Getting a startup job with a high-growth startup company after
graduating from a college is the dream every fresh graduate has.
However, the job market is today very competitive and landing a
well-paying job, especially with a startup company is always very
difficult if you don't do things differently to show that you are the
most qualified candidate. Precisely, if you are a fresh graduate without
any hands-on experience in your profession, you need to show startup
companies that are hiring that you are the best candidate and you have
the potential to deliver when offered the job you are seeking: And the
only way to show that you have the potential of adding value to any
company is by going an extra mile and do things that most fresh
graduates don't do.
7 Ways to Land a Startup Job
1) Know About the Company's Services or Products
Most
fresh graduates will not go an extra mile and do a research about the
services or products offered by a startup company. Most startup
companies will be interested to know how much you know about their
products or services before offering you a job. Consequently, you can
take this advantage and do an extensive research about the services or
products that the hiring company is offering. The best way to do this is
to go through the company's website and newsletters and find any
relevant information that concerns the service or product they offer.
2) Be Aware of the Company's Culture
Before
applying for any job with any company in the first place, you need to
know a lot about the company's culture. Knowing a startup company's
culture prior to a job application or attending an interview is very
important since you will know whether the startup job will serve your
personal interest and be in line with your lifestyle. On the other hand,
understanding a company's culture will help you a lot during the
interview since most of the interview questions will be in line with the
startup company's culture and objectives.
3) Understand the Industry and the Competitors
A
startup company is always faced with a lot of obstacles, and
competition is one of the major problems. Understanding the industry
that the startup company is found can be very advantageous to you as a
fresh graduate since the administration will benefit a lot from your
knowledge and contribution, to help overcome problems that are related
to the industry as a whole. Try and know big competitors in the industry
and what they do, and use this as a knowledge base during interviews or
application for a startup job.
4) Be Active Online
Yes,
being active online can be very important if you are a fresh graduate;
this is because most startup companies will first search online on
social media profiles for new talents and energetic graduates. Use a
fully academic-based social platform like LinkedIn to build your
academic profile and any experience that you may have achieved after
graduating from college, and this may put you upfront as one of the
candidates for a startup job that you did not apply for in the first
place.
5) Be Unique and Realistic
Startup companies like
creativity and a unique personality, as such, being unique in any kind
of interview or job application makes you be spotted among the pool of
candidates. If it is an interview you are attending to, try to be unique
when responding to questions and stop common phrases and framed answers
that every candidate will give. On the other hand, try to be realistic
while at the same time letting out the creative part of you; this is
because if you take a personality that you are not, very soon you will
be caught and look very irrelevant for the startup job even if you
emerged the best candidate.
6) Add a Little Curiosity
To land a
startup job with any company, you need to show that you are ready to
learn a lot and progress with the company. When given a chance, try to
ask questions that are directly affecting or related to the company as
this will show that you are interested in the matters that concerns the
company. However, try to frame your questions creatively and avoid open
questions that anyone would ask.
7) Be Patient
Most hiring
companies including startups will not take it lightly if you keep
contacting them about the interview or applications that are not
responded to. You can send a thank you email after an interview, but
avoid frequent contacts with responsible persons as this may look as
nagging, which may degrade your value for the startup job. To add on
top, don't be bitter if you don't get a chance with a startup company,
after all, they have your application details and may decide to call you
if one of the candidates hired turn out to be valueless to the startup
company.
