HWSaspirant
Dec 31, 2015
Graduate / 'I had just landed in Berlin, alone and unprepared' For HBS - Introduce Yourself. [11]
Any more feedback, please?
Any more feedback, please?
HWSaspirant
Dec 29, 2015
Graduate / 'I had just landed in Berlin, alone and unprepared' For HBS - Introduce Yourself. [11]
Thanks, Van! I had you in mind as a section mate when I was writing after your candid feedback earlier :-)
Agreed on the last line. Will be refining language further but I'm glad or mostly relieved that the spirit came across.
Thanks, Van! I had you in mind as a section mate when I was writing after your candid feedback earlier :-)
Agreed on the last line. Will be refining language further but I'm glad or mostly relieved that the spirit came across.
HWSaspirant
Dec 29, 2015
Graduate / 'I had just landed in Berlin, alone and unprepared' For HBS - Introduce Yourself. [11]
Is this better? >>>>>
Passionate. Relentless. Ambitious. That is a startup and that is also me.
Throughout school, college or work - I have often been chosen as the one to lead fronts. It didn't matter whether I had the best talent for the job at hand, but I would win each time on initiative, sheer energy and enthusiasm to learn. The constant fervor with sporadic adrenaline rushes was akin to spikes and skews in a young business. In one testing instance: a few years ago, a swine flu pandemic brought Mumbai, my home city, and XX, our college cultural festival to be held in 2 days, to an abrupt halt. Logistics, budgets and the spirits of the 450 students who had been working tirelessly so far went haywire. As Vice Chair then, I chose to lead by example. I stayed in college for as long and till as late as anyone in the team did and ensure pre-emptively that everyone be tested and vaccinated. I am proud that together, we pulled off an even grander event in 2 weeks but I am more gratified that I emerged a leader who cared, could motivate the team and kept momentum going even through limbo.
Startups fail too, a sign that a startup is taking risks and going in directions that are unchartered. In the same spirit, alongside college, I decided to pursue Chartered Accountancy. It requires one to clear three levels of exams which typically demands several months of dedicated preparation. The toughest part was not clearing the exams; it was surviving the lack of dynamism inherent in an exam-oriented coursework that did not involve a classroom learning format or interactions. I knew this was the time for me to be relentless and fortunately, the perseverance paid off. Now was the time to pivot, to adapt and to take chances again.
Risk-taking is the virtue of a startup. Like any ambitious startup, I refuse the commonplace too. I turned down an offer from a Big 4 consulting firm and continued to train at my father's niche advisory firm to experience entrepreneurship. Despite holding two commerce degrees including the most prestigious one in the country, I chose to intern with a small team that was trying to establish a market for Venture Debt - an unprecedented funding model at a time when even equity Venture Capital was barely understood in the country. At a meager $250 stipend, I didn't take that chance for money but for the opportunity to be a part of the thrilling entrepreneurship ecosystem that was unfolding in India. The risk paid off when I was offered the Associate role and along with that a permanent ringside seat to the startup gala in India. Over the last four years, I have evaluated over 150 ventures that have cumulatively raised equity funds of over $6 Billion in India and that too across a variety of sectors including Internet, SaaS, Enterprise Tech, Clean Tech and Healthcare. This experience is unique for I am probably one of the few 25 year olds who can say that.
Startups do not deserve debt arguably for lack of credibility or collateral. This is the notion I have been trying to dispel and in the process, realized that while past performance is one way to determine probability of success, venture capital predominantly relies on the credence of the vision. Entrepreneurship has also had an impact on the society on how we did everyday things in India - how we shop or pay or learn or commute. I have spent the last 4 years, borrowing the understanding of industry trends, from my peers and the ecosystem builders I have come across but now it's time to make your own.
Incubated by my parents, seed funded through my education and angel funded at (workplace), my workplace then. I now see HBS as my accelerator that will launch me in the next phase of my growth, the faculty as my mentors and all of you as my ecosystem. I have had a great ringside seat at the startup gala in India but I am now keen to get involved more closely and strategically with innovation across the world as an early stage equity investor. I see Harvard Business School as the accelerator that will launch me into the next phase of my career and growth, and the eminent faculty here as my mentors. I am excited about the prospect of undergoing this stimulating intellectual journey with all of you, learning from your brilliant and diverse experiences in class and outside, and sharing my perspective along the way.
Humble in glory, agile when momentum is solid and pragmatic yet unwavering when the going gets tough. That is a startup and that is also me.
Is this better? >>>>>
Passionate. Relentless. Ambitious. That is a startup and that is also me.
