As a founder, you need to possess a diverse range of skills to drive growth in your startup. Building and running a business is a complex and challenging journey, and there is no one-size-fits-all formula for success. However, there are certain skills that almost all teams need to navigate the ups and downs of the journey effectively.

In no particular order, here are some of the most valuable skills that can help you achieve success:

1. Vision and leadership

A leader should have a clear and compelling vision of what they want to accomplish and inspire and guide others to work towards that vision. They must be able to articulate their vision in a way that inspires and motivates their team. Effective leaders must also be able to make difficult decisions, take calculated risks, and take responsibility for the company's success or failure.

2. Problem solving

No business ever goes exactly to plan. Successful teams must be able to identify and solve problems quickly and efficiently. Good problem-solving skills require a combination of analytical and creative thinking, as well as the ability to collaborate and communicate effectively.

If you can’t solve problems within your business quickly and effectively (and often under pressure), you will quickly find your startup haemorrhaging money on 'solutions' unfit for the problem or (worse) complete paralysis across the organisation sapping more money, time and goodwill of everyone involved.

3. Resilience

The growth journey is full of obstacles, and teams must be able to bounce back from setbacks and keep pushing forward. Resilience is the ability to persevere through difficult times, stay motivated and focused on the end goal, and maintain a positive attitude despite the challenges.

4. Adaptability

The best-made plans rarely survive first contact with reality. Curve balls appear from nowhere, and the world is constantly changing. Successful startups (and their founders) must be able to adapt to new situations and opportunities, be flexible and agile in their approach, and embrace change as a way to grow.

5. Sales and marketing

All founders must be able to communicate the value of their product or service. It's obvious that to win new business, you have to demonstrate value to potential customers and partners, but as a founder, you need to be able to communicate your value and vision to potential investors too.

Demonstrating value requires a combination of strategic thinking, creativity, and excellent communication skills. It is surprisingly common to see that sales and marketing are considered a secondary priority, especially in technology-based businesses.

6. Financial acumen

Startups need to manage their finances well and make smart decisions about how to allocate resources. Lack of cash has seen a huge number of excellent ideas and brilliant teams halt their growth either temporarily or, more depressingly, permanently. Having a solid understanding of finance, accounting, and budgeting is crucial for any founder.

Financial acumen is one of the items on this list that isn't such a soft skill, and if you are a founder who, for example, has come from a highly technical background with little commercial exposure, this is one area that really may push you out of your comfort zone. So, putting in the additional work and time to develop your own financial skills while bringing in a sound pair of financial hands to support you could be critical to your startup's success.

7. Networking

Building relationships and leveraging networks can bring great benefits in good times and bad. Successful founders actively seek out networking opportunities, build relationships with mentors, investors, and industry experts, and leverage their networks to open doors and create new opportunities (and even a source of new hires).

If you aren't a natural salesperson, networking may seem daunting. But, once you start, you'll really find yourself quickly spotting opportunities when talking to people and find collaborations and partnerships as well as customers.

By investing regular time to network, you will likely further develop some of the other skills on this list - like emotional intelligence, sales and marketing and even resilience.

8. Emotional intelligence

Let's be honest, working will always have moments that are stressful, and leaders need to be able to manage their emotions as well as the emotions of others. Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognise and manage your own emotions, as well as the emotions of others, and use this knowledge to build stronger relationships, improve communication, and create a positive work environment.

This is a soft skill but one that can have a huge direct impact on your revenue - emotionally intelligent leaders mean happier, more engaged teams, which in turn means lower staff attrition and higher productivity. Emotionally intelligent leaders can even create better products, thanks to their increased empathy for the end user!

How can one founder cover all these skills?

A successful startup founder needs to have vision and inspire others. Good problem-solving, resilience, adaptability and emotional intelligence are also crucial skills a founder must display. Investing time and effort into developing these skills will pay off in the long run and help you drive growth in your startup.

While skills in sales and marketing, financial acumen and networking are also critical for success, these are areas where you can bring in specialist support. It's impossible to have precisely the correct balance of skills at all times, so ensuring that you have the core bases covered should help things run smoothly while you look to bring in experts to complement your core team.

This expertise could come from permanent hires from your network (often the best way), using a recruitment agency (often expensive) or by talking to someone like Startup Founders Toolkit. We have experts on hand to complement and boost your core skills and ensure your startup is a success.

TL;DR

• A leader should have a clear vision and inspire others to work towards it
• Good problem-solving skills require analytical and creative thinking, as well as collaboration and communication
• Resilience helps to persevere through difficult times, stay motivated, and maintain a positive attitude despite challenges.
• As a founder, you must be adaptable to new situations and embrace change to grow.
• Sales and marketing are crucial for communicating value to investors, customers and partners.
• Financial acumen is crucial for allocating resources and goes hand-in-hand with problem-solving.
• Networking will build relationships and create new opportunities
• Emotional intelligence will help manage emotions to improve communication and create a positive work environment.
• Focus on your core skills and bring in expertise to cover areas where you are weakest.

Whether your scaleup needs a tuneup or your startup needs a kickstart, speak to us and we'll help you supercharge your success with our toolkit of experts.

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