My current thoughts on starting up



In case you are intrigued by the words, 'current thoughts' well I don't know anyone who has changed their thinking more in the last decade on various different things than me. I think it will be changing as things do and as I evolve as a person. So that's me right now.

Starting up on my own venture has been on my mind for a long long time. But it has not really taken any real shape till now. My mom still jokes that I wanted to start adda.com while in school. You know it never started. I had ever since thought of different things but never made them into real life. Closest I ever got was to get a prototype built and showcase it but then again never pushed it.

Of late I realise that I have a very crucial element missing which leaves me directionless after some time. I don't have a clear goal and mission for myself while building anything. The only goal at times is to build something. Guess builder culture is ingrained in me. So I gave myself some time to think about it.

Here is what I came up with

  1. I want to build something that is actually useful for people and not just an entertainment or a scam 😅 . Making money is not the only reason I would start anything. 'Do no evil' sounds like the best motto ever created. I don't care if it impacts 1Billion people or just 1Million, in the end all that matters to me is, did it make the world a better place and make some money for me.
  2. I want to run a sustainable business, not just a quick rich scheme. It's much harder, it's much riskier, but it's also much more satisfying IMHO. This sustainable business should in 3-5 years make for me at least 10x what I make whenever I start at a conservative level. I would prefer not to exit this business anytime but build on top of it.
  3. I want to start with friends, I want to build it with trust among folks that each of us are there for it and each other completely. We all have to be super transparent with each other. Anything else will kill it for me. My understanding is that it's going to be a tough journey but if founders don't support each other, doom is right at the door.
  4. For me, friends are more important than money. We all who start have to be on the same page on this as well. We need to respect each other. Believe in each other to do the right thing.
  5. For me technology does not matter, over the past 16 years I have built stuff over very varied technologies that I am over the reluctance to use one over the other. If I have to build anything, I will pick the tech that just works.
  6. The only advantage we will ever have is the speed of execution and speed does not come with the all wheels running but all supporting each wheel to run faster and better. That's why point 3.
  7. I believe I will try a lot of different things, a lot of different approaches and experiment quite a bit before we get the right one. Just some bias I have acquired over time. Currently it stands here.
  8. I will wear a lot of different hats based on what is required at the time. Sales, marketing, and fundraising are some areas that interest me a lot and I will get into those for my startup besides the tech and product development initially. That is if starting with friends we will be jointly working on those, else there would be no choice but to wear all the hats.
  9. I will be moving out of my comfort zone completely and might be super tough on my family as well. I have thought most things through for that to make their life unchanged for the first 3 years at the very least in case I am unable to pull through.



Maybe all this is too utopian and probably not very practical. Having written all this, I hope I can have a meaningful discussion with folks and this can be the guiding light for me.

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