-minute changing market perspectives decided not to continue the investment process. Heartbreaking! 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: Finding the right people, especially in an early-stage startup, often seems like an endless job. And when you have your team in place; sometimes keeping them is. Having to lose some of your key people or your priceless lead developer because ‘the market’ simply pays more can certainly be frustrating. The stories are endless: unwanted ‘buy-outs’, founders who see no other option than having to part ways. How do you deal with those situations and assure you stay motivated? Below, 5 tips from founders on dealing with setbacks. What is on your mind, can you relate to any of the examples above or have a specific struggle you are dealing with? You can always reach out to us (or other peers :-)). Speaking out and learning that many Founders share similar experiences or struggles is already very helpful. Having a good support ecosystem is one of the key factors to success as a founder. That’s what #Founderresilience is all about. Connect in DM or respond to the message below.

Starting a business is a big adventure, and I've got to say, having a good co-founder makes all the difference. While I'm all about jumping in and leading the way, Prashant has this amazing ability to stay calm and handle things behind the scenes. He's the kind of guy who can smooth things over with customers, making work seem effortless, even when things get tricky.    What's really special is that despite our differences, we share the same dream. We're not here to build something and then just sell it off. We want to create a place that supports new talent, keeps our team focused and efficient, and tackle projects that really matter to us.    This journey has taught us that having someone to share the highs and lows with, someone who complements your skills and pushes you to be better, is invaluable. It's not just about balancing each other out, it's about building something bigger and more meaningful than we could on our own.   We're just getting started, and we can't wait to see where this adventure takes us.   #CoFounding #Teamwork #StartUpLife

I’ve built and sold a business in a multi-million dollar deal – but I don’t know if I’m any good at building a business. I’ve invested in over 100 startups and funds – but I don’t know if I’m any good at investing. But I find it all utterly fascinating. I love it. Most of my success has come down to finding the right people with whom to work: colleagues, founders and general partners. Brilliant people from whom I can learn. That’s how I see success. That’s business. That’s balance. That’s life.

Dear #Startup #founder, #CEO of growing businesses, Growing a #business is hard; there's no denying that. But growing a #revenue-generating business? That's an entirely different ballgame—one that demands unwavering focus, strategic insight, and a #team that's fully aligned with the company's #revenue #goals. As you navigate the complexities of scaling your business, have you ever stopped to consider the untapped potential within your own team? Imagine the possibilities if every member of your talent pool truly understood how their actions, both in the office and beyond, directly impact the company's revenue generation. Picture a workforce that is not just skilled but empowered—individuals who proactively seek opportunities to drive revenue growth, identify inefficiencies, and champion innovation. How fast do you think your business could grow under these circumstances? I invite you to imagine the transformative impact of our #UNcommon training course, #Your Job role and the company's revenue." This comprehensive program is designed to equip your team with the knowledge, skills, and mindset needed to become active contributors to your company's revenue-generating efforts. Go here to register your organization: 👉 https://lnkd.in/eCfjtCTQ.

Over the past month, I've met founders who don't know how to schedule a calendar invite! Meetings are unavoidable for founders. They're crucial for networking, which fuels business growth. However, I recently came across founders who can't even write a simple email and failed to schedule a calender invite. These are also founders who have raised funding in the past from renowned VCs solely based on flashy products and are really good at stating some fancy numbers, which impresses the VCs (agle 5 saal mein 69000000000 crore USD ka business) The term "founder" has become so trendy, and everyone wants to call themselves one. But the reality is, most of these self-proclaimed founders fall short of the true meaning of this term. Being a true founder requires immense dedication and mental toughness. You have to work 12-14 hours a day, regardless of anything, for most days, especially when you are in the early stages and don't have a well-established team.   Misconceptions of Being a Founder: 1) Having a glamorous lifestyle, filled with recognition and admiration. 2) Expecting a smooth journey to success, where every decision yields exponential growth and admiration. 3) Founder is the sole visionary behind any idea. Reality: One individual cannot build any business. It's always a team who work tirelessly behind you for your success. You need to acknowledge their efforts. What being a founder actually is: 1) Sleepless nights, numerous setbacks, and moments of self-doubt characterize the journey. 2) Dealing with uncertainty, rejection, and unforeseen market challenges. 3) Founders wear many hats, constantly problem-solving, adapting, and leading with passion and resilience. 4) It's about creating a vision, a product, or a company that solves a problem and makes a difference. 5) Great founders surround themselves with talented people, fostering a team environment where everyone contributes according to their strengths. 6) Learning from experiences and evolving as a leader, ultimately carving their own path towards success.

I love working with founders as an advisor; seeing the clients I work with 1:1 every month go from strength to strength is SO rewarding. Sometimes the sessions we have together are primarily about accountability, sometimes they're quasi-therapy, and sometimes incredibly creative. Sometimes they're a mix of all three (and more). It's safe to say that Rayan Bannai and I have probably explored all of that this year together in our sessions for his company, Squared. One thing I've loved diving into with him (and constantly playing devil's advocate on) is interrogating where business *really* comes from, what the messaging of the company *really* is, and how we can go the extra mile to drive awareness and networks for the company. Rayan has taken all this and run with it. Beyond his now famous 'founder breakfast selfies', together we've come up with some core messaging for Squared including the fact that they are the unseen force behind incredible people & brands, much like the mechanic in an F1 team, or the person who refuells the fighter jet – all vital folks, all unsung heroes, but things would be slow or not run at all without them. From that work, one message we've come to focus on as a core narrative is the primary problem they solve: the HUGE challenge of lack of time for founders. It's the one thing we cannot buy (well, we can, through Squared + Rayan of course 😉). This work culminated in a little gift from Rayan (getting overzealous with his branded Tony's orders but hey, I'm not complaining) along with a handwritten note asking what I'd do if I had more time... The answer? Run more. Build better relationships outside of work. Cook more. Travel more. Write. Draw. Paint. Explore. And probably work with more incredible founders. Most importantly though: I'd eat all this chocolate. Thanks for the sweet treat Rayan! Great work getting Squared to where it is this year. I'm proud of you (as I am of all my founder clients). -- If you're a solo founder or team looking for an experienced, connected pair of eyes to kick your ass, bring you new strategies, make introductions and ultimately keep the company pointed in the right direction in 2024 and beyond – message me. I've got some gaps open and I'd love to add some awesome new founders to the mix!