Dr.JP and Lok Satta

I was an audience for a speech by Dr. JP at a TiE annual conference in Santa Clara about 4 years back. I was impressed and I communicated to Dr.JP the same after the speech. He gave his business card to me and said people like you should join the new movement. 'Yes, of course!', I thought. But today, I am more than convinced about his comment.

I used to read Dr.JP's columns online once in a while after that. It was not until a month back I checked what's this person up to and I was once again impressed by what I found out. I couldn't agree more with him and the agenda that he has outlined for his political party. I also couldn't agree more with him that if you need to make a real large social impact, political revolution is a must.

Indian politics today has turned out to be a joke. It's a business line for many - it's a corrupted business line. Invest Rs.6Cr for an MLA election; if you win, you can double the money or make even three times more! Invest Rs.15Cr in an MP election; if you win, make 5x in five years! Yes, it is an open secret. Why do you invest money for? To buy votes, of course. The amount of corruption today is about Rs.200 thousand crores per annum!!! Every party secretly wishes for a ‘Amar Singh’ today.

I am aghast by the current state of Indian politics. This is no VC business!!! There was a time when the job of a political leader was a respected one. When I was young, I grew up with stories of great leaders who fought for independence for our country. Today, unfortunately, we acknowledge that politics is the last option of a career of a scoundrel! Don't we deserve better? Doesn't our country deserve better? How can we bring a change? We need leaders like Dr.JP.

There has to be a massive movement at the grass root level. It's high time that the 300 million middle class come out and participate in change. One third of our population could definitely influence the rest. We need thought processes like the ones in Lok Satta party.

Jai Hind.

H2E is the need of the hour

I have told this before, but it is worth repeating several times. India needs more entrepreneurs in Healthcare, Environment and Education, I call them H2E sectors. I refrain them calling social entrepreneurs, because every entrepreneur serves a social purpose. Every entrepreneur is a social entrepreneur.
Coming back to H2E sectors, well more than 50% of Indian population is under served in Healthcare, Environmental issues (clean energy, clean water, clean air) and Education. As long as we don't conquer these fundamental sectors, it will be hard for us to sustain the economical growth that we are aiming towards (8-10% GDP growth every year).
I am aware that there are several people who work for a cause in these sectors, but has it been enough? With the size of a population that we have, we must utilize this as a valuable asset. It is with our people we can make this India's century. We simply can't look at our population as a burden.
The population can be utilized as a valuable asset only if productive population is in good health, enabled with energy and education. That's the fundamental reason why we need more thrust on H2E sectors. Current efforts are not enough and we need entrepreneurs in these sectors.

Agenda of Development

I am impressed with our voters. How much ever it may seem that there is cast combination game in our elections, at the macro level, it is still about development issues. Recent results in Delhi, Rajasthan, and MP etc. are glaring examples. Our fellow citizens know what they are doing - master plan of some of those in BJP to camouflage the communal issue as a terrorism issue backfired. People have gotten over with the communal issue. It is actually very nice that Sharukh Khan mentioning he doesn't feel like a minority. We need more Muslims openly condemning terrorism - this will totally defeat communal politics. We need more dalits opposing cast based reservations - this will totally defeat cast based politics.
Let us not forget the fact that BJP had stormed to power in MP, Rajasthan etc. in last elections based on bijli-sadak-pani issue. We all need development. We all know we want to get over with the issue of communal politics. Only people who are getting exploited - politically labeled minority communities, can make this happen - they have a huge role to play to bring our politics back into development agenda.

Jai Hind.

My Country, My People

Last few days have been a show of failed leadership in our country. It's surprising to see that our leaders don't have an appropriate response for an attack on our country. Our leaders have left us in shame. Where are the bygone days of Subhash Chandra Bose or Bhagat Singh? Where are the days when we did nuclear tests? Where are the days of of Kargil?

Here is a Dy CM who calls an attack on the nation a small incident. There is a CM who dares to take a picnic like tour to the ground zero. Here is a Home Minister who says terrorists had left before he reached spot. There is a Prime Minister who gives a speech which is depressing! Hey, what are we? Where is our courage? Who in this country is saying "bring 'em on".

We are better than this. Let's go get those who attacked our country and who killed our people. Let us punish all these lazy dumb politicians who don't understand what an attack on our country means. Today, let us stand united, in the name of India, to protect our country.

Jai Hind.

You don't have to have a written business plan!

I want to be clear here - you don't have to have a written business plan to be successful in life. Sportsmen like Tiger Woods, Pete Sampras, Shumacker, Sachin Tendulakar or showbiz successes like Madonna, Tom Cruise, Amitabn Bachan or politicians like L.K. Advani, Obama etc. you name it - am sure didn't have a written business plan to become successful. I would agree some of them might have had professional managers or advisors to manage their ongoing businesses, but not until they figured it out.


However, you need to have a strategy - a plan to win. It could be written or it could be in your mind - but you gotta have it. You need to think about it. You can raise money if you can successfully convey your talent or ideas in some form of communication - need not be a business plan. But, in the business world, business plan has become a norm of communication - your idea to create wealth, how you are going to implement your idea, who will be with you etc. If you can successfully do this with 6-10 slide presentation, go for it. If you can do this over a whiteboard, go for it! But you gotta have it.

Dream and then plan to achieve it

One of the hardest jobs for many entrepreneurs is to write a business plan. But a good entrepreneur knows a good business plan wins 50% of the battle even before it begins. Dreaming about what you want to do, what you want to be, is the first step and the most important step, but charting out a map to get there is the second step to become successful.

A "business plan" is a plan to get to your target. It is a description of what you are planning to do to win. It is true that you can't always reflect what you have in your mind onto a paper. However, if you are not able to write a business plan, you can't build an organization or a company. You can still be successful as an individual, but effectively communicating the plan to get to your objectives can enable you to build a successful organization, a successful company.

I view many successful actors, politicians, artists etc. as successful individual entrepreneurs. Amitabh Bachan wouldn't have written business plan, but I am sure he had his plan charted out pretty well. Whereas, Vinod Khosla, when he started SUN, had an excellent business plan (described as one of the best business plans by John Doer). Both are successful in their own right.

In my experience, writing a business plan which communicates your path to win is essential to build a great company. It is also true that you probably don't end up doing what you planned. However, as the Chinese proverb says, if don't have a plan, you can't deviate from it.

Whether you want to be successful individually or want to build a great organization, one must have a plan to win. But if you want to build a great organization, you must communicate the same by putting it in writing. You never know someone would always guide you through uncharted territories. And yes, the moment you are committed, providence changes too!

Entrepreneur and commitment

The following passage occurs near the beginning of Murray's The Scottish Himalayan Expedition (1951):... Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way. I learned a deep respect for one of Goethe's couplets:
"Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power and magic in it! "

This is precisely what an entrepreneur needs - dreaming is the first step. Beginning your journey towards your dreams is the second step. Figuring out your way is the beginning of third step.

Once you commit yourself to the journey, providence changes. If you are committed, let us explore the third step a little in our discussions next.