I wouldn’t call myself a serial entrepreneur yet, but I have tried my hands at a few things, have exited successfully from more than one business which I started.
I have been asked to write about the challenges of a startup, so I thought I will do a series of article on that as challenges are different in varying stages of the business.
However the most common challenge was of hiring the right people at the right time. After all the people are the company’s true assets.
In 2013 we launched a new startup, we were growing rapidly and doing multiple things, we were also launching new online products.
Being a startup and non VC funded, it was difficult to hire the top talent. With an improved job market, crazy perks and amenities offered by multinationals I knew this was not going to be easy.
Today, money is not the only motivator.
I remember we had a candidate who did not like the outside façade of our new office and refused to come in for an interview, and there was another one who wanted to have an automated coffee machine in the office as a pre-requisite.
I remember convincing talented people on why they should come onboard, aligning them to my vision and establishing an open culture within the organization.
As things get settled and business takes off the best advice I can give someone is spend time in identifying the right people, make them believe in your vision, share the larger picture and get them on board. You might think that you can do everything on your own because you can and have been doing it, but imagine what else you can do if you had those extra hours.
As an Entrepreneur you have to grow with a team of likeminded individuals, who believe in your long term vision and leadership.
Perhaps I should have got an automatic coffee machine!
Ideas are a dime a dozen but execution is the key.
