Abhijeet Vijayvergiya

I disagree, one such example that comes to my mind after reading this is Byju's where they built distribution and never focused on product. While on the other hand PW had an amazing product and distribution got solved over a period of time. As a founder I am not deeply in love with the product but with the problem we are solving and to solve we need to focus on just one metric - Customer Delight. #product #startups

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Vinay, former CTO of Loom (sold for $975M to Atlassian) has shared how life has become purposeless after sales. The article can intrigue you to question everything about your life. A man with infinite wealth, freedom, and fame is still confused for what’s next. But what has remained to achieve in this world then? 𝐈𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐞 𝐚 𝐉𝐢𝐦 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐲’𝐬 𝐪𝐮𝐨𝐭𝐞: “I hope everybody could get rich and famous and have everything they ever dreamed of, so they will know it's not the answer.” If we look at 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐰'𝐬 𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐬 (a theory that explains human motivation by mapping human needs onto a pyramid). 1/. Physiological: Needs for food, water, shelter, air, sleep, and clothing 2/. Safety: Needs for personal safety, health, job security, property, and financial security 3/. Love and belonging: Needs for relationships, intimacy, family, friendship, and a sense of connection 4/. Esteem: Needs for self-esteem, respect, status, recognition, freedom, and strength 5/. Self-actualization: The need to become everything you are capable of being It feels like Vinay is on stage 5 - 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲. I once watched 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐂𝐮𝐛𝐚𝐧’𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 where he also faced Vinay’s problem: ………. At 28-29 he became a multi-millionaire after selling his tech consultancy agency. He took all his friends to LA and spent extravagantly there. First few days were magical. He could buy any clothes/car he dreamed of throughout his life, could spend quality time in 7-star hotels, and could purchase anything for his girlfriend. But after a few weeks the excitement started to vaporize. Boredom replaced his enthusiasm. One day he decided that he’s meant to do business only. ………. In Vinay & Mark’s stories we can see the path may be different for each of us. As Lord Krishna said in Bhagavad Gita. There are 4 paths: 𝟏/. 𝐁𝐡𝐚𝐤𝐭𝐢 𝐘𝐨𝐠𝐚 The path of devotion 𝟐/. 𝐊𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐚 𝐘𝐨𝐠𝐚 The path of selfless service 𝟑/. 𝐑𝐚𝐣𝐚 𝐘𝐨𝐠𝐚 The path of meditation 𝟒/. 𝐉𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐘𝐨𝐠𝐚 The path of knowledge For the majority of us, money isn’t the ONLY goal. It’s just a milestone. We confuse milestones with a goal. And that’s why after hitting a milestone…life starts feeling vacant. Purposeless. We may never settle for money & abundance. We need even more. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 ‘𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞’? - An escape from boredom? - An unsatiated hunger to immerse yourself into something bigger (A bigger mission)? - Devoting yourself to a religion? I think there may be 8 billion answers for 8 billion people. But one thing is for sure. You need to know your ‘more’. Or you can walk on one of the above 4 paths. P.S. Nobody has the right answer. It’s a personal process :D

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Had a great chat with the COO of a leading SaaS company, and one thing stood out. No matter the size of the company and even the market share. Sales remains one of the toughest challenges. From long sales cycles to keeping the pipeline full, even the best teams face constant pressure. In an ever-evolving market, finding the right strategy and talent will always be the only sustainable way to staying ahead. #SaaS #SalesChallenges #Leadership #recruitment #hiring

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“Being a Great Leader” Thank you ASHUTOSH GARG for having me on your podcast, The Brand Called You. In a short-form podcast (20 minutes!) we covered a lot: > What makes a great leader > The meaning of leadership > How culture impacts leadership > And a lot more! Watch the full podcast here: https://lnkd.in/gujikx9s What do YOU think makes a *good* leader a GREAT leader? Are great leaders born, or can you become one? #Success #keynotespeaker #Leadership #leadershiptips #greatleaders

