#Startup : Focus to Sustain, Focus to Scale

Over a few days of introspection, I realized that it was important to go to the drawing board.  Did I achieve what I intended to?  It was a clear NO.  I have achieved well, some 40% of what I planned.  And I listed my reasons for lack of achievement. 

Focus to sustain - Today's Cash and Focus to Scale - tomorrow's empire

• People : People are your strength and people are your weakness.  From Founders to partners in my businesses, people had different 'what is in it for me'.  I realized that people had different ambitions, different stakes and different reasons to associate.  But nobody could relate my vision - to become a co-visionary.  That made people use my ventures as a transit point.  
• Partnership vs employment : I ceded lot of ground and modified my plans to accommodate people.  Opportunity for co-vision was there. But people looked at this as an employment and not a partnership.  Inspite of my best articulation, I seem to have to failed.  I still coming in terms to accept this. 
• Lack of focus:  What the biggest victim of this entire distraction because of the two points above, was the focus on the business that was growing.  I took my eyes of the ball.  So, I missed many opportunities.   I did not focus enough to sustain and scale.  So, I had to reboot. 
• Focus to Sustain:  If you are feeding yourselves and others from your business, and paying bills, it is important to focus to sustain.  The business exists because it feeds and vice-versa.  This means that the people who are working as a team, will have to do while talking about growth to scale. 
• Focus to Scale: This is the future - you have to plan and prepare, and make efforts to scale - else you will be paying bills forever - I mean sustaining.   As the leader and the person responsible, you have to build a separate focus on that.  

As I realized that there has to be two distinct tracks - my plans changed, and therefore aligning people began accordingly.   Focus to scale is long term and hence plans and people choices are based on that.   For sustenance, it becomes imperative you have a team that just puts its head down and deliver - to earn today's cash. 

A hard learning, worth passing on.

- Ashok Subramanian

(C) Cherunathury Tech Ventures Pvt Ltd., 2015