How to Think, Build & Grow a Startup - Skills & AI Advantage | Varun Limaye | FO469 Raj Shamani

38:22That was the problem. And you will never do this with online. Never do it. And there are a few startups who have survived. I think only one or two that have survived, which focus on skills, which have nothing to do with social environments. It means that it can be written, something else can be. But all startups shut down. Give me an example. Let's say, if you watch podcasts like this, what do you think? What problem are we solving? Instead of saying, let's say, we're making a podcast. What problem are we solving? So, I'll tell you in two ways. You have two types of podcasts. One is with Dipinder Goyal.

38:59And one is maybe less known founders. I think both jobs are different. When Dipinder Goyal is happening with you, your podcast is happening with Dipinder Goyal. The job to be done of the viewer is almost being in a room with a person that they can never be with which is dipinder girl you sit you say what you do it's almost as if you sit and the third person sitting here and talking they are getting insights into the lives of people that they would have never gotten to interact with they never have never got to interact with dipinder in that depth never got to talk never got to talk never got to talk not to get the chance to know them, but to get the chance to get them.

39:46This is the biggest job to be done. It's almost as if they have become a third person in a room, and in such a room, they can never get access to them. So, if you think about it, I think that there are many podcasts where people are chilling. Like the big people, if we look at the WTF podcast also, I think it works only because of that. That room is so chill where people are eating food. You think you're sitting there. When you're eating food, it's going to be on WTF. Or the 4 hours of the episode. That's also going on. So, that's one. Second is very quick value add. I think that if people watch my podcast, hopefully, if they'll see me, I think they'll come to think, can I see such things in one and a half hour in this one, which is more practical.

40:44Where Raj asked such questions, because I follow Raj, I know that Raj is coming out of something. So can I see such things, which if this man only talks alone, then it will never tell me. So this is my job to be done. If you have made a podcast like this, where we both sit down, and talk about it. Hey Raj, it's nice to meet you. No one can see. why are we still sitting here chill we are almost enjoying coffee then when people think we are in that room so I think you can see everything problem first because we do problem first a lot for me podcast is problem first what do you think what simple straight up I am very simple I am solving my problem like my million people simple is I am growing in life.

41:39My health, my wealth, my relationships and what is going on in my country? That's what happens. This happens so my mind is good. I'm better. My growth is growing. Now, how can I grow in the shortest time possible? That's what I want to focus on. So what we do is we sit with the top 1 % of the world so that they can teach us something like that when I go home then I felt like when I was sitting there I felt like today I learned something extra today that was fun sometimes it can just be about mindset sometimes it can be about hardcore practical insight sometimes it can just be about my health when I add this so it will be like anything just say for example we are building this whole every podcast if you see is just personal growth related if there is not a growth if there is no person who doesn't learn anything we don't do podcasts.

42:34The whole idea is education. Our podcast is entertaining. No entertainment is not doing much. No more, it's been a little bit. But it's not designed for entertainment or making you feel like, oh, what's the fun of today? No fun. I've learned or not learned, I've learned this. Yeah. In fact, I would, like if a podcast is like, you have a lot of fun, I'll tell you what I'm doing. that's how we think so first is problem first problem first you think and it's a formula you can put a simple formula your problem is that you identified ideally it should be a problem that you faced otherwise you won't get the problem then you can estimate it how many people have this problem How much time is it?

43:29How much time is it? How much time is it? And how much intensity is it? Let's multiply this. I mean, it's not a unit. But take it in the spirit. Okay. Number of people into how many times they face that problem. And what's the intensity? If you understand, this problem is less than a few people. In the year, it comes. And when it comes,

43:52But it's not that people are talking about it and that's not that people are talking about it. So if you have a solution, then the customer will pay for it. If you pay for it, then you won't pay more. And there will be enough people who will buy your product. So fundamentally, you have to choose only this, choose to do what is big enough and you can use formula and look when we have said this thing but I can tell you that this the hardest thing to figure out that I think I think that if after this podcast everyone who has watched this podcast starts noticing problems around them that they were not earlier starts applying this formula to that problem then I think it's success.

44:54Because it's a mindset that it's warm, it's a problem. What can I solve this? How much is the alternative? Is technology now moved like that I can make an alternative that it doesn't have a problem? So when people think about it, they are much more designed to become successful entrepreneurs. Because at the end of the day, whoever is a successful entrepreneur has a big problem and solved it. You know, there's a nuance to it, Joe. I learned it from Jeff Bezos, which I really admire. Maybe I say it was a problem first. But then everything changes in a little bit. change. So it's like this is this is changing.

