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Mint publishes about smallB in its daily edition dt 16.07.2013

Dena Bank for Start-up Entrepreneurs

5 Things Innovators Should Never Forget

It has been shared five things an innovator should always remember. This has extracted after reading various articles on subject. These are:

1. Ideate with surrounding and not for them 

Innovators  need the support of an awful lot of colleagues and bosses before a big change truly can take place like R&D engineers, production managers, IT staff, financial controllers, marketers, service people and salesmen to develop your new product or service, produce it, get it on the market and service it. A new concept needs a lot of fathers and mothers will it survive internally. Therefore Innovators have to give them a chance to discover for themselves, what different paths are possible, what can be developed and what is realistic. If you want to be an effective innovator in an organization you will have to ideate new concepts with them and not for them.

2. Solve a relevant customer friction

Innovation is difficult because potential users must change their behaviour. Why should they buy your innovation? That’s the question! You have to give them a very good reason why! Effective innovation provides simple solutions for relevant problems or dreams of the target group. Innovators should find them by reaching out to customers using personal visits, meeting them in focus groups, search in social media or using crowdsourcing.

3. Use the voice of the customer

In selecting and improving ideas it is very important to criticise and challenge them from different perspectives. There are huge differences in how people from within the company perceive new ideas and how their potential customers perceive those same ideas. And that’s why incorporate idea reflection workshops with potential target groups in an early stage of your ideation process. Improve and pick the right ideas based on their feedback. Use the enthusiastic voice of the customer also to convince others it's a wonderful concept.

4. Bring back new business not only ideas

The reason you went on an innovation journey often stems from a need to grow the business again. So don't bring them ideas, bring them business and growth potential. Idea is being evaluated broadly from at least three perspectives Customer, Business model and Technology. There is need of clear,  strategic, commercial, professional and financial plan for new initiatives. At this early stage of the innovation process it is more of a ‘preview’ of the full business case. By making a mini new business case you strengthen the persuasiveness of your idea.

5. Show them how it's feasible.

Of course they expect from you as innovator to break existing patterns. And originality helps. But when you present your new concept it is wise to keep in mind that the rest of the organization is still as conservative as ever. Be sure to think outside the box on one hand and to present your idea inside the box on the other.

The Entrepreneurship Syste

Artificial Intelligence

The opening of WWDC starred a demo by a company named Anki, which is building Artificial Intelligence or real-life toys and games. It’s part of a plan to launch a new generation of machine intelligence for much bigger applications. CEO Boris Sofman talks about the challenges of building intelligent things and the future of Artificial Intelligence.

Leaders must avoid these behaviors

If you want to empower, engage, or motivate others, don't just focus on increasing your positive behaviors. Pay attention to what you need to stop doing as well. Why? Because people remember the bad more than the good. As gathered from HBR article, on the basis of 360 qualitative interviews, here are following top three behaviours, which leaders must avoid : 

1) Judgmental, non-verbal body language. No one, especially your successful colleagues, can tolerate perceived condescension. Research studies show that somewhere between 75 to 90 percent of our impact comes from our non-verbal communication, and tone is a key ingredient of this. Do you make comments to others in a way that sounds evaluative, harsh, or condescending? Often, this is not our intention but an in-the- moment reaction. Other non-verbal offenders include scowling, furrowed brows, quizzical looks (as if to say, 'are you stupid?'), rigidity, and sarcasm. While seemingly small, each of these subtle darts creates a considerable amount of relationship damage.

2) Interrupting and interrogating. There's been a lot of buzz recently around how to have "conversations that drive innovation" and how to "create safe environments for employees to bring their ideas forward." It's almost impossible for people to feel safe if the boss takes up most of the airtime, cuts people off, or interrogates half-baked ideas. Yes, employees have a responsibility to communicate with clarity, but if you expect every idea to be buttoned up, fully thought out, or structured before someone speaks, your colleagues will assume that you're not willing to invest the time to be a thought partner.

