5 Things We Learnt in 2020
It’s almost unnerving to reflect on the most challenging year in living memory but there’s been plenty of good moments too.
What were we doing in April? Probably the same as most other people. Either at home watching the news in horror, or in a Sainsbury queue wishing we were back at home watching the news in horror.
But in between the two, we worked hard, kept in touch with our friends and family, colleagues and clients, and tried to stay positive.
Through the year we also continued our podcast, recording 20 episodes of Everydays Startups and 14 episodes of The Insider.
The best thing about podcasting is the facility to meet like-minded business leaders, talk about work/life and learn from incredibly smart and generous people.
Here’s our top five learnings from the year.
1. #WFH is all about teamwork
Remote Work expert, Asia Lindsay, spoke to us about the ups and downs of #WFH. Asia previously worked for Topal, the world’s largest fullest remote country and in that time traveled to something like 90+ countries! Obviously, there’s no way we were traveling this year, but with an international team now all #WFH we had to figure out how to fully function as a team.
We discovered it was a trial and error process of trying new platforms (Jamm - very good for multi person video conferencing) and making time to hangout when not actually working (team games every monday eve!).
2. Bootstrapping brings just rewards
Abadesi Osunsade from Hustle Crew-fame gave us a masterclass on How to Bootstrap in a Crisis. Having bootstrapped a few startups ourselves previously we know that building a business & brand independently whilst not giving up any shares for equity gives you complete control over the decision making process. Abadesi is a gifted speaker and this is the perfect episode for anyone at the beginning of their startup journey.
3. Investment is out there, you just need to know where to look
Silicon Roundabout fund manager, Francesco Perticarai, joined us for a fantastic conversation about his “DeepTech” investment portfolio. By September, it seems investors were coming out from hiding and taking punts again. Francesco shared with us what has changed in the interests of investors, and, crucially, what hasn’t.
4. Starting up in Stealth is more than just good alliteration
Amandine Flachs announced her new AI & Gaming startup, WildMeta, after months of silently beavering away with her CTO.
We wondered, why would someone opt to go under the radar when investors are always so interested in clear brand identity and early adaptor engagement? But Amandine’s reasoning for getting on behind closed doors with only a few people in-the-know sounds very compelling.
5. Chatbots are the real winner of the pandemic
In 2020 the chatbot market saw a staggering 32.5% increase on 2019. Some of this was organic growth, but it was mostly driven by the pandemic and transition to remote life.
So we welcomed Francesco Stasi to give us the low down on his brilliant Copenhagen based startup BotSupply.ai and the one sector that was literally boomed in 2020.
What Will 2021 Bring?
If anything, we are trying to resist asking this question.
Considering the plans laid out in January 2020 for the year ahead were blasted off the table by mid March, it's definitely time to stay cool and think about what one can control.
So we’re choosing to stay present and enjoy an intimate Christmas with close family.
Sending best wishes to yours.