45:39So my problem will be the problem today. Today I made a solution today, I made a solution and made some good things. But then it will change after 4 years, 2 years, someone else has made a competition. Like it is always you're constantly you're not able to keep up with innovation. Yeah, because you don't know how deep the problem is getting and how fast it will change and whether it's a good problem to be. solved or not and what I feel which I follow this principle a lot that Jeff Vazos says whenever you have a problem solved or you talk about company then you ask which problems are my customer which will be the same for 10 years yeah no problem solve which you think will be the problem after 2 years change will not be changed.

46:33Correct. So ask yourself a question, which two or three things that will never solve the problem of customer. Correct. And then try to achieve that. If you make a business with that principle, you're going to thrive. Yeah. And somebody was asking, Amazon, the simple thing is you were in Amazon, so you would know this. You need your customers quickly, you need your customers, and you need a very big variety. So, not the variety of customers, not the variety of customers, not the variety of customers, not the variety of customers, not the customer, not the customer, not the customer. These three problems are always going to be there forever.

47:11So, you optimize for that and just keep optimizing. Yeah, yeah. So, it just, I think it's crazy inside. And you know, it's mad. I mean, I can tell Amazon that it's a good and a bad thing, but working in Amazon is like working in a cult. I mean, I'm seriously telling you, like, Amazon when I worked on it, I had 14 leadership principles. Okay. Now it's probably 16 or 17. Two or three ads. Sustainability. Something to add. Your interview. Okay. How did it happen? If I'm interviewing for product management, then I'll go to their eight leadership principles. They'll talk about four people. They'll test me on two leadership principles.

47:53And I'll tell you, the leadership round is there is no problem solving. You know the questions are also predictable. For example, customer obsession is a leadership principle. Bias for action is a leadership principle. Judgment is a leadership principle. I forgot a little bit. I am a true Amazonian. Not anymore. Not anymore. But I am forgetting a little bit. But you know having backbone is a you know which was my favorite you know leadership principle was disagree but commit which basically happens that if you're a in a room, you can disagree but when you go outside of the room, you have to commit so right from hiring you ask one question tell me about a time you showed customer obsession so there are 8 leadership principles which you have to use in PMing PMing is product management so they will ask you the question tell me about a time you showed customer obsession when I tell that story they will be so deep that you will tell me who was the customer no but that was the customer that was the customer did you meet the customer what did the customer say what was the behavior he wants to know that are you obsessed about customers now this is the one when your quarterly or yearly appraisals you are rated on these leadership principles.

49:29In meetings, I have heard where people are saying, Varun, you are not showing customer obsession. They are quoting this. They are quoting in the meetings. I will tell you, in Seattle, when I was working in the team, this is not made up. In our meeting room, there was a car that was kept open. and boss said that the customer is sitting here so you can understand this so you can say anything like this which will piss off the customer so the customer backwards thinking that I learned single-handedly Amazon in Amazon if you have any idea if you want to pitch then you have a document called PR FAQ I think everyone knows press release and FAQ But the main concept about it is that that entire document is about if you have launched this product, how will customers talk about it?

50:33That's it. This is the document. And I'll tell you, writing this is the biggest learning experience that I had. I thought that the document of six pages can't be much better. So I'll give you six pages? Indian education system but when you write there is a it stays written you have written one time you have committed but what happens that you are then you ask is this actually true and this is why when I am launching a new program I first will spend half a day writing a PR if you about it it is so internalized that when I can't imagine a program. I can't imagine a new launch. And I think that is just incredible how Jeff Bezos has been able to do it with a company which has 1 million employees.

51:33That is insane. Yeah, it's insane. Every time I talk to some Amazon leader, I'm just even just an Amazon employee or read anything about Jeff. One of my favorite entrepreneurs is Jeff Bezos. Have you met him by any chance? I'm just dying. like dying to me someday like he's my out of all the people you talk about that are greatest of the greatest entrepreneurs for me maybe because I've read about him so much and seen a lot of him and then you know that's I think I'm just obsessed with it okay so problem first second point I should have done I should have done I should have done analytically I should have done equations and the most important equation that you are making for business any business If you are making a business, if you are making a business, you should have to understand the unit economics.

52:23The rest is all right. When you are selling a unit of goods, do you ever get the money on that? If this answer is no, then that business should not start. And that is 80 % of the time is true. Right? So it allows you to like say no to a lot of ideas. Just say for example, let's come back to say quick commerce. because so many people are kind of talking about quick commerce there are a few metrics that everyone keeps talking about in quick commerce now before naming them let's try to understand how does it look like unit economics so if you look at a dark store level so if you look at a dark store then you get some orders you get some number of orders you get some per order on some margin money you are making minus you have to fill rent minus you have to wasteage minus manpower minus utilities this is the equation this is the equation Blinkit and Zepto now we break down so what we said number of orders into margin minus rent minus utilities manpower minus wastage first we understand is that which things we can control from this.