3) Being inconsistent. Peers and staff often comment on how discouraging it is to see a colleague act in two very different ways — absolutely charming with the executive team and external clients while being disrespectful to those they work with every day. This inconsistency makes these behaviors even more memorable and egregious. Others have shared a different impact — the feeling of walking on eggshells at work, wondering who is going to show up: "smiling, charming, funny person" or "judgmental, intense, snapping person." Over time, this drives passive aggressive responses from others in their attempt to avoid confrontation.

Ultimately, loyalty and followership are the two things cannot be demanded or set as an expectation. What is perceived as fear-based motivation, belittlement, or power play can yield real short-term compliance from others. But negative behaviors ultimately diminish the legacy we leave. Consider what behaviors you might need to stop doing so that you can have a positive, lasting impact.

Start-up Chain

Hard Earned 8 Tips for Start-up Innovations

Tech startups need to innovate in order to survive, much less grow and thrive. But when there's so much else to do, from fixing bugs to business development to sales and customer support, how do you fit innovation in? Just as important, how do you figure out which innovations are actually worth pursuing? RWIO-small Biz has asked eight successful entrepreneurs from the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) how they incorporate innovation, formally or informally, into their startups, and what information they use to plot next steps.

Strategies for Success

Have Grit — Persistence over the long haul is key

Know Exactly How Far You Have Left to Go — Monitor your progress

Get Specific — Have a crystal-clear idea of exactly what success will look like

Seize the Moment to Act on Your Goals — Know in advance what you will do, and when and where you will do it

Focus on What You Will Do, Not What You Won't Do — Instead of focusing on bad habits, it's more effective to replace them with better ones.

Build your Willpower Muscle — If you don't have enough willpower, you can get more using it.

Focus on Getting Better, Rather than Being Good — Think about your goals as opportunities to improve, rather than to prove yourself

Be a Realistic Optimist — Visualize how you will make success happen by overcoming obstacles

Don't Tempt Fate — No one has willpower all the time, so don't push your luck

10 Tips for Start-ups

Before you make the leap – 10 tips for start-ups

Hundreds of thousands of new businesses are formed each year. Some will be a great success, but the vast majority will no longer exist in five years time. One of the main reasons why businesses fail lies in the preparation stage. Start-up Entrepreneurs often have unrealistic expectations, fail to spend time on research, or fail to adapt to changes in the marketplace. With this in mind, here are ten tips for potential small business owners to consider before making the leap from being an ‘employee’ to running a small enterprise.

1. Is there are market for your product or service?

Before making the jump, you must be certain that people or other businesses have a need for the product(s) or service(s) you intend to supply.

2. How strong is the competition to your business?

Is there a gap in the market for your product(s) or service(s)? Is competition in your chosen sector intense, or weak? Do you have any Unique Selling Points (USPs) to differentiate yourself from the competition?

3. Have you secured funding for your start-up?

Many new businesses are self-funded, however others may require a business/ bank loan, or alternative financing facilities such as factoring in order to get going. Ensure you have a contingency fund in case start-up costs are higher than you initially expected (they usually are).

4. Are there any industry-specific issues you should be aware of?

Make sure you apply for any licenses or organisation memberships if they are legally or otherwise required in your line of business. Also ensure you have adequate insurance cover in place – this is mandatory if you have any employees.

5. Have you got the right skills to run your business?

Try to be objective and honestly assess your own skill set (ask colleagues, family members and friends for their input). You must be honest about your weaknesses as well as strengths and be prepared to seek outside help if it is needed (either permanent staff or freelance help).

6. Are you personally suited to running a business on your own?

Although there is no blueprint for a successful business owner, you do need ‘balls’ to go it alone, tenacity, and be prepared to give your all to your new venture. Only when you are prepared to give 100% to a business is it likely to succeed.

