My Journey to Entrepreneurship: A Personal Reflection
As a 13 or 14-year-old, I remember sitting alone on the terrace of my middle-class home, thinking about business. Even at that young age, it fascinated me. I felt deep down that it was the right path for me.
Fast forward to adulthood, and I lost touch with that inner voice. Instead, I started following the noise of life. I don’t regret the career choices I made—looking back, I believe I was bold. At one point, I didn’t know doubt. I was ambitious and hardworking, but not very reflective. I didn’t care what others thought of me, which, I later realized, is something that matters.
It’s like being the heroine in a story who believes the world revolves around her, only to have the universe crash down around her. Suddenly, I saw things I had never considered. That’s when my inner journey began. I started questioning how to navigate society and why it’s important to create a perception. These things matter because, realistically, virtue alone only works when you hold a position of power or have significant wealth. Most people judge and are influenced by perceptions, so I accepted that reality. I understood that managing how others perceive me is crucial for reaching my goals.
After more than a decade-long career in IT, I began thinking seriously about starting something of my own. There had always been this craving in me to build something. Somehow, I jumped into the job market when I was young and stayed there for over 20 years. By the time I was in my 40s, it was clear that I couldn’t go much further in my job because I needed to be in a position of authority to do things my way. I always felt that I could do things better than my peers, but I was often underappreciated, except for a few occasions.
Toward the end of my job, I began supporting several small startups. Over the next five years, it became clear to me that I could do what other entrepreneurs were doing. Now was the time to take control and pursue what I had always wanted. However, I also became aware of my shortcomings, like my tendency to chase perfection, which often stopped me from executing. This was a recurring issue in my job too. My peers often achieved more, not because their work was better, but because they delivered results more quickly. From a business perspective, that made sense.
I’m frank, opinionated, and unafraid to express my views, so I feel I have been wronged many times. My openness has caused conflicts, but it has also led me to important self-reflection. I’m not saying I’m better than others—I just want to become the best version of myself. This realization helped me understand where I needed to improve. And honestly, I’m still learning because I tend to get stuck in the trap of perfectionism.
Eventually, I realized that everybody struggles so its ok If I am not perfect and fail too. If I enjoy the startup world so much, why not take charge instead of playing a supporting role for others? Little did I know what that really meant.
Entrepreneurship isn’t about being the smartest or most intelligent person—it’s about discipline, balance, perseverance, and grit. It involves bad experiences—being cheated, rejected, making wrong decisions, doubting yourself, and crying in frustration when no one can help.
In February 2023, I decided to quit my IT job and start my first venture. For the first year, I joined another startup, working 14-hour days. On weekends, I focused on my own product—conducting market research, designing, testing, and finding suppliers. It took time to develop a product that I was confident in selling.
Throughout this process, I developed many new skills. I had no mentor, so I kept iterating and testing on my own. It was a long journey, and it continues even now.
At one point, I sought someone who could help me navigate the complexities of business. I hadn’t experienced any of it before, and I learn best by doing. I am an experiential learner—I need to do something myself or observe others doing it to truly learn.
In October 2023, I registered for GST, and my business was officially born. However, other work commitments kept interfering, and it wasn’t until March 2024 that I was able to fully focus on my venture. Unfortunately, my initial product launch failed because the packaging didn’t align with my target audience.
One of my suppliers told me bluntly that if I wanted to target premium customers, my packaging needed to reflect the quality of my product. That was a big lesson for me. Personally, I’ve always believed that simplicity can coexist with brilliance. But in the world of business, appearances matter. Even if your style is minimalist, it needs to look ultra-premium for premium clients to take notice.
I took that feedback seriously and made the necessary changes. I’ve accepted that anyone with more business experience is my teacher, and I’ve learned to listen. For motivation, I started listening to podcasts, which has been helpful.
Today, on October 17, as I write this, I’m feeling emotional and needed to put my thoughts down. I can’t share my feelings with anyone around me because they don’t understand, and frankly, sharing wouldn’t help. None of the people around me have experienced what I’m going through.
Right now, a team based in Jaipur is developing my e-commerce website. My products are in Lucknow for a photoshoot, and my packaging is being prepared in Pune. I’ll soon be picking up stickers from the printer and delivering them to the packaging company, where my company’s logo will be placed on the boxes.
There has been a lot of detailed, hard work to get to this point. Everything—from finding suppliers to managing packaging, printing, e-commerce, and social media—has been a slow and steady process.
