Some Valuable Lessons I have learned from Startup Success Factors Bootcamp by GirlsInTech Singapore

Some of you may have noticed my Facebook and LinkedIn was flooded with a few photos taken at the Bootcamp I have attended for 2.5 days. Honestly, it all started with one freaking lazy click while I was so boring one of those working days. Nevertheless, it turned out to be such a wonderful and fruitful short period of my life. It was totally eye-opener for me. I had a chance to go through the business strategy and planning every startup founder did. I understand those business strategies and planning exercises I did during the Bootcamp is just a surface compared to those kinds of stuff successful entrepreneurs have gone through in reality. Not only was I lucky enough to get the little taste of what entrepreneur would be like, it was also a privilege to be mentored by two wonder women: Hilary and Katrina.

Hilary Weber, Founder of Opportu Startup Innovation, was our coach for the whole 2.5 days. We have done a few exercises to boost up our confidence with her and unleashed the leader in us.

Katarina was the mentor of our team. She guided us regarding the business plans and shared her ideas during the bootcamp.

Some of the great lessons I have learned during the bootcamp are:

1. Everybody has a sidekick

We all have those little voices in our head especially when we are about to jump out from our comfort zone. Those voices would say "I am not good enough" or "I am not creative enough" or "I am not this, I am not that". We are afraid to say what we think and hesitate to raise our voice due to those little sidekicks. Hilary asked us to make the small tiny creature using the paper bag and sticky notes. At the end, it became like little tiny creature (our own voices) is telling us all negative things and we are telling them back all the positive thing. Since then, the way I used to deal with my sidekick has changed. Whenever I hear those little voices in my head, I would say "No, Anna (I name my sidekick "Anna" ;) I can do this, I can do that". We all have our own sidekicks. If we see them like another person is telling us "we are not this and that", we would be separated from our own sidekicks and wearing the confidence as our own skin.

2. Be ready for success

One of the judges, Ketki Sen, told us to ask ourselves if we are ready for success. There's a saying "hope for the best, prepare for the worst". Being resilience and having enough patience and courage are crucial when life knocks us down. I know you would say you are capable of dealing with failures and crises or you have the courage to bounce back. On the other hand, would you say you are humble enough to deal with success? Humble people are good at maintaining relationships with other people from all works of life. They are open to any negative feedback from other people. Moreover, they are humble enough to admit their mistakes and accept the fact that they cannot know everything. As the sense of competition is getting higher in this day society, it's hard to attain success and it's even harder to maintain it. Being humble is the very basic ingredient for sustainable achievement.

3. There is no natural born leader

Leaders aren't born, they are created. Being manager doesn't mean you are a leader. Hilary demonstrated the differences between manager and leader. 

Leaders aren't born but they are created. Hilary demonstrated the difference between leader and manager. Being a manager doesn't mean you are a leader. The great leader put the team in front when it comes to achievement and success but they are always ready to take the responsibilities and blames when things go wrong. This would be related to above two things. A real leader is humble enough to admit their mistakes or even the mistakes team made. They have the sidekick too but they manage well those voices and lead the team. They know the difference between giving people advice and micromanaging. They trust the team and the team trust them. Some people may have leadership personality. Nevertheless, they still have to go through a lot of deliberate practice to be the effective leaders. That's how they are created.

4. It's about how you do, not what you do

To be a successful entrepreneur, it is not enough to have a great business idea. How you execute that idea is also important because ideas can be copied. This is why it's very important to plan the work and work the plan. I am grateful to have Katarina as a mentor for our team. We planned how we were going to execute the idea based on the strategy outlines Hilary shared us. Whenever we were about to skip the plan or our discussion was leading into the another topic, Katarina reminded us to focus on the main topic and work as we planned. Planning helps you set the short-term or long-term goals. Working as you planned helps you to focus on your goals.

There is still a lot I have learned over 2.5 days. Last but not least, I would like to express my gratitude to foodcaught team to give me the chance to implement the idea which I had been crazy about. And, of course, big thanks go to GirlsInTech - Singapore and Facebook Singapore.

Bonus: We were also given a book called "Key Person of Influence" which I would recommend even if you don't have a dream to build a startup at the moment.

With Love, Claire

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