startup founders

‘The Perfect Black’ Story: How the obsession for BLACK became a startup journey

Anurag Kanoongo along with his wife Shikha started the startup ‘The Perfect Black’ where they only sell premium black clothing and accessories.

Napolean Hill believed that “Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle” and ‘The Perfect Black’ is an example of just that.

As the name suggests, The Perfect Black sells all things Black. Anurag Kanoongo after struggling to get premium black t-shirts and shirts without breaking a bank decided to take matter into his own hands. He along with his wife Shikha started the startup ‘The Perfect Black’ where they only sell premium black clothing and accessories.

They believe that for many people out there, black is their go-to colour and instead of searching through several stores or sites for that one black attire, customers would rather come to their website every time they need one – a basic Black Tee or a casual Black shirt and more.

The idea of The Perfect Black is to help people focus on what exactly matters to them, simplifying people’s lives in the smallest way possible.

Why Black?

Well, Anurag & Shikha believe that BLACK is a Color of Comfort, Convenience, and Power. Black is the only color that makes each body-type look beautiful as it appeals to any skin tone, height & age and gives confidence to the person who wears it. It is a colour which you can wear on almost any occasion. As Anurag says, “When in Doubt, Wear BLACK.”

Challenges faced during the initial phase of a startup?

When asked about the challenges that they faced, Anurag mentions that right from the ideation stage, the challenges were staring both him and Shikha in the face. While the idea of creating only BLACK color lifestyle products was exciting but both of them had no experience of creating clothes and accessories. Anurag mentions the top challenges:

Defining the technical specs of your product

“When we decided to start with creating a premium quality solid black t-shirt the first challenge was to define “Premium” What should be the fabric like in terms of its composition, GSM, treatment, etc. What should be the measurement chart? What should be branding and packaging like? Figuring out answers to all of these with no technical expertise available was tricky.”

Finding the right manufacturing partner

“This was the most challenging and crucial part. Finding the right manufacturing partners was not easy. When you are looking to create premium quality products, you need to partner with setups who have the know-how, skillset, and technology to create premium quality. The first few meetings were very difficult, and seeking time as well as the attention of the promoters of big manufacturing companies was a task. The discussions in the initial meetings were difficult to comprehend since they would speak in a lingo which was loaded with a lot of technical terms of that industry.”

Meeting the MOQ requirements

“Bigger and better manufacturing units are only willing to work with you when you can commit big numbers, the challenge was to negotiate the MOQ or Minimum Order Quantity. When you are bootstrapped, you are always short on funds and it is difficult to risk your money with a large amount of inventories. Also, the per-unit cost goes higher if the quantities are less, making it difficult to launch your products at an attractive price point”

Performance Pressure

“While our families were largely supportive of our decision to quit a double-digit salary and get into unknown waters, their worries started to build when months passed by and still there was no product in hand. Since we were obsessed with the idea of creating premium quality products, we were not willing to cut corners on anything, even if that resulted in a longer duration of product engineering & manufacturing. We witnessed, days when there were heated arguments, disappointment and doubts on what we were doing and if we were doing it right”

Low on Marketing Budgets

“Once the products were ready and inventory was received in our warehouse marketing ourselves online was a challenge in terms of our capacity to spend on Branding & Advertising. The Customer Acquisition Cost or CAC is very high in the initial days and it can exhaust your wallet really fast”

While they were surrounded by a lot of challenges, for them it was like delivering a baby! You take care of the child no matter what and bring them to the real world!

Anurag and Shikha Kanoongo, Founders, The Perfect Black

What are the hurdles in front of you on a daily basis when you run a startup?

“Since we are self-funded, thankfully we are not answerable to anyone else on a daily basis. However, the real challenge lies in being self-motivated to do better every single day. The beauty of being a start-up founder is that you have got to find a solution to a new problem every single day. For us, time management is the trickiest bit. You have to make time for handling production issues, speaking to your vendors and partners, writing content for a website, social media marketing, making cold calls for business development, follow-up with your team members and agencies, etc., maintaining accounts, and yes cleaning up your office on days when your maid is absent and much more…”

If given a chance to go for another startup what are the learnings that you will take from the mistakes of your previous venture?

