Pun intended 😁
Year 2020, month of March. Covid struck; Everything was shut(Poetic, isn’t it? 😂). Schools were conducted via Zoom. Like all other students, my sister too was attending online classes for 10th standard. Although this was working well, I soon realized that online mode did not offer a very important part of learning, “THE FEEDBACK LOOP”.
This is what inspired our venture – ‘SLAY SSC’. I have attached links to some PDF’s that might help you understand what the startup was basically about: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ejjVokUOcnB5dJaTxyv0U6TiUAeA3seN/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WO9x3UP5I3Pf6l67-2eOGD6jWYgb4B5u/view?usp=sharing
The story of what we did, how exactly we formed the team and our experiences while running the startup will be a part of my upcoming blogs or perhaps they are better suited for conversation.
In this article, I’d like to share the things I learnt from this experience that will aid anybody who wishes to do something on their own.
However before doing that, I just quickly wish to address a few questions that I’m sure must have crossed your mind.
1)Was your startup successful? Ans: Yes and No. Some plans worked, some didn't. We had to shut it down after 8 months. 2)How much money did you make? Ans: Rs 0.000000000 $
We had no idea or experience on how startups work. All we knew was that we wanted to solve the problem. In the process,
Here’s what I learnt:
1)Your team is super important:
You may have a billion dollar idea. Awesome! But, if you compromise on your team, your idea might collapse in the long run. You might have the smartest person on your side, but if they are not passionate about the idea, then it won't work. Running a startup is not just about managing money or a product. At its core, it is about managing people.
2)Treat your idea as a baby:
Let me explain. When a baby is just born, the only people responsible for its development are the parents. Parents give the child the value system, nourishment, proper environment etc. and lay the foundation for its growth. Same goes for a startup. If you are a part of the founding team; everything right from the team culture, their mindset, success and failure is your responsibility.
Nobody is perfect. If pampered too much, a spoilt child is a guarantee. Similarly, love your idea; but make sure that you have an open mind and take the necessary measures to correct the flaws and loopholes in it.
At the same time, being too harsh or strict with the child can kill its curiosity and creativity. So let your idea grow and evolve. You never know what wonders it can do. Who said an idea has to be a one-time event? Rather it is a series of lot of one-time events.
4)Constant Feedback from the users and customers is priceless. Differentiate feedback from noise. This helps the business to evolve.
5) Apply the Japanese concept of IKIGAI to your startup idea. It has to be a combination of "WHAT YOU LOVE","WHAT YOU CAN OFFER", "WHAT THE CUSTOMERS WANT" and "WHAT THE CUSTOMERS WILL PAY YOU FOR"
6) Things won't happen just because you want them to. Make it happen.
7) Simple is hard. Customers expect a simple solution for the their problems. Simpler the solution for users, harder is it's implementation for the business.
8)Offering free services might get you an audience, but not customers.
9) You don't need a degree or a qualification to startup. In fact, no one from our team had even passed the 12th standard at that time. (Of course we managed to get through with decent grades afterwards🤣)
10) You don't need to know everything before doing something. Solutions to many problems have to be found on-the-go. That is what makes the journey exciting!!!
On a personal level:
1)The best way to get to know yourself: Find a calm place, close your eyes and meditate and you will get the answer?...NOOOOOO. I would suggest, try starting up. No matter how foolish your idea maybe. If you win, you win. If you lose, you learn. I myself discovered the things I am good at, and also countless things I am terrible at.(My sales skills were hopeless and I embarrassed myself multiple times😎) Trust me, entrepreneurship teaches you a lot about yourself. 2) WARNING!!! Your ego will be crushed: You put in hours behind thinking and working on a particular task. And finally when it is implemented, probability of things going your way is negligible and most of it is not under your control. Yes, it hurts(All I can say is embrace uncertainty). 3)It is a 24 hour game. If you are not doing something, you are perhaps thinking about the next step. It can be mentally exhausting, but fun!!! 4)It is good to have a strong support system. It helps(However, most of the problems have to be tackled alone). 5)Fail shamelessly. Our biology pushes us to avoid short term failures, but the cost of long term failures might be huge. It is best to fail as early as possible, so as to not repeat the same mistakes again in the future.
Those were my learnings from this short yet unfinished journey of entrepreneurship. I hope these will help you make better decisions!
Before I end this blog, I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to all the people who helped us throughout the journey.
Firstly, kudos to the team for all the effort and time they put in. Here’s Team SLAY SSC:
A special thanks to my teachers – Mita Aunty, Duberkar Ma’am, Manila Ma’am(our first 100 students were all from her class 😃) and Mrs. M (she wished to stay anonymous)for their invaluable feedback and support.
And last but not the least, cheers to all our friends for backing us! Special mention to Vishwa(for helping us with a sudden crisis), Ankkit (for conducting a super guidance session on our request), Shubham(for his smart and really helpful insights throughout) and Purnesh(again for his lovely ideas).
That’s all from my side. Do you have a story too you want to share?? Let’s connect. Write to me at ghiyaronit@gmail.com
Ronit Ghiya-Inside my Encephalon 