IFISE Magazine - August 2017 FED Report

FED REPORT August 2017
From the desk of Vice President (India)
Dear Entrepreneurs,
It gives me immense pleasure to write about entrepreneurship the most challenging
and the probably the most important thing required to make this world a better place.
In my life I did lot of work and played many roles in different areas including my eleven
years of service in IT industry, one year in social work and around three years in hotel
and few months in other businesses as well. That time my prime objective was to earn
my bread and butter and other driving factors were challenging assignments, trying
to do something different than others, doing whatever I wished, whatever I liked and
sometimes whatever came before me. So last 15 year’s journey was not at all planned
one, though I always wanted to be a successful businessman, I never knew how to be
one. What all I thought about business was start with your and family’s hard earned
money, take a loan and setup a shop or office or factory and then look for customers,
spend mostly on marketing and sales without studying much which is a wrong approach
indeed. I also had thought that I can setup a factory and then hire sales team who will
bring in good revenue for my business, so illiterate I was about business. Now also I see
many people work with the same mindset I was working with and hence they are not
able to grow their businesses rather many are not able to survive. Fortunately I found my
business mentor; I got to learn what business is and now am on right track. It is utmost
important for an entrepreneur to know why, what, when and who they are working for.
In last year we have personally spoken to more than five hundred entrepreneurs
including startups, professionals, self employed, students, women entrepreneurs,
rural entrepreneurs, family business owners, SMEs and found that everybody has a
wish, they want to own a big business, they have a great idea, they work hard, they
invest their invaluable resources including time and money, but what they lack is
the understanding about market and customers who are actually going to pay and
fulfill your dream. I don’t hesitate to make this bold statement that many people
including highly educated are actually illiterate in business. They don’t even know the
purpose of business, what all they talk is about making money and that’s it. Because
of this lack of knowledge, attitude and right business mindset they can’t go far, they
get stuck in their business for years. Government of India started StartUp India
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