What sparked your startup journey?

Annoying email threads, lost attachments and fragmented conversations across emails and WhatsApp, got us going, "Oki we need to do something about this.😮‍💨"

I decided I was going to be an entrepreneur since I was 14 because that was the only way to make serious money. Back at that time in my home country the jobs paid very low. Umm.. That was 28 years ago.

It all started with a casual help I did to my CEO @omnath who also happened to be my college mate without expecting anything. I wrote some piece of UI texts for him for free. That was it. Ever since then, the ride has been quite wild and there was no looking back. We built our own community platform that has 100K+ users. That's when we realized there are businesses and creators finding it hard to build and run their own communities. So we started focusing on giving community forum solutions that would ease their journey in running their community in their own branding without writing a single line of code.

It's really a good question. As far as I remember, I always wanted to be an entrepreneur. But, I chosen to work for companies due to lack of business knowledge, experience and capital. My inspiration came when I read the book "Start with WHY". I prepared my 5-why which was something like this: Below are my 5 reasons as to WHY I wanted to be an entrepreneur all along. It may help you decipher and decide your reasons: First: I was always dealing with technology at the forefront, and in the background, I was keenly following the substantial influence of the media in shaping the world. I could see the advent of technology-driven media convergence. I was certain there would be ample opportunities to explore and become a chief player in the converged media domain. Second: With the easy availability of smartphones, high-speed internet, and seamless connectivity solutions, the new media paradigm was emerging rapidly. While existing players were busy maximizing their profit, and fulfilling their commitments to investors and other stakeholders, I thought of becoming a challenger to capture the emerging opportunity. Third: For over 18 years, I built technologies, launched businesses, and successfully executed mega marketing plans. Those learnings, expertise, and experiences, helped me to fly out of the comforting nest and create more, achieve more, and offer more. I was convinced that there could not be anything other than taking the plunge to capture this opportunity. Fourth: Becoming successful at anything requires an understanding of market realities, knowing well the kind of risk you are going to face, and having a network of people who can connect your opportunity to the market. I was ready with all these three factors favourably tuned up at my side. Fifth: Most of my past endeavours made me garner significant outcomes starting from scratch, and building things up, bit-by-bit. I wanted to challenge the usual – be a disruptor, create mystery, and be part of creating history rather than follow the norm. And, I can tell you that the journey has been so exciting and fulfilling. I hope some of you resonate with my story.

The reason for my startup? well, I would say it's based on a hostel problem I encountered when I first got into college; and funny enough, my co-founder had also experienced the problem and then he suggested an idea on how to solve the problem and now we're both brainstorming on what to build and show to people.

The spark for my startup journey was a combination of passion, a problem that needed solving, and the desire to make a positive impact in the world.

Finding quality candidates and then shepherding them through the interview process was something I did not particularly enjoy. I loved working in my business, and only when I was particularly overwhelmed would I actively start recruiting. But what changed for me was the realisation that I would have to go through a lot of below average employees, before I found someone who truly above average for our needs. And as soon as that clicked, I started to understand that finding great team members wasn't that hard—I was just doing the wrong thing. Here's what I found to be the best way to find quality candidates: Always be hiring Finding someone great is easy, if you’re not desperate to hire someone instantly. Great candidates are usually are not looking for a job, and especially when you are hiring. So it makes sense to keep job applications open and keep interviewing candidates as well. You can easily pass this along the burden of regular interviews to your team. Your team members can vet the candidates before you do the final round Not finding the right candidates is one of the biggest problems that currently keeps business leaders awake at night. Finding them can be easier if you're looking for them all the time instead of just when you need them. Don't dig a well when you're thirsty. Anticipate that you'll lose a little time weeding through candidates that are not perfect , but you'll be better suited to expand when the factors are right for your business. When you have a few hires in the pipeline, you'll be in a better place to handle the next surge in your business. Continuous hiring - for the growth in your business, or the churn in your team. I found that collecting videos from your applicants is the best thing you can do to find the best candidate to actually interview. The problem is what your hires don't know how to upload a video to youtube, or don't care enough. You've got to make it easy for them. To solve this exact problem, I started Hirevire.com my two person startup last August. Hirevire let's you setup a page with questions one time (less than 10 mins) and candidates keep sending you video responses that you can check in your downtime. Candidates can answer on their phones, no software to install. You can even connect your Indeed or ZipRecruiter jobs posts so you can understand a lot more than what the CV tells you.

