GeneSplice BioSoft

Sorry for the late post. There are so many things to do and there is so little time. I have been talking to lots of people about my startup ideas and after listening to their reponses, I feel I should have started GeneSplice BioSoft even though I don’t have a clue as to what it is going to do. That way no one can tell me why it wouldn’t work!

For the past two weeks I was raising capital for The Cressida Group and I was talking to prospective investors and discussing various start up ideas with them. And the more they know about something, the easier it is for them to think of reasons as to why it wouldn’t work.

For example: if I propose CAT Coaching Center as one of the ideas, the conversation will go as follows:

Prospective Investor, PI from now on: Hmmm, you need to get good teachers.
Me: I think I can teach. I got 99.86 percentile {:-)}
PI: Have you ever taught before?
Me: {Huh!} I have not but it is not exactly rocket science.
PI: If you teach, then it is self-limiting.
Me: {Huh!} Hmmm, meaning?
PI: Well you can teach only so many students. After some time, you can’t grow any more.
Me: Hmmm. Well, I could probably hire the students who couldn’t make it by whisker. They can prepare again and while doing so they can teach in the coaching center.
PI: What will you do next year?
Me: {Huh!} I’ll think of something then.

Instead, if I say that I am starting GeneSplice BioSoft. This excites everyone and they will start listening attentively and I could make up something on the fly. {We endeavor to improve the human life by developing software that digitally splices genes and DNA. We will gather the resulting information and use it to bio-engineer prophylactics for life-threatening illnesses like cancer and HIV. I pulled that out of my hat in the last 110 seconds ;-) }

CAT Coaching Center is such a simple idea. I can see, feel and touch a CAT Coaching center and I can imagine running one. And I can’t think of one reason why we can’t make it the best CAT Coaching Center in the next 10 years if that is where we focus our energies. But in general, being able to understand something makes one to start thinking of all the possible reasons why it would fail.

I want to propose a theory why this happens:

When you are a kid, you don’t know what is possible and what is not. You think you can do anything. Parents have to tell you: “you can’t do this”, “you can’t do that”.

For example, some kids have seriously hurt themselves by trying to jump from a roof two-story building like Shaktiman. You have to specifically tell them that it is only make-believe and it is not true and so on and so forth. This fear of unknown serves a very valuable purpose of letting you do only the things you know. This helps one avoid any risks and promotes self-preservation.

But after while it reaches a stage where you are paralyzed and you can’t do anything.

I can see clearly see this in the responses of my family members to my decision of starting up.

My cousins Jahnavi and Serene are 16 years old and they aren’t out of school yet. They think that I can do anything and I am going to become somebody great.

My sister Sony and cousin Manasa are 20 years old and are in final year of college. They think I will be successful.

Another cousin Yogitha is 23 years old and she is working in SASKEN. She thinks I will do well but it seems I have to take care of myself.

And my mom is like: “Are you taking your medicines?” and “Don’t think so much!”

Well what do I think?

I don’t know whether I’ll do well, or become successful or become really great. One thing I am very sure of is that The Cressida Group will be a really great company :)