Anurag recalls what they would have done differently. Here are a few things:

Followups

“I have learned it the hard way that even though you are paying people for their services you need to do constant follow-ups to ensure your work happens on schedule.”

Meeting More & More People

“Meeting people and engaging yourself in meaningful discussions and deliberations helps a lot to come up with solutions. I would like to do this much more.”

Keeping Track of Compliances

“I will be honest here, I have paid a late fee for missing out on ROC related compliances. No matter how much you may dislike investing time into maintaining records, accounts, and filing up, these need to be done on time and the penalties on missing out deadlines are heavy. So the next time, I would not let my hard-earned money get wasted in paying penalties, although I really wish that the compliances are reduced for startups so that they can focus more on creating great products and services.”

Where do you think you and your startup is going to be in the coming future?

“We started THE PERFECT BLACK with 3 products in the men’s category and then added another 2 products last year. In the next 2 years, we aim to expand our product range rapidly. We are working on launching the women category followed by accessories. The idea is to complete the list of essentials for both men and women.

Our Vision is to become a brand which is everyone’s first choice to buy BLACK color clothing and accessories from. We want to create products that truly deliver the right value for the time & money invested by the end-user. Check out www.theperfectblack.in.

To read about the founders of The Perfect Black and their stories in detail, click here.

How BLACK brought colours in the world of Anurag and Shikha, founders of retail start-up ‘The Perfect Black’

Kanoongo and his wife Shikha are as they’d like to call themselves, “Black Addicts.” The idea for their start-up The Perfect Black came in primarily from one simple need, the need to buy premium quality black t-shirts as well as shirts.

Christian Dior once said, “You can wear black at any time, any age & almost any occasion.” Well, that’s what Anurag & Shikha believe in too. Their love for black clothing is so deep that they decided to make a living out of selling black clothing & accessories to the ones who share a similar love for BLACK.

Anurag Kanoongo and his wife Shikha Khandelwal are as they’d like to call themselves, “Black Addicts”. The idea for their start-up The Perfect Black came in primarily from one simple need, the need to buy premium quality black t-shirts. Both the partners in crime and permanent roommates have several things in common – their love for travel, exploring different cuisines & cultures, and most importantly, their love for the colour BLACK.

Both of them before jumping into the black sea they created for themselves, worked in the corporate sector for more than twelve years. In fact, the whole corporate exposure helped them learn the nuances of every possible business function.

One day, after a long heated argument before leaving for work, they intensely discussed as to how they were stuck in the corporate cycle and how badly did they want out. They decided to give themselves a break and invest about three months to come up with an action plan. Anurag left his job first and after serving a month-long notice period, here he was with a small amount of savings in his bank account and cluelessness as to what would be the next step.

They took a few days of break, travelled and breathed into the time they got. Then began the phase of googling, reading and ideating for ideas but to their disappointment nothing came up and then as Anurag mentions, it was a Eureka moment for them.

The idea of their start-up was not a direct result of their hours and months of thinking. It was as coincidental and extemporized as it can get. When Anurag was organizing his wardrobe, he looked at his worned out Black t-shirt and said to Shikha “I will again need to hunt for a solid black tee, I really wish if there was a brand I knew where I could just buy good quality staples in Black” – BINGO! He looked at Shikha and even without saying a word to one another, they knew what the look was all about. They discussed and deliberated on this thought for days and reached a point where they now had a potential idea to work upon.

High on idea orientation & risk-taking Anurag has a very interesting & varied experience. A B.E., MBA he has worked with leading brands across Telecom, IT, Education, and Internet & Digital Media domain. In his last stint with Times Internet he was leading pre-sales, business operations & marketing for some of the best brands which include MensXP, iDiva, Indiatimes, itimes, and WhatsHot. Continuing to work in one of these brands would have sent him on top of the corporate map any day, however, both life and Anurag had different plans, that too pitch black ones that would bring in enough light in his career.

Talking about the woman behind it all, Shikha had always been inclined towards business, and being an entrepreneur was her natural calling. A Chartered Accountant by profession, Shikha has over 15 years of rich corporate experience. During her stint, she has worn many hats including one of Marketing, HR & IT, and of course Finance. In fact, she was the founding member of the team that has built and established a leading retail eyewear brand that has over 50 stores across India. She is blessed with analytical skills and is high on thoroughness.

