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  • Jawed Karim Success Story: How Did He Found YouTube?

    Social media has drastically changed the lives of everyone across the globe in the last twenty years. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat have connected people and brought them closer. The yawning gulf in terms of geography is now nearly non-existent.

    Amidst a huge number of social media and video streaming platforms, YouTube has carved a league of its own as one of the oldest and leading video-sharing platforms. YouTube is also popularly hailed as the most visited website in the world after its parent organization, Google.

    The founders of YouTube were Jawed Karim, Chad Hurley, and Steve Chan on February 14, 2005. They are also popularly known as the inventors of YouTube. Jawed Karim is an American software engineer and entrepreneur. He is of Bangladeshi and German descent. Jawed Karim was there with YouTube right from the first ever YouTube video uploaded, the revenue of which was last estimated to be over $29.20 billion in 2022. His contribution to the growth of YouTube is simply indispensable.

    Anyone with internet connectivity would have seen videos on YouTube at least once in their life. YouTube is the platform that gave birth to many sensations; without the video-sharing website, there would have been no T-Series, Pewdiepie, CarryMinati, and thousands of other video creators. The current YouTube CEO is Susan Wojcicki, who became the CEO of the American online video-sharing and social media platform in February 2014.

    Do you know that the first-ever video posted on YouTube was “Me at the Zoo,” which was uploaded by none other than Jawed Karim on April 23, 2005? The first video ever uploaded to YouTube has been watched over 224 million times as of March 2022.

    Let’s look at the success story of the co-founder of YouTube, Jawed Karim. We will discuss his net worth, education, personal life, investments, and more.

    Jawed Karim – Biography

    Name Jawed Karim
    Born 28 October 1979 – Merseburg, East Germany
    Net worth $310 Million
    Nationality American/German
    Parents Naimul Karim, Christine Karim
    Siblings Ilias Karim
    Education University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign (BS), Stanford University (MS)
    Occupation Entrepreneur
    Known for Co-founder of YouTube, Uploader of the first video ever on YouTube
    Youtube channel Jawed
    Jawed Karim - Founder of YouTube
    Jawed Karim – Founder of YouTube

    Jawed Karim Education and Early Life
    Jawed Karim – Career
    Jawed Karim – How he founded YouTube?
    Jawed Karim – First YouTube Video Ever
    Jawed Karim – Growth of YouTube
    Jawed Karim – YouTube Google Acquisition
    Jawed Karim – Opposing YouTube’s Decisions
    Jawed Karim – Awards and Achievements
    Jawed Karim – Investments and Partnerships
    Jawed Karim – Now

    Jawed Karim Education and Early Life

    Jawed was born on October 28, 1979, in Merseburg, East Germany (Present-day Germany), to Christine Karim and Naimul Karim. His father is a researcher from Bangladesh who works at 3M, an American multinational conglomerate (originally known as Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company), which was founded in June 1902 and headquartered in Maplewood, Minnesota, United States. Karim’s mother is a German scientist associated with the University of Minnesota as a Research Professor of Biochemistry. He has one sibling, Ilias Karim, who is younger than Jawed.

    Though he was born in Merseburg, Jawed Karim grew up in Neuss, West Germany. He had to cross the border of inner Germany along with his family in the early 1980s due to increasing xenophobia there. However, he had to face several other episodes of xenophobia in Neuss as well, which is why he again had to move with his family to Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1992. It was from Saint Paul Central High School that Karim graduated in 1997.

    Jawed enrolled at the University of Illinois in the Department of Computer Science. Jawed left the university before completing his graduation and joined PayPal; he was one of PayPal’s earliest employees. He later completed his graduation and obtained his degree in Computer Science in 2004. Jawed eventually joined Stanford University and earned his Master’s degree in Computer Science, but that was after YouTube was founded.

    Jawed Karim – Career

    Karim started his career in his university days with an Internship at Silicon Graphics, Inc. He had worked there on “3D voxel data management for very large data sets for volume rendering, which includes the data for the Visible Human Project“. However, he soon dropped out of college and joined PayPal, and it was there that he met Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, the future co-founders of YouTube, in 2002.

    Jawed Karim – How he founded YouTube?

    YouTube Owner Name and Photo
    Founders of YouTube – Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, Jawed Karim

    At PayPal, he met Steve Chen and Chad Hurley, the other two creators of YouTube. The absence of video clips of Super Bowl XXXVIII and the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami gave Jawed the idea of a video-sharing platform. The controversial half-time segment of the Super Bowl with Janet Jackson was a rage at that time that everyone wanted to have a glimpse of. However, Hurley and Chen have mentioned the website Hot or Not, a rating site that allows users to rate the attractiveness of the photos submitted voluntarily by the users, as the motivation behind creating YouTube. These three people who made YouTube also stated that they had an online video version of a dating site in their minds when they decided to launch YouTube.

    Now, if you are wondering whether YouTube was the first video-sharing website on the internet, then it was not the first of these sites. This is because Vimeo was launched in November 2004, before YouTube, but as it was a side project of the developers of the Los Angeles-based internet comedy company CollegeHumor, Vimeo failed to grow that fast.

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    YouTube as a Dating Site and Why it Didn’t Work Out!

    YouTube, as mentioned before, was originally thought to be set up as an online video dating site, with “Hot or Not” as a major influence for the founders, but that didn’t work out well. The founders even tried to post on Craigslist and request attractive women to upload their videos on YouTube in exchange for $100 for each such video post. However, they failed to pivot on the same plan due to the lack of enough dating videos. The website’s founders then changed their plans and began to accept videos of all sorts. Whatever may have been the inspiration, we are glad to have YouTube today!

    After the necessary measures and steps were in place, the ‘YouTube’ domain name was activated on 14th February 2005. After receiving the funding of $3.5 million from Sequoia Capital, they launched the YouTube beta site in May 2005.

    A series of developments followed. The company eventually commenced as a venture capital-funded technology startup. YouTube then continued to receive funding from several other investors, including Sequoia Capital, which poured in $11.5 million, and Artis Capital Management, which funded the platform with another $8 million, the largest of the investors for YouTube then. These fundings massively helped YouTube to scale fast.

    Initially, the company was headquartered in San Mateo, California, right above a pizzeria and a Japanese restaurant, before it expanded its headquarters in San Bruno.

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    Jawed Karim – First YouTube Video Ever

    The first YouTube channel was “Jawed,” which was created by Jawed Karim in 2005, and the first-ever video on YouTube was a video uploaded by him titled “Me at the Zoo.” This video was recorded by his high school friend, Yakov Lapitsky. The YouTube owner’s video featured Karim at the San Diego Zoo. The video has more than 343 million views as of December 2024.

    First Ever YouTube Video – Me at the Zoo by Jawed Karim

    Jawed Karim – Growth of YouTube

    In 2005, YouTube got its first one million views video, a Nike advertisement featuring the legendary Brazilian soccer player Ronaldinho. The video showed Ronaldinho receiving his pair of “Golden Boots.” YouTube was launched officially on December 15, 2005, when the site was already receiving more than 8 million views a day. However, at the start of the platform, YouTube only accepted videos up to 100 megabytes, which are mostly limited to 30 seconds of video footage.

    YouTube's First One Million Views Video - Nike Advertisement
    YouTube’s First One Million Views Video – Nike Advertisement

    NBC-Universal’s Saturday Night Live broadcasted a skit named “Lazy Sunday” by The Lonely Island, which was during the same week of YouTube’s launch. Thus, it was Lazy Sunday, which quickly started to be unofficially uploaded on YouTube. This not only boosted the ratings and contributed to the long-term viewership of Saturday Night Live but also hugely helped YouTube gain recognition, turning it into one of the earliest viral videos on YouTube. The unofficial uploads of the skit on Youtube rose up to 5 million views when recorded in February 2006, after which it was eventually removed two months later following the request from NBCUniversal due to copyright issues. This paved the way for the Content Verification Program under YouTube’s policy. It allowed copyright holders to identify the infringements easily. After a few ugly spats, YouTube made a deal with NBC. This deal helped NBC enter the world of digital broadcasting. And this was just the beginning of YouTube’s several partnerships with industry bigshots.