7. What business structure are you going to use?

The majority of small businesses are run as sole traderships, partnerships or limited companies. You should consider carefully which structure suits you and your business going forward, and seek advice from an accountant if you have any doubts.

8. Are you being realistic?

It is hard to be completely objective when setting up a business for the first time. Not only is it crucial to spend most of your pre-startup time researching the market for your product(s) or service(s), but you should also solicit opinions from people you trust – who know you well and are happy to point out potentially pitfalls in your new business plans.

9. Hire a good accountant

Your accountant is likely to be your most important adviser during your time as a business owner. Ask for recommendations from other business owners, as a good accountant will save you money and provide advice during hard times.

10. Do you have an exit strategy?

If things go well, you will have the luxury of one day thinking about expanding the business, selling it on, or bringing on business partners. If you own the business with other people, make sure you have a partnership or shareholders agreement to fall back on just in case disputes arise or if one or more partners wish to sell their share of the business.

Definition of Micro & Small Enterprises

Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises Development (MSMED) Act, 2006

The Government of India has enacted the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (MSMED) Act, 2006 on June 16, 2006 which was notified on October 2, 2006. With the enactment of MSMED Act 2006, the paradigm shift that has taken place is the inclusion of the services sector in the definition of Micro, Small & Medium enterprises, apart from extending the scope to medium enterprises. The MSMED Act, 2006 has modified the definition of micro, small and medium enterprises engaged in manufacturing or production and providing or rendering of services. The Reserve Bank has notified the changes to all scheduled commercial banks. Further, the definition, as per the Act, has been adopted for purposes of bank credit vide RBI circular ref. RPCD.PLNFS. BC.No.63/ 06.02.31/ 2006-07 dated April 4, 2007.

1 Definition of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises

(a) Enterprises engaged in the manufacture or production, processing or preservation of goods as specified below:

(i) A micro enterprise is an enterprise where investment in plant and machinery does not exceed Rs. 25 lakh;

(ii) A small enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in plant and machinery is more than Rs. 25 lakh but does not exceed Rs. 5 crore; and

(iii) A medium enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in plant and machinery is more than Rs.5 crore but does not exceed Rs.10 crore.

In case of the above enterprises, investment in plant and machinery is the original cost excluding land and building and the items specified by the Ministry of Small Scale Industries vide its notification No.S.O. 1722(E) dated October 5, 2006 (Annex I).

(b) Enterprises engaged in providing or rendering of services and whose investment in equipment (original cost excluding land and building and furniture, fittings and other items not directly related to the service rendered or as may be notified under the MSMED Act, 2006) are specified below.

(i) A micro enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in equipment does not exceed Rs. 10 lakh;

(ii) A small enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in equipment is more than Rs.10 lakh but does not exceed Rs. 2 crore; and

(iii) A medium enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in equipment is more than Rs. 2 crore but does not exceed Rs. 5 crore.

These will include small road & water transport operators, small business, retail trade, professional & self-employed persons and other service enterprises

Lending by banks to medium enterprises will not be included for the purpose of reckoning of advances under the priority sector.

(iv) Since the MSMED Act, 2006 does not provide for clubbing of investments of different enterprises set up by same person / company for the purpose of classification as Micro, Small and Medium enterprises, the Gazette Notification No. S.O.2 (E) dated January 1, 1993 on clubbing of investments of two or more enterprises under the same ownership for the purpose of classification of industrial undertakings as SSI has been rescinded vide GOI Notification No. S.O. 563 (E) dated February 27, 2009.

1.1 Khadi and Village Industries Sector (KVI)

All advances granted to units in the KVI sector, irrespective of their size of operations, location and amount of original investment in plant and machinery will be covered under priority sector advances and will be eligible for consideration under the sub-target (60 per cent) of the micro enterprises segment within the MSE Sector.

1.2 Indirect Finance

1.2.1 Persons involved in assisting the decentralised sector in the supply of inputs and marketing of outputs of artisans, village and cottage industries.