Initiating a startup has been a herculean task for them like any other, however, their passion and togetherness kept them going! Their working style is inspired by the Indian way of doing business (as they call it). For them, business is not all about generating income but also about engaging themselves in doing something meaningful which helps them to grow materially, intellectually, and emotionally.

When asked about his lessons, harsh realities and dos & don’ts for the young generation budding entrepreneurs, here is what Anurag had to say:

There is no right way of doing business

“During my MBA days, I had learned many theories and frameworks for solving different kind of problems and the best practices to do business, but I have come to realize that the best way is your own way of doing it! The way your business shapes up is a reflection of your personality and value system. So don’t let people tell you what’s right and wrong for you. Trust your gut and make your own decisions.”

Product/Service has to be the Hero

“Get your product right! Invest a disproportionate amount of time in working out the minutest detail of your product/service. Your product should give you the confidence that it is the best thing available in that category.”

Be ready to become ‘Jack of All Trades’

“When you are about to start on your own, most of you will not have the luxury to spend your dollars on everything, so be ready to learn new skills and do things which you haven’t in past. For eg. I believe I have a fair sense of design and so I decided to build my own website using readily available online tools and saved money which I invested in hiring a professional agency for creating our brand identity including brand logo, brand elements etc.”

Don’t expect Glamour and Flamboyance

“We hear success stories of startups and perceive that the journey is going to be full of glamour. Well the reality is that you have to work in the trenches and it’s a lot of hard work and perseverance. The glamour comes only when you reach a stage where you can narrate your story and inspire others!”

To read about their startup The Perfect Black in detail, click here.

These are richest startup founders for India in 2017

Snapdeal’s Kunal Bahl and Ola’s Bhavish Aggarwal are no longer in the top 15 richest entrepreneurs.

A recent study on Indian startups by the IBM Institute for Business Value and Oxford Economics found that 90% of startups in India fail within the first five years. Thousands of internet entrepreneurs are being minted in India every year. Billions of dollars were poured into the new ventures by investment firms. However, only a few have stood out with their startups. Many of those are on the way to achieving unicorn status. India’s list of richest startup founders in 2017 still contains many familiar names, but some have slipped off — Snapdeal’s Kunal Bahl and Ola’s Bhavish Aggarwal are no longer in the top 15 richest Indian entrepreneurs.

Below is the complete list of the richest startup founders in India.

Bhavin Turakhia, Directi/Media.net

Bhavin Turakhia is an Indian entrepreneur, CEO and co-founder of Directi. He is also the founder and CEO of Flock, Radix, CodeChef, and Ringo, as well as the co-founder of Media.net and Zeta.In 2016, Bhavin Turakhia was ranked as the 95th richest person in India, with a net worth of US$1.3 billion, along with his brother Divyank Turakhia. Bhavin Turakhia has jumped to first place after seeing a four-fold increase in his wealth in 2017. With a net worth of Rs. 11,500 crore, Bhavin Turakhia is currently India’s richest tech entrepreneur.

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Paytm

Vijay Shekhar Sharma is an Indian entrepreneur and founder of mobile payments company, Paytm. In 2005, he started One97 Communications which offered mobile content like news, cricket scores, ringtones, jokes and exam results. One97 is the parent company of Paytm, which was launched in 2010. In 2017, Vijay Shekhar Sharma was featured in the World Billionaire’s List by Forbes, and became India’s youngest business man to be featured on the list.

Softbank has made its biggest investment by sealing a funding round of Rs 9,000 crore ($1.4 billion) in One 97 Communications which owns mobile payments provider Paytm, making it the country’s second most valuable startup with worth $8 billion. Vijay Shekhar Sharma, now has a net worth of Rs. 9,000 crore.

Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal, Flipkart

Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal, co-founders of India’s most valuable internet firm Flipkart, lost their billionaire status after the e-commerce firm’s valuation fell in its latest funding round. The Bansals became the first internet billionaires in 2015 when Flipkart raised $700 million at a valuation of $15 billion. Their fortunes were then estimated to be worth roughly $1.3 billion each, according to Forbes magazine. Now, Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal have worth of Rs. 5,400 crore each.