Throughout school, college or work - I have often been chosen as the one to lead fronts. It didn't matter whether I had the best talent for the job at hand, but I would win each time on initiative, sheer energy and enthusiasm to learn. The constant fervor with sporadic adrenaline rushes was akin to spikes and skews in a young business. In one testing instance: a few years ago, a swine flu pandemic brought Mumbai, my home city, and XX, our college cultural festival to be held in 2 days, to an abrupt halt. Logistics, budgets and the spirits of the 450 students who had been working tirelessly so far went haywire. As Vice Chair then, I chose to lead by example. I stayed in college for as long and till as late as anyone in the team did and ensure pre-emptively that everyone be tested and vaccinated. I am proud that together, we pulled off an even grander event in 2 weeks but I am more gratified that I emerged a leader who cared, could motivate the team and kept momentum going even through limbo.
Startups fail too, a sign that a startup is taking risks and going in directions that are unchartered. In the same spirit, alongside college, I decided to pursue Chartered Accountancy. It requires one to clear three levels of exams which typically demands several months of dedicated preparation. The toughest part was not clearing the exams; it was surviving the lack of dynamism inherent in an exam-oriented coursework that did not involve a classroom learning format or interactions. I knew this was the time for me to be relentless and fortunately, the perseverance paid off. Now was the time to pivot, to adapt and to take chances again.
Risk-taking is the virtue of a startup. Like any ambitious startup, I refuse the commonplace too. I turned down an offer from a Big 4 consulting firm and continued to train at my father's niche advisory firm to experience entrepreneurship. Despite holding two commerce degrees including the most prestigious one in the country, I chose to intern with a small team that was trying to establish a market for Venture Debt - an unprecedented funding model at a time when even equity Venture Capital was barely understood in the country. At a meager $250 stipend, I didn't take that chance for money but for the opportunity to be a part of the thrilling entrepreneurship ecosystem that was unfolding in India. The risk paid off when I was offered the Associate role and along with that a permanent ringside seat to the startup gala in India. Over the last four years, I have evaluated over 150 ventures that have cumulatively raised equity funds of over $6 Billion in India and that too across a variety of sectors including Internet, SaaS, Enterprise Tech, Clean Tech and Healthcare. This experience is unique for I am probably one of the few 25 year olds who can say that.
Startups do not deserve debt arguably for lack of credibility or collateral. This is the notion I have been trying to dispel and in the process, realized that while past performance is one way to determine probability of success, venture capital predominantly relies on the credence of the vision. Entrepreneurship has also had an impact on the society on how we did everyday things in India - how we shop or pay or learn or commute. I have spent the last 4 years, borrowing the understanding of industry trends, from my peers and the ecosystem builders I have come across but now it's time to make your own.
Incubated by my parents, seed funded through my education and angel funded at (workplace), my workplace then. I now see HBS as my accelerator that will launch me in the next phase of my growth, the faculty as my mentors and all of you as my ecosystem. I have had a great ringside seat at the startup gala in India but I am now keen to get involved more closely and strategically with innovation across the world as an early stage equity investor. I see Harvard Business School as the accelerator that will launch me into the next phase of my career and growth, and the eminent faculty here as my mentors. I am excited about the prospect of undergoing this stimulating intellectual journey with all of you, learning from your brilliant and diverse experiences in class and outside, and sharing my perspective along the way.
Humble in glory, agile when momentum is solid and pragmatic yet unwavering when the going gets tough. That is a startup and that is also me.
HWSaspirant
Dec 29, 2015
Graduate / 'I had just landed in Berlin, alone and unprepared' For HBS - Introduce Yourself. [11]
Thanks, Kevin. I'm working on improvising already but thanks for telling me that the story has some differentiation, some surviving chance. I just really needed to hear that. I'll get back to all of you in some time with something better.
Really appreciate all your feedback!
Thanks, Kevin. I'm working on improvising already but thanks for telling me that the story has some differentiation, some surviving chance. I just really needed to hear that. I'll get back to all of you in some time with something better.
Really appreciate all your feedback!
HWSaspirant
Dec 29, 2015
Graduate / 'I had just landed in Berlin, alone and unprepared' For HBS - Introduce Yourself. [11]
These aren't future stories. These are past stories that happened with me - Berlin, the sale of business, Why is entrepreneurship so important to me, Where did this begin. Only the last para is aspirational.
I get your point on other things I can include. The idea was for people to take away that I am passionate about entrepreneurship for a few reasons. I guess one theme makes it very very one dimensional.
These aren't future stories. These are past stories that happened with me - Berlin, the sale of business, Why is entrepreneurship so important to me, Where did this begin. Only the last para is aspirational.
I get your point on other things I can include. The idea was for people to take away that I am passionate about entrepreneurship for a few reasons. I guess one theme makes it very very one dimensional.
HWSaspirant
Dec 28, 2015
Graduate / 'I had just landed in Berlin, alone and unprepared' For HBS - Introduce Yourself. [11]
Q: This is the first day of HBS. Introduce yourself to your section mates. 6 days to go.