53:44Can we wastage? We can do some supply chain operations, but it will be already happening. We will not do anything in it. If there is so much data, if you understand, you and me are employee. Or if we are starting a startup, which is a quick commerce startup, then we will have a blanket here, and then we will call it the supply chain, so that the wastage will not be reduced. Rent and utilities, we cannot control. We can't control. We are the most in the middle. That's why you can see some dark stores. There are places where rent is less. That's why they are called dark stores. Right? I will find places where it is accessible.

54:23But there is so much in the sense that rent is very low. For manpower, I can do that. But how can I get it? I have 2 hours. Which is number of orders and margin. Let's go deeper into each one. Number of orders, what happens? is that if there is a dark store, there is a radius around it. In which you can deliver 10 minutes. In which you can deliver 10 minutes, there are many customers. Understand that there is one of them. Or 100 ,000 customers. 1 lakh customers. You can't do 1 lakh, 1 lakh, 10 ,000 because the rider can run from that speed. So that radius is set. So your number of orders are actually this into penetration percentage.

55:05That how many people your app is using into how many times you are ordering your service. Right? So, we have break it. That the number of orders is number of people into penetration percentage into how many times you are placing the order. Similarly, what do we have done on the percentage margin? front on the front. What did we do? Percentage margin is basically AOV, average order value, into what you have tried to deal with brands. Like if their take rate is reduced with whole truth, now is a brand and commands. But the small brands will be a little bit more because they are doing the brands a favor.

55:51So, AOV into take rate, minus delivery costs. minus packaging right now we can break down so if we have said margin per order packaging can we change that already basic delivery cost can we change that now we can't do it right so we can change AOV and take rate take rate what will we do now is so intense competition that brands are so take rate pressure we cannot do anything thing. AOV change can also change. Right? Similarly, if we come to the other side, number of orders, then number of people can change that? No, because the radius will be enough. Percentage penetration I think that after such ads, whoever you have to buy, they are already buying.

56:47We can't increase But now number of times that they are ordering, you can increase the repeat rate. So now, that whole unit economics equation lies upon two things that quick commerce needs to solve for them to be successful at a dark store level which is AOV and repeat rate and that's why you'll see that these are the two things that are always quoted what is Blinkit, what is Swiggy, what is Zepto. I think the ability that we take a business and buy it and understand and do which levers are available. Now, for example, if you understand drone delivery, then there will not be a equation change.

57:31The equation will remain. But what will change I think is that your radius will increase, so the number of people that can be serviced by a dark store will increase. So your number of orders will increase because you can deliver to more people. Maybe your delivery will increase in the beginning because the technology is a new technology. It will be failure. It will fall down drones, whatever. But at the same time, because the number of orders up or you will be able to kind of you know match that so just an example we can take another example that quick commerce why didn't work in tier 2 tier 3 he didn't work because in that 10 minute delivery population density is less so the people are less the number of orders are less number of orders are not enough to justify the costs that happen at a dark store level so this is a lot of detail in the quick commerce I am not saying that everyone should do this right but I think through their experiences should understand that what are the two three things that I will correct true right and I think that is what is I don't think there is anything else I think it is just understanding that what your main metric is and what are the two or three things which is the value that becomes fair what's third or third I'll start with generic that you have your business your product that is a tech product or physical product you should launch in two weeks in two weeks and what do you mean by that and what I mean by that is that I think that you can't give no knowledge about what is going on in the market until you have done what you have done you have identified your problem you have put a little bit of sense that it will go or that it will become money or that it will become now the other thing is that you have to try to try in the market you have to understand what can this business be able to become you can only tell this thing that you can only tell this person your customer so you have to take this product to bring customers to the customer.

59:50You don't have to work on it. For one year, we are working on it. That's the solution. You don't do that. You have to hit the customers. So, I believe that if I launch a chappal brand and in my chappal brand, there is a jetpack which you can fly and you can fly fast on the road. This is my chappal. now what I have done is that I have seen that people have to go fast and many people who are old who are old are the ones who are going to go to the next level so I have to go fast this is my problem I have to solve my problem I have made a little math and economics and I have said that if I have priced it enough customers will buy it and then I will make it to it.

1:00:41Now the next stage which is my it doesn't matter that I will make a jetpack because by the way this will probably be 6 months so understand if I have made this 6 months and money years years then launch and someone has bought it so the worst work so how did I do it? I launched a website I launched a website I will launch a website I will launch a good and I will make a performance ad where someone is and where someone is I have made a website. I have made a website today. I mean, AI or through a simple website. Write clear features on it. How do you have a different type of type. Then you have made a simple video ad.

1:01:24Where people are flying and there is a type of type. And you have launched it. I will take 10 ,000 rupees or even more. 5 ,000 rupees. I will take it in performance marketing. Today, there are agencies who will not charge you more than 5%. To run ads. It's very cheap. So I'll give 5 ,000 rupees, I'll run ads. And I'll see some metrics. I'll see number one metrics. That those who I've seen ads, what percentage of them clicked on the ad?

