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As a consultant, chaos was a problem that I had to solve. As a founder, it is the air that I breathe.
I entered the world of startup armed with what I thought was the best tool kit: a consulting formation. Years of strategy mallets, stakeholder management and interfunctional collaboration taught me how to convert chaos into structure and solve problems quickly. I thought I had seen everything.
But I quickly realized that the transition from Founder consultant was not so much an ejement: it was a free fall. See, consultants and founders could not be more different. The consultants are trained to be perfect, the founders must be discouraged. The consultants are trained to eliminate chaos, the founders must prosper in it. The consultants have a security network, the founders no.
Related: Are you ready to be CEO, founder or both? Here is how to know
We are going to immerse ourselves directly.
This is what they consult Did Prepare to:
- Find structure in chaos: I am declaring the obvious here, but it is essential that the founders can execute their vision; And to make it effective, the founders need structure. Something as simple as creating an organized folder structure, which coincidentally was my first task as associated, can ensure its terms sheet with investors when they request the duration of the room, the proper diligence process. Being ready for due diligence is not just about having your documents in order; It is about demonstrating transparency and generating trust with possible investors.
- Thinking about the act: As a founder, he feels as if you were in the middle of the ocean and you need to swim back to the shore. Consulting prepared me for that. I remember that I threw myself to remote environments to explain technical workflows to non -technical people in my third language. Think fast and adapt your message to whoever is in front of you is not only useful, this is how you create the opening. This is how to launch before your product is ready. This is how you get a meeting before there is something to show.
- Burning midnight oil: Let’s be real, consultants, at least good, are machines and can be extremely productive. The founders are part of a world where Bee Busy includes attending many conferences, exhibitions and the functions after the event that come with them. Consultants can rarely afford such luxuries. Crunkime is real and forces them to converge their efforts at work. Know when to block and say that it is not crucial as a founder.
This is what they consult No Prepare to:
- Building and failing quickly: The majority of the founders and visionaries fall into the fallacy of building a super solution from end to extreme that promises to be the holy grail of their clients. Enter the pivots. His startup is not successful when he develops his vision, that is, or simply a very exensive dream. It is successful when you discover what your customers are willing to pay as quickly as possible. As Eric Ries puts it in the Startup Lean, the key is to learn what customers really want, not what they think they should desire.
- Storytelling as art: In my early days as a founder, I entered the office of a potential customer long before having a product or even a live website. I took the consulting route and brought a strategy deck with me. They destroyed that meeting. From the beginning, it sounds like an error, but it was the best decision I could have made. I took note of the comments and acted on the subject immediately. Go out, present your idea and ask for comments! Feedback helps you discover what it hits, what not and how to sharpen your message until you are going through.
- Learn to contact: I made more networks in my first year as a founder than the eight years as a consultant. Take into account that sink. I thought I was on a network as a consultant, but in reality I was moving inside the same orbit. As a founder, the galaxy is yours to explore. From the first day, you find a network with other founders of all areas of life, angels investors, risk capitals, technological builders, potential clients of the community, whatever. And the best part is that they don’t care about their CV. They care about their energy, passion and conviction. A study by the Queen Mary University of London found that the quality of a startup network is significant its chances of success, often more than the initial financing or the size of the equipment.
Related: Are you thinking as a founder? 4 principles each successful team must follow
In the end, the founder’s transition to the founder, less about the application of what he knew and more about the unpleasant of what he thought he knew. And if you are willing to unlearn, adopt different perspectives, take constructive criticism, to be honest with yourself and move quickly without all the answers, you will be growing in a way that no corporate work could offer.
As a consultant, chaos was a problem that I had to solve. As a founder, it is the air that I breathe.
I entered the world of startup armed with what I thought was the best tool kit: a consulting formation. Years of strategy mallets, stakeholder management and interfunctional collaboration taught me how to convert chaos into structure and solve problems quickly. I thought I had seen everything.
But I quickly realized that the transition from Founder consultant was not so much an ejement: it was a free fall. See, consultants and founders could not be more different. The consultants are trained to be perfect, the founders must be discouraged. The consultants are trained to eliminate chaos, the founders must prosper in it. The consultants have a security network, the founders no.
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