STARTUP/ ENTREPRENEUR SPECIAL ..........Startup mantras from entrepreneurs (1)

Startup mantras from entrepreneurs (1)

How important are financial resources, or is resourcefulness more handy; should your startup be many things to many people, or just a few things for some; what if you fail; what's more important, the idea or the execution; how do you ride the rollercoaster that a startup is; how hard do you really need to work; how ambitious should you really be; should you start up in an upturn or a downturn...

Here are the gems from the FIRST SIX .
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1. NR Narayana Murthy, 68 CO-FOUNDER, INFOSYS

'Lead by Example in Deferred Gratification'

CLAIM TO FAME
After co-founding Infosys in 1981, Murthy stepped down as executive chairman in mid-2014; turned investor with Catamaran Ventures in 2010
STARTUP MANTRA
The biggest lesson I learnt was that leaders should lead by example in aspiration, optimism, hard work, monetary and other sacrifices, deferred gratification, discipline and tough and quick decision making.

2. Peter Thiel, 47 CO-FOUNDER, PAYPAL
'Provide a Definitive Solution to a Specific Problem'

CLAIM TO FAME

Besides PayPal, the serial entrepreneur, venture capitalist and author of Zero to One: Notes on Startups or How to Build the Future, also co-founded Palantir, a data analysis firm
STARTUP MANTRA

One thing above all: start with a small market and dominate that first. Many, many people seek big markets — and you'll have to compete with many, many people if you enter one. Instead, your company should provide the definitive solution to a specific problem.


3. Tony Hsieh, 41 CEO, ZAPPOS.COM

'It's about Having Enough Resourcefulness, not Resources'

CLAIM TO FAME

Co-founded LinkExchange, which he sold to Microsoft in 1999 for $265 million; then turned incubator and investor by cofounding Venture Frogs. Later joined Zappos, one of the largest online stores, which Amazon acquired in 2009 for $1.2 billion.
STARTUP MANTRA

Being an entrepreneur is like playing MacGyer for business. It is about combining creativity, optimism and street smarts. One of my favourite quotes (I forget who said it) is that it is it is never a question of having enough resources. It is about having enough resourcefulness.


4. Masaba Gupta, 25 FOUNDER, HOUSE OF MASABA

'Businesses Run on Smart Spontaneity, not Whims'
CLAIM TO FAME

Created her label Masaba in 2009 and since has been designing outfits for Bollywood starlets, amongst others
STARTUP MANTRA

What I learnt is that your gut and instinct are your most powerful tools. Taking a risk is great but it should not be a careless one. Businesses run on smart spontaneity, not whims. And always have an immediate family member look into your finances if you can.
5. Rajiv Srivatsa, 36 CO-FOUNDER, URBANLADDER.COM

'Focus on Few Things and do them Really Well'

CLAIM TO FAME

After stints at Cognizant and Yahoo!, Srivatsa co-founded the curated online marketplace for furniture in 2012, which now has Ratan Tata as one of its investors
STARTUP MANTRA

Focus on a few things and do them really well instead of spreading oneself too thin. We started with a focus on furniture instead of trying to do everything related to home decor. Also, we kept our focus online, did not give discounts and serviced only three cities.

Immense focus helped set a very clear direction for us in the early days. It's very easy to get distracted and try and do a lot of things — you will end up biting more than you can chew. We have learnt this lesson along the way: we tried to do all-India deliveries when we started out, but due to bad customer experience, we rolled back to do deliveries in only three cities. We are now increasing that number slowly. This focus has helped us stay ahead in the market and establish a clear positioning for ourselves.
6. Anil Agarwal, 60 FOUNDER, VEDANTA GROUP
'Even if You Outperform, Keep Raising the Bar'

CLAIM TO FAME

Grew from a small-time metals trader to found what is today a $13-billion diversified metals and mining conglomerate headquartered in London.
STARTUP MANTRA

As an entrepreneur, I have learnt that any business requires identifying, accepting and overcoming challenges. The hurdles may seem never-ending, as there is no finish line, because boundaries are being pushed perennially. Which is why even if you outperform, keep raising the bar or you will soon be overtaken. My basic premise is to trust and empower people working in the company, work extremely hard and set an example for others, dream for future success and be committed to achieve your dreams.

In my career, the most formidable challenges arose from facing failures; but failures formed the bridge to eventual success. Learn from failures and pursue your dreams passionately — that is the only way to realise them.

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