MUSE - safe and sound approach to citizens to get collectively entrepreneurship and start-up experience & skills

The MUUSA project aims to improve the skills and abilities of those in and about to enter the work life by creating new types of relevant and engaging practices to support individual, yet communal growth. This is done in the spirit of an entrepreneurial operating culture and startup services, but with the values ​​and needs of the participants first.

The MUUSA concept created in the project identifies muse mentors from Southwest Finland and Pirkanmaa region, each of whom has their own profile. The participants choose a muse mentor who they feel is most suitable for them. Inspired by their muse mentor, this group gets to know each other and works together on individual and common goals, supported by the MUUSA project facilitators.

In addition: muse mentors also meet other muse mentors and muse mentors from their own region. And that's not all, the so-called "Turku and Tampere" muse mentor teams also meet each other. The goal is to promote participants' self-awareness, self-reliance and competence. In addition, new, more diverse communities for co-development are created. In these new networks, participants can find resonance for their new competence and even activities where entrepreneurial activity and entrepreneurship can feel like natural way of taking action.

New skills, a new approach and communities are needed in working life now more than ever. The communication of regional start-up communities and services tells of happy participants, a relaxed atmosphere, new knowledge and skills, and the progress of entrepreneurial actions and ideas with wonderful new people. But the identified problem is that traditional start-up activities meet the diverse needs of citizens in working life in a very narrow way. They can only take a limited number of participants and they often appeal mainly to technical-business-oriented people. Often the majority of participants are men.

Working life needs a large number of people with a start-up experience, people who are encouraged, confident and entrepreneurial minded. Favorable conditions must be created for cooperation, trust is the key (Blomqvist, 2023, Työyhteisön pieni kirja luottamuksesta, TYÖ2030). Not everyone starts their own company. But strengthening competence, trust, community and supra-provincial networks related to their own idea and their own first “team” are important capital for working-age people who need start-up experience. They bring new energy, self-confidence and better employability regardless of their labor market status. Start-up experience gives courage and humility. It operationalizes the curiosity and criticism of their own ideas with the help of the reliable community of MUUSA activities.

MUUSA concept and MUUSA operating model are created during the project, which complement and expand the offering of entrepreneurial activities and startup services to an even wider group of people of working age and those in working life.

Our society needs more of a positive, entrepreneurial and sustainably created attitude, but in a more diverse way than what current services offer. The MUUSA operating model supports the needs and values ​​of different people in and transitioning to working life in a muse-like style – strengthening every person's own and shared doing and being.

ESR+ Euroopan sosiaalirahasto 2021-2027

Keski-Suomen ELY-keskus