To become a successful musician, actor, cricketer, author or other similar achiever, one needs raw talent. Training and practice — whether through academies or self-help books — merely help hone this natural skill to world-class levels. Building a corporate career, on the other hand, is a consequence of education, training and experience to become better at the job. Entrepreneurship is a mix of building something from scratch and then doing that at scale.
Which begs the question whether entrepreneurship be taught or is it an aptitude that founders possess.
In recent years, entrepreneurship is a part of college curriculum, including at leading management institutes. Anecdotal data suggests most of the students end up with standard corporate careers. Maybe they will start up down the line.
Meanwhile, there are founders who have not attended any such course but seem to have something that helps them run own businesses well. So, what is this something?
The tasks of a founder include solving problems, launching unique products and services, attracting repeat customers, building a pool of smart workers, raising capital, and so on. But none of these, on their own, can ensure success.
Entrepreneurs must have seven sharp tools, each for a specific purpose: mind (think through challenges); body (stamina for the task); heart (passionate about goals); soul (conviction in the path taken); sweat (unflinching effort); tears (cope with never-ending frustrations); and blood (long hours).
And beyond these are two key requirements: bravery and stupidity.
Entrepreneurs in India can be overwhelmed by the general business and regulatory environment. In some ways it’s like waging an economic war. Alongside the courage to fight, it is stupidity that will fuel the belief in an assured victory against the poor odds. My book describes this combo as ‘brupid’.
In 2013, when Indiaplaza was struggling to survive and I was under intense pressure from creditors, the CEO of an e-commerce start-up offered me ₹1 crore cash in exchange for a copy of our customer database. I realised the deal was not above board, with money offered off the record. When I declined, he was quite perplexed.
“It’s just a copy. No one will know.”
“I will know. That’s all that matters,” was my response.
To truly succeed, therefore, an entrepreneur must have the highest personal integrity. No start-up is worth the effort if not built on uncompromising foundations. For the Indian start-up ecosystem to become world-class, young founders must stand on the shoulders of giants, not those with feet of clay.
(The writer is a serial entrepreneur and best-selling author of the book ‘Failing to Succeed’; he tweets @vaitheek)