Tweet! Tweet!

Twitter totally kicks Facebook’s backside!

Where else, but in twitosphere, would two diverse personalities as a bollywood actor (@gulpanag) and the editor-in-chief (@nramind) of India’s best newspaper respond to and connect with someone on the same day.

Without doubting the merits of FB as a social networking platform, what makes twitter such an awesome social tool is the simple fact that I can choose to follow the lives of people who interest me without necessarily being acquainted with them. Similarly, if I pump out good stuff - stuff that interests people, twitter makes it easy for others to find/know me. This, my friends, elevates Twitter from being just another social networking site.

Apart from the obvious marketing and monetization potential of twitter accounts, the big game can actually play out in education. During my school and college days, I would’ve loved to get daily bite-sized (140 characters at a time) nuggets of gyaan from professors and authors who were nothing more than faceless names on my reference books. How awesome it would’ve been if I were able to propose improvements in theories directly to their proponents than to skeptical lecturers!

Twitter empowers every single individual to circumvent “the system”.

If you’re a wannabe author, you don’t have to grovel in front of publishing houses!

If you’re a salesman, you don’t have to knock on doors!

If you’re an activist, you don’t have to conduct a thousand meetings to galvanize support!

You may be anyone - doing anything. But if you want an audience - to connect with your reader or customer or even a fellow ideologue - twitter lets you do that.

As long as you have what it takes, the world is just a few clicks (or is it tweets?) away!

When is the right time, eh?

This post is in response to all those people who keep asking me - when is the right time to start off on my own?

Just because I’ve been an entrepreneur for a few years now doesn’t mean that I have the faintest idea when one should start a company or even if one should! There are a million and one people out there who would love to assist you. They’ll tell you everything - from how much to save (depending on your risk appetite) before starting up to planning for your marriage and family.

But from my limited experience, I can safely tell you this - If you need someone’s sanction (be it your astrologer’s, for all I care!) to dive into the world of entrepreneurship, KEEP AWAY, my friend.

I’m putting in writing what I tell wannabe entrepreneurs who come looking for advice. Don’t let the romance of a startup fool you. There’s nothing romantic or cool about it. Its a life full of struggle and impossible deadlines - deadlines that you cannot afford to miss. Nothing can be put off for tomorrow - everything needed to have been done yesterday. And most importantly, have the ability to swallow your pride and grin when your classmate shows off his new big car!

So, if you got the steel to survive the rigours of being your own boss, start today, nay, NOW!

P.S. There’s a pot of gold (and a very BIG car) at the end of the journey - that is, if you last that long :)

Where did Cleartrip screw up?

Those on twitter would already know about the Kiruba Incident and Cleartrip’s response. Though Cleartrip did make up for the lapse by quickly compensating Kiruba, their handling of the social media has been disastrous to say the least.

The emotion heavy cleartrip post does not even address the core issue - breakdown/non-existence of their international ticketing process. No one really cares what happened post-facto. Nor does anyone want to know if there were other players to be blamed.

If I am not responsible to my customer, who is? I’m, not for a moment, implying that all fault lies with Cleartrip. Kiruba should have been more careful while filling his details online. But thats not the issue, is it?

All that was required of Cleartrip was an acknowledgment of the fact that there was a failure in their process and the steps that they’ve taken to rectify it. This was a perfect opportunity to engage and reaffirm their commitment to exceptional customer service. Cleartrip’s handling of the return journey would’ve earned brownie points instead of being relegated to the background. This needn’t have degenerated into a slugging match between the so-called “social media” and Cleartrip.

At the end of it all, companies need to realize and recognize the growing importance of social networks. Tools like twitter, seesmic, facebook and others have amplified individual voices. And this is only going to grow louder - barriers are crashing, distances disappearing - and the word travels faster and farther!!!

Cleartrip.com, you sure did lose out on an opportunity to win some a lot of love!

UPDATE: All’s well that ends well - Check out Part 2 of Kiruba’s post. Hope the love is not lost after all!

Disclaimer: I’m a Cleartripper - absolutely love their service. And my company is a partner of Cleartrip.com!

P.S. Check out Gary’s handling of what could’ve been a PR nightmare!

Epiphany and Confession Time!!!