Ganesh Krishnan, Portea Medical

Ganesh Krishnan is a successful serial India entrepreneur with four successful green field ventures and exits. Ganesh’s last venture, TutorVista was acquired by Pearson for $213 million. His current venture, Portea Medical, provides technlogy-led home health care to the Indian consumer. He also mentors, incubates and funds startups and is strategic investor and promoter of several Indian consumer Internet and ecommerce companies including Bigbasket.com, Bluestone.com, and Avagmah.com. Ganesh Krishnan has a net worth of Rs. 5,100 crore.

Sanjeev Bikhchandani, Info Edge

Sanjeev Bikhchandani is an Indian entrepreneur, founder and CEO of Info Edge which owns Naukri.com. In 1990, Sanjeev Bikhchandani started two Internet companies Indmark and Info Edge, along with a partner. Info Edge is India’s premier online classifieds company in recruitment (Naukri.com, NaukriGolf.com, Quadranglesearch.com, FirstNaukri.com), matrimony (Jeevansathi.com), real estate (99acres.com), education (Shiksha.com) and related services. Currently, the company has investments in Zomato Media Private Limited (Zomato.com), Applect Learning Systems Private Limited (Meritnation.com), Etechaces Marketing and Consulting Private Limited (Policybazaar.com), Kinobeo Software Private Limited (MyDala.com), Canvera Digital Technologies Private Limited (Canvera.com), and many others. Sanjeev Bikhchandani has now net worth of Rs. 4,800 crore.

Vishal Mehta, Infibeam.com

After working for Dell and Amazon in the US for five years, Vishal Mehta returned to India in 2007 and started Infibeam along with a group of Amazon employees. He funded the company by selling his personal assets rather than opting for external equity funding. Infibeam.com started as an automobile portal in 2007, but later turned into an online retailer. In 2017, Infibeam has merged with CCAVenue, in a deal that valued the payment gateway at $289 million. Now, Vishal Mehta has a net worth of Rs. 3,500 crore.

Dhiraj Rajaram, Mu Sigma

Dhiraj Rajaram is the founder and chairman of Mu Sigma Inc,an Indian multinational data analytics company. After completing his education, Dhiraj worked as a management consultant at PwC in the US and Booz Allen Hamilton India. After quitting his job from Booz Allen Hamilton India, Dhiraj started data analytics company Mu Sigma Inc in 2004. Dhiraj Rajaram was named to Fortune Magazine’s list of 40 under 40 in 2013, and won The Economic Times “Entrepreneur of Year” award in 2014. Currently, Dhiraj has a net worth of Rs. 2,500 crore.

Rahul Sharma, Micromax

Rahul Sharma is an Indian entrepreneur, founder of YU Televentures and the co-founder of Micromax Informatics. Rahul is currently serving a CEO of Micromax Informatics since April 1, 2007. While the impact of demonetisation had its impact on Indian players, Chinese smartphone brands – OPPO, Vivo, Lenovo and Xiaomi – continued to grow at the expense of Indian brands. However, in terms of overall Indian smartphone market share in 2016 Micromax still stood at No.2 spot with a 11% share. Hence, Rahul Sharma still has net worth of Rs. 1,400 crore.

VSS Mani, Just Dial

In 1996, VSS Mani started Just Dial, which provides online and telephone business listings service. In 2006, after two unsuccessful attempts, Just Dial finally got in private equity investment through SAIF Partners. US hedge fund Tiger Global put in Rs 77 crore. In 2012, Just Dial raised a further Rs 327 crore from Sequoia and SAP Ventures before it went public in 2013 and its investors partially cashed out. In 2012, Just Dial obtained approval from Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for its proposed Initial public offering (IPO). In May 2013, Just Dial went public. VSS Mani has now net worth of Rs. 1,100.

