#hubstartups: RideBee

What advice would you share with other founders? 
You have to get out of your comfort zone right from the start and actively approach people because they’re happy to help you most of the time. Have fun in your team, think positively, and give yourself the freedom to do things that don’t just involve founding.

What surprised you the most when you started out?
You spend an incredible amount of time doing things you never learned during your studies or that don’t relate to the actual product. Therefore time becomes an extremely valuable resource and you have to make the most of it through high productivity, good teamwork and - unfortunately, unavoidably - long evenings. I find it extremely difficult to work a normal job alongside founding a business.

What do you want from politics and from Germany as a business location?
In many industries there are high entry barriers for startups in the form of laws, requirements to be met, or protection of existing players. These need to be relaxed, as they are currently standing in the way of progress. Moreover, technical inventions are not the only successful way to solve problems - pragmatic concepts are often just as useful.

Why doesn't Germany have a leading startup ecosystem?
The mindsets we need are fostered throughout school and the education system. However, there isn’t enough emphasis on independent thinking - instead, our institutions work stubbornly through a curriculum. Creativity and the desire to bring about change are rejected. Risk aversion is also deeply rooted in German culture. So long as you don’t have a family or own a home, your financial risk is very limited.