The Next Adventure: The Start-up Life

The Next Adventure: Why The Start-Up Life Might Be For You.

It’s a strange thing, the transition from university to the world beyond. For people used to setting their own schedules, to blazing a bit of a trail, to grabbing the talented people around them to embark on a creative project, it can feel like a bit like Them Days Are Ending. It’s time to settle down, get a Real Job, and accept the inevitability of the corporate grind. Helpful, that’s absolutely untrue.

With the current boom in creative and tech startups, it’s a very exciting time for young, ambitious graduates. Inspiring, small and innovative companies are popping up all over the UK, and as their ideas come to fruition, they are looking increasingly to spirited graduates to join their teams and create the super-powers of tomorrow. So what’s the difference between working for a startup and a larger, more established company?

For a start, it’s about culture. In a company where hierarchy, roles and skillsets have yet to be firmly established (or indeed, will never be), it’s an amazing opportunity for a graduate to stretch their skills and talents across a lot of different areas. Upon arriving, every member of the team is expected to help steer the company to success – the likelihood of you photocopying and making tea for six months is pretty unlikely. Of course, such an prospect won’t be for everyone, but for those hungry to learn, to develop and to help something they believe in grow, it’s difficult to see why they’d want to choose any other path. Without old fashioned ideas or rules and regulations passed down through generations of jargon, these start-ups are lean, technologically aware and determined not to fall into the kind of patterns that make The Working Day famously unattractive.

So how do eminently talented graduates and students make themselves attractive to these potential employers? To be honest, it’s pretty straightforward: prove that you are someone who does things. From making short films with your friends to setting up a debating society, from organising a weekly music event to creating a hangover sandwich stall – these employers want solid evidence that you’re as self-starting as they are. Getting involved with the upcoming Venture Catalyst Challenge – a competition for Imperial students to turn a great tech idea into a commercial success - is a fantastic way to stretch your entrepreneurial wings, and it’s worthwhile checking out sites such as enternships.com, who specialise in connecting talented graduates with entrepreneurial startups and SME’s.

As you count down your university days, don’t for a second think that the adventure has to stop here. If you know that you don’t belong in a cubicle, or in a suit, feel free to join those who feel the same.