Entrepreneurship_Post 9

(This was published in the bi monthly newsletter of Electrical Technocrats Association)

Having touched upon what entrepreneurship is, I hope the readers would have got a fair idea on the topic. Though it is true that entrepreneurship is an art that can be learnt majorly through experience and applying common sense, it is always a wise decision to learn from others too.

I am reminded of Eleanor Roosevelt, who once said, “Learn from the mistakes of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.” It is very true in an environment, where one has to grow quickly along with series of mistakes that might be made during the rough path of entrepreneurship.

There are various ways to learn from the experienced people. Networking, blogs, books, articles, interviews, etc are a few valuable sources, we can bank upon.

In this article, I just like to review a few books, which would be useful if one is interested not just in entrepreneurship, but in finding a meaning to their living!

CII. “Star trek, The fascinating journey of entrepreneurship in Tamil Nadu” CII. 2008

Star trek is a book published by the Tamil Nadu Chapter of CII on 101 entrepreneurs who started their own ventures in Tamil Nadu. The book covers the stories of each of the 101 entrepreneurs in two pages with a full size photograph of the entrepreneur. The book covers, how each of them started, the hardships they faced, how they managed to be successful and their business mantra.

Though it is mainly focuses on Tamil Nadu, the book covers several non Tamilians, who started their business in Tamil Nadu and hence leading to a national exposure to the readers.

Some of the prominent personalities covered are Dr. Prathap Reddy (Appolo Hospitals), B G Ragupathy (BGR Energy), S Appaswamy (Appaswamy Real Estates), CKR(Cavin Kare), K P Natarajan (KPN Travels) and many more.

It is worth while reading to all those who like to have a just of glance of these people’s entrepreneurial journey.

Bansal, Rashmi. “Stay Hungry Stay Foolish” CIIE IIM Ahmedabad. 2008

This is a famous book, read by many MBAs across India. The author herself is an alumni of IIM A, has penned down the stories, inspiring stories, to put in a right way, of 25 IIM A graduates, who chose entrepreneurship as their career option. The people include, who just started after experience and a few other with an experience of a couple of years or less! The 25 entrepreneurs are classified in to those who chose entrepreneurship just to chase their dreams, those who started when they found an opportunity and those who started to create a social impact. The stories of each of the entrepreneurs are very well elaborated. The stories tell how the entrepreneurs perceive their career choice and how felt about their decision at various stages of the business and how family and friends supported them. A very interesting and inspiring book by Rashmi. The book also has a column in which each of the entrepreneurs shares their advice to budding entrepreneurs! There is also a contact list of the entrepreneurs for the reference of the reader.

Bansal, Rashmi. “ Connect The Dots” Eklavya Education foundation. 2010

This is an yet another book by the same author on 20 entrepreneurs who started, without an MBA. The content is very similar to the book mentioned previously. Yet another interesting and inspiring book by Rashmi Bansal.

I hope the basics have been covered through the series on entrepreneurship and it seems to be a time to draw the curtains to the series. However, I will be happy to help in this regard, whenever needed.

Thank you readers for the support and I express my sincere gratitude to the editorial board of the newsletter for the wonderful opportunity.

The author is the Founder & C.E.O. of Ulaginoli Energy Solutions and can be reached at boniface@ulaginoli.com or +91 9884342050

Entrepreneurship_Post 8

(This was published in the bi monthly newsletter of Electrical Technocrats Association vol 2 issue 14 (16 - 31 Dec 2010)

That was a long break! Hope, you all had a good round of exams! By the time, this article is published, many of the final year students would have got placed through the campus recruitment process. Is it sense to write about entrepreneurship at a time, when almost the entire audience are busy with the placements? Rather than going into any arguments or discussions, I just like to wish the very best from my side to all the students going through the campus recruitment process and hearty congratulations to all who tasted success!

Based on the past trend, I can say, a final year student usually has two choices left. One is to take up a job and the other is to pursue a higher education, either an MBA or MS from abroad and a few pursue courses in the reputed Indian Universities.

At this juncture, I like to touch up on a few ideas to these kinds of people, who like to take up entrepreneurship after a few years down the line.

For those who are taking up job, don’t ever fall for the huge pay slips you will be getting! That is a big demotivator in a sense! Keep dreaming and stand firm with your business idea. Think about your business idea! Learn as much as you can from your job and your organisation. Network with a lot of people! Keep updating your area of interest constantly. Try to be a part of the various organisations supporting entrepreneurship. Nowadays, there are lot of online forums as well, that are encouraging entrepreneurship. Plan carefully about your progress! More importantly, ensure you have the courage to quit your job. Mind you, in entrepreneurship, you won’t be able to get a fat pay slip every month, you may have to face a tough time! But, all these are only for a few moments! Once you cross the threshold, you are the king! You are your own boss!

For those who are pursuing higher education, it is a good platform to hone your skills! If you are doing M.Tech or M.S. and planning to start your business in your core field, it is a golden opportunity for you! You have great professors, excellent infrastructure and a great environment to build on. You may also find your team to start your business!

If you are pursuing an MBA, first please understand, just being an MBA from ANY REPUTED business school will not make you a successful businessman. They teach you to be a successful manager and not a businessman. But, if you have the mentality of pursuing entrepreneurship, right from the beginning and approach your lessons, classes, towards that, then it is a huge platform for success! Again you can get the support of your institute and staff! And again you will have decision to make, whether to take up placements now and pursue entrepreneurship after a few years! The choice is left to you. However, think of the much bigger payslips (many times bigger than what you would have got after a B.E. or M.S. or M. Tech!). You should have the courage to shun them! It is all about your passion and dream!

Apart from these, the points said to those who are taking up a job, applies to you too!

Come what may, when you follow your heart to take up your dreams, victory is rushing towards you from nowhere!

A very happy New Year to you!

The author is the Founder & C.E.O. of Ulaginoli Energy Solutions and can be reached at boniface@ulaginoli.com or +91 9884342050