A: I'm not giving details around my background because it's the first day at HBS and I want to know if this is interesting and if you'd want to sit beside this person in class.
I had just landed in Berlin, alone and unprepared. It had been raining and I didn't have a map or a working phone. I took off from the airport, mistakenly in the wrong direction, on a wrong bus. A few minutes later, I smiled. In being lost in a new city, I found comfort in the realization that the prospect of possibilities can be exciting if I decided not to be intimidated by it. Recently our 7 member team had been told that the Debt business that we had built over the last few years - one relationship at a time, was no longer going to be funded by (XX), our parent company at the time. The news came at a time when growth was accelerating; we were finalizing plans to deploy additional capital as fast as we prudently could.
Through the next 15 months, the team successfully executed a management buyout and brought in (big investor) as the majority investor. In this journey from (Company 1) to (New company), from being part of a large global organization with a 30 year legacy to a new brand whose reputation relied only on the individuals in the team, I found my inspiration - to embody the spirit of a startup - humble in glory, agile when momentum is solid and pragmatic yet unwavering when the going gets tough.
Startups often have no assets or success track record which is what makes lending to these early stage ventures counter-intuitive and challenging. This etched in me an important lesson - to look beyond past performance or the lack of it when assessing potential and to give credence to vision. Enabling entrepreneurship has also been a gratifying experience for its eventual impact on the society. When new products, services or organized markets are created by these startups, it results in jobs, commerce and prosperity too and I am thrilled to have made a contribution, in my own way.
My reverence for entrepreneurship took form when alongside college I assisted my father at his niche advisory firm that specializes in rehabilitating sick industries. It is the best formative training I could have had on business realities for it exposed me to the troughs a business could find itself in and how one bounces back from failure.
I have spent the last four years working alongside entrepreneurs and investors who are disrupting the way we do everyday things in India - in how we shop or pay or learn or commute. I have had a great ringside seat at the startup gala in India but I am now keen to get involved more closely and strategically with innovation across the world as an early stage equity investor. I see Harvard Business School as the accelerator that will launch me into the next phase of my career and growth, and the eminent faculty here as my mentors. I am excited about the prospect of undergoing this stimulating intellectual journey with all of you, learning from your brilliant and diverse experiences in class and outside, and sharing my perspective along the way.
Q: This is the first day of HBS. Introduce yourself to your section mates. 6 days to go.
A: I'm not giving details around my background because it's the first day at HBS and I want to know if this is interesting and if you'd want to sit beside this person in class.
I had just landed in Berlin, alone and unprepared. It had been raining and I didn't have a map or a working phone. I took off from the airport, mistakenly in the wrong direction, on a wrong bus. A few minutes later, I smiled. In being lost in a new city, I found comfort in the realization that the prospect of possibilities can be exciting if I decided not to be intimidated by it. Recently our 7 member team had been told that the Debt business that we had built over the last few years - one relationship at a time, was no longer going to be funded by (XX), our parent company at the time. The news came at a time when growth was accelerating; we were finalizing plans to deploy additional capital as fast as we prudently could.
Through the next 15 months, the team successfully executed a management buyout and brought in (big investor) as the majority investor. In this journey from (Company 1) to (New company), from being part of a large global organization with a 30 year legacy to a new brand whose reputation relied only on the individuals in the team, I found my inspiration - to embody the spirit of a startup - humble in glory, agile when momentum is solid and pragmatic yet unwavering when the going gets tough.
Startups often have no assets or success track record which is what makes lending to these early stage ventures counter-intuitive and challenging. This etched in me an important lesson - to look beyond past performance or the lack of it when assessing potential and to give credence to vision. Enabling entrepreneurship has also been a gratifying experience for its eventual impact on the society. When new products, services or organized markets are created by these startups, it results in jobs, commerce and prosperity too and I am thrilled to have made a contribution, in my own way.
My reverence for entrepreneurship took form when alongside college I assisted my father at his niche advisory firm that specializes in rehabilitating sick industries. It is the best formative training I could have had on business realities for it exposed me to the troughs a business could find itself in and how one bounces back from failure.
I have spent the last four years working alongside entrepreneurs and investors who are disrupting the way we do everyday things in India - in how we shop or pay or learn or commute. I have had a great ringside seat at the startup gala in India but I am now keen to get involved more closely and strategically with innovation across the world as an early stage equity investor. I see Harvard Business School as the accelerator that will launch me into the next phase of my career and growth, and the eminent faculty here as my mentors. I am excited about the prospect of undergoing this stimulating intellectual journey with all of you, learning from your brilliant and diverse experiences in class and outside, and sharing my perspective along the way.
