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Successful entrepreneurship: A sense of well being

by Priyanka Sangani
The Economic Times: February 20, 2009: 04:24 AM IST
URL: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4158058.cms?flstry=1

It’s commonplace for universities to have thriving alumni associations, but when one hears of an alumni association for one single course, one tends to sit up and take notice. Then again, it isn’t everyday that professors prescribe a reading list that ranges from A Search in Secret India and PG Wodehouse to Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, to be finished before Day One of a programme titled ‘Creative and Personal Mastery’.

Professor Srikumar S Rao, who conducts this difficult-to-get-into course (almost half the applicants are rejected) at London Business School (as well as privately in conjunction with Columbia Business School in New York) is also the author of the best-selling Are You Ready to Succeed?, which, like the course, provides a mix of Eastern philosophy and core B-school principles to discover your ‘purpose in life’ and be successful at whatever you do.

Rao’s definition of success is different from the one normally bandied about, which equates it with financial gains. "According to me, you are successful if you have a very deep sense of well being. When most people wake up, their mind is a giant to-do list and there is an undertone of stress and anxiety,” he says. “A lot of ‘successful’ people have no sense of well being, and by this, I am not referring to frivolous happiness."

To get to this stage of being successful, Rao says that there are certain things that entrepreneurs in particular should be focused upon. "Entrepreneurs are basically very driven people, otherwise they wouldn’t be entrepreneurs,” he says. They are doing what they are because of a strong inner compulsion and to attain certain goals, financial and otherwise.

But rather than singlemindedly chase the notion of making their first million, it’s important to ask yourself how people are benefiting from what you are doing. "If entrepreneurs ask themselves what is the service being provided to their customers and society at large, they will lead more fulfilled lives," says Rao. "Once you are clear about what is truly important to you and you focus your attention on it, a seemingly insurmountable obstacle becomes a mere bump in the road."

The second important thing that entrepreneurs don’t pay enough attention to is their relationship with their employees. Often, people are looked upon as a means to achieve the end goal, and this is reflected in their daily interactions. As a result, entrepreneurs often complain that their employees lack initiative and don’t take ownership of tasks, but that is because the message they are getting is that they are not important in the larger scheme of things. "You need to have a clear notion that not only are you working at creating a viable enterprise, but also to help anyone who enters your organisation achieve their highest potential. This is not particularly easy to do. But if get yourself to truly believe in it and not do it because you are expected to, it will communicate itself to employees and magic will happen," says Rao.

Strangely, he says, once people learn to focus on the aspects beyond making money and adding customers, these too tend to fall into place. Having worked closely with entrepreneurs across a variety of ventures as well as with organisations like The Entrepreneurs Association and Young Presidents, Rao is familiar with some of the common mistakes entrepreneurs tend to make in the early days.

The biggest one, according to him, is not paying enough attention to marketing. Entrepreneurs tend to concentrate on acquiring customers and in today’s competitive business environment where there are always a dozen other similar businesses vying for the same customer, irrespective of what you do, establishing your brand and delivering overwhelming value should be at the forefront of any business manager’s mind. "You constantly need to keep asking yourself what you can do to make it worthwhile for your customer to do business with you. Also, you need to constantly look at coming up with new ways to do that," he says. The company must be built around the simple but crucial goal of helping the customer achieve what he wants.

While someone who has worked his way up the ranks and is heading a company has the advantage of having an already established and (hopefully) viable business in place, it’s not always easy for him to place his individual stamp on the company and its value systems. An entrepreneur on the other hand has the opportunity to build up the organisation exactly the way he desires and in line with the values and principles that truly matter to him.

Despite the tumultuous global business climate, Rao insists that now in fact is the best time for entrepreneurs to start out. "Rather than being discouraged, I’d recommend you take the opposite approach. If everyone around you is getting discouraged, it provides you with a unique opportunity. What is it and how can you exploit it is what an entrepreneur should be focusing upon at present," says Rao.

Not everyone though, is cut-out to be an entrepreneur. After all, we need some people to function as employees too. But age is one of the worst criteria in trying to decide whether or not to take the plunge. "I’ve worked with people in their late-teens as well as in their 60s who have made millions of dollars from their start-up ventures. It’s more about being psychologically ready," he says.

Equally important is being clear about the reasons for doing what you do. One of the greatest strategic mistakes people make is not doing enough due diligence and ascertaining whether or not there is indeed a sizeable market for the product or service they want to peddle. Or whether they will be able to convince people to pay for the service they are offering. "Just because you like doing something or are good at it doesn’t always mean that you can build a successful career out of it," says Rao.

The second mistake most entrepreneurs make is less strategic, more psychological - expecting quick results. "You need to really slog it out before you begin to see results. It is important to remember that great things don’t happen immediately," says Rao. This is where a lot of people tend to fall by the wayside, simply because they don’t persevere and believe that no matter what it takes, they will make a success of it. The trick of course, lies in realising which of these two situations you are caught in.

Finally, Rao says that even if things are going bad, entrepreneurs should not lose their sense of gratitude and appreciation for at least being able to pursue their dreams. "When things are going bad, it’s important not to get sucked into the situation and simultaneously work at fixing it. This comes only through having a sense of gratitude," he says.

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