    Though most of the videos were taken down, the duplicate uploads failed to stop. Instead, they came pouring in, as they were, seemingly to popularize YouTube.

    YouTube started to grow fast, and it was announced in July 2006 that the video-sharing platform was receiving over 65K new video uploads daily. Besides, YouTube also confirmed that it was receiving 100 million video views each day.

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    Jawed Karim – YouTube Google Acquisition

    After launching YouTube, YouTube founder Jawed Karim became an informal adviser instead of an employee to the company as he wanted to complete his studies, subsequently joining Stanford University. Comparatively, he took a lower share in the company than other co-founders, Steve Chan and Chad Hurley.

    Much of the time, he remained unrecognized by the general public until Google’s arrival. It was only when The people who created YouTube sold to Google for nearly $1.65 billion in 2006 that Karim was again back in the news and media.

    This small share still proved large enough to let him receive close to 137,443 shares, worth around $64 million, at the closing of the famous Google acquisition of YouTube. Currently, Jawed Karim’s net worth is $310 million.

    Jawed Karim delivered a lecture in the year 2006 at the annual ACM Conference of the University of Illinois on YouTube’s history, which was titled “YouTube From Concept to Hypergrowth.” Furthermore, Karim came back to the University of Illinois in May 2008, where he was again selected as the speaker, thereby becoming the 136th and the youngest Commencement Speaker in the history of the school.

    Youtube “Broadcast Yourself”

    After YouTube was acquired by Google, YouTube users and other content creators looked for another reliable option. Then, the other video-sharing sites tried coming to prominence and distinguishing themselves from YouTube, but they eventually failed to do that with the announcement of YouTube’s slogan “Broadcast Yourself.” This became the start of the Broadcast Yourself era of YouTube, which helped YouTube see another period of rapid growth. According to a Daily Telegraph report of 2007, YouTube consumed bandwidth that equals the entire bandwidth of the internet 2000. The company soon crossed the milestone of 14 billion video views by 2010 and boasted of holding a market share of 43%. To further boost the growth of YouTube, the platform simplified its interface in the same year, which aimed to increase the dwelling time of the viewers on YouTube.

    YouTube crossed another milestone in 2011, namely, 3 billion videos being watched each day, where 48 hours’ worth of new videos were being uploaded each minute.

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    Jawed Karim – Opposing YouTube’s Decisions

    In 2013, Google made major changes to its policy. A user needed a Google+ account to post a comment on any YouTube video. The move faced backlash and was widely opposed by the YouTube community. To voice discontent against the new policy, an online petition was signed by several users.

    The petition gained around 240,000 signatures. The YoutTube founder Karim, too, was not in favor of the policy change; to oppose the Google+ intervention, he updated the video description on his first video to “I can’t comment here anymore, as I don’t want a Google+ account.”

    After the protests from the YouTube community, Google apologized for forcing Google+ users to use their real names, and subsequently, Google dropped the policy of integration of Google+ with YouTube. In 2018, Google permanently disabled Google+ services after it failed in both consumer and developer adoption.

    Karim also criticized the recent move to remove the dislike count on YouTube. He expressed, “When every YouTuber agrees that removing dislikes is a stupid idea, it probably is. Try again, Youtube.”

    Jawed Karim on YouTube Dislike Removal
    Jawed Karim on YouTube Dislike Removal

    Jawed Karim – Awards and Achievements

    • Young Alumni Achievement Award from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2014) – The Young Alumni Achievement Award is given to recent graduates who have achieved outstanding career success.
    • GITA (Global Indus Technovator) Award (2008) – The GITA award is given to individuals who have made significant contributions to the technology field.

    Jawed Karim – Investments and Partnerships

    Jawed Karim has made 22 investments, with his most recent one being a seed round in Corgea on November 6, 2024, where Corgea raised $2.6 million.

    Announced Date Organization Name Funding Round Money Raised
    Nov 6, 2024 Corgea Seed Round – Corgea $2.6M
    May 1, 2024 Double Seed Round – Double $3.3M
    Aug 1, 2023 Socket Series A – Socket $20M
    Jan 31, 2020 Formatech Seed Round – Formatech $7M
    Oct 23, 2019 Rocket Money Series B – Rocket Money $15M
    Oct 3, 2018 Rocket Money Series A – Rocket Money $5M
    Jan 10, 2017 Gustav Seed Round – Gustav $980K
    Nov 20, 2015 Circle Medical Seed Round – Circle Medical $2.9M
    Sep 30, 2015 Ambronite Seed Round – Ambronite $600K
    May 18, 2015 Videopixie Seed Round – Videopixie $1.1M

    Karim launched Youniversity Ventures (Y Ventures) in March 2008 in partnership with Kevin Hartz and Keith Rabois. In April 2009, he invested in the initial Seed round of Airbnb Inc. via Y Ventures, his last partner investment, Karim. Jawed became one of the initial investors of the company.

    Name of the Company Investment Date Funding Round Investor Total Funding
    Airbnb April 1, 2009 Seed Round Y Ventures $600K

    Jawed Karim’s other investments include stakes in:

    • Gusto
    • Postmates
    • Truebill
    • Miso
    • Milo
    • Gustav
    • Eventbrite
    • DataFox
    • Circle Medical

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    Jawed Karim – Now

    Jawed Karim is now an investor and passionate about education. He completed his master’s in computer science at Stanford and co-founded Youniversity Ventures (Y Ventures), where he mentors and invests in startups like Airbnb and Reddit.

    Conclusion

    Jawed Karim’s story is an example of it coming down to identifying a niche and then working on it, and it is undoubtedly inspiring for the entrepreneurs of today. A video-sharing platform may be mainstream today, but that wasn’t the case in the early 2000s. When YouTube came into being, Karim would always be a prominent face of YouTube. Besides, Karim had a major say in many crucial YouTube decisions, including the one to collaborate with companies like Google and NBC, which can undoubtedly be marked as some of the most significant reasons behind the popularity that YouTube enjoys today. No one could fathom that a small video showing a guy introducing an elephant at the zoo would change video sharing and streaming forever!

    FAQs

    Who owns YouTube?

    The parent company of YouTube is Google. Google purchased YouTube in November 2006 for $1.65 billion in stocks and is currently the company that owns YouTube.

    Who is the founder of YouTube?

    Jawed Karim, Chad Hurley, and Steve Chen are the founders of YouTube.

    What was the first YouTube video?

    Jawed Karim’s “Me at the Zoo” was YouTube’s first video that was uploaded on the social media platform.

    When was YouTube founded, or when did YouTube start?

    YouTube was launched on February 14, 2005. The popular social media platform was founded by Jawed Karim, Chad Hurley, and Steve Chen.

    How much was YouTube sold for?

    Google bought YouTube for $1.65 billion in stocks in November 2006.

    Who are Steve Chen and Jawed Karim, and what are they known for?

    Steve Chen and Jawed Karim are the co-founders of YouTube and are known for founding the popular video-sharing platform in 2005.

    What is Jawed Karim’s net worth?

    The net worth of YouTube founder, Jawed Karim is approximately $310 million as of 2024.

    What is Jawed Karim age?

    Jawed Karim, YouTube founder was born in October 1979 and is 45 years old.

