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 It's
been almost four years now that one has helped fund and guide companies.
Four very tumultuous years in the Indian and world markets when
one has seen a lot of businesses cope-or fail to cope.
A lot has been written by a lot of people about
successful entrepreneurs. I sat back and wondered if there was anything
in common to those who didn't make it-or weren't likely to. Was
there a DNA to failure?
Generalising about the unsuccessful ones proved
to be as elusive as generalising about the ones who made it. So
one did the next best thing-try to think of some of the more educational
failures: characters that I have personally learnt from. Here's
my list.
You-Take-The-Risk-I-Won't. He has the
right qualifications. The MNC experience. Paid well too. Has written
a great business plan. Done the homework, read the books, picked
the team. Glib. Wants a lot of money for the business-to go into
promoter paycheques, you notice. It's not even worth arguing with
him why the business can't afford market salaries. Some people are
cut out to be entrepreneurs-the rest to work for them. This person
is certainly in the latter category.
The-Company-Is-The-Company-And-Me-Is-Me.
I was pleased when this gent agreed to a relatively low salary.
But noticed only months later that the company was paying office
rent to another company he owned, and the company was renting computers
from yet another company he owned. He felt all this was above ground.
Very few times in my career have I asked someone to leave immediately-and
this was one of those occasions.
I-Am-Not-Just-Crazy-About-My-Business-But-Also-Just-Crazy.
I used to think that except for the US where psychiatrists never
went hungry, the world mostly consisted of sane people. At least
in business. Especially in India. This person seemed pleasingly
obsessed with what he wanted to do. Was willing to forego salary,
etc, till revenues came in. All good signs. Months later I noticed
the irrational firings of good people. The screaming fits. Insane
mood swings. Complete oblivion to what he had said in an earlier
meeting. Had to reluctantly conclude he needed less mentoring help-and
more mental help.
Am-Too-Busy-Building-The-Product-To-Go-Out-And-Sell.
Again, all the signs are right. The sacrifice, the commitment, the
insane work hours. The product shines and you're happy. Till you
notice a basic lack of revenues. Because the person has had no time
or inclination to go out and actually sell. A key test for me after
that was-have you actually gone out and sold anything to anybody
before in your life? Are you comfortable doing it day in, night
out?
You're-Not-Interested-In-Plan-A-How-About-Plan-B.
I sit through a business plan presentation-and then discuss
why it doesn't work for me. A few times the response has been-''okay
if you're not interested in that, how about this'', wherein the
concerned people launched into a completely different presentation.
I was gobsmacked. The intention clearly was not to build a business,
but to say whatever it took to get money from an investor.
You-Tell-Me-What-To-Do. This is a step
beyond. A person comes up and tells me, I want to run my own business.
Says all the right things-and then asks me what business to start.
I'm sorry, but I can't help you here-you're supposed to know more
than me about what you want to do in life. My prescription here
is-go out there, work at something till you see an opportunity that
strikes you then let's talk.
I'm-All-Right-Glub-Glub-I-Really-Am. Why
people believe bad news must be hidden from investors in their startup
is beyond me. Do such companies eventually become an Enron or a
Worldcom? I don't want to know when it's too late. So I can help
solve it if possible now and not have to run around doing damage
control.
Oh, I'm sure I'll meet many more sorts in the
years to come. And tell you about them. Till then, keep those emails
coming-and tell me what else you'd like me to write about.
Mahesh Murthy, an angel investor, heads
Passionfund. He earlier ran Channel V and, before that, helped launch
Yahoo! and Amazon at a Valley-based interactive marketing firm.
Reach him at Mahesh@passionfund.com.
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