Diary of an Entrepreneur

A fictional piece!

Disclaimer: All names & instances are purely fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead is purely coincidental.

Diary excerpts of a wannapreneur…

Situation –

The female protagonist (Rachel Hooda aka RH) is just out from her MBA course. Well it’s the recession time and we have all the ‘well-wishers’ voicing their opinions – just go about any job you get, there’s a loan to repay; your father needs to increase his savings for your grand wedding; your prospective groom would be getting the latest SUV that’s launched; just one 2BHK house nah, you must be kidding! You can’t sit away just like this, start applying on naukri, monster; go meet placement companies!!!

Surrounded by her own mundane life problems, she begins her journey with high hopes, large dreams and the spirit to never give up! She wants to venture out on her own, but then, read on…

2009

May 20 – Joined GRI, a start up. Excited, my first job. Couldn’t land into those prestigious Fortune 500s or the magnificent MNCs; but life is all about enjoying and appreciating your own work. And, I have this feeling that my boss rocks 🙂 Family have their own reservations, what with this financial troubles cropping up in our lives. But, I am happy and for now that’s what matters.

June 01– Called 30 potential clients, sent 80 introductory mails!! Great effort! 65 of the busy managers deleted the mail without reading; 12 of them I guess haven’t decided what to do of it and 3 of them have asked to send further details. Cold calls were a major disaster; no one has time you see; they are always busy in meetings! However, feeling more confident, I could face 30 rejections, not bad.

July 01 – The 50^th day of our Twitter account’s functioning; have managed to grab a few eyeballs. An achievement RH, whether big or small just celebrate..

July 19 – First client and that’s an MNC! Boss took us out to Domino’s… The pizza tasted yummier than usual. Small beginnings will lead to great results!

Sept 02 – participated in a Start up Competition. Did well in the first round, messed up the second when the white beard guy smirked “I don’t see this model lasting for more than 5 years”. A great learning experience nevertheless! Impressed with Rocker’s proposal and working style. They were amazingly confident. I wish I could work on my idea, troubles still persist at home and I can’t make the move.

2010

Jan 04– GRI showcased in Young Turks; boss couldn’t stop from blowing his own trumpet. He deserved it for all the hard work, patience, sincerity he put in. Cheers at Barista 🙂 i know that’s a small treat..

May 20 – One year at GRI! A chai party with boss. 15 major names in our kitty, though I feel boss needs to re look on the way to go forward.

May 28 – Economic Times guy reached out to us wanting to feature GRI in a column for Environment Day. Reduce, Reuse, Recyle – let the message spread!

Image Source: my-diary.org

2011

Feb 15 – Happy Birthday to me 🙂

Have quit GRI, a good learning. Unable to understand boss’s future plans. I think that’s why had to part ways. He believes in growing organically only, but somehow for this venture I don’t think it would work. Also, just can’t get as to why isn’t he taking guidance from the veterans in this field.

Nevertheless, some invaluable lessons taken from this wonderful person and the time I gave in here.

• RH, cherish every small thing that happens! – Even if that means feeling happy about one more FB fan or another Twitter follower, somewhere someone just thought that you are worth a minute of theirs! It also helps you lead a life of appreciation and that is a life worth leading.
• Be crazy for what you love doing – Kishore Kumar the classic example! (Pagalpanti bhi zaroori hain)
• Value criticism as much as you value praise – Both go hand in hand in making your product/ service more meaningful

Mar 10 – A new dawn, a new beginning… a different organization! Yes, again a start up. Butterflies in the stomach! Journey begins with this overly experienced lady who is set out to solve the health related problems of India through Mobile phone. If only I could work on that idea of mine. Some or the other issue. Sick of it!

Mar 20 – Super intelligent, super egoistic, super calculative and superbly impatient boss… landed myself in a soup; a training session perhaps to deal with my life partner in future 😉

Apr 03 – Personal life not been so easy lately, however I am coping 🙂

C & S worried as to why I take these stupid decisions with my work life. Sorry, dearies hard to convince you anymore! I’m sure one day my work will speak for itself.  

May 10 – I like the work here and this space is so interesting; calls for a lot of creativity and I love to wear that daydreamer’s cap.

June 05 – Can someone tell my boss that she needs to calm down a little and treat other people with some dignity? Vendors, partners, clients – all of them are humans and need respect first before you show them shares & revenue & profits.