Byju Raveendran, Byjus

In 2003, during his two months break from an overseas job as a service engineer, Byju Raveendran decided to help some of his friends appearing for CAT in Bangalore. It was an informal way of helping, and he also took the exam, and scored 100 percentile. He started teaching some of his friends, and took up the test yet again in 2005 without any preparation, and scored a perfect 100 percentile yet again. This time he also appeared for IIM-A, B, C interviews and cleared all of them. However, decided against pursuing MBA and instead saw potential in teaching students how to crack CAT, and started Byju’s.

Byju’s recently raised $50 million co-funded by Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan’s investment arm The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), Sequoia Capital, Sofina, Lightspeed Ventures and Times Internet Ltd. Now, Raveendran Byju has a net worh of Rs. 1,000 crore.

15 Important startup lessons for new entrepreneurs

Fifteen CEOs of new and existing companies reflect on what they’ve learned, and impart their best lessons to aspiring startup founders.

No matter how much industry experience you have, you won’t know everything there is to know about running a business the moment you launch your first startup. There’s a pretty steep learning curve, and odds are you’ll find yourself saying, “I wish someone had told me that,” at least a few times along the way.

If you want to prepare yourself for some of the more difficult and unexpected challenges of entrepreneurship, it’s crucial to listen to the experiences of those who have been in your shoes before. Fifteen CEOs of new and existing companies reflect on what they’ve learned, and impart their best lessons to aspiring startup founders.

Your role

Follow your mission

“Let your core mission/ideology be your guide. It is your core that started you down whatever entrepreneurial path you’ve chosen, and it is your core that is the key to unlocking the strategic steps that make the most sense for your venture. If you continuously remind yourself why you’ve embarked on a particular journey, you’ll continue to move closer and closer to your ultimate objective.”

Don’t be afraid to break the mold

“To succeed as a CEO you need to be steadfast in your beliefs and not always conform to the perceived ‘norm.’ CEOs will ultimately be measured and respected by their actions, reactions, rate of success and how they impacted the world during their time at the helm. Today is the best time to ever be at the executive level of a company, but the power a CEO has goes way beyond producing great results for your company. It has more to do with leaving your legacy. We all can help bring the world to greater frontiers.”

Become an all-around expert

“As a CEO, you are an all-encompassing employee. Be sure to learn from all fields of your business, whether it’s data entry, technology, legal, HR, PR, sales or even from the manual and physical labor side of things. When tasks need to get done, when questions need to be answered, when upgrades are required or additional research needed – even though it may not be your field of expertise – you are the only answer.”

Recognize when to scale up and change your role

“The characteristics that make a startup entrepreneur successful, being nimble and multifaceted, can prevent the company from scaling. Every company has a threshold at which point that founder has to understand that his role has fundamentally changed and he needs the skills of a good CEO – someone who can set the vision and build the capabilities to achieve the vision — to continue to scale the company.”

Your team

Hire people who are smarter, better and faster than you

“Forget your ego – this isn’t a contest! Don’t believe that people who are smarter than you won’t respect you or support your decisions. On the contrary, they know if you are in your position, you’ve worked hard to get there. If you hire people who are ineffective, you will end up doing a majority of their work for them.”

Have a backup plan for your team

“As a startup, we have ingrained in our minds that we must operate as lean as possible, including staff. However, it’s equally important to hire for growth, especially when it comes to specialized positions. You should never have a [situation] where, if [a certain staff member] were to leave, your operation would slow down or stop.”

Your product

Look at everything as an experiment

“No product is perfect, no idea fully formed. You will make assumptions, and you should trust your instincts, but the only real way to prove your product is by testing it on real customers. So, don’t be afraid if the first cut of your product isn’t perfection. It will invariably change over time.”

Related Post: 12 powerful lessons for new entrepreneurs

Listen to your customers

“We’ve got an experienced team of developers, product managers and marketers, but our customers know the app inside out. We know that they are what brings the product to life. There is nothing better than a customer suggesting a product feature or opportunity that we hadn’t thought of. By being open-minded to consumer feedback, we’re able to build a better product to serve them.”

Find people who already believe in you

“Our global site live in September. We learned that, instead of launching the site primarily in the India, we needed to focus on our existing U.S. audience because that’s where we had eager ears. This doesn’t just apply to people launching a successive product or service; it’s sage advice to people who have networked in fields related to their upcoming offerings. If you get like-minded people who already know and are interested in you behind your launch, you’ve just growth hacked your amplification potential.”

