Entrepreneur / Start-up is a new Dude
The current trend in the market is Start-up. Whether you are employed or in college, everyone is talking about Business. Seems like everyone has got so-called “Marwadi Blood” in them. Dialogue from the series Pitchers – “1 person in among 4 in a cubicle is thinking of a startup”. Good numbers. But recently I was watching the series again, and just realized one thing which upset me. The whole series focuses on the journey to get funding for their startup. And this is the truth of the market. Every startup person is looking for funding only.
Everyone who is starting a business has the vision to get a good number as funding and then get acquired. Such vision bothers me. If you want to get acquired, i.e. work for anyone else, then why don’t you start your job. I also have started my business (and made almost the same mistake) and shut, worked with a startup, and have seen the “business” closely. Guys, business is more than the funding and getting acquired.
We have incubation centers, trainers, MBA colleges, and many platforms where they teach you or support you to write a business plan. They guide you on how to present your business, how to pitch in front of the investor, where to find an investor. So many platforms we have to approach investors and so many people are earning through these platforms. But the consumers are still struggling. Still struggling to get funding and get their idea to a high level.
Guys, we need to focus on making things 2+2=5. Once your idea is sufficient enough to take care of itself, then to take it to a level 5 directly, you should go for funding and other attractive ideas from the trend and market. But just to start your business because you have an idea, if you think investors should invest in you, then your thinking is wrong.
Right now, the focus is on how to sell the idea and not on how to sell the product. People get away with the flow and realize after a long time that what they were doing was wrong or just be in the state of complaining- it needs luck, I have an idea but luck matters or something. They keep crying for the things which are not important. We go into the life of dreams. And forget the truth of life. Be aware guys.
We keep ourselves ready to face all the problems, spend days on a single vada pav and many things. But the focus is to get funding. We get upset if someone says “Idea me dum Nahi hai” perceive for the idea. But what about sales?? The core of any business? are we focusing on that? Is the idea self-sufficient to take care of itself? Are unit sales profitable? Basics of business are not being targeted. No matter how flashy your business proposal is but if at the end of the day we are not earning bread and butter from it, it is of no use. All the money rotation thing and earning money out of that comes after we get a self-stable business. I won’t say Flipkart and others are persons with no vision or anything. I can’t say that. Of course, they are the leaders. But have you understood their strategy? Is it only an online portal or they have many other earning sources? Why other legends are still not entering the market. An online marketplace is one thing. But just duplicating things based on stories doesn’t work. You need to clear your basics.
Basically, what I want to share is, guys, come out of your dreams. If you wish to do a business, do a business but do not focus on only funding. If you work hard enough and your business works well, you will get the funding. The basic idea to start a business should not be getting funding and then working under your investor. The idea is just 1%. 99% is implementation. Please understand. One can even earn millions by selling garbage and one even gets a loss while selling Gold. You need to have the attitude to sell anything at any cost. You should not be dependent on so-called funding for marketing, then digital marketing, then earning through pay per click, selling the business, and the things. No. We must focus on business.
I have seen people struggling to get funding. And other people have started their business saying they will help you to get funding. :P So, they are doing their own business, great for them but you are still stuck. Of course, mentors are needed. But what for? Not to get funding but to make the business model sustainable. Currently, our focus has been shifted from doing business to raising funds. We invest more in marketing initial days than in making efficient operations. Budgets allocated differs. Approach matters.
To make a sustainable business, you need to invest time, patience, and much more. But if you looking for a shortcut and hoping that someone should pay you for your idea, then you are on the wrong path. You need to be aware and take wise decisions and actions.
Don’t be the so-called today’s entrepreneur. But be the businessman. Understand the difference. If we go to any street we can find many businessmen. That’s the reality. People say, find the pain area of consumer and work on it. That will be the best business idea. The basic pain area of any human being is they don’t have money :p If they have they can solve every problem :P All this philosophy of entrepreneurship and raising funds is step 2. Step 1 is doing business. Let’s do that. Whatever may be the idea, an implementation must be so effective that it becomes self-sustainable. Let’s do the business as old people used to do. And then become an entrepreneur using new trends and technologies and approaches. If you try to get to step 2 directly, the chances of failure are higher. Let’s be wise, aware, and a businessman.
