Swagata Sarangi on starting up late, finding initial traction, grit, 'trying something new' [#12]

Best in Class with Harish Narayanan

Swagata Sarangi of Smytten (https://smytten.com/) is our guest this time! He's a serial founder, clear thinker and a prime example of how grit enables success. He has built a sampling platform for premium customers in India from scratch and this conversation is full of learnings from his journey. Timestamps and details of the conversation are below.

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Timestamps:

• 1:23 Intro.
• 02:30 Starting up late in career.
• 10:30 Early years of a startup: finding the right problem and getting to the MVP. ("Digital intent creation.")
• 15:14 Grit ("we are all a victim of our childhood").
• 20:44 Finding a Co-founder, building the early team.
• 24:24 Building product as a 'non-technical' founder.
• 26:46 Connecting the dots, in hindsight.
• 28:04 Mental models for hiring ("raising the bar on humility" & "choosing will over skill").
• 31:38 What was easier than expected & tougher than expected.
• 34:53 Who should start a company? (And who shouldn't).
• 37:21 Getting the first customers. Then scaling from 1K to 1M. ("Creating the right initial cohort").
• 42:51 Quick questions: Favourite books, new learnings, key message to the world "Try something new!"

Disclaimer: The views, information, or opinions expressed during the series are solely personal and do not necessarily represent those of my company / employers.