[ I was planing a small musing and then saw a post from Sumeet, so thought of completing it. ]
Almost two months back, Druvaa hit its lowest … and merely 1 month from our first few paid deployments we were holding heads in hands with no clue how to proceed further. Low on resources, we could feel our holding capacity blowing up. But, luckily we did what we do best – “Worked on it”. Seriously, persistence is _the_ most underrated attribute of entrepreneurship.
We are now hopefully out of the situation and working 24×7 to achieve upcoming targets.
I would like to point out some the mistakes we made as a team. I believe learning from others mistakes is better than learning from their power packed success recipes. These points are _not_ directly pointed at any individual
1. There are these 4 dimensions which every startup should follow like a polar graph – People, Market, Product, Captital,
We knew this rule, but probably failed to apply it … ..We over-engineered the product .. missed some market essential features, were late to raise money and approached wrong people. Never ever loose focus from customer/consumers and keep it simple. Cut any feature, any piece of code, marketing effort which doesn’t suit 80% of the customers/consumers you are directly interacting with. Blow this horn every now and then in front of your team.
2. We quit our jobs before we started, but left of some commitments alive ……
Once you are reaching the summit your oxygen supply goes low and so does your holding capacity. And I guess, it becomes extremely important to let go any extra burden you are carrying.
Quit all jobs and promises. Say your wife and parents a goobye and donate the kid.
3. We got got some wrong people on board …
The founding team should have that killer startup bug everythig else is secondary. And it never takes 20,30 or 100 people to make a product .. Just 3/4 good ones.
4. We were Too late to raise the money …
Always overstock money and good people. You never know when you are going to need them.
And now, a few tips which i think worked for me … i am not going to put any claims on them –
- Get the first round of startup fund to reach your first milestone yourself.
- Prepare a business plan which explains a your business in simplest form. Get that money before you need it.
- Talk to your consumers.
- When in trouble, work hard.
I have seen people making millions of dollars making use of nails of dead animals. I am just selling software. 🙂
I learned quite a lot from this community, send me an email if you think i can be of any help. And a small initiative to give back.
- India’s Hottest Startups - September 7, 2008
- The case of SonimTech – And lessons we can learn - August 23, 2008
- The Druvaa Story – III - July 14, 2008
Thanks Jaspreet,
Indeed i wld have missed an imp thing if not read this one. Thnks for posting it, would like talking to you(if time permits you).
Thanks a million
Vikram Pancholi
Interesting musings. Hardwork and perseverence can never be underrated in a start-up. Probably your point#2 was a joke, but I’ve read some “advice from angels” where they too, almsot say the same thing. To me, it is such a shame. What an entrepreneur, IMHO, needs more than anything is support and encouragement from his/her family and friends. Not that people hv not succeeded without family support, but it’s been harder, and I doubt — more rewarding.
As always, loved Krish’s comment, and especially the one about the virtues of poverty.
for point no. 2
There was a gathering in a village to pray for the rains .. and only kid came with an umbrella.
I am trying to say, If you believe in your story .. you should take hard steps to make it happen. Quiting family or high maintenance girlfriend is your decision.