Your operations

Define and focus on your niche

“Looking back at 2015, we stopped chasing extravagant customer deals and focused more on our core customer base of small and medium-sized businesses. These are the customers that get duped by some of our competitors and the ones we know we can help the most.”

Know when to be aggressive

“You must win and re-win clients every day, even the comfortable ones. We were focused on making a better product to solve [an important client’s] problem, but we did not engage them in all we were doing. We were passive and polite when we should have been a little more aggressive and forthright. Had we rocked the boat, we would have had a chance. Instead, the boat sailed and we missed it.”

Pay attention to fundraising and investors

“In 2015, we successfully raised the largest round of funding on AngelList … and learned how well crowdfunding really works. It provides not only an efficient fundraising model, but also adds valuable investors to your team who can be very helpful in accelerating the business. We also learned the true benefit of including a strategic venture investor, Summation Ventures, to our team.”

Your decisions

Be aware of your opportunities and challenges

“There will be many distractions/opportunities that will try to steer you off course from your plan, which will lead to a high probability of failure. There will be opportunities that you will not want to pass up, they just have to be vetted thoroughly. Being aware of everything around you such as the market you are attacking and additional influencers or investors will help make you a more effective leader.”

Be open to criticism

“As a CEO, you sometimes can get stuck in routines of innovation and development that don’t always factor in the opinions of your subordinates. We routinely have meetings where employees at all levels can provide insights and opinions on how to improve and optimize how we work. You will be surprised what you can discern from individuals that don’t have any other vested interest in telling you anything but the truth.”

Related Post: 6 delusions of every new entrepreneur

Harness the power of ‘no’

“There are so many opportunities to consider and it may seem counterintuitive to forego them. The problem is that while these opportunities are attractive and create return, they come at a cost, and these costs can be disastrous for the company. The nature of a startup is to become a leader in a chosen market segment. It is far from a trivial target: How does a small company with limited resources become a leader? Only through focus and utmost discipline, and knowing when to say ‘no’ to certain opportunities.”

12 things successful entrepreneurs don’t stress about

There are certain things that an entrepreneur knows are short-lived which is why they don’t give much importance to those.

There are certain things that an entrepreneur knows are short-lived which is why they don’t give much importance to those. They believe stressing about certain things is pointless and only a waste of time. Instead, a successful entrepreneur prefers giving time to better things like innovating further for the business or expanding it further.

Here are 12 things successful entrepreneurs do not care about:

Failure

Successful entrepreneurs are often not affected by failures as they know failures are stepping stones to success. They are also aware that failures are short-lived and should be treated as a lesson and not as something deterring.

Success

Well-seasoned and experienced entrepreneurs are also aware of the fact that success just like failure is short-lived as well. If they achieve success early on in their life, they revel in it and strive to do better in future. To keep the success streak alive, they work harder and come up with more ideas to keep their business going.

Stress

An entrepreneur is aware of the fact that s/he needs to deal with major stress as one is solely responsible for the company but a true and successful entrepreneur doesn’t let the stresses of running a company and making profits affect him/her majorly.

Employing extra-ordinarily smart people

Great entrepreneurs aren’t threatened by the IQ levels of very great employees who might actually be smarter than the entrepreneur.

They are aware of the fact that smart employees have a lot to contribute in terms of strategy to the company and help it grow which is why they prefer hiring smart and creative employees.

Risks that are proved wrong

Risk taking is a major part of the entrepreneur’s job and to survive in the dynamic market, one needs to take certain risks. An entrepreneur isn’t afraid to take risks and if the risk results in failure, s/he just puts it behind and moves on further.

Making money

An entrepreneur gives more preference to achievements over money. S/he is aware of the fact that money isn’t an issue as long as one is doing well in the market. Also, an entrepreneur gives more preference to achievements and establishments which allow his company success in the long term.

The professional-personal life balance

This might sound very harsh but entrepreneurs in their initial days need to give the company their complete attention and focus. Their personal life might suffer. But a committed and dedicated entrepreneur prefers giving his company utmost importance in the initial years.