1.2.2 Advances to cooperatives of producers in the decentralised sector viz. artisans, village and cottage industries.

1.2.3 Loans granted by banks to Micro Finance Institutions on, or after, April 1, 2011 for on-lending to micro and small enterprises (manufacturing as well as services) subject to the compliance of guidelines specified in Master Circular RPCD. CO. Plan. BC.12/04.09.01/ 2012-13 dated July 2, 2012 on 'Lending to Priority Sector'.

Start-up Financing Cycle

Start-up Financing Cycle

Lessons from a Failed Social Entrepreneur

Mike McGlade has posted a post on HBR Blog Network. Based on his social entrepreneur experience and its failure, he advice here in the blog

QUOTES for Start-up Entrepreneurs

1.     Success is often achieved by those who don’t know that failure is inevitable- Coco Chanel

2.     The biggest failure you can have in life is not tying at all- Emil Motycka

3.     The only place where success comes before work is in dictionary – Vidal Sassoon

4.     Your most unhappy customer are your greatest source of learning – Bill Gates

5.     If i’d asked my customers what they wanted, they’d have said a faster horse –Henry ford

6.     High expectations are the key to everything - Sam Walton

7.     Remember that the 6 most expensive words in business are: ‘We’ve   always done it that way – Catherine DeVrye

8.     Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they give up- Thomas Edison

9.     The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing - Walt Disney

10.  I’ve always worked very, very hard, and the harder i worked, the luckier I got - Alan Bond

11.  Whenever an individual or a business decides that success has been attained, progress stops- Thomas J.Watson

12.  I’m not a businessman. I’m a business, man.- Jay-Z

13.  The best reason to start an organization is to make meaning – to create a product or service to make the world a better place  -Guy Kawasaki

14.  In life and business, there are two cardinal sins: The first is to act without thought, and the second is to not act at all -Carl Icahn

15.  Motivation is waht gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going -Jim Rohn

16.  The only limits are as always, those of vision -James Broughton

17.  To be irreplaceable one must always be different  -Coco Chanel

18.  The greatest failure is not to try  -Debbi Fields

19.  Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere -Albert Einstein

20.  A business has to be involving, it has to be fun, and it has to exercise our creative instincts - Richard Branson

21.  It’s more fun to be a pirate than to join the navy        - Steve Jobs

22.  If you can dream it, you can achieve it -Zig Ziglar

23.  Even if you fall on your face,you’re still moving forward -Victor Kiam

24.  In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity -Albert Einstein

Hiring of TEAM for Start-up

Before finaization of TEAM, it is important to categorize the employee,  A player: Fully self-sufficient and takes initiative that positively impacts the company. B player: Does some things well, but not fully self-sufficient, and not consistently strong. C player: Just average, and does not excel in any area. D player: Poor performer, and shouldn’t last long if you are a half-capable manager. F player: Should be out…like yesterday.  

Funding Options for Start-ups

Venture capital not the only funding option for start-ups Entrepreneurs, if they want to be taken as serious investment cases, need to do much more than write a business plan ........ by Poyni Bhatt

Sourcing of Fund as per Startup stage

You have the idea. Where will the funding come from? The answers differ widely depending on whether you are looking for seed, inflection or growth capital.......by Nandini Mansinghka

College idea turns puja kits

College idea turns puja kits into Rs.5 cr revenue business Prakash Mundhra began making puja kits with Rs.6 lakh capital; the business today is growing 60% every year puja kits

Technologies for Startups

Fast application development these days can be attributed to the amazing new technologies for startups. Lets dive into some of them :

1. Ruby on Rails 

RoR lets you do Web development that does not hurt.

What does it really mean? Ruby on Rails has significantly lowered the barriers of entry to programming. Powerful web applications that formerly might have taken weeks or months to develop can be produced in a matter of days. Simply put it lets you build cool applications quickly, lets you ‘Fail Fast’ and come up with prototypes with a shorter time line.

