Dreaming about becoming a startupper is one of the most common dreams of young people nowadays. Being the owner of your business, or a startupper, talking about a great vision and the success you’re going to have in the future can certainly lift your spirit. Young people are creative, they are dreamers and they need that creativity to be boosted.

However, the moment you step into the real world of businesses and especially start-up businesses you will see that, things are actually very, very different. Being the owner of the company is a very difficult thing. No matter how beautiful your dream might be no matter how viable your vision might seem right now, when things start to take form, it will be very different.

You have to get back down to earth and realize one thing. You are not just responsible for the idea of a company now. You are responsible for the people working in it, you are responsible for all the bureaucratic procedures and you are going to be the one that will have to deal with the world in order to make your company work.

There are certain skills that every young startupper needs to possess in order to be able to succeed. These are called soft skills and they play, perhaps, the most important role when it comes to supporting your company in taking the right steps for a successful future. Real soft skills will build a trust relationship between you and your employees. It will help you build the foundation of your start-up every single day. In this article we’re going to try to give you the five most important soft skills that every young entrepreneur needs to have in order to succeed:

• Give people the opportunity to work with you. Don’t just sell your products.

Being an entrepreneur and a startupper is a little bit different than being a business owner. You want to work with your customers and clients. You want to show them that this is not just a professional ‘’relationship’’. You want to build on your products and all your services, you do not want to enforce them to people. You want your customers to see you not your product. You have to be communicative, you have to be ready to cooperate with them. You have to make them feel comfortable and familiar with what you have to offer.

• Every startupper should take risks

Another great difference between startuppers, start-up companies and old type businesses is the fact that, old type businesses were actually based on a very standard business plan that, the owners and all the employees have to follow to the letter. Taking chances and risks was not something that all companies used to do. As a young entrepreneur however, you will be facing a lot of competition. Taking risks is a necessity. Do not be afraid to try. After all, your entire endeavor is based on an idea and a vision. Unless you take risks you will never be able to bring that vision to life.

• Help your employees deal with stress

Old type business owners will not find it easy to understand this particular step. If you are the owner of a company you expect your employees to work a full eight hours and deliver the work they are getting paid for. What goes on in their heads isn’t really your business. What matters is the result. This is most certainly not the case when it comes to startuppers today.

You need to be able to help your employees deal with any kind of stress they might have. When employees are calm they are most certainly able to deliver 100% of what they’re responsible for. You need to make sure that, people working for your start-up will know that they can trust their boss and that, their working environment is a pleasant place to be. Help them deal with the stress and give them a chance to get to know you and trust you.

• Consider your future clients to be your friends

Don’t make the mistake of thinking about your clients like a simple network that you need to create. They are not objects. They are not just wallets that will open up in order to give you their money. Nowadays, people don’t just purchase things without thinking about it first. They want to be able to know that they could trust the company that creates the products and the people behind the desks. If you want your start-up to be a success then you need to make sure that, you will create a ‘’friendship’’ between you and your customers/clients not a faceless relationship.

• Be a startupper and a leader not a boss

The more your employees trust you, the more they like you as a person, the more likely they are to actually want to really work for you. You do not want to be a person that will force the employees to work. You will want to be that person that will empower them, give them reason to work other than just the salary. You want to make sure that your employees will know you are trying to make a difference and that, as a team, you will be able to achieve great things. Be their leader not the person that bosses them around.

By using these five simple soft skills, we can guarantee that, your company has a lot more chances towards a successful future. Build a trust relationship between your employees as well as your customers. This is the new way of things and you will want your start-up to be on the top of everything.