A job seeker’s life is never easy and navigating through dozens of ads that require a certain degree of experience in a field, does not help. However, the fact that you have little to no experience, does not mean that you are not an ideal candidate for a certain position, it just means that you have to find a way to stand out and grab an employee’s attention, not with your vast experience, but with your potential.
Before you begin, try to remember that everyone starts from scratch and don’t be afraid to experiment with your approach and your resume, but do your best to stay true to yourself.
Thinking about the fact that your skills do not match up to the job requirements, is a mistake that a lot of candidates do when they are considering applying for a tech job. The truth is that most likely you have skills that you think are useless when it comes to a tech environment but in fact are transferable and well worth showcasing in your resume.
Soft skills – Communication skills can take so many forms: negotiating, mentoring, writing/ copywriting etc. and that is why there are often required in a wide range of job listings across different fields. Being able to understand and relay complex processes and technical aspects of a project to different departments and facilitate a smooth and efficient interaction is highly valuable, especially in a tech environment.
Teamwork – Not to be taken lightly, being able to successfully work and integrate within a team is a crucial aspect of working in a startup. Keep in mind that some startup teams are working in an office others are working remote or on a flexible schedule so the interaction will most definitely not be what you are used to. Regardless of that the ability to professionally work with others towards a common goal is a must have skill, whether you are doing freelance, contract based work or looking for a permanent position.
Planning and organizing – Surely this sounds easy enough, but planning and organizing goes well beyond keeping a neat desk and a well classified file cabinet. This means you can do project management, keep track of deadlines, create templates and checklists for everyone, establish, optimize and explain project workflows to make sure that every aspect of the business is aligned and integrated in a seamless workflow. Not too shabby, right?
Research and Analysis – Just think about it – you are already doing this on a daily basis for your day to day activities, when shopping online, gathering information about a new product/service or just putting together information from different sources for that college report. If you are able to get through high volumes of data put it together in a relevant way and draw the essential, why wouldn’t you put that skill to work in a tech startup as well? Market research, competitive analysis, prospecting finding relevant tools and resources for the business can prove a great help on the long run for any startup.
Multitasking – Being able to juggle with multiple tasks at once and stay productive at the same time might be one of the best skills you can have if you want to work for a startup. There is no more dynamic environment than a company in full growth, and keeping up with that kind of work pace and pressure isn’t for everyone. But if you find that one of your talents is keeping up with several things at once and successfully complete challenges as soon as they are thrown at you, don’t worry, you are definitely startup material.
Experience or better said lack of it, does not have to be an impediment when it comes to getting hired by a tech startup, just keep in mind that everything you put in your resume has to be accompanied by an example of work or situation in which you had to use those skills. If you have certifications or completed courses that are relevant to the job ,don’t forget to add them as well and keep this in mind: most startups will hire you for potential and not only for experience.
Looking for a job in a tech startup has never been easier than with www.workinstartups.com – create your free account and start applying right now!