1:02:24which is my click through rate, तो कितने रुपए में आप खरीना चाहोगे या फिर मैं ऐसा कभी नहीं पूछूँगा मैं बुलूँगा कि ये तीन अजार रुपए का है और रियाक्शन देखूंगा अरे तीन अजार रुपए अच्छा तीन अजार रुपए तो मुझे वो समझ में आ गया और उससे में को ये भी समझ में आ रहा है कि demand कितना है market में अगर समझो CTR बहुत high है तो मुझे ये तो समझ में आ गया कि ये need है market में लोगों को चाहिए ये अगर सही price point मिल गया तो ये लोग खरीद लेंगे अगर ये लोग website पे आए और website पर अगर मैंने 4 चीज़ा लिखी है कि इससे यह होता, यह होता, यह होता और फिर भी उन्होंने अगर click किया तो इसका मतलब यह है कि वो 4 features खरीद रहे हो मुझे ऐसा लगता है कि आज के तारीक में आप एक वीक में यह कर सकते हो अगर आपके वास एक आईएा है you can quickly launch this and you will not require more than 5 ,000 rupees to launch this and just talk to customers and understand कि यह चलने वाला है कि नहीं चलने वाला है true I think this is going to become a superpower this is going to be because I feel that आप जहां पे भी काम करोगे either as an entrepreneur or during the first 10 people you have experiments करोगे आपको कही बार launch करना पड़ेगा कहीं बार लाॉंच करना पड़ेगा और आपको मैं बता रहा हूँ आप जब लाॉंच करोगे तो आपको ऐसी -ईसी चीज़े समझेगे कस्टमर के बारे में जो आपने सोचा ही नहीं कभी वो कभी आपको बतानी नहीं वाला था क्योंकि कस्टमर तो आके आपको बताएगा नहीं कुछ भी जैसे for example एक कहावत है कि अगर तो यह जो चीज हम लोग बोल रहे हैं इसको MVP बोलता है minimum viable product कभी -कभी minimum lovable product हो जाता है जो भी हो अभी minimum evolvable product नया है मार्केट में but essentially it's that right there is a कहावत है कि if you're not embarrassed about your product, that means you have launched too late.

1:04:05You should be embarrassed with your product. True. Right? So, I feel like this speed is so important. When you work in startups, and when you go to disrupt MNCs, you have such insights to customers, which is not about MNCs, you have to launch 10 times. For example, I always say, whenever you launch, if I tell you the process, आपको बताओ, तो पहले तो मैं चपल वाला लाँच करूँगा, मैं पाँच लोगों ने sign up किया, मैं उनसे बात करूँगा, मैं उनको WhatsApp ग्रूप पे आड़ करूँगा, जो मेरे पहले 100 कस्टमर है न, वो मेरे एक WhatsApp ग्रूप पे रहेंगे, वो मेरे सबसे बड़े product managers है क्योंकि ये 100 लोग मुझे ये बताने वाले it's very important that you understand कि आपने किसको add किया किसको नहीं add किया आप गलत customers को add करोगे तो वो आपको गलत requirements देंगे अगर समझो मेरे चपल वाले example में मैंने बच्चों को add कर दिया बच्चे बोलेंगे, लाइट ओने चीए इसमें, बजिदार ना चीए चपल, बट मैं वो प्रॉब्लम नहीं सॉल कर रहा हूं, मैं तो प्रॉब्लम मॉबिलिटी का सॉल कर रहा हूं, तो आप सही कस्टमर्स को चूस करो पहले, but then add them to a whatsapp group and keep launching again on the whatsapp group you will keep getting feedback ये मत करो, ये मत करो your first hundred customers are your best product managers for a tech product, for a D2C product and you have to very actively engage with them ये जो मसल है न मैं बता रहा हूँ ये लगता बहुत आसान है बता है कि हाँ, customer से बात करनी है but customers जैसे बात करते हैं एक तो उनके बास time नहीं होता आप खुद की दूफिल था बना रहे हो वह फीडबवाक फुल था था नहीं दे लिए है वह नहीं पार्ट बार फीर लाइफ इस अंडिया है भार एक्स्ट्राक्न कि वह सही इंफ्मेशन क्या है वह बहुत एक इंपॉर्टन स्किल नहीं है इंचेस्टीड

