iDubba's Blog

I thought of running an independent blog on this one, but then thought of leveraging my original Blog’s theme. Hence created this page-
This page will cover some of the importance lessons which I’m learning on my journey to take my product and Company to new heights.

Here Goes the first one-

1. [Magazine: Entrepreneur, Writer: Guy Kawasaki]
Characteristics of a great product- DICEE
D- Deep
I- Indulgent
C- Complete
E- Elegant
E- Emotive

E.g. I-Pod: Deep- You can save thousands of songs, videos etc + 3 party apps expand its functionality.
Indulgent- If I have an I-Pod my friends SHOULD know about it. Ain’t it?
Complete- Integrated with Apple websites and support.
Elegant- One wheel which does it all.
Emotive- It sells not because of its looks, but because of its emotions!

LESSON-2:

This is the complete version of my article which got published in Economic Times:

Ten tips on starting up without quitting your current job?

1. Do a thorough Business Analysis- With or without Job, this is de facto rule before starting any business. You shouldn’t risk losing your job to a business model/idea which is not worth it.

2. Understand Current Employer’s policies- Usually no company allows you to work for an alternate profit making business at any costs. At max you can work for some NGO’s or non-profit organizations and that too with proper permissions. You should also understand the IP policies of your company and should restrain using Company’s brand name at any place which can put you in trouble.

3. Remain Focussed- A job at hand can give you many surprises and at times there may be carrots which will tempt you to lose focus from your business idea. Never allow such things to happen. You can only excel at one place, either starting your business or getting a promotion.

4. Learn to Multi-task- When you become an Entrepreneur you have to handle many things, and if you have a Job too it becomes even more difficult. Make a work plan in morning with these four quadrants- “Urgent and Important work”/”Urgent but not important”/”Important but not Urgent” and “Neither Important nor Urgent”. And stick to this work plan no matter what.

5. Understand the Type of Work- There are many things which can be done officially at your work desk during free times- “Reading a business related Book”, “Reading Journals like Harvard Business Review”, “Making (common) strategies for your business”, “Making professional links over LinkedIn” etc. While things like “writing code for your software”, “Analyzing competitors’ websites from office desktop” etc are illegal and shouldn’t be done during office timings.

6. Time management- The biggest setback in starting something while doing a Job is the time which is killed during travel. Try switching to a Company which is near your home. That will save you hours of critical time. When travel time time is long you also waste extra time after coming home in relaxing.

7. Home Sweet Home- If you’re a Bachelor try to stay with your parents, that will give you critical free weekends to work exhaustively for your business idea. If you’re married to a homemaker same case still holds good but if you’re married to a working women, go Sanjeev Bikhchandani way (Leave the Job and let her take care of you!).

8. Participate in Events and Meetups- Try to register with TIE and participate in Business Plan competitions across country as a “Working Professional”. This is legal and gives you a fair chance to evaluate your business idea at prestigious forums. It also gives you a chance to connect to influential people and Investors/Mentors.

9. Save cash and don’t be extravagant- You can’t be an entrepreneur wasting money on gadgets like “Blackberry” when you don’t need it (or when you don’t deserve it, to be precise). The day you start thinking of saving money for something else than your startup, you should better quit. The startup should be nurtured with your hard earned money and you should never expect any Investor/VC investing in you unless you’ve put all your hard earned money into the venture.

10. Have a Contingency Plan- Your business Plan should cover all the possibilities of running business and that should include your contingency plan too. What happens if your independent Business is discovered? That’s why never do any legal things w.r.t your company (like registering your Company’s name and all) which may put you in trouble during or after your Job.