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Once you get to ~20M in revenue (slightly earlier for SMB, later for ent companies), the game is less about hustle and product features 🔑 Superior execution esp on GTM matters a LOT more in this phase 💪 Unfortunately a lot of founders miss this transition and find themselves doing what’s worked in the first phase and getting frustrated at the lack of results 😢 So what matters in the scale up phase? 1️⃣ stage specific people in the team — the team you build is the company you build. I am all for promoting from within but it’s important to couple that with external resources (advisors, mentors, full time hires) to make sure your team is seeing around corners vs reinventing the wheel. 👊 2️⃣ graduating from adhoc comms to an intentional approach — a lot of work discussions / key decisions in the early days happen in slack, 1:1 or in the office kitchen. Important to transition to better norms on comms across teams to lay the right foundation 🔥 3️⃣ prioritization is the name of the game — as you get more resources it’s easy to want to do everything. The best leaders force difficult choices and say no way more often than in the past 4️⃣ cross functional alignment matters more than strategy — this is the phase your teams become siloed and start to make up their own narrative and sometimes even their own data 😂 5️⃣ run amazing meetings — the necessary reality of this phase is having more meetings to keep things moving in the right direction. Running productive and FUN meetings is an undervalued skill most don’t invest 🙌 Embrace change 🔑 Find your tribe 🤗 Experiment to run your own race 🏃‍♀️ #scaleupphase #startups #cro #builder #leadershipinsights #startup

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Five(5) salient reasons why leaders must display emotional intelligence at the workplace. ☑️Enhanced Communication and Collaboration: Leaders who display emotional intelligence are better equipped to communicate effectively with their team. They understand and manage their own emotions and are sensitive to the emotions of others, fostering an environment where open, honest communication and collaboration thrive. ☑️Improved Conflict Resolution: Emotional intelligence enables leaders to navigate and resolve conflicts more effectively. By recognizing and addressing the emotional undercurrents in disputes, emotionally intelligent leaders can mediate solutions that satisfy all parties, reducing tension and promoting a harmonious workplace. ☑️Increased Employee Engagement and Morale: Leaders who demonstrate emotional intelligence can create a supportive and empathetic workplace culture. This leads to higher levels of employee engagement and morale, as team members feel valued, understood, and motivated to contribute their best efforts. ☑️Better Decision-Making: Emotionally intelligent leaders are adept at balancing logic and emotion in their decision-making processes. They are able to remain calm under pressure, consider diverse perspectives, and make informed decisions that benefit both the organization and its employees. ☑️Fostering Innovation and Creativity: By creating a psychologically safe environment, emotionally intelligent leaders encourage employees to take risks, share ideas, and think creatively. This openness to innovation is essential for driving growth and maintaining a competitive edge in today's rapidly changing business landscape. Image credit: Google Images

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Five(5) salient reasons why leaders must display emotional intelligence at the workplace. ☑️Enhanced Communication and Collaboration: Leaders who display emotional intelligence are better equipped to communicate effectively with their team. They understand and manage their own emotions and are sensitive to the emotions of others, fostering an environment where open, honest communication and collaboration thrive. ☑️Improved Conflict Resolution: Emotional intelligence enables leaders to navigate and resolve conflicts more effectively. By recognizing and addressing the emotional undercurrents in disputes, emotionally intelligent leaders can mediate solutions that satisfy all parties, reducing tension and promoting a harmonious workplace. ☑️Increased Employee Engagement and Morale: Leaders who demonstrate emotional intelligence can create a supportive and empathetic workplace culture. This leads to higher levels of employee engagement and morale, as team members feel valued, understood, and motivated to contribute their best efforts. ☑️Better Decision-Making: Emotionally intelligent leaders are adept at balancing logic and emotion in their decision-making processes. They are able to remain calm under pressure, consider diverse perspectives, and make informed decisions that benefit both the organization and its employees. ☑️Fostering Innovation and Creativity: By creating a psychologically safe environment, emotionally intelligent leaders encourage employees to take risks, share ideas, and think creatively. This openness to innovation is essential for driving growth and maintaining a competitive edge in today's rapidly changing business landscape. #emotionalintelliegence Image credit: Google Images