What can I make from this? Virtually any web application can be easily and quickly built on RoR, and mind it tons of companies have used it for some very serious application development.

Who’s using it? Twitter, Github, Basecamp, Walmart Labs, Groupon

2. Django

Django is a web framework for perfectionists with a deadline. Its lets you build better apps quicker with less code. Django focuses on automating as much as possible and adhering to the DRY principle. It solves practical need of a fast-moving online-news operation, to handle two challenges: the intensive deadlines of a newsroom and the stringent requirements of the experienced Web developers.

What does it really mean? Django makes it possible to quickly build, deploy and scale powerful applications in just days. Its adherence to the DRY principle allows you to write only that code which matters to your applications.

What can I make from this? Just like RoR you can make any web application in Django. 

Who’s using it? Instagram, Pinterest, Disqus, EventBrite

3. Node.js

Node is a platform in JavaScript built on the top of a beast called V8 which is the  Chrome’s JavaScript  Runtime engine. Node uses an event driven,  non-blocking I/O model which makes it lightweight and efficient, and hence perfect for real time applications across distributed services.

What does it really mean? Node makes it super easy and faster for one to build cool stuff in an app that happens in real time, giving the users an amazing experience. You can smartly implement a cross browser solution using Node.js

What can I make from this? Real time collaboration tools, Chat applications, Any application that would require synchronous operations and Real time multi-player games

Whose using it? Yahoo, Microsoft, Walmart, Mozilla, Linkedin

4. NoSQL

NoSQL databases are very useful when one has to store humongous amount of data which may not have very complex relational schema involved. Its most useful when your purpose is to store and retrieve a lot of data quickly and efficiently, with the bulk of processing being done at the interface layer.

What does it really mean? There has been an explosion in terms of the amount of data being collected and processed. Traditional relational databases have started to fail in certain cases, and here NoSQL comes to the rescue. NoSQL databases let you store huge amount of data and then manipulate it in the app. Some popular NoSQL databases are Cassandra, Redis, CouchDB, MongoDB

What can I make from this? You can seamlessly build applications which require a lot of data to be stored, quickly retrieved and processed without having to worry about performance issues in your traditional databases .

Who’s using it? Facebook, Yahoo, Google, Twitter

5. JSON

JSON  stands for JavaScript Object Notation, and it is a lightweight format that is used for data interchanging. It is also a subset of JavaScript’s Object Notation, i.e. the way objects are defined in JavaScript. JSON is a text format that is completely language independent but uses conventions that are familiar to programmers of the C-family of languages, including C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, Perl, Python, and many others. These properties make JSON an ideal data-interchange language. Its also easier to read and understand by humans.

What does it really mean? JSON  becomes much more structured and efficient. Simply put it lets different interfaces of your application seamlessly communicate with each other. JSON is really great for exchanging or retrieving data that needs to be manipulated, massaged, mashed up or otherwise tweaked.

6. Cloud Computing

Cloud computing can be attributed as the single most important factor for such high speed growth of tech companies today. Companies like Pinterest, Dropbox, Airbnb, Reddit, Instagram etc have been able to grow so seamlessly to millions of users because of the cloud technology. Cloud computing symbolizes the concept of ‘Lean Development’ by replacing the up-front capital infrastructure expenses with low variable costs that scales with the business.

What does it really mean? Cloud computing allows you to host your Web applications in a highly scalable way and yet you only pay for the resources you actually use. It keeps away the worry of your hosting and scaling cost, until you have finally made it to the point where every cent you pump into your hosting translates into satisfying revenue. Cloud hosting is great for variable load/ traffic or for those who have seasonal spikes. You may not save a lot in the very early stage of your startup or once you reach to the stage of heavy constant load, but its absolutely great for the transition from the former to the latter.