1:06:03I have seen myself struggle a lot जब मैं Amazon में था और customers के साथ बात करता था तो उनसे information निकालना is one of the hardest things that I've ever had to do. कैसे करते हैं customer से बात? यार मेरे इसाब से आपको ना again you have to work backwards on की आपको क्या चाहिए from the customer. जब आप customer से बात कर रहे हो तो the first thing that you want to kind of so जो पहली चीज़ आपको जाननी है कस्टमर से वो यह है कि जो प्रॉबलम आपने दिमाग में लेके चला है क्या वो असली में प्रॉबलम है और वो कितना पेंफुल प्रॉबलम है अगर आप if you are working backwards तो यह answer आपको चाहिए ना customers से तो आपको यह पहला चाहिए second आपको यह चाहिए कि समझो अगर यह yes है समझो अगर यह no है तो then we should not be building what we are building अगर यह समझो yes है तो आपको next answer इस question का चाहिए कि अगर आपने यह problem solve करने के लिए क्या solutions अभी तक यूज किया है आपको उस solutions से क्या खामिया लगते हैं अगर better solution आया market में तो आप उसके लिए और पैसे देने के लिए राजी होंगे की नहीं होंगे आपको ये questions figure out करना है और इसमें ना एक framework है mom test करके एक book भी है वो बोला जाता है तो वो कभी -कभी आपके रिष्टेदारों की तरह बात करते हैं, बढ़ीया, बढ़ीया, क्या बना रहे हो, क्या बना रहे हो, बट यू आफ तो नॉट आस्ट देम व्टेस्टिंग अब तो मौन टेस्में तो तीन बहुत बड़े रूल्स होते हैं, एक तो यह होता है, never talk about the product, talk about their lives आपकी जिंदगी में क्या problems आते हैं आपको ये problem आपको कितने बार आता है आप उसको solve कैसे का, I'm talking about you second is never talk about future आप मत पूछो कि अगर ये आ गया, तो आप क्या करोगे इसके साथ, कैसे वो visualize कर पाएंगे you have to ask them questions about the past and the third rule is you talk less and you listen more तो ये तीन रूल्स जो है न अगैन मैं बोलूँगा कि ये पॉडकास सुनने के बाद अगर आपको ऐसा लग रहा है कि आपको कस्टमर्स से बात करना आ गया तो वो गलत फहिमी है करना पड़ेगी तो समझ में आएगा आपको असली कस्टमर्स के साथ बात करना पड़ेगा जो आपके रिष्टेदार नहीं है वो बहुत एक important part है मैं लोगों को वही बूलता रहता हो कि जब आप आपका product बनाते हो ना तो रिष्टेदारों से जाके बात मत करो because रिष्टेदार जो है वो बुलिग अरे बच्चा अच्छा कर रहा है आपको ऐसे लोग के साथ बात करना है where their money is on the line they're like so on निकालने पड़ेंगे तब जाके वो बहुत hard questions पूचेंगा अच्छा इसमें क्या क्या होता है अरे इसमें ये क्यों नी होता तो मैं definitely बोलूँगा कि ये बहुत important skill होने वाली है because again a skill which by the way is on the radar of being replaced by AI is right down there क्योंकि it's going to be difficult for AI to be able to extract market research and being able to see because market research AI can do AI but like specific customer insight which is new and not average and also being able to sit in front of customers seeing their expressions where they twitch, where they excite यह तो AI बनाट बेबल तो इन दो इन दो फोर्सीएबल फूचर एड़ एक्सप्रेशन कुछ तो देख रहा है और कुछ कर रहा है बट इन दो फोर्सीएबल फूचर इट इस इस गोंड वी लाइक अपर पार आइस तल मी धिफ्ट स्किल the most important अगर सब स्किल्स में से कोई एक चूस करना हो कि this is it the most important last skill if you have to tell somebody यार I would say distribution explain favorite topic अगर आपको एसारी चीजे मतलब अभी अब अब अब अब अब अब अब distribution, growth, sales मतलब I'm talking about the same thing the world is very noisy अगर आपको ऐसा लग रहा है कि आप बहार जाके आपकी कहानी बताओगे और लोग सुनेंगे, that is false.

1:10:25It's not going to happen. कोई नहीं सुनने वाला, because इतने सारी चीजे चल रही है दुनिया में, everyone is vying for your attention. There is, we are living in an, you know, economy which is an, you know, attention economy. की who can gain attention. Attention is new oil. Yeah, it's the new oil. And तो आपको नहीं मिलने माला हो. तो you have to figure out how you're gonna be noticed. Now again, I've started with a very generic kind of an advice and going deeper into it, I think you have to do two-three things. What is your channel through which you want to express your voice? That you have to choose.

1:11:06What is your message? That you have to choose. करना पड़ेगा और तीसरी चीज़ आपकी टोन आपको चूस करना पड़ेगी I feel that a combination of these three things is something that will either make you a commodity or will make you stand out right so I said channel message and tone for example if we talk about Instagram as a channel right which is an online subset of an online channel it is a channel where people come for entertainment it is an extremely flaky channel because you are scrolling you have time so your message if you are on Instagram will need to be conveyed in the first 3 seconds and it will need to be the opposite of everything that that person has seen on Instagram on that particular day for that person to stop scrolling the tonality will need to be something that that person either likes or themselves relates to.