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Five(5) salient reasons why leaders must display emotional intelligence at the workplace. ☑️Enhanced Communication and Collaboration: Leaders who display emotional intelligence are better equipped to communicate effectively with their team. They understand and manage their own emotions and are sensitive to the emotions of others, fostering an environment where open, honest communication and collaboration thrive. ☑️Improved Conflict Resolution: Emotional intelligence enables leaders to navigate and resolve conflicts more effectively. By recognizing and addressing the emotional undercurrents in disputes, emotionally intelligent leaders can mediate solutions that satisfy all parties, reducing tension and promoting a harmonious workplace. ☑️Increased Employee Engagement and Morale: Leaders who demonstrate emotional intelligence can create a supportive and empathetic workplace culture. This leads to higher levels of employee engagement and morale, as team members feel valued, understood, and motivated to contribute their best efforts. ☑️Better Decision-Making: Emotionally intelligent leaders are adept at balancing logic and emotion in their decision-making processes. They are able to remain calm under pressure, consider diverse perspectives, and make informed decisions that benefit both the organization and its employees. ☑️Fostering Innovation and Creativity: By creating a psychologically safe environment, emotionally intelligent leaders encourage employees to take risks, share ideas, and think creatively. This openness to innovation is essential for driving growth and maintaining a competitive edge in today's rapidly changing business landscape. Image credit: Google Images

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"Yeah, but what's 'really' odd about Marc?" My GPT - Ask Marc Anything - has been updated with all my podcasts I have transcripts for - link in the comments. Includes podcasts with Aarish Shah, Greg Mccallum, Karthik Puvvada, Advik Kapoor, Prashant Choubey & a fireside chat with M Coyle of Hotbed. You can get interesting answers, for example "what's odd about marc" - also linked. Have a go, let me know what you think, share some interesting responses please. ------------------- Please ❤️ Like, ♻️ Share and 💬 Comment to spread the word. ➕ Follow me, Marc Cohen, for deep yet concise insights into venture investing, startups, fundraising and AI.

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Growth is unequivocally the best metric for success…Here is how to best encapsulate growth at its highest form ( Series ) … 1️⃣Growth is intentional.Think about how much growth is achieved by all of us in this world… In order to achieve sustainable growth and build a growth-minded culture and an abundance mindset in a domain or in an environment, it is the intent to develop a built-in purpose to grow and scale so upwardly and effectively in that environment. Birds of the air, fish of the sea, and animals of nature, they are all intended to grow so meaningfullyg and enabling each to learn about the various growth patterns and adopt a positive mindset and attitude towards their life. It is essential for them to develop their purpose and help us see the true potential inside of them and display their lives and the innate value by doing right thing so consistently. They show up and showcase their abilities with the intent to teach and inspire us, humans. They are equipped to achieve more and do more once as they know their true intent of making their daily activities as an assigned task… Each bird or creature is unique and was born with a purpose and intent to do so wellby leading and dominate its area of giftingor excellence. All creatures need to constantly seek out new ways to grow and expand their horizons and reach. This natural endowment is given to us By The Creator to improve our livelihoods and lives. Without growth, we all perish and with the intent of growth, we all get shrunk. We grow to magnify The Creator’s existential power and character as He created all things to grow and expand. As we look for growth, we demonstrate that we are worthy of it and are wonderfully made to exemplify his supernatural powers. Like any living creature , human-led growth demands various attributes to be developed. #naturalgrowth l #growthmindset l #growth #intentionalgrowth l #joubertthestrategist

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Rashim, can I give you some feedback?... ....I love the content that you share through #BytesfromRashim. BUT, you might want to think about covering your grays and putting on some makeup. And please ditch the T-shirts you got as swag. It will increase your followers, add to your executive presence, and make you look more successful. Me: Really? Why do you think so? Who is setting these standards? This is a snapshot of various conversations that I have had over few months now with both men and women who interact with my posts. ➡️ It is interesting to see what is fed to us in the name of feedback. ➡️ It is alarming to see how folks relate makeup and hair color with executive presence. ➡️ It is even more concerning to see how despite being paid less, women have to pay the pink tax and shell out more money to look "acceptable" at work. Women pay 13% more for gender marked products. From hair care to deodorants, razors, makeup and work outfits, we pay more to be accepted at work. 🔥So here's my take: 🔥 I will color my hair and put on makeup if and when I want to (Like while recording a course in the pic below), NOT because someone wants me to! 🔥 I will also continue to wear my conference T-shirts as casual everyday attire. They are comfortable, easy to maintain and take the fuss away from my life. I love swag T-shirts, specially ones from Datadog! send them my way. 🔥The value that I bring to my network is through my experience, my diverse background in technology, strategy, business, and leadership. That determines my executive presence. period. Who is with me on this? #BytesfromRashim #executivepresence #business #leadership #technology #linkedinfam #linkedincreators #authenticity #changetheconversation #authenticleadership #Pinktax #sharingiscaring Pic: Dawn and Ramola fixing the shine and my hair at LinkedIn during the recording of my next course on Generative AI.