    How much is YouTube worth?

    The brand value of YouTube stands at $31.7 billion in 2024.

    Did YouTube begin as a dating site?

    YouTube reportedly began as a video version of an online dating service, which was influenced by the James Hong and Jim Young-created rating site Hot or Not.

    What is Chad Hurley net worth?

    The net worth of YouTube founder, Chad Hurley stands around $800 million as of 2024.

    What is Jawed Karim doing now?

    Jawed Karim, co-founder of YouTube, is now an investor and passionate about education. He co-founded Youniversity Ventures (Y Ventures), where he mentors and invests in startups like Airbnb and Reddit.

  • How to Validate Your Startup Idea: Practical Steps for Early-Stage Entrepreneurs

    This article has been contributed by Aneesh Khanna, Early-Stage Entrepreneurship Consultant & Coach.

    • In 2010 – It was DIFFICULT to STARTUP
    • In 2024 – It is DIFFICULT to ‘NOT STARTUP’

    This makes it even more important to be able to ‘Validate your Idea’ before you kickstart your journey. Idea Validation is both an INTERNAL and EXTERNAL journey.

    I have an 8-step framework which I use for ‘Idea Validation’ with aspiring Entrepreneurs, but let’s take an example and make this learning more fun. Recently, I conducted a bootcamp on Entrepreneurship for children in their 10 th Grade at a Business School in Bandra Kurla Complex. At the end of the very enjoyable session, a 15-year-old, gentle, bespectacled girl came up to me with her IDEA. She said softly but very clearly “Sir, My father is a football coach, and I want to do something in the area of football coaching for girls. But I want this to make money and for it to be a career”. Unfortunately, the kids were ushered to the bus and our conversation was cut short. I have often thought of her and her IDEA over the last couple of weeks. So, I thought let’s use this opportunity and think about the 8 Step process for ‘Football Coaching for Girls’ as an Idea to Validate.

    The Problem
    Are you a Painkiller?
    TAM
    Competition Analysis
    Clarity on the Solution
    Product Channel Fit
    Unit Economics
    Frugal Bootstrapping

    The Problem

    This is a critical step, since we can get lost into the solution. Take a step back and articulate the problem in one sentence. So, for our idea, let me define the problem statement, “Increasingly children are getting addicted to devices and have lost the ability to engage in outdoor sports, which are critical for child development, confidence building, team work and physical health. Coaching, training and play facilities are skewed towards coaching more boys than girls, particularly for physical sports like football, cricket, athletics, hockey etc”.

    Are you a Painkiller?

    Speak to at least 25-30 people who have this specific pain on account of this problem. You want to be a Painkiller and not a Vitamin C tablet. 15-year-olds are very smart, they can create a simple questionnaire in Microsoft word and get 30 copies printed.

    They can go along with their parents to the mall, the beach, a playground, or a walking stretch, where there are parents in the age range of 32-50 years and request them to fill this questionnaire. A google form also works ��. Some question examples:

    • For how many hours in a week, do your children play in the outdoors?
    • Do you believe that the lack of outdoor activity hampers their overall growth?
    • Would you encourage your girl child to spend time out of her other activities, specifically for sports coaching?
    • How much would you be willing to pay for 1 hour of football coaching time?

    TAM

    The Total Addressable Market – How big is the market. How to calculate the TAM? So there are 2 ways to calculate the TAM or the overall size of the market:

    • Top Down Approach – We start with some available secondary data on the Industry and then filter it down to arrive at the appropriate market size.
    • Bottom up Approach – Number of potential girls who are in the age group of 6-20 years multiplied with the price of the coaching for a year. Sometimes, even if the TAM is small, don’t worry about it, build such a wonderful Coaching experience (online and offline), that it creates tremendous ‘Customer Love’. This Customer Love will replicate over time and increase the TAM. Tomorrow we could look at hockey, cricket, track and field. Move out of just pre-teens and teens and look at early office goers in 21-28 years age bracket, who have no time to play at all.

    Competition Analysis

    A 2X2 competition matrix is a reflection of the Industry, in which you want to build your Idea. It literally shows you the white spaces where no brand is present. The choice of the x and y axis variables are very critical, because they showcase the different types of companies in the industry. For the sake of our Idea, I chose the x axis to understand if the coaching is focussed on girls or Unisex(polite way of saying more boys). On the y axis I chose Apps/Academies Versus stand along coaches who list themselves on Just Dial.

    Competitive Analysis
    Competitive Analysis

    Clarity on the Solution

    Focus on only those features that solve a problem. Great products are built after many layers of iterations, based on customer feedback. Think about, if you should focus on individual coaching? Is this going to be a more Summer focussed or weekend activity? How to combine offline coaching, with online or community experience? Can we think of existing models like ‘Sisters in Sweat’ and learn from them.

    Can we screen the English Premier League for our users?

    Product Channel Fit

    Is as important as Product Market Fit.

    • B2B – Should we look at tying up with schools which have a playground and allocate a full-time football coach.
    • D2C – Build beautiful content on Instagram & facebook and create a frictionless landing page, to get people to sign up for existing groups, which meet on weekends

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    Unit Economics

    In the day and age that we are today, understanding your Unit Economics and Unit Level profitability is paramount.

    • Price – What will be the willingness to pay for 3 hours of coaching a week? For the summer program? For women in 21-28 years? Look at your questionnaire for some answers. Also look at the existing pricing as an indication
    • Fixed Costs – Looks like the cost of the Coach is going to be a larger cost centre. How can there be a continuous availability of this talent
    • Variable Costs – Cost of football gear

    Frugal Bootstrapping

    There is a lot of merit hustling in the early days of bootstrapping.

    • Grants – If you are a young woman entrepreneur, there are grants available to help you get off the ground. Look up the state chapters under Startup India portal, E.g Women Entrepreneur focussed incubator WISE by SNDT Women’s University.
    • Customer Money – Start small, chase small wins, get one school to back you up, get some customer money, show some Product Market Fit, and then you can get external money to scale your business.

    When you go through these steps, you will find answers, which in turn will create an internal and external Idea Validation.

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  • When Should you Look for a Startup Mentor?

    This article is contributed by multiple Startup founders from different fields.

    The journey of an entrepreneur is filled with excitement, hard work, and a great lot of patience. In this journey, while building up your dream from the scratch, can sometimes feel exhausting. At this point, you need someone who you can look up to when there is a necessity. Those people not only have more experience than you, but they will also advise you and teach you new strategies and tactics to handle your business. These are the people who will give you ideas regarding your current situation and they are called Mentors.

    In this article, we will find out, when an aspiring entrepreneur should look for a mentor. Some of the successful entrepreneurs presented their take on this topic. Let’s take a look.

    Manav Shah  | Founder, Eduvacancy

    For me, a mentor is someone who I can look up to as a role model. I wanted to always find a mentor with whom I could discuss, share and debate about the obstacles, I am facing in my startup. When I started building Eduvacancy, I realized in the preliminary months that I needed a role model or mentor to guide me and prepare me for the various difficult decisions I’d have to make. When we began working on building the platform and implementation of the technical aspects, I thought of finding an ideal mentor who would be a strong guiding force and pillar of strength for me. Therefore, before I began full-fledged platform operations, I felt the need of finding the right mentor who would guide, hear and teach me to sail through the difficult phases of building a startup.

    Kunal Ahirwar | CEO & Co-Founder, Earnvestt Technologies

    Mentorship is an integral part of the entrepreneurial community. For the Earnvestt team, the biggest reason we needed mentors was when we were running our first beta test and we were not getting sufficient sign-ups from the users that we had personally spoken to, which indicated that our product and user flow was not good enough.

