Met a couple of people with very big ambitions, perhaps bigger than they can handle — makes me think that trying to build a billion dollar company from day one might not be such a good thing afterall. Wonder why huge companies “got built” when large markets and good solutions existed (rather than founders starting […]
Rang De Basanti
I saw this movie over the weekend and was very impressed by how a strong social message ( Zero tolerance for Corruption) and the need for the youth to play an active role was delivered in an entertaining way. The thesis that the new exploiters replacing the British are corrupt politicians is probably not too […]
Commandments & VCs
On this blog and a few others, i see a flurry of activity by VCs putting out commandments for wannabe entrepreneurs. Particularly, any thing which has the word “commandment” (ten commandments for entrepreneurs) or “not to” (how not to write a business plan) is sure to ignite my interest. I read, learn and try to […]
Who is an entrepreneur?
Was seeing a TV show yesterday, and one of the people (now, an entrepreneur) mentioned that in his past jobs, he had always taken a goal and then given the resources at hand, had tried to make the best of it — and in that sense those jobs themselves were very entrepreneurial… Got me to […]
What is your dangerous idea?
John Brockman is a literary agent, which is like saying that Sachin Tendulkar is a batsman. Brockman also runs one of the most thought-provoking and important salons around today – Edge. Basically, the idea is this – gather together the smartest people around (scientists, authors and other kinds of thinkers) and have them dialogue with […]
Predictions for 2006 from an Indian perspective
It is the season to be jolly – but for those of us who compulsively seek out the next big thing, it is the season to ponder on the future and plan our strategy. So, in no particular order, here are some of my predictions for 2006. 1. The Web 2.0 bubble will burst: This […]
Context of advertising
One of the reasons why Google is so successful at Adwords, and not so successful at Adsense, is that the context in which advertising is placed is extremely important. When people are looking, they also look at ads and click on them if they seem relevant. If someone is reading an interesting news article, it […]
Work Life, Night Life
An interesting (and depressing, for an oldtime Bangalorean) piece from the Fast Company Blog on the need for entertainment and cultural outlets for the city. A sobering subtext, for me, is the role, or lack thereof, of the moral police in the modern context. We are not having this discussion in the public sphere in […]
Welcome to the Matrix
Few news items in past week or so: 1. At the Delhi bomb blasts, some victims who could not be identified because of disfigurement, finally could get identified by the cell phones in their pockets. 2. The police is trying to identify the suspects by tracing calls from their (presumed to be used) phones. 3. […]