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Founders - customer acquisition & attracting investors → requires mastering three actions → 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 → 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 → 𝘀𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗽𝗶𝗽𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 if you master these three RevOps actions you will do both acquire customers and generate revenue 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀, 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗟𝗣𝘀 → I divide RevOps into three actions → what I do to drive traffic (demand generation) → what I do to convert traffic into leads → and what I do to convert traffic into customers or investors you can learn this at startup birth our wait until your startup is running on fumes — AKA death you get to choose when but it's a founders job to master RevOps → we teach RevOps in our startup school → we teach it in our startup incubator → we teach it in our venture studio → we do RevOps everyday I write one post a day on LinkedIn (demand generation) my posts drive 35,000 monthly visits to our site we convert this traffic into leads and the leads are converted into program participants and investors → I do these three actions every day → I keep a live dashboard of our performance → for us → and for every startup in our venture studio every day we get better practice makes perfect I've been doing these three actions for over 40 years → in the last 90 days → impressions are up 263% → followers are up 40% → engagements up 138% → opt-ins up 138% → traffic up 100% → everything is up, up and up founders, it's because I've mastered RevOps and I DO these three things all around the buyer/investor journey (same thing) because I made a decision to learn how → 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗲 𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗔𝗦𝗛 Need help, reach out. Like this? Follow Gerald Duran for daily Startup and VC advice, and sometimes — a kick in the nuts. → 𝗣𝗦 ... CanaGlobal's Startup Incubator is currently interviewing founders for our August cohort. Visit our site for the details. #startups #founders #venturecapital #entrepreneurship

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the *mirage* of the india software ipo for global b2b companies over the last few quarters there has been increasing chatter in the indian ecosystem that indian software companies building for and selling to the US/global markets will be better off registered/flipping back to being an indian registered HQ and going IPO in india than (struggle to) meet the high bar that is required for an ipo in the US. the key points are these: (1) if indian companies can get to say $100M ARR with decent 15-20% EBITDA they will be considered heroes by the indian retail investors (2) however, with these numbers it is not possible to go ipo in the US (3) indian market is hungry for tech and will continue to award much higher valuation to these companies. i don't know what the right answer is in the long run. it is also possible that there are different right answers for different people. and by no means am i an expert so take this view as just one view, but based on seeing all of this very closely while working with the top 1% talent in India. here's why i personally believe this is unlikely to work and/or may be long term harmful for indian software product ecosystem that is looking to build globally relevant companies. 1 - top tier founders who I checked with said “hell no” to this option. for them it is like accepting defeat before even getting started. the ecosystem is finally closer-than-ever to figuring out how to build US-native companies to be globally relevant/respected brands in their categories and this entire thought process of "aiming for an low bar indian ipo" is opposite of what is going on in their minds and what is driving them today. 2 - once you set the $100M ARR, $20M EBITDA as the *goal*, it is likely to immediately lower the bar mentally for everyone in the company and it can be a negative spiral when you set a local maxima as a *great outcome* - the entire ecosystem then aims for this and overall we will soon start to build small companies instead of large outlier companies that are globally respected. 3- the outcome of this strategy *on average* will create #7 #8 #9 companies in their respective categories at best and that too *when things work out* and that is a hard position to be in as we all know. even if they go public in india i am not sure how long they can hold their valuations if their position, brand and standing in their categories is mediocre at best. CONTINUED IN THE FIRST COMMENT -->