1:12:13For example, for Gen Z, there is a certain tonality. For older people, there is a certain tonality. For business schools, there is a different tonality, which is much more serious. But you have to grasp that tonality. So the combination of these three, there is no science for it. It's literally art. Like in the sense that only and only if you understand content, if you understand user psychology, only and only if you have done this enough number of times will you start understanding what works and what is your place but in general my advice to people would be embrace content creation it is not going anywhere I feel one of the things that is going to become stronger due to AI is people standing there and talking authentically I think it is going to start becoming more and more rare where जहां पर लोग आके बोलेंगे कि मुझे नहीं AI देखना मुझे ना असली human का चहरा चाहिए जितना कम production उतना better, जितना authentic उतना better, इसलिए आज़ चल में Instagram पर भी देख रहा हूं कि कम production जहां पर you know थोड़े से blur lines आ गया है there that content is working better because people just want you know authenticity authenticity so I think content creation is something that people you know need to grasp, need to understand, right coming to the next part, I think there are two more things, like you are making content, you will make content on which one?

1:13:46on IG, on LinkedIn or YouTube, LinkedIn it does not work as much because retention rates engagement rates on LinkedIn are very less, the other thing is two more things which is performance marketing आपको आना चाहिए it's unfortunately not going anywhere people dislike it because it's sales your brand is done but in today's world I genuinely believe that there has to be a call to action otherwise people don't take action so there has to be a call to action and you need to understand how it works you need to understand how targeting happens you need to understand how to manage an agency you need to understand what are the metrics you need to understand the funnel आपको numbers की पहचान होनी चाहिए आपको यह पता होना चाहिए कि performance marketing कौनसी ad चलेगी, कौनसी नहीं चलेगी उसको produce करना उसका content create करना यह सब जो है वो सब को सीखना पड़ेगा I don't think there is any escaping from that the other thing that is going to become according to me very important is Reddit and Reddit was very important but मेरे साब से it has become even more important because Reddit feeds into most LLMs today.

1:14:55So if I go and this message that I should watch Rajshamani's podcast it is picking up most of its signals from authentic channels and authentic channels is the most top of Reddit. If you are not investing in it by the way you should. Reddit is the most important channel for most of the LLMs out there when it comes to giving authentic answers. Nice. So it's very important that you're able to engage on Reddit. And Reddit is a very differentiated, unique community. If you go to talk about a lot of brands, people will dislike you. They will hate you. So you have to build a muscle. And now it is also being called something like AEO, which is, there's a search engine optimization.

1:15:41We're saying general, Gen AI optimization, or AI optimization, engine optimization. Artificial intelligence, engine optimization. प्रहhington स्टेसेb कि ही इसिकी फ만 przysz हो अजार्ट आरह कोजली आप में इसके तो को पत प conservatives जाम कि ऑल श्रॉर्ण इस क को तॉरी तब फॉर्म है तॉरी अज़्िक कोजनु आजा काbon में बॉर्शनिन यह तामabb्र इंग्ट एयूं lavतॉ 10 channels and Reddit is right up there. So, I know of a lot of people, you know, from the business school that I run, who have gotten to 1 ,500 users directly by posting their product on Reddit in a very honest manner. That, I am a student, I have made it, you can try it.

1:16:24But if you went to Reddit and you said, this product is very wonderful, then you will not say it. Because that's an entire tonality of Reddit that works only and only. you know for reddit so i feel that reddit is going to become another thing that people will need to know in your startup school people come absolutely clue ass and then they come and learn all these skills and they make them there yeah and more than anything like i said earlier big startup is not easy and the other thing is that as much as i make them theoretically all these for example they have me full time तो यह सब तो वो रोज सुनते हैं रोज सुनते हैं, डेली, यह रोज सुनते हैं और मैं बोलते हैं भूर यह दे वान से बट जब तक वो यह खुद करते नहीं है जब तक यह खुद वो experience नहीं करते है, till they don't have that aha moment where they go हा यार, जो वरुन ने class में बताया था या फिर जो professor ने class में बताया था वो मैं यहां use कर सकता हूँ और suddenly मेरे sales 5X हो जाएंगे तब तक वो उनको motivation नहीं आता to actually learn that and that's why I feel that जब आप यह बता रहे हो अगर वो side में business नहीं बना रहे तो वो useless है उनको side में business बनाना ही पड़ेगा, उनको वो fail होना पड़ेगा, जब वो start-up school में आते हैं, वो पढ़ाई कर रहे हैं, तो side में, do they make, yeah, they have to, they have to, they have to, they have to build a business, like there is no option, you are doing, you are doing, you are doing projects प्रफॉटर्स के साथ, ये अद आप उसके रिली गुट वेस्टिंस, वो खुद बना रहे तो, वो ऐसे नहीं पुछते हैं, आपकी जर्नी बताओ, वो असली में बुचेंगे, सर जब आपका परफॉर्मंस अड चला नहीं था, तो आपने क्या किया था, तो फांडर भी बुलते है इतना specific question कहा से आगया तो I think it just in general helps when people are actually doing things rather than just kind of theoretically learning what they need to fare.