TODAY is the game changer. TODAY is the day that has changed the way I’ll lead the “rest of my life”.

And all it took was this one post by Steve Blank.

I quit the supposed “rat race” to follow my dreams but I never realized that the rat race never quit me. And this post is about an entrepreneur’s confession.

The long hours at my previous work places always left me feeling extremely empty - a void that I could never explain. Entrepreneurship shouldn’t have been such a natural choice that it eventually turned out to be. After all, there isn’t a drop of business in my blood - in fact, a secure, well paying job should’ve been my priority no. 1. It wasn’t.

And boy, was I glad that my family supported my decision to throw away a fast track career and jump into unchartered waters. The day I quit my globe-trotting, offensively well paying job, I had absolutely no money in my bank accounts. I never cared too much about saving - I wanted and had it all - new cars, a small penthouse apartment, fine dining on weekends. My decision to quit meant quite a few sacrifices. I thought it would be heart-breaking to let it all go. And once again, it wasn’t. If I remember right, I even agreed to forgo one month’s salary in exchange for being relieved without having to serve out my notice period.

The first few months are always magical, sometimes completely unbelievable. It is a high that one cannot explain but only experience. Every day brings new ideas - days turn into nights and the conversations continue well into the next day. The adrenalin rush is completely overpowering. Like every good fairy tale, life has its mandatory twists - one needs to be able to take the punches without being knocked down. In the life of an entrepreneur, the tough days heavily outnumber good ones. However, the good days more than make up for the struggle. So we do what we should - work harder, work smarter, work longer.

All was well till I read the afore mentioned post. One more thing that all aspiring entrepreneurs should know before I continue is that one tends to lose the ability to tolerate criticism, esp. from people who really care. That combined with ever-changing goal posts and deadlines can overwhelm the best of us.

Armed with the power of my latest epiphany, I did some some honest soul searching. Sacrifices were made not just by me but by every single person who loves and cares about me.

The long hours are no different from the times before my startup. The constant stretch was not only pushing my limits but of the people around me as well. In the last few years, I’ve never found time for family, friends and even my loving wife. All I had was a ready list of excuses for not being there. I was so consumed by my drive that I was completely oblivious to the fact that time was fast running out. Earlier I could blame it all on my employer, boss and sometimes even clients. But today …? All my claims of making up for the lost time sound so hollow now.

It is also very easy to take everything and everyone around you for granted while chasing that pot of gold. Families are not just your source of support but also an easy target of your anger and frustration. Most of us (including yours truly) wrongly interpret patience - patience does not mean tolerance - its just a rope, a very long one. Never try to push your luck too hard. I did - thankfully my rope was long enough.

Justifying the toll your ambition takes on the family is something that every single entrepreneur I’ve known in my life does. Its almost natural to fool yourself into believing that this grunt is for the greater good of your family and the generations ahead. Not for a moment did I realize before today that my family would rather have 1 hour of my daily life than a year of “quality time” on an exotic island.

So, my friends, stop making excuses for not spending enough time with your loved ones. If it means sacrificing an hour’s sleep to wake up early to go for that morning walk, do it. If it means turning off the laptop to chat about the day, do it. Do everything possible to enjoy life in the moment - you never know, tomorrow may just be too late.

I promise to turn my life around - DO YOU?

UPDATE: I’m still an entrepreneur (some people were concerned). I just need to find some balance. And the quest for the holy grail continues…

Cafe Coffee Day - Seriously?!

This is very disturbing. I had visited the Coffee Day outlet on Commercial Street last Sunday to meet a friend. When we ordered a couple of cold coffees, the waiter offered the familiar choice of whipped cream, ice-cream and chocolate sauce. Since all that we wanted was a glass of cold coffee on a very hot afternoon, we declined.

Then came the shocker, the waiter informed us that they don’t serve cold coffee without the “extras” on weekends. Incredible!

After haggling for a while, we settled for the extras to be served on a plate. In one swift stroke, CCD lost years of brand equity that they’d built with me. Forced up-selling never worked and probably never will. Siddhartha and Co - didn’t really expect smart people like you to do this. No wonder, the outlet was a ghost town on a crowded Sunday. CCD, SHAME ON YOU!