The Youth Connect is a Virtuous Cycle
Naveen Tiwari, founder and CEO, InMobi, on why today's stories of
success -and failure -are resonating with the youth
What
the youth likes the most about the new-age entrepreneurs is that you do not
have to hail from privileged backgrounds to make it big in life. When I first
wanted to be an entrepreneur, I had no idea of what it really meant. I hail
from a family of academicians who had nothing to do with entrepreneurship. So I
looked up at the Tatas and the Birlas but they were too far away for me.
I
also looked at my two inspirations -firstly my father, an epitome of hard work
and relentlessness. A person who did not know what `giving up' meant. And,
then, NR Narayana Murthy, who brought India on to the map of the world in
technology. I decided to follow my heart too and do what I enjoyed most. I
started taking baby steps and solved one problem at a time. Slowly I started to
discover new things about myself, like how I loved creating and disrupting
things. The pieces finally started to come together. Trust me I have failed and
I have wanted to give up at every hurdle but something within me kept me going
and made all the difference. What we are seeing today is a new virtuous cycle.
On the one hand the new-age entrepreneurs are telling the youth not to be
afraid of following their heart.They are telling the youth to learn from the
mistakes they committed. They are telling the youth that it is okay to fail, as
with each failure you become not only a better entrepreneur but also a better
person. All they need is passion, grit and perseverance. On the other hand the
youth of today are witness to these entrepreneurs' struggles, their failures,
and their moments of weakness and almost giving up.
The
honest life stories of today's entrepreneurs have resonated with the youth.
They know that if these entrepreneurs could do it, so can they. And thankfully
with more such entrepreneurs making their mark in the country and in the world,
our society is evolving to being open to taking risks. The youth today has the
hunger in them to do more.
But
how did it all really start? Even before the youth of India started to connect
with the newage entrepreneurs, these entrepreneurs took the first step of
understanding and connecting with them. It's simple, the new-age entrepreneurs
are creating products for the masses. And when you create products that are
meant for the general public, you take an extra effort to understand them.
What
makes it easier is that today's entrepreneurs are themselves young. They start
early. And due to their intent to make world-class products catering to the
youth who constitute the larger part of the society, they make sure to keep
themselves updated with what's hot and what's not with the youth. Slowly their
products start impacting youth's lives. They get to learn that these
entrepreneurs are interested in them and care about their preferences. And in
turn they start showing inter est in the lives of these entrepreneurs. The
cycle continues.
ETM15NOV15
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