What I learned about starting up a start up – week three in progress!

These are the four things I figured out about starting a start up in a foreign developing country so far. We’re only starting out so I’m sure I’ll be adding on to this later on!

1.What you learn in books or in class means nothing!!

Ok, I take that back. Yes it’s always important to dig deep into books, podcasts, attend seminars and so forth to gain some basic knowledge on how to run a business. But the truth is, that knowledge will only take you so far, and you never will really get it until you begin. And when you are in a foreign country, you’ll probably diverge more than ever from what you studied because what ultimately matters most I think is the local context. You can recite all the business terms and concepts in the world, but those aren’t the words used here in Nepal. Nothing will work unless you adapt it to the way it’s done in this country. For example the day before we officially opened TECHRISE, we were having a cup of tea with our Nepali friends. They completely drilled us that evening and we realized that we knew nothing about Nepali style management. From how to deal with absences, tardiness, various holidays (some festival related holidays could lead up to weeks where people go back to their homes outside Kathmandu Valley), to the type of bonuses and incentives to keep everyone’s motivation high – they made us realize that we had no clue about how things were done here. We went back to our rooms, re-assessed everything and drafted out some rules we wanted to make clear. I imagine that we would have had a far more chaotic organization if we hadn’t done this. You can have some pre-conceived notions about how things should be done, but you would be surprised at how things actually work. I would say make your assumptions and base your decisions off the theories and best practices you learned, but when you do, do the way the locals do.

2.Build relationships, don’t just throw money at the problem

What will take you far are the people around you. It makes sense to have a good relationship with your employees and everyone else directly related to your business, but what about those that aren’t? - Just build a good relationship. Because problems like your pipe leaking, or your light suddenly going out are problems that are going to keep coming back. In a society where everything is so tight knit and communal, the way to get things done is to “call a guy”. Or a guy who knows a guy. So try to build a good relationship with whomever you interact with, whether they may seem to be relevant to your business or not. Don’t just try to close the deal with money, because most likely you will be encountering them again and again. Even when you buy your fruits or veggies from the local market, get to know them. Once you’re on good terms with them, they will reduce the price of your merchandise or sometimes give you a little something extra. It can be small little things like this, but it will definitely eliminate your daily stress and brighten up your day.

3.The concept of time is radically different from yours

If you think startup, you may imagine the team working blood and sweat around the clock. Every second matters, and the success of your business depends on the time you devote to it. We feel the exact same way sometimes, and want to just keep working. BUT we know that it’s almost as equally important to have our daily evening tea with our friends who come by after work. The hanging out part is crucial, because to them the time spent together (not necessarily doing anything) is valuable, and that’s what you do if you trust and love each other. Another thing is that Nepali time is usually around 15 ~30 minutes later than the normal time on the clock, or even later sometimes. Totally different from Japan where we are strictly taught to be at least five minutes earlier than scheduled time. So, creating a culture of time management is super high on the list.

4.Listen – no, really

Don’t think you know better just because you went to some elite school, did some internships and took a class or two about business. Because you don’t. You will gain much more insights and will be able to make better decisions if you actually took the time to listen. Like I said above, you really want to adapt your marketing strategies, operations and all to be effective and appealing to the local people. You need to understand how people here react to certain messages and actions from the company. For example when we first opened up applications to enroll in TECHRISE in January, by the next day almost 40 people had signed up. Concerned that we wouldn’t be able to handle so many students in the beginning, I hastily decided to close down the application form. But later my team members urged me to keep them open longer, because their intuition told them that while many would be interested in this new foreign program, they were unlikely to actually complete the pre-work (necessary for admittance). True enough, out of the hundred that signed up only eight ended up completing the pre-work.

So this is a summary of what i’ve learned so far. Hope there were some things that you found interesting or could relate to! Let me know if you liked this post or not :)