Who’s using it? Pinterest, Linkedin, Airbnb, Quora, NASA

Fulfill creative potentials

Full of ideas about how to be more creative in life and in business, four tips are suggested here:

1) Make art
2) Unlock your creativity
3) Turn STEM into STEAM
4) Put the “seemingly absurd” into action

Unlearn 5 Good Habits

Stop Thinking So Positively

When we visualize our goals as already achieved, it can subconsciously lull our minds into complacency. Goals are important, but make sure you are mindful of the difficulties that you will face along the way.

Stop Trying to Fill Every Hour of Your Day

Ever wonder why you get most of your ideas in the shower? It's because the shower is among the last sacred spaces where we aren't distracted by colleagues or technology. Our ideas need time to ferment and connect with other ideas, and being bored allows our minds to accomplish this naturally.

Stop Caring What the Internet Thinks About You

It feels good to check our blog's traffic, Google our names, or compare our Twitter follower counts, but this kind of "insecurity" work rarely helps us advance our creative pursuits. Tasks like these are intellectual empty calories, giving us the appearance of doing work. If you truly want these measurements to rise, focus on getting things done while compartmentalizing these activities to specifics times during your week.

Stop Equating Rejection with Failure

Getting rejected, while painful, isn't what can hold us back— it's how we react to such setbacks that often determines our success. Research shows that handling rejection with an "I'll show them" mentality can actually boost performance over those who have the easier route of acceptance.

Stop Spending More Time on Your Work

When we feel we need to get more stuff done, many of us invest more of our time and work weekends or evenings. The funny thing is, our time is finite and by overworking ourselves we can cause collateral damage to our creativity. Instead of spending more time on our work we should spend less. By embracing our bodies' natural rhythm of "pulsing and pausing" we can sustain our energy levels.

5 Steps to Live the Life as U desire

By following them, one can take control of his/ her life and get empowered to live the life as truly desire :

1. "Someday is Today." Stop procrastinating and creating excuses for why one can't have what he wants. Take control. Announce to yourself "someday is today" every day, to seize the day and eradicate an excuse mentality.

2."Have More Fear of Regret Than Failure." Remind yourself that the feeling of regret is so much worse than trying something (even if it doesn't work out) and living with no regrets. Realize fear is an illusion that holds you back. By doing so, you will set yourself free to live to your fullest potential.

3. "I Only Have Good Days." Remember, the only thing in the world we have control over is our perspective. You can choose to adopt a consistently positive perspective and find the good in everything. Or you can be negative, and attract more negative things into your life. The mantra "I only have good days" reminds you to see the positive for a better outcome.

4. "Opportunities Lie Within Every Obstacle." It can be tough to dig deep and find the positive, especially when confronted by challenges. But if you choose the positive, you will find the opportunity and nuggets of wisdom in every obstacle that presents itself in your life.

5. "Live With Passion and Purpose." Stop asking "what should I be doing" and start understanding "who you want to be." What do you want your legacy to be? As you reflect, you will begin to understand your purpose. That will make it easier to live with more passion and stay further away from needless and draining distractions or drama. Identifying your purpose and living with passion is the most authentic way to be empowered all day, every day.

Seed Capital raising

Worried about the Series A crunch? Choose not to participate in it and go raise a bigger seed round. Startups are often too worried about dilution, instead of whether they are capitalized enough to dominate their space. Here are  eight key advises to close our seed+ round successfully :

1. It's very hard to raise funds on the side, so staff appropriately : It takes a lot of time and effort to raise venture funding quickly--so staff for it. One has to be very diligent in reaching out, following up, setting up meetings, pitching, requesting intros and answering questions, which simply can't be done well on a part-time basis. 

2. It's a numbers game. Go get meetings, and get lots of them : It is very difficult to know what the right fit will be with early-stage investors and angels, so schedule lots of meetings. Send cold emails to known active investors, leveraged LinkedIn and requested intros from fellow fundraising startups. Investors are too busy (or attention deficit) to cull through massive amounts of detail or rely on vague emails with little teasers.

