WEBVTT

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So I guess I can just start.

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So a lot of startups consider
themselves as rocket ships.

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However, when you
actually join a startup,

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you don't necessarily
know what to expect.

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So firstly, I want to
define what is a "startup."

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There is no exact definition.

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However, startup companies
tend to work on problems where

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a solution is not quite obvious,
and success is then guaranteed.

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Also, startup companies come
up with innovative products

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and services and are designed
to scale very quickly.

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So this summer--

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Hit Start.

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OK.

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This summer, I worked at
a fashion tech company

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based in New York
City, Shoptiques.

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So Shoptiques lets you
shop the best boutiques

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all around the world.

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It used to be that if you
were in, say, Delaware

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and wanted to shop from
boutiques in New York City, Las

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Vegas, or Paris, you literally
had to buy a plane ticket

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and go there.

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However, Shoptiques
solved this problem.

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So it created this value
for small boutiques

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to actually have
his online presence.

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And at the same time, it
provided opportunities

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for customers who are looking
for this unique shopping

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experience, customers
like yourself.

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So startup culture--
startups tend

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to be known for
their unique culture.

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Startups are very
flat-structured.

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For example, I
had an opportunity

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to work closely with the CEO and
all the senior management team,

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and everyone was really
easily approachable.

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So I was able to
just contact whenever

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I needed help to basically
anyone from our team.

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Startups tend to be very
efficient because they

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grow on a very
high pace, and they

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need to learn how to conduct
their work in efficient ways.

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So I also learned how to
be efficient by working

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at a startup.

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They're very client-oriented
because if you

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want your startup
to be successful,

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you would need to make sure that
you meet the client's needs.

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And I also learned
how to do that

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by communicating
with our clients.

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Collaborative work--
it's very important.

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Here, you can see our team.

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It actually was
after working hours,

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and we were learning
how to code.

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So it was a very
rewarding experience

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because through this
collaborative work,

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we were able to do
so many projects

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and actually helped
develop the startup stuff.

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And also, there is one perk
that most of the startups,

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they don't really
have a dress code.

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So I got a chance to wear
really basically what

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I wanted to wear.

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My responsibilities-- what
were my responsibilities?

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So startups don't tend to
have any structured internship

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programs.

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And although I was a
business development intern,

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I had an opportunity
to work within most

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of the company's departments.

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I worked on sales, marketing
projects, and even web

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development.

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I conducted industry
research, and I

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tried to identify and prospect
our potential customers

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to see if they're the
right fit for our company.

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I reached out to clients,
our existing clients,

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trying to figure out what
problems they were having

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in sales and other processes so
that we could fix them and help

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them to increase their sales.

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I did, as I mentioned,
web development.

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It was a very interesting and
at the same time challenging

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experience for me because I've
only taken I think one or two

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computer science classes.

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And obviously, I was never
faced with web designing.

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So here, I basically learned
how to build a website.

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And I actually want to share
a couple of the websites

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that I've built.
They're pretty simple,

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but still, I'm proud of them
because I actually made them.

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So OK.

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I was also involved in marketing
projects, trying to figure out

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how to increase the traffic
for our website, how

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we can promote the website.

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I also worked on email
marketing strategies,

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from design to launch, so that
we would increase the traffic

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and, at the end, increase
our customer orders.

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And besides that, I also
worked on optimizing

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photoshoot processes,
and sometimes, I even

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made shipment labels.

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So it was a very
interesting experience

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because I had an
opportunity to work

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with a lot of
different products.

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So challenges-- of course,
the most challenging thing

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for me working at a
startup was to multitask.

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Everything at a startup
is very fast-paced

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because it's growing
very quickly.

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And sometimes, I had to work
on multiple projects at a time.

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And what actually helped me is
to go reach to my colleagues

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to ask if they
could maybe help me

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or if I, for example,
could finish the project

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tomorrow because,
for example, I had

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to finish one project today.

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So I was trying to
manage this multitasking

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and tried to gain these really
good time management skills.

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So takeaways that I
have for you is always

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to talk to your mentor.

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When I joined the
startup, I did not quite

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have a clear idea of what this
internship is going to lead,

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how is the internship
going to be constructed,

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and what I'm going
to take out of this.

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So I talked to my manager.

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I described the
interests that I have,

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and I told her that I wanted to
be involved as much as I can.

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And so that's why I
had this opportunity

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to work within
multiple departments

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and on multiple projects.

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Always ask.

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If you don't ask, their
answer is always no.

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So if you don't know,
for example, something,

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it is OK to ask because the
fastest way to learn is to ask.

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And take initiatives.

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Startups tend to be
known because there

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are a lot of leadership
opportunities out there.

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Everyone is willing to
listen to your ideas,

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and they don't consider
you as an intern.

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They consider you as
a part of the team.

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So they will always
listen to your ideas

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and will help you to
actually realize them.

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And engage with your coworkers
because at the end of the day,

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you will always remember
those relationships

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that you have established
working at your company.

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And also, find your own path.

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Because I was able to
be involved within most

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of the company's departments
and worked on various projects,

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I was able to figure out
for myself that I really

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like to work on sort
of analytical problems,

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finding ways to solve problems.

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So that actually
helped me to realize

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that probably consulting would
be a good career and right

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fit for me.

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So if you guys ever
have this opportunity

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to work at a
startup, I would just

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say go for it because you
will definitely learn a lot

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and be exposed to a wide range
of responsibilities and duties.

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So thank you so much.

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[APPLAUSE]

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