Looking through the trash at my day job at MoMA. 10 years later my company was on the Inc's Fastest growing list x3 I was a struggling Artist trying to make my way in the Art World when I found some prototypes for a product MoMA was developing that had magnets inside. I broke open the plastic parts to extract the magnets and as I placed them on my desk they hit a critical mass and all magnetized together into a straight line. I thought, Wow what if I could make jewelry that was only held together with magnets. This was pre-kickstarter and pre-Alibaba, I finally got a box of magnets custom made after about a year of faxing manufacturers and invented the "Bandoleer Magnetic Bracelet" I made a video of different "magic" tricks I would perform at trade shows to get buyers attention and posted it as my 1st Ever Video on YouTube in November 2006, by December it was the #1 Video on YouTube. I sold more jewelry in 3 months than I would have made in 5 years at my day job. I've been designing and inventing products and all sorts of things for 20+ years. I'm about to bring out a new product in the Fall that I'm very excited about a Modular Wallet that I hope will be a game changer. BE MIGHTY!

The starting point for me was when I heard from colleagues that they wanted to do a startup about presentation design. I immediately liked the idea because it was my personal pain :)

I found the cohesion of my idea among people. Plus developing your own product, seeing the people need your product is a drive) But the challenge for me is a marketing, since I am a programmer)

Not a good enough product in the market to solve the problem of being able to invest in top crypto projects, with choice of my exchange and without having to do any research of my own.

Done with the shitty bosses, they were seniors with no leadership skills. That pushed me to pursue something of my own....

With my first startup: The hype. My mentors. Wanting to learn a lot of techs. (That's how I entered DevOps) Now: I want to create something that will help others. Current startup: I lived burnout. It was awful. I want to help people prevent burnout and live better.

The impetus for my startup was my problem, and this has grown into the fact that I want to help others with the same problem.

Our startup journey was sparked by a shared passion for education and a deep belief in its transformative power. We saw the immense potential of technology to revolutionize learning and wanted to create a platform that would make high-quality education accessible to all. Inspired by the desire to bridge the gap between learners and educators, we embarked on this journey to empower individuals to acquire knowledge and skills in an engaging and convenient manner. Our goal is to unlock the doors to lifelong learning and contribute to a more equitable and prosperous future for everyone.

hey, i love this question, a chance to go back in time and introspect. for me, it wasn't a single moment, but a gradual culmination of moments. it was a puzzle slowly coming together, piece by piece, until the image was unmistakably clear. it started with the realization of how i loved building and creating things, merging technology and ideas to craft something valuable. i was in awe of how even a simple line of code can birth an entire universe, which in turn can influence people's lives. then came the need for more. the yearning to craft something that could leave a dent, an urge to take the driver's seat in shaping the future. i wasn't content with just standing on the shoulders of giants. i wanted to be the one building the shoulders for others. the final piece fell in place when i realized that the best way to predict the future is to invent it. we are only limited by our imagination and willingness to turn our dreams into reality. so, here i am, one small step in a giant leap, riding the startup wave, hoping to contribute to the endless ocean of possibilities. the journey isn't easy, it's filled with waves of highs and lows, but the voyage is rewarding, the learning is priceless. and, it's not just about the destination, but the journey and the stories you create along the way. keep hustling, keep building!

I kinda fell into it. I've always loved programming and building apps (I started as a hobbyist), then one day a co-worker asked if I wanted to help their friend out with an app. I said yes since I do this on the side for fun anyways. A couple of months later I quit my job and joined the start-up full time. It's funny how things work out.

The spark for my startup journey ignited when I encountered a problem that I felt compelled to solve. I observed a gap in the market or a specific need that wasn't being addressed adequately. This realization inspired me to take action and create a solution through entrepreneurship. I wanted to make a positive impact, disrupt the status quo, and create something innovative that could benefit others. That initial spark of identifying a problem and envisioning a solution was what kick-started my startup journey.

What sparked your startup journey? 😄🚀 I'd love to hear the story behind your entrepreneurial adventure and the moment that ignited your passion to build something amazing!

My starting point was the moment when I asked myself: “Where did my money go and why I can’t buy a few more drinks?” while spending some time in a local bar with friends. After that, I realized I can’t find a solution that would fit my needs. Then I thought about how many people have the same struggle and finally decided to create a product to help people with the same questions.