    Neha Indoria | Co-Founder, Boingg!

    It was an organic process that originated from us trying to find answers to problems that presented themselves as we tried to navigate the process of setting up a business by ourselves. Some advise seemed needless and, in some cases, the insights made us re-think our strategy entirely, and slowly we were able to identify the areas in which we will need continued guidance.

    Utkarsh Gupta | Managing Director, Ramagya Mart

    When I was pondering over a business idea, which finally culminated in the formation of Ramagya Mart, I wasn’t very sure if I should rely on the mentoring acumen prevalent in abundance in my family, or should I seek professional mentoring. As destiny would have it, I was at this crucial stage when I decided to look for a mentor who could professionally guide and personally navigate me to take the right direction.

    Pallavi Utagi | Founder & Mom-in Chief, SuperBottoms

    There was never a defining moment in my life when I felt like I needed a mentor.
    It just happened organically through inspiring people who came into my life
    through my student and professional life. No one really wakes one day and
    says, ‘hey, I need a mentor’. You just feel the impact and connection with someone
    and reach out to them from time to time.

    Ritesh Ujjwal | CEO & Co-Founder, Kofluence

    As Sir Isaac Newton famously said in his 1675 letter, “If I have seen further, it is by
    standing on the shoulders of Giants”, in my opinion, most of us need guidance for clarity of thoughts/ directions through individuals who have chartered similar paths earlier or for a fresh perspective. Thankfully, I realized the value of mentors right during my engineering days and I was fortunate enough to be able to find amazing folks across academic, industry leaders as well as a couple of batchmates in front of whom I could be absolutely transparent and leverage their insights. I have been continuing the same ever since and the ‘mentors’ circle has expanded with amazing new folks from different spectrums of life especially during the last 3 years of building Kofluence.

    Conclusion

    The need for a mentor can arise anytime. Maybe, at a time when just an idea for a startup is peeking inside your head or in the middle of launching a new product for your startup. You should definitely go for a mentor whenever you feel for one.

  • How to Find a Perfect Mentor?

    This article is contributed by multiple Startup founders from different fields.

    Most of the time having a mentor really is a benefit for many entrepreneurs. the main job of a mentor is to guide, motivate and inspire you and will you out to find a way from any kind of challenging situation. Amongst millions of people, it can be a challenge to find the perfect mentor for yourself.

    In this article, we will find out how to find a perfect mentor. Some of the successful entrepreneurs shared their views on this topic.

    Kunal Ahirwar | CEO & Co-Founder, Earnvestt Technologies

    We needed someone with experience and expertise and hence we decided to go through an incubation program. We found great mentors like Tanul, Kruti, and others along our journey through Afthonia.

    Utkarsh Gupta | Managing Director, Ramagya Mart

    This was a challenging task indeed! My office was given the task to identify a mentor for me who could assist me in taking the right decisions.
    After engaging with professional mentors, management gurus, and consulting organizations that were either recommended by references or identified by research, I finally found a perfect mentor that followed his organization’s philosophy to the tee- “I know that I don’t know”!  I loved the philosophy the second I heard it!

    The trait I liked the best about this mentor was that in our initial engagements, there was no mention about his 25 years of cross-industry experience, never failing to achieve a target ever, 100% success as a brand strategy consultant and in fact, I never got a feeling that he was a know-it-all guy!  His confidence, his energy, and the way he emulates his consulting practice were just unconventional and incomparable to the rest, like a doctor that never prescribes a treatment unless the symptoms are thoroughly analyzed.

    Neha Indoria | Co-Founder, Boingg!

    A perfect mentor doesn’t exist. Just like a perfect business doesn’t. We essentially earmarked the areas where we needed help and identified 2-3 people we could trust to get advice from. Slowly this network of individuals helped us create a veritable sounding board for our areas of concern.

    Manav Shah  | Founder, Eduvacancy

    I am an avid networker and I love meeting new people. The sole idea behind meeting new people is to learn about their life stories, habits, and personality. I found my perfect mentor by continuously networking and meeting different people from various walks of life. I would go into detail and understand the life learnings of the people I met. This helped me in understanding the characteristics and leadership styles of people with who I interacted. I would also chalk down my future plans and try to understand from different people’s experiences if anyone would add substantial value in my growth journey. However, it was a continuous process of networking at events, conferences, social media platforms that led me to find the right mentor for myself.

    I wanted a mentor who was extremely disciplined and focused in their life journey. Besides that, I wanted someone who has experience in building/scaling and investing in different startup ventures. When one invests in different ventures, they start evaluating companies extremely critically. For me, it was necessary to focus on every small problem in the business and do anything to fix it. I wanted a mentor who personally had faced a lot of challenges in their phase of building up. This would really help me in evaluating and overcoming the challenges and mistakes that would come my way. More importantly, I wanted a mentor who would also sharpen my leadership skills and make me more efficient to scale my startup.

    Pallavi Utagi | Founder & Mom-in Chief, SuperBottoms

    There was no wishlist, as such. But some of the most inspiring mentors have been the ones who have helped me see the bigger picture, have faith in myself, and call a spade, a spade. Professionally, most founders also seek out the investor community, including myself. I don’t come from a business family, I just had a vision for SuperBottoms. It was Kunal (Bahl) who was the north star in terms of bringing the vision alive and breathing life into SuperBottoms.

    Ritesh Ujjwal | CEO & Co-Founder, Kofluence

    Mentor mentee relationship is extremely important and it needs to be nurtured over time to understand each other’s and corresponding personality traits and thought processes. While nurturing this relationship is mostly conscious and the way is largely defined wherein you understand the strengths and weaknesses, one can also find a mentor in a serendipitous manner. In my case, it has been a mix of academic as well as professional life.

    Conclusion

    Mentors are the guide that will give you a clear picture of your situation and will be beside you when you need them. One needs to be careful while looking for a perfect mentor because in the long they are going to be your trusted confidante.

  • Dealing With Imposter Syndrome

    Entrepreneurs are constantly striving to develop and push themselves to be better in their lives and their businesses. While dealing with so many people, activities, and achievements, one may wonder if they deserve the things they get.

    It makes one think that they are been overvalued and they don’t deserve the things for which they would’ve actually struggled. Such a psychological situation that is strongly rooted in a fear of failure or appreciation is known as impostor syndrome.

    People who face the problem of impostor syndrome feels that they are frauds and lives in the fear that one day people will know that they don’t know anything or they are not worth the respect they get.

    Entrepreneurs are one of the largest group of people who faces this situation. This is not about how successful you are. In fact, many entrepreneurs who are so successful and are appreciated in their lives are the ones who are likely to have impostor syndrome.

    The first thing that one needs to understand when they try to deal with this psychological phenomenon is that it is very common and it is okay to feel the way they are feeling. Various studies show that more than 70% of people in the world feel that they are imposters at one time in their life or the other. It is important to acknowledge and discuss this issue without letting it affect your business.

    Identifying Signs
    Positive Affirmations
    Remind yourself
    Stopping Comparison
    Celebrating Victories
    Seek help
    FAQ

    Identifying Signs

    The first step that one should take towards identifying impostor syndrome is by looking out for signs that your mind and body gives every time you doubt yourself.

    Think honestly about what you believe you are and understand why you are feeling what you are feeling contrary to the general belief that you have about yourself.

    After answering that question understand that if you are having self-doubts it is only because you are pushing yourself to greater heights.

    In this process, it is important, to be honest with yourself especially in terms of the things that you know and you don’t know. Look out for the thoughts that you get when you feel down.

    Identify it and tap them down when you get those thoughts again.

    Positive Affirmations

    Avoid grammatically negative words from your speech. Whenever you are about to do something different or something that you are afraid of believe that you are qualified enough to do that.

