The startup story, part 1: From humble beginnings

Chanda Lokendra Kundnaney Viewpoint

Entrepreneurs are risk-takers and niche-finders. They see and seize opportunities and implement new ideas, new processes and new technology. They are not afraid to venture out, make mistakes and take responsibilities for those mistakes. They do not see failure as the end but as a learning experience on which to build businesses and future success. That being said, setting up a startup can be a daunting task. Let us start this daunting task.

Startups are evolved from those exclusive innovative ideas that you or me would conceive while sitting on a toilet seat or while on a dinner date. The idea is the backbone of your venture and you need to ask many questions from yourself before you take the step ahead. Many people build businesses around ideas that never appeal to the customers and thus those ideas never sell. Follow the formal ideation phase of the startup process and avoid and save yourself from such mistakes. Use online resources to formally validate each step of startup or be with us here on this platform for more.

Let us first deal with the basic questions that one needs to ask him/herself before even ideation. These questions will build the founding wall for you. Defining the problem or finding a need in the market that is not being served by anyone else is step one of the startup process.

People mistake their ideas as the problems that they are trying to solving or a need they wish to address. Please understand that your idea is just your idea and it needs research to stamp it as a need/solution for a problem.

So if you have figured out a problem for the first time then you get first-mover advantage, which is always wonderful to have. But sometimes being the second mover also has its advantages. One can even choose to address a pre-identified need or problem. When it is a completely new field, consumer habits need to adapt and for that, a lot of investment in the form of discounts and promotions are required.

Just imagine someone doing all the hard work of setting up the ground for you and you just arrive and take the advantage of the ready cake. Irrespective of whether you are the first or 10th mover, it is important and necessary to assess the competition and determine who is doing what and how so that you can formulate your strategies accordingly.

If someone is already doing the same thing that you plan to do and doing it better than you ever could, there is no point pursuing the same plan.

You will invest time and resources to turn your idea into reality and then if after launching it in the market you just realise that idea wasn’t really that great or some one is doing a better job, then what? We do not want being in such a situation. That’s where idea testing and market research help. You can easily pivot the idea and reduce your risks of failure.

Starting up requires lots of effort, time and energy along with finances. Being your own boss comes with a price tag and one must weigh that before one starts — so you need to ask yourself if you are ready for hard work. If any job demanded eight hours of your day, your own company might need twice that amount plus working even on weekends.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. Your financial and operational strategy for yourself and your company will depend on your goals. Your goals will decide how you raise funds, how the product will shape and develop, how many teams you need to have, how many employees you will need, what are your expenses and what costs to cut, etc.

Not everyone is good at everything. So hiring a right team may also make a difference. You might be an excellent product and engineering person but you might still lack at marketing skills or finance knowledge. You may have a good idea but someone should know how to implement.

Statistics say that most of the startups with two founders are more likely to succeed. Any founding team should have all the necessary skills and that is why finding the right co-founder is most crucial. The co-founder(s) should not only complement your skills, but should also share same vision and passion. Many platforms allow you to reach out to the right professionals these days. Selecting the right co-founders is one of the most difficult and crucial steps in starting a company. Remember, it is a lonely journey out there.

Next comes the big ‘F’: finance. Startups think that crowdfunding, investors, banks and many other channels can help them. But nowadays, though risk-taking capacity of investors has increased but investors have also become smarter and vigilant. Mostly, they will conditionally fund the startups. Like for example, they will fund only your licence or only your office rentals. So the money is not for the business but it is invested in the business.

Another vital financial question is that you need to think about the costs and how much you can afford. Keep in mind the value that you expect from each employee. While starting up, the quality matters more than the quantity. One great employee can be equal to tens of average employees. Recruitment should be mindful. At this stage you cannot afford too many changes in your team. The initial team of a company is the hardest to form.

Once you have answered all these questions then let’s get the enterprise running. We shall take up each step as a challenge.

If someone is already doing the same thing that you plan to do and doing it better than you ever could, there is no point pursuing the same plan