Gauravonomics Blog

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Mechanical Engineer turned Java Programmer turned Software Salesman turned Ship Chandler turned Stock Market Investor turned Transport Fleet Operator Chenthil shares the lessons he has learnt as a first generation entrepreneur -

Dream big, but make sure that there is some arrangement for running your day to day life. If your dad has left you a fortune, good for you. Another option is to have one spouse working full time while the other is chasing his/her dreams. All my risk taking is possible only because of the solid support of my wife, who takes more than her share of the family burden.

Techie turned restaurateur Madman offers similar advice to wannabe entrepreneurs -

It is good to dream, but not to day-dream. You need hope, but not delusion. That said, you should realise that to boldly go where no one has gone before (please pardon my Star Trek geek cliche) does indeed require a leap of faith and a hope for a market that may not even exist yet (certainly true in my case.) Just be sure that your decision is an informed one and based on solid research, not solely on an impulsive moment. We have to deal with the constraints of the world we live in, and one of those is earning a livelihood.

Diogenes at ‘Quasi Fictional Views’ asked me to contribute a piece for her ‘Fine Art of Blogging’ project. Blogging biggies like Liz Strauss and Chris Garrett have contributed to the project previously and I’m truly touched that Diogenes asked me to participate. Diogenes asked me to answer a few questions about my blogging and here’s the piece as it appears on her blog.

What is my blog to me?

At the simplest level, my blog is a repository of my thoughts and ideas. It is also a white board where I experiment with words and projects, a place where I try to find my voice as a writer, and a project that will become my purpose, my calling, or my legacy. My blog is also a medium to create new conversations with people I wouldn’t have met otherwise, and some of these conversations have already become entrenched into friendships.

Why do I blog?

I started blogging because I wanted to be a writer, to write for a living, but wasn’t sure if I had the voice or the discipline to shape it into literature. Blogging was one way to find out.

In response to Paul Kedrosky’s list of top ten VC lies -

I liked it, but I couldn’t get it past my asshole partners.

- Mashable’s Pete Cashmore made his own list of top ten lies about startups -

It’s The XYZ Killer!! - Wherein XYZ represents an amazingly popular one-of-a-kind service and the thing doing the killing launched today on a server in the 13 year old founder’s bedroom.

Have I ever mentioned that, in the early days of outsourcing, I was associated with one two outsourcing startups myself? We even went to Hawaii to get VC funding for one of them (thanks to the startup cell at IIM-B), only to realize that we were way out of our depth. Both of them are small profitable businesses today, by the way.

Stormhoek, the South African wine company promoted by Gapingvoid’s Hugh MacLeod, has introduced a new wine called Couture Rose which has been specifically made to taste better with ice.

Stormhoek winemaker Graham Knox developed the wine especially for his wife Dianne, who loves drinking Rose, but complained about its watered down taste when she put ice in it.

According to Jason Korman, CEO of Stormhoek Vineyards -

You can serve it many different ways, on ice and even as a mixer - we see it as part of a trend where Rosé can be consumed like a cocktail, making it an even more sophisticated drink.

Hugh is inviting suggestions for tag lines for the front label of Couture Rose -

The main take-out is that we want to communicate in a fun, funky way that this rose tastes BEST with ice, expressed in as few words as possible.

- and seems to be gravitating towards the rather boring “Best Served Over Ice”.

It I were to decide on the tag line, I would go with a conversational tone and position it as a wine that can be consumed as a cocktail. This also fits in beautifully with the label design showing four different cocktail glasses with ice cubes.

Today’s Desi Blog of the Day is Trivial Matters by Akshay Mahajan.

Three reasons why I love Akshay’s blog -

- Akshay has an amazing eye for finding a story in people and places most of us don’t even notice.
- Not only does he photograph people beautifully, he tries to really understand them, and it shows in his sensitive photo-essays.
- His photographs make Bombay look even more beautiful than it is.

My tip to Akshay: Consider adding a “best posts” section in your sidebar and check out Blogger’s custom domain name service - trivialmatters.org and akshaymahajan.org are still available.

So, why is Trivial Matters the Desi Blog of the Day? He converted me into a cameraholic.

Also see - BlogTipping and Hundred Must Read Desi Blogs.