Kelly Teng

Kelly helps the team reach and deepen relationships with founders, as well as members of the wider startup ecosystem. A wordsmith and content creator, Kelly’s experience in journalism enables her to tell stories that resonate with the HGV community. Kelly joins the High Growth Ventures team following several years working as a consultant and content strategist for global startups and scale-ups. Her diverse career trajectory, plus her passion for communicating with others, give her with the perfect tools to allow High Growth Ventures and the stories of its community to shine.

I'm most proud of...

Quitting my fast-paced job in Shanghai to become a digital nomad. It took a massive leap of faith to say goodbye to the stability that came with having a day job, but it was one of the best experiences I've ever had in my life. I believe that those three years of running my own business and seeing the world shaped me into the person I am today, and that they accelerated my personal and professional development in a truly unique way.

The most valuable lesson I've learned was...

Communication is everything. It doesn't matter if you're writing an email to someone, putting together a pitch deck for your next raise, or writing your thoughts down in a LinkedIn post. The information we choose to convey and how we choose to convey it, is integral to getting the message across effectively. 

In the startup ecosystem, I'm most passionate about...

Diversity. I'm a member of multiple startup communities and what I love is that the 'typical founder' today is very different to who they were five or ten years ago. I believe that when people see a founder who looks like them or who has a similar story to them, they are much more likely to relate to them and feel inspired to pursue their own endeavour - whatever that might be!

I believe the most important thing for founders in today's environment is...

A healthy sense of curiosity and creativity.

Curiosity, because challenges and setbacks are going to happen. It's part and parcel of building something that nobody has ever done before. If you approach the world through a lens of asking 'why', you're much more likely to tackle these inevitable problems from a place of openness and learning, rather than fear.

Creativity, because the landscape has changed and the ones who adapt are the ones who pivot and think outside the box. The future might not look the way you imagined it - but what else could it be? 

My words to live by

Life is a sum of all your choices. Every decision you make, whether trivial or significant, will play a role in where you end up in the future. So what are you doing today?

"challenges and setbacks are going to happen. It's part and parcel of building something that nobody has ever done before. If you approach the world through a lens of asking 'why', you're much more likely to tackle these inevitable problems from a place of openness and learning, rather than fear."