    Chanting positive affirmations is easier said than done. From having self doubts to talking positively about yourself there is a bridge that might be hard to cross.

    Here you should step in with your conscious mind and every time you feel that the impostor syndrome is trickling in, tap yourself down, understand that what you are feeling is not in fact you but caused due to an unfavourable situation you are in.

    After acknowledging this feeling, say positive sentences about yourself, your experiences and your achievements.

    Remind yourself

    Another thing that you can do is that keep a note of good things that you have done and the appreciation is that people have given to you.

    Even if you cannot remember these when you are feeling low, you can always look up to these notes to improve your self-esteem.

    It will help you realize your worth and continue the works that you have been doing.

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    Stopping Comparison

    Business is indeed a world full of competition and as an entrepreneur, you are more likely to compare your success with that of others. This can trigger or aggravate impostor syndrome.

    You need to understand here that the timeline of a person or a business can never be compared with that of others. Just because a person became a millionaire at the age of 23 does not mean that you cannot be one at the age of 30.

    What you have to deliberately do is to stop thinking about others and putting yourself down by the act of comparison. Instead, you should divert that energy to focus on your business.

    This can be achieved by keeping a very specific routine for every day and also by keeping long-term goals.

    Celebrating Victories

    As mentioned earlier comparison can also lead to another dangerous trap where are you celebrating your victories and achievements. This might even lead you to believe in unrealistic expectations and toil towards it only to fail later since they were impractical.

    This variation within impostor syndrome can be adjusted and mitigated by celebrating small achievements that you gain as an entrepreneur.

    It might not be directly related to the business but can even be related to your own personality.

    Never stop celebrating yourself. It will help you accept and acknowledge that although you are not perfect you can always be better than yesterday.

    Seek help

    This is one of the most important and the least sought method. Impostor syndrome is very common and it needs to be addressed seriously.

    Ignoring it as negative whims of the human mind or trying to bury it by invalidating your feelings can only aggravate the situation to an extent where it will start fully affecting your company. Hence, it is extremely important to seek professional help the moment you feel the need to do that.

    Also, stay connected with your close friends and mentors who you are sure will be cheerleaders for you when you need them. But the most important thing is that never hesitate from taking professional help.

    Conclusion

    Impostor syndrome might feel like a silly thing event to the person who is experiencing it.

    Although it can be controlled and can be controlled very easily, it is also extremely important to acknowledge and face it.

    Unfortunately what most of the entrepreneurs do in such a situation is simply bury down their feelings into the back of their mind or plunge into the lies that our mind creates.

    It will only lead to repression which will later culminate in a very bad explosion of all your emotions.

    So realize that impostor syndrome is real and it was okay to face that. Embracing your uniqueness, positive affirmations and taking professional help will significantly help you stay away from this menace.

    FAQ

    Who suffers from imposter syndrome?

    As per the Research 70% of people may suffer from imposter syndrome.

    How to get rid of imposter syndrome?

    Separate feelings from fact, Accentuate the positive, Develop a healthy response to failure and mistake making, and Visualize success are some of the things you can do to .

    What causes imposter syndrome?

    Imposter syndrome is likely the result of including personality traits and family background.

  • Curated List Of Free Online Courses For Entrepreneurs To Enroll In During This Lockdown

    These are crazy times wherein the COVID-19 pandemic has confined the whole world to their homes. It’s as if socializing has come to a standstill. Venturing outside one’s home without any reason attracts penalties and punishments! While the economy and work have taken a deep hit, many companies have capitalized on the fact that people are trying to pass time anyhow in this pandemic, leading to increased revenues for many organizations. One such domain is that of online courses and MOOCs. There are several individuals like you who want to make the best out of this situation by learning and exploring through platforms like Coursera and Udemy.  

    Hence, we have curated a list of free startup courses with certificates that are either free of cost or are heavily discounted to help you stay at home and improve yourself.

