My Learnings from Shark Tank India
I had never watch Shark Tank until it was recently launched in India. I am not sure why I never did. I have seen many reality television shows from other countries. I have heard some of my friends talk about Shark Tank, but never thought of watching it. I was very skeptical when I saw the first episode and then somehow I couldn’t stop watching it. It broke many of my assumptions and fears about starting a business.
My aim from beginning was to get a good job after education. I never thought of starting my own business. May be for some reason I thought Shark Tank was for people who are interested in business. As I grow in my carrier, I now realize that whether you are new entrepreneur with a startup or an Engineer in a corporation or a student, knowing about business and how it operates is important.
Here are some key things I learned out of this show
- Teach Kids about how a Business Works
I have two nephews who are in school, when I see them, I see me when I was their age. When anyone asks what they want to become when they grow up, they say some cool profession that they see in movies. Sometimes its Doctor, many times its a Military officer in a mission fighting bad people. They too like me, have no idea that starting their own business could be something that they can do. There were no big business success stories happening around me when I was a child. No one in my family spoke about business. No one in my school spoke about it. The first time I heard the word entrepreneur was in my college freshers day. Many of the students who joined with me on the same day said that their dream is become an entrepreneur. Some of them are today, some of them are not. I didn't think anything that day, but after watching this show, I felt that I should have known about business earlier in my life. There are more startups in India than there were a decade ago. India has one of the biggest markets for budding entrepreneurs. Its important for us to educate our younger generations on the different opportunities they have around them.
2. There are many problems around us to solve
When anyone says the word business, very few little brands and companies come to our mind. If I stop and think what business I would have started if I had become an entrepreneur, I have no clue. We cant sit and say I am going to start a business, let me think of one good idea which I can convert into business. In the show format, the sharks ask , who are you? How did you start the business and the story behind how you reached here. Many stories were very interesting. There were people who were not supported by their own families, some ex working professionals, some homemakers who wanted to do something on their own, some just out of college kids etc., There were people who knew right from the beginning that they wanted to start business, few who while working realized they cant do this anymore and wanted to be their own Boss, few who had to something to become a success financially. Whatever was their motive to start with, they found a problem around them which they could relate to and which they wanted to solve. Seeing the many different varieties of companies that came in the show gives hope and confidence that there are many problems out there in the world which needs a creative solution. These are untapped opportunities to make the world a better place and budding entrepreneurs to grow.
3. Know the numbers
I don't have finance major, I didn't really listen when my company shares growth and profit results. Not knowing how business and finance works hit me hard while I was watching the show. When we see a small shop selling tea, coffee in street, we just assume its a small business without much financial scope. When we enter some fancy coffee shop, we assume , its a big business making huge profit. This thought could be because, we only see extremes around us. Our Media will either show big success or big failures to us. What I would have generally thought as a very small business surprised me with big numbers on the show. I have not heard of any of the brands that came in the show. Where is this number coming from? This could be just me entirely ignorant of what is going on around me. But I have a feeling its not just me. I am sure that there are many people in my circle who are just as ignorant as me. I think I forget that I am living in one of the biggest market for anything in this world.
This show has definitely given me a lot to think and learn from. How a small problem could be a revolutionary business opportunity, learning finance and business is not just for entrepreneurs and finance teams, not to underestimate the power of people around us, different ways people market their product to customer and so on. If you know someone like me in your circle, may be make them watch them one episode of this show. It might change their perspective as well.
