Startup Poem by Mahesh Murthy

BUSINESS TODAY

Startupoem
I'm often called to speak to startups losing hope. If usual prose won't cut, here in verse is the dope.
By Mahesh Murthy

600 million and growing
The net's now and future tense
Forget the crash and make a dash
First get off the fence

India's great for startups
Not just because of geeks
But marketers, managers, admins
People who work long weeks

Bangalore and Cyberabad
Aren't good for startups I believe
People there cost a lot more
And on H-1s they soon leave

Going By The Book


Blame It On Efficiency



Finding A Purpose

You don't have to envy
Startups in San Jose
They burn fifteen times as much
Every single day

So many have died or laid off
After a market crash
You can weather the storm
By spending much less cash

If you have an idea
That can be a global hero
Take it further, build it out
An idea alone's worth zero

Get a few people turned on
To come and join your team
Without people and a plan
Your idea dies a dream

Pool resources, borrow, steal
Put in all you get
The best equity, we all know
Is the type called sweat

Start stingy, rent, don't buy
Your resources do not tax
You could run a year or more
On just fifty lakhs

Outsource little, build as much
As you can in-house
Use free labour when you can
By that I mean the spouse

Relying on press for direction
Can be very risky
To them, everything's going down
Be it markets or Ms. Lewinsky

BPO, IT enabled, biotech
Wondering what's the trend
If you follow the herd you know
Your startup will come to an end.

Only two ways to build a business
The first: relieve a pain
The second: offer a pleasure
Tho' in the former is more gain

Follow your gut, blaze a trail
Make sales, then find a VC
They'll see the dream coming true
Then it'll be quite easy

Break even in a year
The mantra that I follow
Then ask for money to expand
That story funds will swallow

VCs have burnt their fingers
Some say Star did KBC
To make up for all it lost
On Indya, Egurucool, Baazee

If your plan's just for India
I almost won't care
Aim for the entire world
That is right out there

If ICQ's from Israel
Third Voice from Singapore
Alumni.net from Manila
Surely we can do more

If you need lots of cash
To get your stuff advertised
Then there's something wrong
And you'll get pulverised

Ads and hoardings just give
Your bottomline a drain
The only one they made rich
Is a Mr. Vineet Jain

Amazon Yahoo Napster Hotmail
ICQ Google eBay
Got their name and fame for free
Ad agencies they didn't pay

Building global brands today
Is different, there's no doubt
It's not about how money talks
But about word of mouth

Our industry till today
Imported what others made
Going forward our products
Have to make world grade

There's a world of customers for you
And rivals from sea to sea
It isn't easy to win but then
No reason it should be

All you should remember
As you wallow in this gloom
What comes after a crash
Is a resounding boom