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Words. Wisdom. Winners.
Whose life are you living?
Damn, it’s Monday again
They must think I am stupid
They must think I am ugly
Why don’t they call me often
Why don’t they talk to me properly
How do I impress them
How do I become better than them
Who should I please next
Whose life should I live
How about yours?
Each time we live our life on someone else’s terms, we are submitting ourselves to someone who is most likely doing the same thing to his own life.
You either live you life on your own terms or find someone who is doing so and then live life on theirs.
Change the world given to us
Ever noticed the bee in the room.
Trying to get out. Banging it’s head against the clear window. Doing so repeatedly with no success. But not giving up.
She can see the world outside. She can see her goal. Her end point. But is shocked at how difficult it is to get past this hurdle. It’s clear. Why can’t I pass through?
She doesn’t realize that the door next to the window is wide open. For her to fly out.
The window, as large as it is, seems to be her entire world. The door isn’t even in the frame of reference.
The bee is us.
The window is the world we were given
The door is the world we could have created for ourselves
How many of us attempt to change the world that was given to us?
Someone died on the streets today
Everyday we read news and hear stories about people that die on the streets of india.
Most of them are under the influence of alcohol when the accident happened.
we feel sorry.
And we think we are above this.
We know when to stop. We are in control. We know the roads. We know ourselves.
This won’t happen to us.
Until one day, when it does!
This morning someone died on the streets of Bangalore.
He was 27
He was intoxicated. Driving without a helmet.
He was from nearbuy
His parents, from Jharkhand, were told last night that their son wouldn’t survive. Right now they are on their way to Bangalore. They have no fucking idea that their son has died.
Their son is gone.
In a moment, their entire life has changed. For the worse. It will be the same again. They will live a life of regret, of pain, of unbelievable sorrow and extreme helplessness.
They didn’t sign up for this shit. No one signs up for this shit.
The next time you say
Just one more drink
Just one more drag
Just one more km to drive in this state
Just one more mistake
Remember that you will end up saying the full price of that incremental mistake. The full price.
And you will leave behind a world that has no choice but to live on your behalf.
The slowest one
Our entire world is about pegging ourselves to the slowest ones. The ones who destroy it for everyone else.
I drive at 40kmph because someone decided it would be fun to drive at 100kmph and couldn’t handle it.
I drink post 25 years because someone decided it would be fun to drink at 20 and couldn’t handle it.
I need clear car windows because someone decided it would be fun to have dark tints and then fuck around with laws!
The individuals who are the “slowest” define the pace and direction for all of us.
And that’s true of companies as well.
“Let’s slow down and build our base” is just another way of saying “let’s slow down because I am not ready”.
Startups, instead, pick the slowest one up. And start running again.
It may be slower than the fastest one before.
But it’s way faster than the slowest one.
Peg yourself to the fastest one.
2 things
Think of 2 things you need to do, to become better at your work
Don’t scroll down. Think of them first
….
….
….
Those who thought of 3 or more are entrepreneurs
Will – the only four letter word you know
A lifeOf ambition
Of labor
Not just physical but emotional
Of no regrets
Of time as the biggest weapon you have
Of will the only four letter word
And at the end of the long hard day
When you look up
Not for inspiration
Not in desperation
But just to acknowledge the power of your will
The world is forced to say
You deserve more
The worst of you
A new project
A new relationship
A new market
A new business
A vibrant economy
A growing customer base
A new place
A world of newness
And you are at your best. Your best mood. Your best face. Your best approach. Your best methods. Your best of everything.
The world loves you.
It is easy to. You haven’t given them any reason not to. Everything is going for you, and you make it visible to the world.
My favorite question in an interview then is: what’s the worst thing about you?
I want to see the worst of you.
The moment you want to be rude. When you want to show the middle finger. When you want to be vindictive.
The moment you go into a shell. The shoulders slump. When you want nothing to do with the world.
