How did you do it ?

Recently I found a great article in Matt Marshall’s Venture Beat, a topical news and feature resource for entrepreneurs and VCs alike.

A simple but effective chronicling of the experience in building a good startup team by Jaideep Singh, a VC with Clearstone Ventures and now co-founder of Spock (in beta now), a people search engine [ “Creating a killer team” ] is a must read for most of the aspiring entrepreneurs in India. You may not have the resources ( $ 1 million plonked during concept stage and $ 9 MM before wider adoption ) of a VC & entrepreneur that Jaideep happens to be, but going by the rigors I am quite convinced that it's just one of the things.

Sample a few great insights Jaideep had in that article –

“I have noticed that in technology we’re surrounded by very smart people. IQ is virtually a commodity. However, there are those who are analysts – can ask 1 million questions, and be skeptical of everything; then there are doers, people who apply their intellect and resourcefulness to find solutions. Find those people and keep them close to you. Stay a 100 miles away from the former”. Well said, Jaideep.

“In a matter of 60 days, we had contacted over 200 engineers, spoken to about a 100, interviewed 40, and got 7 good guys who very interested”. Hmmm…you thought you couldn't find quality engineering talent in India ? It isn't much different even in Sand Hill road, dude !

“Vision and concept aside, Hongche, like most engineers who aspire to join startups, realized that the risk of not joining a startup was way greater than being a cog in the wheel at a large company”. How many of you would repeat that ?

And then Jaideep has also not forgotten to clip some valuable lessons out of his experience, a few of which I liked very much. Excerpts -

“Age is not a factor but motivation is. People who don’t work hard, will never be the key drivers in your startup. Perfection comes from hard work.”

“There are those who look for problems and those who look for solutions. This becomes clear in interviews very quickly. Hire people who look for solutions.”

“Grow a thick skin for rejection.”

How did you like it ? If it had been Déjà vu, do tell me about it !

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