3. Force an answer from all investors : Many investors avoid saying yes or no. They linger without committing, always saying they will stay in touch. If this didn't move them to an answer, consider 'no'.

4. Leverage momentum to overcome investor hesitation : Many investors prefer to wait a while and monitor progress before writing a check. Leverage each of investors to follow up with our active pipeline. Again, having our tech team focused solely on improving the product was crucial to building the momentum.

5. Focus your message and have a clear plan : Everyone wants to change the world instantly and be the best in all adjacent markets, but believe that one can only do one thing very well at a time. Many investors well respond well to your strategy and appreciate focus.

6. Use convertible Venture Debts : Convertible Venture Debts are much faster, cheaper, and easier to execute than equity rounds since you do not have to worry about negotiating every detail of a term sheet and creating a valuation for something nearly impossible to value. Plus, it keeps your cap table simple. smallB branch of Dena Bank is playing leading role for Innovation and Start-up Finance.

7. Time is money (literally, in this case)--so be responsive, but efficient : Plan would be obsolete by the time the ink dry and it wouldn’t help them understand your business any more than your presentation already did. Created an FAQ document for the common questions so you may quickly paste canned, yet thoughtful, responses into emails. 

8. It's a seed round, not Series A : You don't need all the answers, but you better know what the questions will be. Made sure to have good thoughts on each subject and explained assumptions in addition to your methodology. 

Bottom line, if Series A funding is going to be more difficult to obtain, make sure that you raise enough money now with a seed+ round to give you sufficient time to hit those Series A milestones. While there may be more competition for capital in the future, investors will always write checks for a good business idea that solves a real problem. Get the money in the bank and get back to growing your business--just make sure you don't run out of cash before you have the chance to succeed.

Who will be successful?

Look at yourself and the people around you. Who among you will be the most successful? Don’t shrug and say it’s impossible to know. Success has markers. Spot them and you can determine who will be successful. The successful businessperson has three key traits: Drive, ability and knowledge.

1. Drive is really a state of mind. It is the internal source of motivation. People who are ambitious and have a desire – whether it is to become rich or to delight customers or some other goal – are on a path to success.
2. Ability is a combination of in-born traits and acquired skills. An example would be communications skills – some are born with this and some must work at it. Other abilities may be administrative or quantitative.
3. Knowledge is the final ingredient. Drive and ability will not help you succeed if you do not possess knowledge – of the world, of the workplace, of technology. Willingness to learn and keep learning is critical.

Big deals on 15.01.13

1. Grey Orange Robotics (GOR), which develops warehouse automation systems, has raised an undisclosed amount in angel funding from a consortium of investors led by Blume Ventures and BITS Spark Angels, and other angels including the Hatch Group, Rajesh Sawhney, and Samir Sood.

2. On a day of festivities the India deal scene was abuss with as many as 6 deals. Ranging from intention to raise funds, to fund raising itself to even IPO, the deal space was abuzz with activity on Monday. Here’s the Deal Digest for 14/01/2013 -

• MyTopTeacher looks to raise funding 
• India’s first Technology Business Incubator (TBI), exclusively for non-residents Indians to be set up in Kerala
• Adult lifestyle products site ThatsPersonal.com raises angel investment
• OOH technology platform BookAdSpace raises angel funding from ad-tech executives
• Online doctor appointments firm HelpingDoc.com looking to raise VC
• Surat based Kavita Fabrics files for IPO at BSE SME

Tips for Charismatic Leadership

1. Be prepared

2. Shed the stoicism

3. Embody enthusiasm

4. Be authentic

5. Practice

Surprising signs of Entrepreneurs

1. Hate the Status Quo 

2. Easily Bored 

3. Fired from Jobs

4. Labeled a Rebel

5. Resist Authority 

6. Ready to Improve Everything 

7. Bad at Making Small Talk 

8. Bullied in Your Youth 

9. Obsessive 

10. Scared to Go Solo 

11. Unable to Unwind 

12. Don't Fit the Norm