Competitors’ success

Keeping a close watch over competitors is important to chart their strategies and marketing tactics. However, the competitors’ success is not something that affects the entrepreneur to such an extent that he’ll let it affect his business. An entrepreneur just strives to do better and be the best in the market.

Stuff that might not go their way

An entrepreneur cannot afford to be pessimistic. One has to take calculated risks and hope for the best.

Creative boundaries

Successful entrepreneurs are aware of the fact that the creative limit doesn’t exist and while one is innovating, there aren’t any boundaries. Hence, they motivate their creative people to think out of the box.

Following rules

An entrepreneur is aware of the fact that rules were established long back and they are meant to be revised time to time which is why they set their own rules.

Taking chances

Some chances might work, and some might not. Failed risks cannot affect an entrepreneur in such a way that s/he might not take any chances in future.

Image credit: jeffwallacephotographer.com

10 things every entrepreneur needs to learn very early

There are certain things an entrepreneur needs to learn early to avoid making basic mistakes early on.

Building a company isn’t an easy task. But, once you see the gains and happy people benefitting from your venture, you are assured that your efforts were worth it. However, there are certain things an entrepreneur needs to learn early to avoid making basic mistakes.

1. Building a team to work with is an initial task

Spending money on hiring the correct people to work for you is probably the best investment ever. One can hope to save up all the cash and grow as a one man team but sometime in the future, s/he will definitely need a loyal and hardworking team. All efforts and money spent into creating a team will reap higher dividends in the future.

2. Aim big and believe in yourself

When you’re starting out, why not start out big? Don’t let your power to rationalise become your foe. Dream and strive to achieve the bigger goals in life and watch how easily the smaller ones are won over. Also, to successfully achieve the bigger aim, you will need to put in more effort but the end result will definitely be worth everything.

3. Do not put off tasks that need to be done

In an itinerary of an entrepreneur, there might be an array of tasks one might not like to do. You might have the option of delegating these tasks, but someday you will face something you hate, which absolutely needs to be done. Do not put these tasks off and try to get the important yet much hated tasks done as soon as possible for a fruitful outcome.

4. Do not focus on things that aren’t important

A basic mistake a lot of entrepreneurs make is that they devote too much time in doing things that aren’t absolutely crucial. Have a basic to-do list and eliminate the activities you believe aren’t necessary and are being done only for the sake of it. Also, refusing to focus of unimportant tasks leaves you with enough time to focus on the necessary ones.

5. Receive information only from the credible sources

We live in an era in which we are bombarded with all kinds of information, half of which isn’t true. Trust only the sources you believe are credible and do not get lost in a kaleidoscope of unnecessary data which can hamper your current thought process.

6. Have your reasons sorted in the very beginning

You need to have a very strong reason and belief sorted already regarding why you’re doing this beyond financial gains. This reason becomes your sole motivating factor on days when nothing’s going right and on days when you realise exactly how hard it is to build a company.

7. Let go of inhibitions

Initially, everyone has certain inhibitions regarding what approach s/he should take and certain decisions. Let go of your inhibitions and do what you thing is correct and important for your venture. It may be a wrong decision, but it’ll definitely be a great lesson.

8. Measure the pros and cons

Whilst struggling to keep up with the competition, it is also important to weigh your pros and cons because having a fair understanding and idea of what is happening will give you more clarity in your thought and next plan of action.

9. One plan of action is sufficient

While starting out, it’s good to dream big. But, it is also very important to remain realistic. As a budding entrepreneur, do not make the mistake of venturing into 10 different categories. Have a single idea, work towards it and work on expansion plans when the correct time arrives.
Example: Ola started as a cab-service app. After it grew big in the cab-service sector, Ola then branched out to offer other services like Ola Share and Ola Shuttle services.

10. Make and maintain contacts

Treat everyone you meet during your job as an important asset as you never know when you might require them. Be cordial and pleasant with the people you meet. An occasional e-mail or a phone call can help to secure a long-lasting relationship.

Image credit: www.huffingtonpost.com

5 Skills entrepreneurs can learn from other professionals

Entrepreneurs need multiple skills to stay ahead of the competition and succeed in their chosen industry. Here are five skills specific professionals can teach.

