Journey of one Entrepreneur

We have just stepped into the new financial year; I thought for this edition let me pen down my journey as an entrepreneur. What does it take to start up on your own and more importantly, what does it take to keep going and persevere? Do read on.

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There was a point in time when I had to take a break from my career; there were two reasons: one personal and the other professional. Either way, when personal reasons keep you from pursuing ideas/dreams, you need to tend to those first; however, when professional reasons prevent you from fulfilling something you believe in and are profoundly passionate about, it is time to break away from such limitations and rethink your purpose. Are you reaching your potential? That’s exactly what I did. I took about a year to just research, create a blueprint, poke holes in it, redid it, and then finally, by mid-2017, I believed I was ready. Here’s what went by –

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• Capital:?I had to plan my finances. Considering Execore Spectrum was going to be a services firm, I didn’t face the challenge of high capital investment, but yes, I had to make my brand visible. So yes, the initial years of focus were on developing our online presence and reaching out to prospects with our value proposition.?
• Presence & Visibility:?I spent a lot of time in designing our website. Our message had to be comprehensive, yet simple. More importantly, I met up with prospective clients, introducing our brand and showcasing what we could do for them. Indeed, the initial months were full of butterflies in the stomach, all because this was a new brand.
• Reaching Out:?I had to use a mix of approaches in reaching out to larger audiences; social media, search engine optimization, and the works.??
• The Team:?I couldn’t hire all essential roles outright (moreover, why would someone want to join a company that has just started?). Yes, initially I couldn’t get content developers, digital marketers, or support functions in place. So, I wore most of the hats but parallelly I learned a lot of what a given role should comprise. I then put my team together. My immediate hires and investment were in sales personnel and I went on to support them by outsourcing other roles in the initial phase and then, taking onboard those who learned the ropes well. The lockdown introduced me to hybrid ways of working and today, other than 4 of us, my team is spread in different locations in India and abroad.
• Identity:?My?brand?had to stand out. What did I bring to the marketplace? What values did my brand espouse? How will our audiences identify with it? Initially, we established as a people development agency, but thanks to COVID, we almost ran out of business, if it wasn’t for other development areas in organizations that we could support. Be it policies, processes, ways of working, financial analysis, strategy, or cultural shifts, the lockdown paved the path to newer opportunities, in the area of organization development and change management. We are grateful to our clients for their trust in us and for making us a part of their growth journeys.
• Culture: I set up shop in a coworking center. During the lockdown, I witnessed young start-ups like mine shutting down, not just because of lack of demand but also because of team dynamics and differences. Inability to make decisions, micro-managed environment, no room for creativity, lack of fun at work, all these and more contribute a lot to the kind of culture people experience at the workplace. From the very beginning, I encouraged a participatory culture, where everyone has a say and can attempt to do things differently if they believe it helps the organization. I attempted to nurture an environment where innovation and creativity thrive (but would step in occasionally when the boat had to be steered back on track). Most importantly, one of my top characteristics reads “high on risk-taking”, so maybe I wouldn’t push my team members all out to risk it, but I empowered (still do) them to take healthy risks and beat previous benchmarks. Even if they fail, they are learning and getting wiser.
• Deliver Value: Over the several years that I spent in the area of executive education, I came across an opportunity – to come up with affordable learning solutions, especially for small and medium-sector enterprises. The blue chips and large enterprises have their talent development approaches in-house as well as strong and diverse external L&D alliances. I state this confidently because we liaise and team up with several large brands too. What keeps us ticking is our ability to deliver value.
• Never stop learning: While I did launch an executive learning business, at heart I’m always a learner. Not only do I love to learn and explore, but I encourage my team members to do the same. As an entrepreneur, I make an effort to stay on the cutting edge, by learning new skills and caring to stay abreast of industry trends. I choose to be highly flexible and adaptive. I realize how it yields and do my best to nurture this in those around me.

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The above mostly covers vital areas of my entrepreneurial journey. While often fundraising or capital arrangements have posed a challenge, I managed to overcome those. However, the above elements have contributed immensely to establishing and thriving in what I chose as my passion. I won’t say we have arrived, but I can confidently say we are here to stay.

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What are your thoughts to keep ticking in what you have chosen as your pursuit/passion? Share your views by way of comments below and help add to entrepreneurial mindset development hacks for our readers. Let’s share, help and grow.