learnings & decisions you will need to make during your startup journey.

1. the startup journey &
variables involved
Ronak Kumar Samantray

2. setting the context of my learnings…

3. lifestyle vs disruptive business
technology vs operational business

4. before you start
the initial phase
as you scale

5. before you get started…
1. Idea / Strategy
2. Advice
3. Money / Capital
4. Team
5. Advisors / Mentors

6. idea happens, you do not hunt for it
(do not go looking for it, you just know when you experience magic!)

7. who usually gets lucky?
Stupid. Usually good with only few things and really bad with others.
Surrounded in chaos. Sometimes by choice and sometimes imposed.
Nothing to lose.
Lives in a reality distortion.
Ready to start with confusion, but improvises fast.
persona of an entrepreneur

8. when you feel butterflies in your stomach, jump.
its like falling in love. you just know it, but can never justify enough.

9. avoid advice from people who are vested in you…
doing a startup is never the right advice :)

10. pitch your idea to people who have no idea who you are..

11. its never enough
… introducing the first constraint of your journey

12. YOU are the team.
never get into a venture where you cannot build the core IP yourself.

13. find advisors in your vicinity
attend conferences, meetups and other community events to identify advisors

14. the initial phase…the longest phase
1. Discipline
2. CoFounders & Team
3. Getting past the First Constraint

15. everyone makes you feel that you are the next zuckerberg in making

16. being self-driven is tougher than being driven by someone else.

18. you have nothing to lose, trust people blindly.
when you do not have money to give, at least put forward your trust…

19. as you scale… it takes a while to get here
1. Change in constraint
2. The Guiding Light

20. your team is your biggest constraint.
emphasis on organisation culture, values and vision.
money is no more the only success metric.

21. with time you will eventually start
questioning yourself …

23. it’s a path less travelled…
hence it needs to be “your” decision to begin with

24. re-discover your guiding light
always remember why you started the journey…

25. summarising

26. before you start
* idea happens, do not hunt for it
* if you feel butterflies in your stomach, jump.
* do not seek advice from your well wishers
* never think money as a limiting factor
* you are the team
the initial phase
* discipline
* you have nothing to lose, trust people blindly
as you scale
* focus on your team. emphasise on culture, values & vision
* always remember your guiding light.
before you start
the initial phase
as you scale

27. Ronak Kumar Samantray
Twitter: @rokrsa
If Alice had not seen that random dream,
the world would not have known what a Wonderland is!