July 02 – 2 apps ready; one targeting pregnant women and the other for the elderly. Come out amazingly well; love her idea for educating the expecting moms. A treat in TGIF! 🙂

Sept 05 – Why are these operators inhuman with content providers? I mean they give us chillar for our work.. all hard work seems to go down the drain when it comes to negotiating with them

Nov 10 – Work going good; equation with boss going bad. Very impatient lady! Wish I could turn that idea of mine into a gold mine…

2012

Mar 10 – That calls for a year end at HH. Been slogging no rewards! Such efforts into something of my own could have been more satisfying…

Apr 25 – Another exciting day at office.. Had created this app for reminding people take their medications; simple, easy to use and am sure will be loved by all.

May 01 – Gone to the doc today; health still a little critical 🙁

June 06 – Finally, put down my papers! Feeling like the bird let out of the cage… Well actually didn’t I myself cage myself all these years? Anyways, now time to make use of this independence.

Learning Points from HH –

• Learn about every aspect & function of the company – RH, you may not become a person of riches or book another flat in Gurgaon’s DLF, but it’ll definitely pay huge dividends in the longer run.
• Chided, ridiculed or mocked at, can’t take it then don’t carry on; an entrepreneur must still have the guts to move on. Stand up for yourself no matter what. Take pride in your own work!
• Humility works wonders; Arrogance leaves disasters!

June 10 – shortlisted for interview with VAS company; should I go or shouldn’t I?

June 30 – And the debate at home continues. Entrepreneurship vs. Employee. Can’t change their mindset & they can’t change mine. Yes, I have decided! I am going to take the longer route, walk the extra mile, face & fight the harsh realities. I am not saying it is easy. Been drilling it into my head for the last 6 months. Right now situations are harsh, but here’s a promise I have made to myself and I will abide by it no matter what. These financial stumbles aren’t going to come in between my work. This time I have found an alternate to them. Make your will and make your way. I am embracing ambiguity today and my roller coaster life begins.

July 15 – Bounced my idea today with a few friends, friend’s friends, strangers, neighbours (P.S. – Not including relatives, because they usually are meant to give negative feedback)

Mr. A – What? Your work is making no sense to me   3:)

Ms. B – Yeah, I kinda think I understood what you are trying to say, but, I am not sure whether I’ll want such a thing                  ;;)

Mrs. C – This is awesome! Just truly the thing I was looking for!      :-*

Ms. D – Are you kidding? I wish I could join you in this wonderful venture of yours yaar if not for my father’s serious medical illness             :-S         

Mr. E – Good, you have so much time to waste!!!  :-&

Mr. F – Such a cool idea re! Why didn’t it strike me?   :-/

Aug 10 – Domain registered; Logo ready; work on website begins… All these small steps are giving me so much pleasure

Aug 17 – Business plan, SEO, Revenue analysis, Financials, Balance Sheet, CPM, Advisor, Stocks, Contracts – efforts, efforts, efforts!

Sep 15 – not going for the trip with friends. Lied to them about the function at home. Not the right time to spend now.

Oct 20 – A good weekend break after 3 continuous hectic days with just 4 hours sleep everyday.

Dec 30 – Looking back, I have made quite some progress. Have 8k users, yet to figure out if that’s a good figure! This time is definitely party time with friends to celebrate the New Year.

Dec 31 – Win, lose or draw I think 2013 will be a fantastic year!

2013

Jan 12 – “Anyone can hit a wall. The anguish felt then is proof of one’s desire to move forward. But all is for naught if you falter at that moment. Action – that is the key to breaking through an impasse.” (Ikeda Sensei, my mentor & guidepost)

Mar 15 – Too much pressure. Nothing moving. Site has come to a standstill; not getting new visitors for past few days. Am I going the right way? Is this all worth the efforts?

Pressure can crack pipes. But it can also create diamonds. 🙂

Mar 29 – Rodinhooders Rock! I am so happy for having found this brilliant platform. Kudos to all you wonderful humans out there…

June 10 – Spirituality has kept me grounded! I thank my wonderful comrades in faith for their comforting words. “Rather than becoming discouraged, know that encountering a wall is proof of the progress that you have made so far.” (Ikeda Sensei)

June 15 – Ray of hope again; re worked on the SEO part; come out with this cool way to draw in those crowds

July 22 – Life continues.. struggle is on… fretting & smiling, exhausted & energetic – I am an entrepreneur & I can’t give up on myself.

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