6 Ways to Convince People to Join Your Startup
Not everyone is attracted by the risk of working at a startup, but here are six ways to convince someone that it isn’t as risky as they may think!
You’ve just begun working on your new startup and you’re feeling extremely positive. The only problem? You can’t find anyone to work for you and join your journey. In the very early days of a startup, it can be hard to find good employees as many people associate startups with being very risky places to work.
When people think of startups, they might think of offices in a garage or spare room, or of having to sleep at their desk every night. The good news is that this is often very far from reality.
So, how do you reframe people’s images of startup companies and get them interested in joining yours?
Here are six ways you can convince people to join your startup and show them that startup life is actually a more exciting, challenging and fulfilling prospect than the standard corporate job:
1. Flexible hours
Many employees have started to feel that working 5 days a week, 9-5 is not the way they want to live their life. In the UK, almost a third of workers don’t think they have a good work-life balance because of their jobs.
This is something that startups can easily offer their employees. Most startups will offer flexible working hours or remote working as standard so that team members don’t have to spend all of their time thinking about work.
2. Creativity and innovation
Being in a startup is all about creativity and innovation, they’re the things that get the company off the ground and allow it to become a success.
In a lot of corporate companies there’s normally a set way of doing this, and no one wants to deviate from that. This really stifles creativity and discourages more creative minds from seeking innovative solutions to problems.
Startups are a blank slate, there are no set guidelines on how things are ‘supposed’ to be done so experimentation, innovation and a willingness to experiment are all beneficial and often, necessary.
This means that everyone in a startup is actively encouraged to be creative and think outside of the box to find better ways of working. This environment is an ideal place to work for anyone who’s creative, independent and thrives on a challenge.
3. Every employee is equal
If you’ve ever worked in a big company, you’ve probably never spoken to the CEO, or even felt like you were allowed to talk to them.
However in a startup, CEOs are just another member of the team who you’ll always see around the office and can talk to about anything. The switched on startup also encourages everyone to share their ideas, collaborate and cooperate with the whole team, from the boss down. The ideas and opinions of every employee are valued, no matter their official job title.
4. More diverse experiences
You may be employed at a startup to perform a specific role, but chances are you’ll end up doing a little bit of everything. Startup employees may be expected to branch out of their particular area of expertise and perform different tasks depending on what’s needed, which can be a negative for some but a real bonus for others. Those who see this diversity as a good thing recognise that it’s a great opportunity to pick up new skills and learn as you work, which is a unique experience compared to most corporate jobs.
5. Ownership of projects
Corporate employees may be used to getting everything signed off by their manager, or handing projects over to their manager to finalise.
In a startup, there’s simply not the time to go through long processes like this. Instead, every employee has ownership of their own projects—this also means they have to hold themselves accountable for meeting deadlines.
Project ownership is extremely motivating as it gives a sense of pride and a real sense of having made a difference and achieved something.
6. Room for growth
If you’re one of the early employees at a startup there’s plenty of opportunity for promotion and growth because as the company grows, so will you!
Most startup CEOs will choose to promote within the company, as a reward for the hard-working and talented team mates that have worked to make their company a success. This provides more opportunity for employees to advance in their careers than they would get in traditional corporate roles.
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