Three questions for Stephan Töllers

1. Please briefly introduce yourself and your current job.

My name is Stephan Töllers. After studying aerospace engineering, I now work as an information designer together with a colleague responsible for the communication of the Gründermotor Landesinitiative and am employed at the Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation Research. At first, the leap from the world of engineering to the field of communication & branding may seem strange, but this journey began for me even before my studies through a part-time job as a media designer. With joy and passion I pursued the topic of graphic design and later also information design alongside my studies and was then able to switch completely to this field after my bachelor's degree. Through this journey I am now a person who knows colors like petrol, apricot and lilac and at the same time can integrate multidimensional functions - even if this knowledge is frighteningly rarely useful in the life of an information designer.

2. How did you get involved in entrepreneurship?

I came to the topic of entrepreneurship in my fourth semester of aerospace engineering at the University of Stuttgart. During a period of personal orientation, I received an offer to work as a designer for the Let US start! Initiative of the Vector Foundation and University as a designer. So I was also a participant in the first batch of the Let US start! SQ "In six weeks to a startup" and in the following two semesters I led this SQ. On this path, the step into the Stuttgart startup scene was a very small one and I enjoyed the atmosphere of departure that prevailed at that time, as many players started to set new impulses - e.g. Gründermotor with the Meisterklasse format. At that time, I was also on the road in various formats as a startup coach with a focus on branding.

3. What tip would you give to students who are enthusiastic about founding a company, who are currently thinking about founding a company or who have already taken the first steps towards self-employment?  

The jump into the cold water is surpassed by the realization that you can also swim in cold water 😉