Or when you cry in the corner. And come out smiling. Hiding your fears, for the love of making this work. The belief that this too shall pass.
The worst of you, is the best way to get to love you. Or not.
The tech CEO
I often wondered, what is it that distinguishes the best tech CEOs from the not so good ones.
And someone gave me a glimpse last week.
The best tech CEOs always know the product 5 years out.
Not today. Not tomorrow. Not the next sprint. Or 10 such sprints.
It’s 5 years out.
A time so far out that everything we know of technology today would make the problem almost impossible to solve, if it were to be solved today.
But they operate on the belief that it can be and will be solved, by the time they get there.
And they guard that dream. Share it as if sipping wine. Offering a sneak only to chosen ones. And those conversations end up being fascinating.
Suddenly, the ones being offered the future, are lifted above their daily rut. Their schedule. Their salary. Their current and next plan. All material around them.
Or they mock the audacity of the plan. They can’t believe the earth is round.
You either die living the future. Or live long enough to poison the present.
5 Tests Every Entrepreneur Should Fail At
1. The treadmill test
The treadmill is a fascinating device. You walk on it, jog, run, run as fast as you can. Burn energy. Start panting.
But you don’t move an inch forward. You are where you were right when you started.
As an entrepreneur, chose what you pursue wisely. An idea where hard work and passion moves you forward. To a point where you require lesser energy to move the same distance.
As against, realizing further down the road that you are spending energy that doesn’t make you move ahead.
Fail the treadmill test
2. The Today Test
I spoke about it earlier. Solve problems that are going to be bigger problems tomorrow, not lesser.
Too much time is wasted optimizing for the present, when the same present clearly shows a declining trend.
Building a business around SMS. Really? You think SMS will last tomorrow?
Building an Uber for shipping products? Nice. When was the last time you shipped something to someone? Is it likelier to be a bigger use case tomorrow or is it just today?
Fail the today test
3. The Ostrich Test
I meet entrepreneurs that are clearly working on the wrong idea. And they know it. But they aren’t doing anything about it. You know why.
“Because I have already spent so much time on this”
That is being an Ostrich. With your head in the sand, you are assuming the reality is not staring at you. Time is the biggest sunk cost of life. You should know when to stop, as much as you know when to begin.
Fail the Ostrich Test
4. The Funding Test
It is fashionable to be funded. The press, the facebook likes, the fancy office, the coolness of Economic Times covering you. It is all sexy
It is not. It shouldn’t be.
You didn’t start the business to get funded. You started it to build one. And along the way you just thought its would be super cool to build it on someone else’s money and to not care about profitability. Not care about running an actual business.
Funding doesn’t bring business. It is the other way round. Surprise surprise
Fail the funding test
5. The Company Test
Most entrepreneurs end up building a company. Here is what a company has – it has rules, it has hierarchy, it has restrictions, it has attrition, it has free food as a hook, it has mediocre talent. And it has a founder that still sleeps peacefully at night.
Build an institution instead – a place where people love to come to work. They feel challenged. Beyond a point, they dont realize nor care how much money they earn. They are in it because there is a larger cause they are working for. And the day that cause doesnt exist, they leave. Which is a good sign. Because when people stay despite mediocre conditions, you have successful built a company. Not an instition
Fail the company test
Perfection is often mistaken
One of my favorite interview question is “what is the worst thing about you?”
It is uncanny how many times I have heard the response, “I am a perfectionist. I fret if things are not done the right way.”
No you are not. Because here is what most people mean to say – “I fret if things are not done my way.”
There is nothing such as a perfectionist. Instead, such individuals are accuracy seekers. Fervent truth seekers. They will make sure things are beautiful and they function accurately. Not perfectly. Accurately.
The iPhone wasn’t the perfect phone. It still isn’t.
It’s an accurate phone. Accurate lines. Accurate design. Accurate experience.
Don’t seek perfection. That is elusive
Seek accuracy. And ship fast.
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