The Guide to Becoming a First Time Founder - Step 2: Become "Likeable"

NOTE: If you would like to start reading from the beginning you can read my first article in this series here https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/guide-becoming-first-time-founder-step-1-define-your-tegan-spinner/

To motivate and inspire others around you towards a common vision (ideally yours) will be your main job as a founder, however, in the beginning, no one really gives a shit about you or what you are trying to achieve.

Most first-time founders do not realize the importance of the soft skill being liked, but did you know it is considered by experts to be one of the most important traits for early-stage founders and teams. This is because, in the beginning, you are a small team of people going through one of the most difficult and stressful processes together. Launching a startup can strain any relationship but it is even harder if you do not have chemistry between team members. It is important to remember world-renowned startups do not need to begin from a garage or basement, they only need founders who can convince others to work together from one. 

This said, being likable it is not something you are necessarily ever taught, and it is difficult to find resources to learn from, so where should one begin.  

I think Dale Carnegie says it best in his book How to Win Friends and Influence People “To be interesting, be interested.” See people hate to admit it, but everyone's favorite subject is themselves.

The key to becoming a more likeable founder is not a bunch of BS psychological tricks, it is as simple as truly caring about others around you. Luckily, it does not take much to do something for others in your startup community, and a little bit goes a long way into establishing your personal brand. 

I often get asked how I found my first employees and investors, and I simply say by aiming to give more than or equal to what I was asking for. I made a point to host and participate in events like the local chapter of Founder Institute and the Silicon Drinkabout Meetup group, Nerd Nights, and WonderCoders Women in Tech conference. I also joined the city of Copenhagen's job recruitment department as a Nordic Talent Ambassador, and still speak for them about the benefits of launching a startup in Copenhagen. All this activity eventually paid off, I met new employees through small event around the city, and investors by working for free setting up some of the largest tech events in Copenhagen such as TechBBQ. 

These things do not take much time or money, but giving back to your community significantly increases your "likability" and thus your ability to attract and engage with your first employees, investors, and even customers. 

Besides increasing the amount you give back to your community there are a few things you can do as a founder to improve your personal brand amongst your peers.

1. Share your knowledge with others by hosting an event or writing blog pieces centered around an area that you are interested in, ideally within your startup's domain.
2. Add the interview question "What do you want?" to your next interview process, and actually care/ set up a plan to help others achieve their goals. 
3. Know your shit - People like people who don't BS, and ones that they feel like they can personally grow from. Always be on the lookout for areas to improve your domain knowledge, it will only make you seem more genuine.
4. Read! Being likeable is not necessarily a naturally occurring thing, but there are a lot of insights you can gain by just reading a few articles and books on the subject. A few of the ones I found most helpful include: 

As always, I hope you found this helpful, and thanks for reading guys. Feel free to PM me your thoughts and share this article with your peers if you liked it. Finally, subscribe to my articles if you would like to be notified when I publish Step Three: Hosting your first interview. Until next time. -TS