    Platform Course Type Where to get
    Coursera The Strategy of Content Marketing Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/content-marketing
    Coursera Content Strategy for Professionals: Managing Content Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/content-management-strategy
    Coursera Viral Marketing and How to Craft Contagious Content Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/wharton-contagious-viral-marketing
    Coursera Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning and Discover Your Hidden Potential Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/mindshift
    Coursera New Models of Business in Society Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/lecture/uva-darden-business-society/business-in-society-course-overview-6F7mB
    Coursera A Life of Happiness and Fulfillment Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/happiness
    Coursera Introduction to Programming with MATLAB Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/matlab
    Coursera Social Psychology Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/social-psychology
    Coursera The Science of Success: What Researchers Know that You Should Know Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/success
    Coursera Creative Problem Solving Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/creative-problem-solving
    Coursera Code Yourself! An Introduction to Programming Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/intro-programming
    Coursera Psychological First Aid Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/psychological-first-aid
    Coursera Managing the Company of the Future Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/company-future-management
    Coursera Build Your First Android App (Project-Centered Course) Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/android-app
    Coursera The Arts and Science of Relationships: Understanding Human Needs Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/human-needs
    Coursera Communication Strategies for a Virtual Age Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/communication-strategies-virtual-age
    Coursera How to Get Skilled: Introduction to Individual Skills Management (Project-Centered Course) Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/skills-management
    Coursera Probability and Statistics: To p or not to p? Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/probability-statistics
    Coursera Marketing Analytics Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/uva-darden-market-analytics
    Coursera Teamwork Skills: Communicating Effectively in Groups Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/teamwork-skills-effective-communication
    Coursera Getting Started with AWS Machine Learning Free due to Lockdown coursera.org/learn/aws-machine-learning
    EdX Digital Branding and Engagement Free due to Lockdown edx.org/course/digital-branding-and-engagement
    EdX Rhetoric: The Art of Persuasive Writing and Public Speaking Free due to Lockdown edx.org/course/rhetoric-art-of-persuasive-writing-public-speaking
    Quintly Academy Free Social Media Analytics Course Free due to Lockdown academy.quintly.com/
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") SEO Fundamentals Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/seo-fundamentals
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") Keyword Research Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/keyword-research
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") Page Optimization Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/page-optimization-bootcamp-3
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") Backlink Basics Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/link-building-bootcamp-4
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") Reporting on SEO Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/reporting-on-seo-bootcamp-5
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") Backlink Audit & Removal Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/backlink-audit-removal
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") Local SEO Fundamentals Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/local-seo-fundamentals-video
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") Technical SEO Site Audit Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/technical-seo-site-audit
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") Finding Potential SEO Clients Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/finding-potential-seo-clients
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") The Fundamentals of SEO Client Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/the-fundamentals-of-seo-client-prospecting
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") Selling the Value of SEO Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/selling-the-value-of-seo
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") Prepare for the SEO Client Pitch Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/prepare-for-the-seo-client-pitch
    Moz (Use code "wegotthis") Client Onboarding Free due to Lockdown academy.moz.com/client-onboarding
    Google Get a Business Online Free due to Lockdown learndigital.withgoogle.com/digitalunlocked/course/business-online
    Google How to make sure your cutomers find you online Free due to Lockdown learndigital.withgoogle.com/digitalunlocked/course/become-searchable-online
    Google Promoting a business onine Free due to Lockdown learndigital.withgoogle.com/digitalunlocked/course/promote-business-online
    Google How to enhance and protect your online campaign Free due to Lockdown learndigital.withgoogle.com/digitalunlocked/course/enhance-protect-online-campaigns
    Google And 122 more courses Free due to Lockdown learndigital.withgoogle.com/digitalunlocked/courses
    Accenture Digital Skills: Digital Marketing Free due to Lockdown futurelearn.com/courses/digital-skills-digital-marketing
    Business Science Jumpstart with R Free due to Lockdown university.business-science.io/p/jumpstart-with-r
    Clever Girl Finance The Clever Girl Finance Book Club Free due to Lockdown courses.clevergirlfinance.com/p/the-clever-girl-book-club/
    Clever Girl Finance Everything You Need to Know About Life Insurance Free due to Lockdown courses.clevergirlfinance.com/p/life-insurance/
    Clever Girl Finance The new business owner (4 course bundle) Free due to Lockdown courses.clevergirlfinance.com/p/the-new-business-owner/
    Clever Girl Finance Creating multiple streams of income Free due to Lockdown courses.clevergirlfinance.com/p/creating-multiple-streams-of-income/
    Clever Girl Finance Create the right financial goals Free due to Lockdown courses.clevergirlfinance.com/p/create-the-right-financial-goals/
    Clever Girl Finance Use LinkedIn to land your next high paying job Free due to Lockdown courses.clevergirlfinance.com/p/leveraging-linkedin/
    Constant Contact 101 courses Facebook Free blogs.constantcontact.com/facebook-101/
    Constant Contact 101 courses Twitter Free blogs.constantcontact.com/twitter-101/
    Constant Contact 101 courses LinkedIn Free blogs.constantcontact.com/linkedin-101-2/
    Constant Contact 101 courses Pinterest Free blogs.constantcontact.com/pinterest-101/
    Constant Contact 101 courses Instagram Free blogs.constantcontact.com/instagram-101/
    Constant Contact 101 courses Google My Business Free blogs.constantcontact.com/google-101/
    Constant Contact 101 courses YouTube Free blogs.constantcontact.com/youtube-101/
    Constant Contact 101 courses Snapchat Free blogs.constantcontact.com/snapchat-101/
    SEMrush Keyword Research Free semrush.com/academy/courses/keyword-research-course-with-greg-gifford
    SEMrush SEO Fundamentals Free semrush.com/academy/courses/seo-fundamentals-course-with-greg-gifford
    SEMrush Backlink management basics Free due to Lockdown semrush.com/academy/courses/backlink-management-course-with-greg-gifford
    SEMrush Introduction to Mobile SEO Free due to Lockdown semrush.com/academy/courses/mobile-seo-course-with-greg-gifford
    SEMrush What is Local SEO Free due to Lockdown semrush.com/academy/courses/local-seo-course-with-greg-gifford/
    SEMrush Link Building Courses Free due to Lockdown semrush.com/academy/courses/link-building-course
    SEMrush 35 More free courses from SEMrush Free due to Lockdown semrush.com/academy/courses?spec=ALL&lang=en-US
    Khallad Academy Masters in Digital Marketing 95% off kalladaacademy.com/masters-in-digital-marketing-online-course/
    Planancial Future Rich Free due to Lockdown planancial.com/p/future-rich
    Planancial Student Loan Free due to Lockdown planancial.com/
    Quantic The Free MBA Free due to Lockdown quantic.edu/mba
    Alison Introduction to Managing Your Personal Finance Debts Free due to Lockdown alison.com/courses?&category=it&category=business&category=marketing
    Hubspot Writing Course With Bestselling Author Daniel Pink Free academy.hubspot.com/lessons/writing-tips
    Hubspot Ads Training: Learn What Digital Advertising Is and How to Do It Free academy.hubspot.com/courses/digital-advertising-training
    Hubspot WordPress Training Course: How to Build a WordPress Website Using Elementor Free academy.hubspot.com/courses/build-a-wordpress-website
    Hubspot earn an Introduction to Ecommerce Marketing Free academy.hubspot.com/courses/ecommerce-marketing
    Hubspot Learn What Content Strategy is and How to Do It Free academy.hubspot.com/courses/content-strategy
    Hubspot Email Marketing FREE Certification Course Free academy.hubspot.com/courses/email-marketing
    Hubspot Learn What Content Marketing is and How to Do It Free academy.hubspot.com/courses/content-marketing
    Hubspot Inbound Certifivation course Free academy.hubspot.com/courses/inbound
    Hubspot Inbound Sales FREE Certification Course Free academy.hubspot.com/courses/inbound-sales
    Hubspot HubSpot Sales Software Certification Course Free academy.hubspot.com/courses/hubspot-sales-software
    Hubspot Growth-Driven Design Agency Certification Course Free academy.hubspot.com/courses/growth-driven-design-agency
    Hubspot HubSpot CMS for Developers Certification Free academy.hubspot.com/courses/cms-for-developers
    Udemy Foundation of Business Strategy Free due to Lockdown udemy.com/course/foundations-of-business-strategy/
    Udemy Entrepreneurship: The making of a great enrepreneur Free due to Lockdown udemy.com/course/entrepreneurship-the-making-of-a-great-entrepreneur/
    Udemy Shofy Or Woocoommerce? Free due to Lockdown udemy.com/course/shopify-or-woocommerce/
    Udemy Steli’s essential guide to negotiation Free due to Lockdown udemy.com/course/negotiation-hacks/
    Udemy Secret Sauce to Great Writing Free due to Lockdown udemy.com/course/secret-sauce-of-great-writing/
    Udemy Learn to write blog posts the earn real passive income Free due to Lockdown udemy.com/course/write-blog-posts-earn-real-passive-income/
    Udemy Content Marketing for B2B Enterprises Free due to Lockdown udemy.com/course/b2b-content-marketing-training/
    Udemy E-Commerce Fraud & Security Bootcamp using Open Source Tool Free due to Lockdown udemy.com/course/ecommerce-bootcamp/
    Udemy Social Media Marketing Basics Free due to Lockdown udemy.com/course/basics-of-social-media-marketing/
    Udemy Lean Startup Tutorial Free due to Lockdown udemy.com/course/lean-startup-sxsw-2012-videos-and-presentations/
    Udemy Learn Advanced SEO from scratch Free due to Lockdown udemy.com/course/learn-advanced-seo-from-scratch/
    Nasscom Machine Learning with Python Free due to Lockdown cognitiveclass.ai/courses/machine-learning-with-python/
    Nasscom Hadoop 101 Free due to Lockdown cognitiveclass.ai/courses/introduction-to-hadoop
    Nasscom Professional Certificate in Data Science Free due to Lockdown edx.org/professional-certificate/harvardx-data-science
    Nasscom AI for Everyone – IBM Free due to Lockdown edx.org/course/artificial-intelligence-for-everyone
    Nasscom Build your own chatbot Free due to Lockdown cognitiveclass.ai/courses/how-to-build-a-chatbot/
    Nasscom 20 More Technical Courses Free due to Lockdown fslearning.nasscom.in/

    FAQs

    Are Google courses free?

    Google and Udacity teamed up to create free, online courses.

    Is it worth getting a degree in entrepreneurship?

    Yes, it is worth getting a degree in entrepreneurship.

    What are the best courses for entrepreneurs?

    The best online business courses for entrepreneurs are the making of a great Entrepreneur and earn an Introduction to Ecommerce.

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  • Ingvar Kamprad—The IKEA Founder’s Rags-To-Riches Journey

    The path to success isn’t easy. One has to work hard, sacrifice comforts and walk on an obstacle-laden path. Some entrepreneurs came from wealthy families. Others have a rags-to-riches tale. Swede Ingvar Kamprad was one with literally no support and later on joined the list of the richest people in the world.