1:18:36Tell me one specific insight or let's say learning which आपने इतने startups के साथ काम करके इतने students साथ काम करके खुद के startup में and Amazon में, bunch of places that you've worked and इतने सारे your people who have invested in you are also like pretty sick, right? in sub se, if you have to bottle it down and narrow it down to one very specific learning or insight which you feel, sab ko सीखनी जी पता होना जी, which is like absolutely gold, what would it be? there are like three or four things that are coming to my mind so I have a little this is my second last question I am gonna ask you one more question after this yeah so I'll tell you what has been my biggest learning after being in the ecosystem for the time that I have been is that and I'll tell you why it is gold for me because it is very liberating it means it free me is that nobody knows what will work true किसी को नहीं पता है अगर आपको लग रहा है कि आप only वो एक person हो सब clueless है सब clueless है you know and मैं दिबिंदर गोहल नहीं हूँ but I can say कि दिबिंदर गोहल is also clueless कि क्या होने वाला azomato के साथ Stephen Hawking's जो astrophysicist है उनका एक book है a brief history of time and वहाँ पही ही से कि you know किसी को नहीं पता space के बारे में किसी को नहीं पता universe के बारे में we know 1 % and we are you know guessing I think that's how it is so you know I'll tell you it is it is uncomfortable to think that क्योंकि आपको फिर पता लग रहा है कि आपको नहीं पता है but then it's comfortable to think that कि आप यार

1:20:42from their limited experience they are just pretending to know that we know almost to comfort themselves to make their lives very predictable no one knows you go out do it there are just so many things to be learned by you just doing a simple business you will see it you will immediately understand that you know 100x more than a person who has not done it and is sitting next to you experiences are the only teacher and I don't know whether I would justice to that but that is that one thing that nobody knows that nobody knows we all are figuring out we are all kind of figuring out we say this figuring out is a habit it's not a podcast that's true for everyone who is watching it's a habit तुम लाइब बस रोज तुक्का ही मार रहे हो, कुछ लग जाएगा जोर से, बट इंपोर्टन इस रोज मारते रहो, क्योंकि आपका फिर सर्फिस अरिया बढ़ रहा है न, कभी न गभी तो लगेगा, और और को यह की लगेगा, जो सब बराबर कर देगा, तो लेने और त� और उसको वनन वेडर बना दिया, by the way this is a Amazon concept one-way door, two-way door but उसको one-way door बना भी जिए यह फेलियर है और यह फेलियर है अजला उसने कुछ ठ्राइ किया वो फेल हो गया वो फेलियर नहीं है अलों कि यह फेल तो तो लुच अईसा लगता है कि we need to almost embrace it and say if there is a person who is moving like I keep telling people that if you are moving, you are going to be successful keep moving, keep figuring out keep like trying and that's the right way to do it so if my message this that someone doesn't know anything is able to make a few people move faster and in more directions then I think we would have been successful true so one last question it's by it's it's not my original question यह मैंने किसी को पूच्छ से पूच्छ पूच्छ थे लिखा और अवा इस तो फांडर्स I really wanna give you credit whoever has asked this question please reach out to me I have seen a clip in a clip so there is no Indian who has asked on a podcast I have seen a real so if you are watching this and if it reaches to you please tell me I am gonna give you credit for this question I will say it open loud so this question is who asks someone I wanna ask you आपकी ऐसी current problem कौन सी है जिसके लिए आप पे करोगे as a founder, professionally, personally whoever, like as you, as a varun what do you think is a personal problem where you're like, यह कोई solve कर दें पैसे दे तूँगा यार बस मेरी problem solve कर दें it can be small, it can be large it can be anything

