Skinnovation: when you're on stage as a startup this time, not an investor

Skinnovation.at is an Austrian startup conference that takes place every year in Innsbruck. This March yet another Skinnovation happened, and I honestly don't even remember exactly which one it was for me.

But we keep going there for the same reason: to pick up new thoughts, new contacts and to keep our Nordic mindset a bit more in check with reality.

Because Central Europe runs on different thoughts. Different winds. Different questions. And sometimes it's very useful to step out of your usual region to find out whether the things you consider important hold water elsewhere too.

This time I didn't have to be disappointed. We got interesting contacts, good conversations and of course a little more snowboarding, because the weather was great. And when the weather is great in Innsbruck, it would be a sin to stay inside a conference room only.

This time as a startup, not as an investor

For me there was one important difference at Skinnovation this time: I was there as a startup, not as an investor.

And I have to honestly say — startup life is in many respects significantly harder.

As an investor you watch from the side. You ask questions. You evaluate the team, market, product, risk and opportunity. You have distance.

As a startup you're on stage yourself. You have to express yourself clearly. You have to fit into the format. You have to make others understand why what you're doing matters.

That's a completely different role.

Pitching on the Olympic mountain train

One of Skinnovation's particularities this time was the pitch format: startups got to perform on the Olympic mountain train, going up and down. Each startup had their own two-minute moment of fame.

Two minutes.

That sounds simple, until you actually have to do it.

Preparing a two-minute pitch taught me a lot. Not only about Sparkly, but also about myself as a person.

I clearly understood that I'm not naturally a great speaker in a format where, in a very short time and without slides, you have to say everything precisely. So that nothing important is forgotten. So that it fits exactly in the time frame. So that the listener understands.

It was intense.

And very useful.

What I learned about myself

The biggest lesson wasn't even pitch-technical.

The biggest lesson was about how I perceive stories.

I realised that I don't look for emotion first in a story. I look for structure. Facts. Arguments. Logic. The big picture. How the details fit with the whole.

I quickly ask in my head: Is this clear? Is this logical? Does this fit my worldview? Is this useful to me? Can I somehow be helpful to them?

But when someone tells a very emotional story whose goal is to bring a tear to your eye, my sensitivity to it is low. I understand what's being done. But it doesn't hook me the same way as a well-built structure, a strong argument and a clear thought.

That was Skinnovation's biggest personal lesson.

And of course we took that knowledge back into the Sparkly software. Because exactly these kinds of differences in how people perceive, express themselves and decide affect how people work, lead, pitch, sell and collaborate.

From a Sparkly perspective, this was a very valuable experience

Sparkly HR is exactly about helping to better understand a person in the context of a role, team and company.

Not just whether someone is “good” or “bad”. But in which situations their strengths work and in which situations tension appears.

My own example was simple: if a task requires an ultra-short, emotionally engaging, by-heart pitch, then that is not my most natural format. If a task requires seeing systems, patterns, risks, structure and the big picture, then I'm much stronger there.

This isn't an excuse. It's knowledge.

And once knowledge is there, you can manage it.

A bit of snow, a bit of sun and a bit of adventure

This time I decided to stay one day longer. Together with my son we went snowboarding. The weather was beautiful and we rode all day.

Of course the trip couldn't end without a small adventure.

The return flight was supposed to go via London. But London, as we know, is not the European Union. To get there you need a passport. And now you also need a separate electronic entry registration, which I hadn't done.

So the journey home turned out different than planned: by train to Vienna, from there by plane via Warsaw back to Tallinn.

But adventures make life beautiful.

Why go to Skinnovation

Skinnovation isn't just a conference. It's a good mix of startups, investors, mountains, sport, random conversations and unexpected thoughts.

For me this time the most valuable thing was exactly the role change.

Being not an investor but a startup. Not the one asking but the one answering. Not the one evaluating but the one being evaluated.

It gives a different perspective.

And that perspective was needed. Both for myself and for Sparkly's development.