    Ingvar Kamprad—Biography
    Ingvar Kamprad—How It All Started?
    Ingvar Kamprad—Worldwide Phenomenon
    Ingvar Kamprad—IKEA Foundation
    Ingvar Kamprad—Becoming the Richest
    Ingvar Kamprad—Charity Work
    Ingvar Kamprad—Swedish Furniture Chain
    Ingvar Kamprad—Leadership Skill
    Ingvar Kamprad—FAQ’s
    Ingvar Kamprad—Conclusion

    Ingvar Kamprad—Biography

    Name Ingvar Kamprad
    Born 30 March 1926 – Pjätteryd, Sweden
    Died 27 January 2018 – Älmhult, Sweden
    Age 91
    Education Hvitfeldtska Gymnasiet
    Occupation Business magnate
    Founded IKEA
    Net worth US$58.7 billion as of Jan 2018

    Ingvar is the founder of the furniture company, IKEA. Setting up IKEA and representing his country on the global stage, Ingvar Kamprad’s journey is inspirational and mind-numbing.

    As a child, Ingvar lived on a small farm called Elmtaryd in the Swedish province of Smaland. Sweden was facing the wrath of poverty those days; the hardships he was subjected to was a blessing in disguise as he invested all the values gained in these tough times to form IKEA’s ethics. Ingvar began selling matches at six.

    At the age of ten, he sold Christmas decorations, pencils, and fish. Despite being dyslexic, Ingvar performed well in academics because of which his father awarded him a small amount of money. With the money, he opened a company named IKEA, an abbreviation for Ingvar Kamprad from Elmtaryd, Agunnaryd.

    Ingvar Kamprad—How It All Started?

    IKEA Logo

    After setting up IKEA, Kamprad used milk trucks to deliver his furniture goods. In 1947, he began selling locally made items of furniture. However, Ingvar faced intense criticism in 1955 as manufacturers protested against Ingvar’s low prices. This was a turning point for the company as it shifted towards flat pack—a piece of furniture or other equipment that is sold in pieces packed flat in a box for easy transport and is assembled by the buyer. This was a change in IKEA’s ideology regarding furniture.

    Ingvar targeted the middle-class as IKEA presented affordable and stylish furniture was easy on the pockets. By his new idea, Ingvar could serve all sections of the society, rich or not,  simultaneously with a unique brand of furniture equipment.

    Flat packaging minimized shipping costs, transportation damages, and increased the store inventory capacity. Ingvar planned and modified IKEA stores to suit customer expectations.

    Ingvar Kamprad—Worldwide Phenomenon

    Ingvar soon expanded his business into various parts of Sweden. A few years later, IKEA established its presence in Norway, Germany, and then all over Europe. This was the thrust to setting up IKEA globally. Ingvar’s venture was accepted globally and this was attested when IKEA opened up a store in the city of Shanghai; 80,000 people visited the store! IKEA has over 300 stores in 38 countries across the globe.

    IKEA opened its first store in Japan in 1974, and in Australia, Canada, and Hong Kong in 1975. Later on, IKEA was launched in countries like the United Kingdom, the United States, Italy, Belgium, and the Dominican Republic in the year 2010.

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    Ingvar Kamprad—IKEA Foundation

    The Stitching INGKA foundation is named after Ingvar Kamprad. This foundation owns INGKA Holding, the parent company for all IKEA stores. This charitable foundation was named as the wealthiest charity in the world in the year 2006, which was then overtaken by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Ingvar was the chairman of The Stitching IKEA foundation.

    In an instance of charity, IKEA Australia had agreed to match dollar for dollar co-workers’ donations and donated all the sales of the IKEA Blue Bag to help people affected by the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami.

    Ingvar Kamprad—Becoming the Richest

    In 2004, the Swedish business magazine declared Ingvar as one of the world’s wealthiest people. However, this wasn’t an accurate measure since the magazine assumed  Ingvar’s wealth equal to IKEA’s valuation at that time. In 2010, Forbes magazine estimated Ingvar’s wealth at 23 billion USD. His ranking decreased substantially from 11th to 162 in the standings due to a lawsuit that prevented his family from access to his funds. In 2015, Ingvar was the eighth richest person in the world according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Ingvar Kamprad net worth is $58.7 billion.

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    Ingvar Kamprad—Charity Work

    Ingvar was known for simplicity and frugality, and his company had a reputation for community outreach and philanthropy. IKEA has actively supported UNICEF and other important committees of the United Nations.

    Ingvar Kamprad—Swedish Furniture Chain

    In 1973, IKEA established its first store outside Scandinavia; the shop was set up in Switzerland. The expansion of IKEA cemented Sweden as a producer of top-class furniture. The employees wore jeans, shirts, and jumpers—a down-to-earth image of Swedish people.

    Ingvar Kamprad—Leadership Skill

    Ingvar had razor-sharp focus towards IKEA’s development. He used to visit IKEA stores till his last breath. Ingvar was a personality one should look up to; he used to travel in economy and treated his employees as ‘co-workers’. He encouraged his employees to dress informally and drove an old Volvo.

    Apart from his fascist comments, Ingvar will be remembered as one of the greatest entrepreneurs of the 20th century. His simplicity and dedication depict a clear picture on how a real leader should guide his employees. Starting a company while facing the wrath of poverty, Ingvar has proved that nothing is impossible to achieve. He passed away in 2018, leaving behind a company that changed the face of the furniture industry.

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    Ingvar Kamprad—FAQ’s

    Who is the founder of Ikea?

    Ingvar Kamprad is the founder Ikea.

    What does IKEA stand for?

    Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd. IKEA is an acronym that stands for “Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd”.

    Why is IKEA called IKEA?

    IKEA is named after the initials of founder Ingvar Kamprad, Elmtaryd, the farm on which he grew up, and Agunnaryd, the nearby village.

    How much is the Ikea company worth?

    Founder of Ikea net worth is $58.7 billion.

    Ingvar Kamprad—Conclusion

    Ingvar Kamprad was the founder of IKEA. He was surrounded by myths every time while he was alive. All the myths were found to be true by the journalists. He was famous and was known for his frugality and hardworking. It all started with selling matches at the age of 7. He realized that he could gain profit buying matches in bulk cheaply. And selling them at low prices individually. By the age of ten, he was selling flower seeds, greeting cards, Christmas decorations, and pencils. By growing its business, the company started to sell Furniture’s and made itself a brand. All in all, nowadays IKEA earns more than 34 billion euro per year. It is the most famous furniture store in the world.

  • Abhinay Choudhari: Simplified Grocery Shopping Through BigBasket

    The Indian startup ecosystem is well known for its versatility, thereby home to some of the best companies in the world across industries. Starting from OLA, which ruled the transportation sector, Zomato which ensures that you don’t work with an empty tummy, to OYO, which provides affordable hotels for tourists and travelers, there’s no dearth of market leaders. One such unique venture is BigBasket. This startup provides home delivery services for grocery items and is a major name in the circuit.

    The grocery retail market in India is growing at around 20% CAGR. E-grocery accounts for only 0.1% of this share. As per statistical data, the online grocery market is expected to be around $10 billion in the coming time. Thus, bigbasket.com has its hands in a pie with a bright future. Abhinay Choudhari was able to build an empire through bigbasket.com; let’s find out how.

    Bigbasket’s—CoFounder
    Bigbasket’s—Success
    Bigbasket’s—Path To Success
    Bigbasket’s—CoFounder’s Guidance
    FAQ’s
    Conclusion

    Bigbasket’s—CoFounder

    The dot com bubble burst was a deciding factor behind the fortune of many big organizations that are wildly influential today. But, it was far from a smooth journey for these companies. The founders of the big basket, including Abhinay Choudhari, had a similar experience. They decided to use the lessons learned from the dot com bust and create a website that could firmly face obstacles of any kind. The five founders of BigBasket initially created a website named Fabmart.com in 1999. This was supposedly India’s first e-commerce store. However, the team realized that not only India but even the rest of the world wasn’t ready for this kind of online store.