1:23:55it's going to be about somebody who can come in and I'm going utopian somebody with a superpower who can come in talk to all the people who I could hire and find me 10 people who are superb individuals as per my definition who can come into Mesa and can help me grow Mesa. It's essentially hiring. कोई आपके लिए hiring solve कर दे. कोई अगर मेरे लिए hiring solve कर दे in this manner. कि मेरे पास जो 1000 आपने के शाथी उसमें से मेरे 10 लोग यह है. नहीं नहीं, मैं तो और भी ब्लास कर दूंगा ना, एप्लिकेशन क्यों, आप दुनिया में, दुनिया में, दुनिया में, दुनिया में लाओ जिन्होंने जॉइन किया है तो देन, you know, it'll be sorted, it'll be sorted, I'll be ready to pay a lot of money for that problem I mean I know that I am going to do this problem I am going to take five years to solve and a hell of a lot of money I am going to put into that if I walk into office tomorrow and these five people are there and somebody provides me that service I am ready to pay like a lot of money yeah to that you know person I think a lot of people will relate to it somebody should definitely build something around this at least become that person who can sense out इसके साथ ये दस लगा दो somebody needs to be a matchmaker for founders in this hiring manner and I'll tell you if we connect with anyone first principle जो हम लोग पहले बात करें जैसे नौकरी है I feel नौकरी is gonna be disrupted by somebody who solves this problem right I feel hiring in general is such a big problem and you know there's probably gonna be some company that is gonna come in and say HRs bypass we will go directly to the hiring manager rather than giving the hiring manager like thousand profiles here are ten profiles curated you know already interviewed by an AI agent that you need to speak to and probably get to the next stage or something like that something somebody will say I think they are very top level I think CXO levels are very curated headhunters who get it yeah but they work with very like few people they're not solving like hiring at general yeah they're solving hiring at 0.01 percent and they take insane 25 percent but 90 percent there are like only 5-10 percent really good headhunters who like they come spend there's a friend of mine who works in singapore and he told me like which was very इस इस इंसेन तो तरह वन फिर्म इन सिंगपोर इडिन रमेंबर देनेम वो इस अर्फ लाग पॉप सिंगपोर की अपनी शाथ काम करतें अच्छ और वनके लिए CXO लेवल solve करते हैं, only CXO or VPs, nothing else वो रोल से पहले तीन महिना company के साथ spend करते है पापरे like they would, they're almost like internal consultants who'd come and spend let's say मैसा के साथ, तीन महिना spend करेंगे वरुन को shadow करेंगे, सब को करेंगे, पूरी thesis लिखेंगे, फिर वो जाते हैं और फिर वो चार पांच profile देते हैं from all around the world and then like you just know instant and he was telling me that like they were talking and like all his friend circle at least 12 or 13 people have worked with them, none of them have said it's a bad hiring, wow damn I was like crazy and I know if the name is spreading or the team and those people will be curate that you are small पहुते हो डिया बढ़ झाए तो यॉथा तो यॉद डिमांड बढ़ जाए गार भूड जाए गार किया मुझे नहीं बुला फिर तो यार I want to chase this and then people ready to pay the money I guess yeah I must be insane amounts of money yeah but if it's that I was like impressed like मुझे भी चाहिए मैं ओपुत चौट आ वेलखा गंक त Judge कर दो एक को कार आव है so that kind of thing you would pay for जरा, yardफ़ाज गुर्लाद perfect-thank you so much sir same safe glide I think this was refreshing, had a lot of fun and, you know yeah thank you sir thank you I hope people also like it and learn it तो आप से चत्क अबम्भै और फिर अट क Simmons tengan चैसरे का सुल वारी?

1:28:52मंश्त सबस्यल 1 जबार विल्मभै , मौम्मारदęHello, this offers sort literally to have all the relationships, जबेशनों स समय चैनल्मीच उस्पुंपार item, भी अनकी आमटाग ताक्स फील किसा आखर शक्रीड ओव कुध थ हाक confний है अब फेल हुए तो घर है मुझा भी आद है, विए फ़नी स्टोरी है मैं जब इंजिनिरिंग कर रहा था मेरा एक दोस्त था तो यूज तो इस तो इस तो इस तो अब जल गाहूं को एज उनको ना कोई आइडिया नहीं था पहले पहले इंजिनियरिंग के लिताँ अने जोल गाहों को कि पहले एंजिनियर और उसको थर्ड येरॉर में लगी स्वार्प्धाभ। तो बना क्या करू यार। मतल्कशन अभी मुझे जा की बताना पड़ेगा फिर गये हम लोग मतला समर विकेशन से वापस आये। काफी खुश था, मैंने बोला, क्या वोला तू में?

1:29:41लगी मैंने बोल गिया, इंजिनियरिंग पाट साल का हो गया है. Thank you so much ये एपिसोड एंड तक देखने के लिए. अब आपको तीन चीज़ें करनी है. सबसे पहले इस चैनल को सब्सक्राइब कर लो, क्योंकि जितना आप subscribe करोगे उतने ही better और valuable guest हम ला पाएंगे आपके लिए Number 2 मुझे comments में बताओ इस episode में आपको क्या अच्छा लगा और क्या गंदा लगा ताकि हम वो mistakes repeat ना कर पाएं and कौन से ऐसे guest हैं जो आप देखना चाहते हो वापस हमारे podcast पे ताकि हम उन्हें ले के आए और आपको जादा -जादा value दे पाएं and number three, ये episode किसी एक इनसान के साथ जरूर शेर करना क्योंकि one conversation can change someone's life I'll see you next time, until then keep figuring out