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WE SAID YES 💍 After long nights of texting, several coffee dates, and endless talks about shared dreams ✨, it's official – I recently joined seniors@work - Job-Network for 50plus & retired professionals as Co-Founder & CCO - a startup initially brought to life by Alexis Weil 🚀 Our Love Story 💌 We first met not on Tinder (but let’s say Forbes is the Tinder for entrepreneurs 😉), and it wasn’t long before we realized we’re the perfect match: A shared passion for entrepreneurship and a vision to create a scalable & impactful business together 🌍🚀 A co-founder relationship is like a marriage – full of trust, commitment, and big plans for the future. We’re ready to take this next step together towards an exciting time ahead🥂 Our Mission 💌 seniors@work is the leading AI matching platform for 50plus and retired professionals, already connecting over 70,000 registered candidates with more than 6,000 companies. Our mission is to bridge the generation gap by matching experienced talents with businesses that need their expertise in an age of global talent shortage and age discrimination. Our Plans for the Future 💌 ● Establish our presence as the #1 platform in CH for senior talents🏆 ● International Expansion: Scale our platform to new markets 🌍🚀 ● Automation: Enhance our AI matching for even smarter connections 🤖 Wedding Gifts 💌 Who has time for a honeymoon when you're scaling a startup? But if you'd like to contribute a wedding gift, just let us know, and we'll happily send you our company IBAN 🎁💸 Wedding Planners 💌 I'm excited to 'tie the knot' with the amazing seniors@work team Alexis Weil 🚀Britt Huber Marco Julian G.A. Betancourt Claudia Lauener Hofer Ursula Stahl, Mike, Arthur & Sarah From This Day Forward… 💌 Yes, through thick and thin, in good times and bad… 💞 ...until the coffee machine breaks during our next brainstorming session 😉☕

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NEVER GIVE UP ON YOUR STARTUP DREAM 🚀 As a founder, rejection can feel like a major setback. But persistence is often the true key to success. One of the most inspiring stories for me is that of Jamie Siminoff, the founder of Ring. In 2013, he pitched his idea—then called Doorbot—on Shark Tank (credit: @SharkTankGlobal) and left without a single offer from the Sharks. But he didn’t let that stop him. Siminoff continued to push forward, refining his product and pressing on, even when things got tough. Five years later, Amazon acquired Ring for over $1 billion, proving that rejection can simply be a part of the journey toward success. Sometimes, a “no” is just a stepping stone to something greater. For every founder out there facing challenges, remember: 1. Believe in Your Vision: If you’re passionate and confident about your idea, don’t let temporary setbacks shake your resolve. 2. Learn from Rejection: Each “no” can offer valuable insights, helping you improve your product and strategy. 3. Stay Persistent: Success often comes to those who keep going, even when it’s tough. So if you’re feeling discouraged, take inspiration from Jamie Siminoff’s story and keep pushing forward. Your breakthrough might be just around the corner. #StartupJourney #NeverGiveUp #Persistence #FounderMindset #Entrepreneurship #RingStory    

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Many SaaS solutions resonate most with directors/VPs/department heads. For the past 5+ years the approach for selling to these folks was to get them very excited about your solution and price in such a way that they could get a deal done with minimal sign off. In enterprise this could run as high as 500k. Now, there is scrutiny on 25k deals. Smart sellers realize this and are running a totally different play. A little different flavor of the traditional top down model. These folks are still doing well. Folks running the old playbook? In struggleville. P.S. - when times are hard it’s actually easier to do big deals…if you know how to sell transformations.

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Data is irrefutable, but the insights are debatable. Getting from Seed to Series A is not hard; it's excruciatingly painful. All of the following need to be in place: 1. Found strong evidence of PMF within your core customer segment 2. Figured out GTM strategy and distribution channels. 3. Effectively allocated capital for growth whilst reserving capital to raise a new round 4. Build a smooth enough operation that allows you to step aside from your organization to go raise capital. 5. Execute a flawless fundraising process that you are doing for the (statistically) first time in your life 6. Assemble a strong team without the proper resources in a highly competitive talent market. But Marcial, look! Graduation rates went from 37% to 12%. - 37% is high because a "small" pool of Seed Rounds got Series As during the bull market frenzy. These companies will struggle with their Series Bs. - 12% is low because of the huge volume of Seed rounds completed in Q4'21 and Q1'22, which will not amount to anything. If I had a message to entrepreneurs: Building a massive tech company remains similarly as difficult as previous vintages. Money will continue to flow to companies with signals that they are building the 'next big thing'. Do not misread the data thinking, "now it's harder, so I'll avoid raising", because if you are building an outlier company, you shouldn't be concerned with averages. Disclaimer: I haven't built shit yet, so not speaking from experience.

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