Entrepreneurs need multiple skills to stay ahead of the competition and succeed in their chosen industry. While there are plenty of books out there that highlight the skills needed to run a business – and how to acquire them – the best source for learning is other professionals who can demonstrate in real time how they excel in their fields.

Here are five skills specific professionals can teach.

1. Taking risks – from surgeons

Not many understand think about the risky business medicine can be. A patient’s health, and in some cases even his or her life, is on the line. Surgeons have to perform procedures that involve risks, without letting those risks affect their performance.

Since being an entrepreneur is all about taking risks, risk is one skill to be learned from surgeons. Doctors are usually trained to take risks and speak to their patients about sensitive topics with confidence. Experts say the key lies in not having an emotional connect with the patient.

As mean as that may sound, entrepreneurs have to be ruthless. They’re out there to win, by hook or by crook. A good example is Donald Trump. While many criticize him for being harsh, he is clearly a risk-taker and seems to have learned the art.

Some related tips include:

Take risks, but calculated ones. There is no point in putting everything on the line without doing proper calculations.
Talk to someone about what you’re going to do and listen to that person’s opinion.
Don’t be scared of what you’re taking on.

2. Persistence – from athletes

A business is all about winning and losing. While nobody likes the latter, there’s no real way to avoid losses. Even biggies like Mark Zuckerberg, Vince McMahon and Lance Armstrong have tasted failure.

On his earlier challenges, Armstrong wrote, “Through my illness, I learned rejection. I was written off. That was the moment I thought, ‘Okay, game on. No prisoners. Everybody’s going down.’” He went on to win the Tour de France seven consecutive times. But he was later stripped of those wins and banned from most sports when he was charged with leading a doping program in cycling. He chose not to contest the charges. A CNN article commented that, “The epic downfall of cycling’s star, once an idolized icon of millions around the globe, stands out in the history of professional sports.”

Sometimes, not even persistence can make you a winner.

See why you failed the first time and try again with more commitment.
Work harder before you try something for a second time to be able to succeed.
Do not let failure or criticism demotivate you.

3. Negotiating – from lawyers

Negotiating is a skill all entrepreneurs need. While you may have a team of experts or managers to negotiate workers’ compensation benefits and other such contracts for you, you’ll still need this skill to succeed and be a force to be reckoned with. Jonathan Rosenfeld, an experienced lawyer from Chicago, says, “A lot of my entrepreneur friends ask me for tips on negotiating. I’d say it is all about being confident and knowing what you’re taking on. The key is in researching the topic and your opponent so you can beat them, even in their own game.”

Look into the other person’s eyes and exude authority. Don’t give signs of nervousness.
Have a game plan and know what your aim is. Do not move away from your stance.
Do not give up or show signs of defeat, even if it looks like you’re about to lose.

4. Problem solving – from gamers

Science has shown that people who play video games tend to have good problem-solving skills. This is because most games require people to come up with unique solutions to different problems, in order to reach a higher level, or stage. At the end of the day, problem-solving is all about staying motivated and fighting to win the game.
Similarly, entrepreneurs should consider their business a game, and their hurdles a stage they have to rise to.

Some related tips include:

Make plans and work hard to reach your goal.
Stay motivated and give yourself a pat on the back whenever you achieve your goals.
Don’t give up; if you find a problem, look at possible solutions and try the best ones. Then if one fails, move to the next solution.

5. Explaining – from teachers

Entrepreneurs have to do a lot of explaining, at times to people with no understanding of the subject at all. But teachers, who have to deal with all kind of students, can be a help in this. Teachers develop unique ways of explaining things, sometimes using practical examples and sometimes quoting research. Their success is a result of not only exceptional skills at explaining new material, but also patience, another skill entrepreneurs need.

Some related tips include:

Understand your audience well. See their mental capabilities and always plan ahead.
Do not shy away from asking and answering questions, and always double-check that your point was properly understood.
Use examples and simple words to explain new material, especially if your audience does not consist of professionals. Jargon or technical words can backfire.

Most successful entrepreneurs have the tendency to learn from others’ mistakes and successes. You too should make it a habit to learn from others and improve your craft.

This article was originally published in Entrepreneur.com

Image credit: blog.locomote.com