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Publishing-in-support-of, EDUCREATION PUBLISHING RZ 94, Sector - 6, Dwarka, New Delhi - 110075 ShubhamVihar, Mangla, Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh - 495001 Website: www.educreation.in Copyright, Author All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, magnetic, optical, chemical, manual, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written consent of its writer. ISBN: 978-1-61813-676-3 Price: ` 415.00 The opinions/ contents expressed in this book are solely of the author and do not represent the opinions/ standings/ thoughts of Educreation. Printed in India ii
The FUN of being in a START UP Umesh Santoshkumar Yashoda Rathod EDUCREATION PUBLISHING (Since 2011) www.educreation.in iii
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Cover Story The book cover is shot at the dramatic steps of the Town Hall at the famous Asiatic Library, Mumbai. The photo is narrated as a poem written by the author. KEEP WALKING! Walk alone if you must, Keep walking, You may fall, who doesn t? Keep walking, They will stop you, won t they? Just keep walking, You reached your goal? No, Keep walking, When people leave you, Keep walking, Everything will make sense, Keep walking, If you think your path is lost, Remember you have just created one! Does this sound like you? Were you thinking about yourself while reading the above context? You, yes you are on the right track. Keep Walking! P ix
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Prologue Former President our beloved youth icon Shri. Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam has called for the inclusion of entrepreneurship in the educational curricula in the country. "We need education that creates environment for entrepreneurship," Kalam said at the EDI in Ahmedabad few years back. The education system should introduce syllabus of entrepreneurship; students right from school to college need to get skills that can provide freedom," he said. Dr. Kalam also stressed that banks should be proactive in supporting innovations. The global community should focus on common issues like poverty, lack of education and poor healthcare, he added. "Today, the challenge before the world is of poverty, including in India. We need to find solutions. It is the collective responsibility of the global community. Countries should start tackling common enemies like poverty, lack of education and poor healthcare," he said. There is need for an equal distribution of resources and we should focus on national, regional and global peace, he added. Defeat the Problem and Succeed! If you're on a new mission or a complex task, you should also expect to experience equally challenging problems. You should not allow the problem to become your captain. You should become the captain of the problem, defeat the problem and succeed. xi
The above words were given to Dr. Kalam by his professor once and he has followed them throughout his life and it is also what he suggests to young entrepreneurs. "This may be true for every one of you in the decision making process, venture capital acquisition, equipment procurement, commissioning equipment, paying back large loans, acquisition of human resource, training of human resource, marketing of your products and every one of your day-to-day activities as an entrepreneur. Till you break even and start making profit, you will have to have a willpower which is stronger than diamond. I am sure; you will develop this trait and become a very successful entrepreneur." said Dr. Kalam. With Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam at Mumbai (Year 2014) xii
Further he added - Profit with integrity leads to sustained growth. How is it possible? We need to have National ethics for sustained growth and peace from where it starts. Nation has to have ethics in all its tasks, for sustained economic prosperity and peace. If nation is to have ethics; society has to promote ethics and value system. If society is to have ethics and value system, families should adhere to ethics and value system; If families have to get evolved with ethics and value system, parenthood should have inbuilt ethics. Parental ethics come from great learning, value based education and creation of clean environment that leads to righteousness in the heart. "When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bounds, your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, you will find yourself in a new great and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be." It would not be wrong to quote that, Dr. Kalam was India s one of the most successful Intrapreneurs& it is he from whom we drive motivation even today. P xiii
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Dedication I dedicate this book to Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam who inspires billions of us and the Indian Armed forces who protects billions of us. P xv
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Preface The Fun of being in a Startup resonates with the thoughts of Dr. Kalam, "It s only when we are faced with failure do we realize that these resources were always there within us". I never thought I would be writing a book in the first place. I never should have but after reading Whatever you think, think the opposite by Paul Arden my plans were put to actions through a journey called Start-up. It took me 7 years to bring my whole experience through this book which is the blood & sweat from yesteryears. This book can accompany anyone who wants to start-up at the various levels of their journey. The endless Entrepreneurial opportunities in India need Entrepreneurs more than the people wanting to be an Entrepreneur. If you received this book as a gift from your friends/relatives/colleagues I am sure they love you more than you can imagine, take out some time to thank them. Also, give someone an opportunity to thank you by passing on this book. But before that make sure you read this book good enough to accompany them in Startup journey, it s time to build a community of Unicorns! In hope that this book hits you with what you want right now because, it s the right time to start! P xvii
Reasons to Start up now! Free Internet Access to Funding More freedom & flexibility More support for business than ever More contribution to India s economy More impact on the society or community And most important one INDIA needs YOU, WORLD needs YOU P xviii
