*POOF*, there goes 2018. The year it all began for Bothrs, and it went by with the speed of light. It’s been a hell of a year for us, there’s no doubt about that. We worked with lovely clients, met a lot of inspiring people, pushed boundaries to deliver the best of ourselves, but most of all, we had a blast. With 2018 in hindsight, the team took some time to determine our vision and set sail for the year to come.

Ward, our newest developer, and Dries, our Behavioral Design Intern, have come up with a couple of new year resolution-like, bite size tips they have learned in their first months at Bothrs. In this post we will talk about the five most important things. So read on, future hero!

1. Always Be Capturing (#readreadread)

We’re kicking off the list with this one, and it’s an important one. The first thing a Bothrs Hero should do is read, duh. Always Be Capturing (ABC), a term coined by the mighty Jake Knapp, is something we live by. We eat articles on Medium, Techcrunch and Producthunt for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It’s not only important to read things that pique your interest, it’s also important to share these things with your fellow companions. Give presentations about topics, pitch ideas for new projects, or just do both in a lunch talk, for example. Sharing thoughts and ideas is highly encouraged at Bothrs, and we’re happy to make time for that.

2. Listen and ask questions, even if you think you understand. 

Listening, really? Isn’t that obvious? Isn’t that something you should always do? Well yeah, but we can’t stress the importance of listening enough. More specifically, listening to clients, talking about their problems and translating them into ‘how might we’-solutions. In the ever-evolving tech world, it’s not only important to listen to clients, but also to keep your ears (an eyes) open to things happening around you. New technologies and possibilities emerge on the daily, so it is essential to understand the changes they bring along with them. And if you don’t understand, ask questions. And even if you do understand, double check. It’s better to be sure than to make mistakes. Right?

3. Spend your time and energy wisely (#maketime)

Three for me, literally. This one could be the most important one here. Spending time and energy wisely is incredibly important. We’re all hooked on Jake Knapp’s book Make Time, in which he presents many ways to stay focused and make time for yourself. Working in a tech startup, a rapidly evolving domain, sometimes comes with strict deadlines and working against the clock (or a time timer, if you will). That’s why we believe that making time for yourself is incredibly important for your own productivity and for your own health. We even bought an electric scooter that I can use to commute from and to the train station. I save about an hour every day taking this scooter instead of waiting for the bus. Talking 'bout efficiency 😉. 

4. Be motivated

It’s all in your hands. Ward and I experienced that starting somewhere new is never easy. But after a short while everything will start falling into place and you will be more confident than ever in your day-to-day activities. Try to find something in each project that you are truly excited about, because you will automatically be more motivated to work on that specific project, and your work will simply be better if you are truly excited about it.

5. Getting started is more important than being right

Oh hi AJ&Smart 👋. Yeah, we got this one from you guys. But you’re damn right. We’re all drenched in some sort of MVP mindset, and we’re encouraged to think like this in every situation. When it comes to product development, just putting stuff out there is key, because we will iterate along the way. And even for personal development you should start small and nurture healthy (atomic) habits, but most of all: you should start.

If you take these five things with you on your quest to become a Bothrs hero, you’re already halfway there. These are some things we live by, and we’re happy to share that philosophy with you in the first days of the new year. Make this year your best year, so will we.

Interested in becoming a Bothrs hero (or heroine) yourself? Check out our jobs page, pop over an email, click the chatbubble, scan the interwebs for our phone number, reach the hell out. Hear you soon!