    Within a short period, Fabmart merged with a brick-and-mortar chain and by 2006, the founders of Fabmart sold the company. The turning point for the FabMart founders came in 2011. They wanted to try their hand at something new, an out-of-the-box offering. The result was bigbasket.com.

    Bigbasket’s—Success

    Bigbasket is one of the leading online grocers in India today. The company offers same-day delivery across cities with 99.3% on-time delivery, 99.5% order fill rate, and no questions asked on customer return policy. These parameters have highly contributed to BigBasket’s success. BigBasket has also implemented new options like fresh-cut fruits and vegetables and a range of recipe mixtures. A bakery has been launched in Bangalore that delivers bread on order. The company has both iOS and Android apps to allow customers to order groceries any time, any place. There are unique features like “Smart Basket”, a prediction engine about what a customer needs more often.

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    Bigbasket’s—Path To Success

    Abhinay received a first-round investment of nearly 10 million USD from Ascent Capital. This funding was used to expand BigBasket’s reach in the market. For many startups in India, the biggest issue is sustaining their business model in this country of diversity and differences. After researching for over nearly 5 years, Abhinay and his team realized the best way to make their presence felt was by providing personalized service to people across Indian cities.

    BigBasket has taken into consideration the eating habits in different Indian locations; this is a major reason behind people being loyal to BigBasket. The company increased the availability of leafy greens in Mumbai and the supply of a special kind of rice in Bangalore. BigBasket ensures no compromise on the quality of its products. To improve customer experience, the BigBasket team ensured near-time-perfect delivery services for their customers.

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    Bigbasket’s—CoFounder’s Guidance

    While the company has grown into one of the biggest Indian brands, BigBasket still faces intense competition from local startups like LocalBanya, PepperTap, and Grofers. The company was facing heat from many rivals and hence, it was time for Abhinay to gather his team and plan new strategies for BigBasket. The aim was to race ahead of everyone. BigBasket grew its presence in 25 cities with a combination of 150 million customers and considering the expansion, Abhinay decided it was time to bring in a partner. The team aligned with Alibaba which boosted the company’s image over the next two years.

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    FAQ’s

    Who are the founders of BigBasket?

    • Hari Menon
    • Vipul Parekh
    • VS Sudhakar
    • Abhinay Choudhari
    • VS Ramesh

    Who is Abhinay Choudhari?

    Abhinay Choudhari is the co-founder of the BigBasket. He is an alumnus of IIM-Ahmedabad. He has worked with leading IT companies on consulting engagements with key retail majors like Tesco and LEGO.

    Who is the CEO of BigBasket?

    VS Sudhakar and Hari Menon (2011–Present)

    Is BigBasket making profit?

    BigBasket loss widens 6.7% to INR 611 crore, revenue up 36% in FY20. Supermarket Grocery Supplies, which operates online grocery store BigBasket, reported a consolidated net loss of INR 611 crore in FY20, a 6.7 percent rise as compared to the previous financial year at INR 572 crore.

    Is BigBasket successful?

    Today, BigBasket is India’s largest online grocer that receives over 100,000 orders per day. Online grocery shopping is fast gaining popularity among Indians. According to a Redseer report, India’s online grocery retail market is all set to touch $10.5 billion by 2023.

    Conclusion

    Abhinay is an inspiration for many. In an age were rising from the lowest rung of the ladder is more than just a challenge, he and his team established a company after the dot com bubble burst. BigBasket has grown at such a rate that celebrities like Shahrukh Khan endorse the brand. Under Abinay’s leadership, bigbasket.com plans to not only retain its position as the largest online grocery store in India but also become a major player across the globe.

  • How to get Government Loan for Startups

    The new year brings fresh and innovative business prospects to your creative minds. Granting start-ups will make those innovations feasible.

    Yet it’s not always straightforward to address the issue of how to get funding for a startup. You must know where you are going to look and get ready to do the job you need to make your dream come true.

    It is time you took a near dive into your investment opportunities if you really want to get a startup off the ground and see it become a profitable venture.

    The first stage anytime you need money to start up a company is to report the initial costs. Take out all needless or unsustainable costs in order to detect the critical criteria of the startup.

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    Government Loans For Startups

    MSME Business Loans in 59 Minutes

    The loans are currently provided for value of ₹1 Lakh to ₹1 cr with the rate of interest more than 8%. MSME Business loan in 59 minutes initiative aims at loan appraisal process automation ultimately resulting into getting eligibility letter , in-principal approval in lees than an hour. post the in-principle approval, the loan is expected to be sanction/disbursed in 7-8 working days.

    To be eligible for this loan as a borrower you should be GST, IT compliant and must have six months bank statement facility. The business loan eligibility is determined by a company’s, income/ revenue, repayment capacity, existing credit facilities, any other factors as set by lenders (banks)

    The Credit Guarantee Scheme (CGS)

    Stand Up India Scheme
    Coir Udyami Yojana
    National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD)
    Credit Link Capital Subsidy Scheme
    National Small Industries Corporation Subsidy
    Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana
    Sustainable Finance Scheme
    SIDBI Make In India Soft Loan Fund For MSME

    Startup loans for budding entrepreneurs

    Startup Loan Initiated by the Government
    Startup Loan Initiated by the Government

    In order to collect funds to launch your own company or extend your existing business, you can secure a start-up business loan from any bank or financial institution. The interest rate paid to the bank depends on the amount of the loan you earn and the tenure of repayment.

    What To Consider While Requesting A Loan?

    The borrowers shall execute the paperwork required and send documentation for the use of these credits. As the government funds the projects, some of the loans are free of collateral. In the following you will notice some points to review before applying for the loan:

    1. Personal record: background information is reviewed. Crimes performed or criminal history will disqualify or postpone the loan sanction phase.

    2. Based on resume or company background: information of the company and applicant’s skills in developing the business will be asked.      

    3. Business proposal: the borrower has to bring into the loan document a well-considered business plan.

    4. Business and personal tax return: for a period of three years, candidates must submit personal and corporate tax returns.

    5. Financial reports: the claimant shall apply the statement of benefit and loss, the bank statement, the balance sheets, and the cash flow forecasting.

    6. Legal documents: the requester must ensure that the company works legally.

    7. Collateral: collateral strengthens your profile and will assist you to receive a greater amount of loan.

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    Eligibility:

    The qualifying conditions for the use of start-up corporate loans can vary from borrower to creditors but are generic and therefore been listen below:

    1. The candidate must not be under age 21 or must not be above the legal age of 65 years.

    Age Group who can Apply for the Loan
    Age Group who can Apply for the Loan

    2. The nominee must be an Indian resident.

    3. Candidates should include a corporate strategy.

    4. The firm will need an incubation letter

    5. The organization must deliver a framework and product for innovation purposes.

    6. A patron assurance from the Indian Patent and Trademark Office should be secured by the company.

    7. It must be a young firm and not more than 5 years old.

    Interest Rate For Startup In India

    The interest rate and maturity tenure differ between banks. The interest rate, though, varies between 10.99% and 21% a year. The sum lent shall also be subject to a transaction fee. The tenure is up to five years.

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    How To Request A Government Loan?

    Here are few ways to apply for a start-up business loan are:

    • Visit the official website of the lender to order the loan by completing the form and submitting the required paperwork.
    • Visit the closest lender’s branch to have the form and documentation for the loan application.
    • You may also contact the customer service of the loan company to offer help for a start-up loan application.

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    Conclusion

    A huge number of start-up firms live in India. The number of cottage industries and small units is increasing. However, start-ups and micro-industries need capital to grow, manage, and succeed in the global giant market. Since these units lack access to price raising, the Government has taken the lead to fund these small scale enterprises and facilitate them.

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