Contents Sr. No. Chapter Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 No Fun No Gain Only Pain! (Ouch) Don t Remain On the Sidelines It s Business (The Fun) Or a roller coaster ride! Be Secured or to be Unsecured (The Real Fun) Self Employment Who will do the talking? (Forced Fun) Take the Opportunities. Entrepreneurship helps (Intellectual Fun) Innovation The Extinction of JOBS (Jobless Fun) Job Creator > Job Seeker Building a team (Fun, Fun and fun) Innovators, Thinkers and Captivators. A New Breed: CEO s (Serious Fun) New generation on the move. Strong Strategy Building (Captivation Fun) Wazaaa! Cannibalize: (Wildest Fun) A Business growth Strategy 1 7 15 21 27 35 41 49 63 79 xix
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Empowering patience (Fun at Halt) At the Workplace Worry About Competitors! (Dangerous Fun) Are you serious? Creating a Culture (Powerful fun) Entrepreneurship Changing the World (Fun Unlimited) With Start Ups Women Entrepreneurship (As they say why only boys should have all the fun!) The Indian Scene. Experience (Fun Intended) Learn Unlearn Relearn Closing thoughts (Learning is Fun) Entrepreneurial Community. 91 97 113 119 129 139 153 Summary Essentials for 1st Generation Entrepreneurs 179 Acknowledgement 199 Author Profile 201 P xx
#IAmStartingUp Umesh Santoshkumar Yashoda Rathod 1 W No Fun, No Gain, Only Pain! (Ouch) - Don t Remain On the Sidelines. 1
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#IAmStartingUp Umesh Santoshkumar Yashoda Rathod A business has to be involving, it has to be fun, and it has to exercise your creative instincts. Richard Branson When we are doing something, if we love it then not only we work to earn but also for winning, so that our brand could stand tall against the giant ones in the market. The quote in the above context by Mr. Richard Branson is so true; you need to be immersed in your business because you have to put in many hours before it pays off. There are many people who take up job and think they have won something big. But the fact, that in entrepreneurship you get a chance to win every day. One of the biggest thrills of working in a startup is being part of a team that is constantly striving to improve their product and service. Sometimes the goals are even loftier and are fueled by a drive to become the leader in the industry. In many startup businesses, employees are often more like a family than merely a group of co-workers. When you re as friendly with the CEO as you are with the person sitting next to you, you feel a strong sense of togetherness and purpose that larger, more hierarchical companies often lack. The startup will let you push yourself to limits unimagined. It also provides the cohesive environment to question & to ponder upon things which are rarely welcomed at a Corporate. It is the survival of the flattest now, more power to co-working, co-building & co-creating. 3
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#IAmStartingUp Umesh Santoshkumar Yashoda Rathod Startup employees have more fun. It s just the way it is because you get equal opportunities to learn more in tenure of 6 months at a startup than you will in 4 years at any university or at JOB. Running a startup is not like having a job or being a student, because it never stops. This is so foreign to most people's experience that they don't get it till it happens. I think the thing that's been most surprising to me is how one's perspective on time shifts. Working in the startup, I remember the time seeming to stretch out, so that a month was a huge interval. The love for the organization makes you strive harder to achieve your goals and that too with a tireless feeling. So the funniest thing about a start up is you enjoy every moment through the hard times too. It's how much you become consumed by your startup, the dedication to think about it day and night, but never once does it feels like "work" (boredom). This fun helps you to gain more in your business because you like what you are doing and do get a chance to do what you like! After all success arrives to those who strive for it. I am surprised by how much better it feels to be working on something that is challenging and creative, something I believe in. I knew it would feel better; what's surprising is how much better. Frankly, though, if I've misled people here, I'm not eager to fix that. I'd rather have everyone think starting a startup is grim and hard than have the founder go into it expecting it to be fun, and a few months later saying, Is this supposed to be fun? Are you kidding me? 5
The Fun of Being in A Start Up The truth is it wouldn't be fun for most people. A lot of what we try to do in the application process is to weed out the people who wouldn't like it, both for our sake and theirs. The best way to put it might be that starting a startup is fun the way a survivalist training course would be fun, if you're into that sort of thing which is to say, not at all, if you re not? P 6
#IAmStartingUp Umesh Santoshkumar Yashoda Rathod 2 W It s Business (The Fun) Or a roller coaster Ride! 7
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#IAmStartingUp Umesh Santoshkumar Yashoda Rathod In a startup, things seem great one moment and hopeless the next. And by next, I mean a couple hours later. The emotional ups and downs were the biggest surprise for me. One day, we'd think of ourselves as the next Google and dream of buying islands; the next, we'd be pondering how to let our loved ones know of our utter failure; and on and on. It's a Roller-coaster ride. The hard part, obviously, is the lows. For a lot of founders that was the big surprise: How hard it is to keep everyone motivated during rough days or weeks or even months i.e. how low the lows can be. After a while, if you don't have significant success to cheer you up, it wears you out. The most basic advice to founders is just don't die, but the energy to keep a company going in location of unburdening success isn't free; it is drawn from the founders themselves. There's a no limit to how much you can take. If you get to the point where you can't keep working anymore, it's not the end of the world. Plenty of famous founders had big failures along the way and lot many sacrifices in their life before making big in life, I mean real BIG! The Life, and business, can be like a roller coaster it s great, then it turns ugly, then it s great again. The speed may vary, but it always seems to cycle like this. Is there a reason for this? 9
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#IAmStartingUp Umesh Santoshkumar Yashoda Rathod Get Complete Book At Educreation Store www.educreation.in 11