Startup to Proficorn

On Netcore’s journey:

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I have written earlier about my experiences as an entrepreneur in building two proficorns (IndiaWorld 1995-2000 and Netcore 1998-now). A proficorn is a company that is private, profitable, promoter-bootstrapped and highly valuable ($100 million or more in valuation).

My Proficorn Way

  • 1-5
        1. Like the Feeling
        2. Journey not Money
        3. Open-sourcing Ideas
        4. Living in the Future
        5. The Profits Flywheel
  • 6-10
        1. Explore and Experiment
        2. Passion Wins
        3. Learning to Learn
        4. Delegate to Grow
        5. Life’s Daily Clue
  • 11-15
        1. No Two Bad In a Row
        2. Forever Mindset
        3. Never Compromise Integrity
        4. Dealing with Failure
        5. The Sub-broker Moment
  • 16-20
        1. An Advisory Board
        2. Me-Time
        3. Entry and Exit
        4. Punctuality
        5. Tracking Cashflow
  •  21-25
        1. Making Notes
        2. Chase Profits Not Valuation
        3. One Meeting, One Idea
        4. Blogging
        5. Giving Up
  •  26-30
        1. Optimising Costs
        2. Avoid Equal Co-founders
        3. Imitate First, Innovate Later
        4. Delta Dollar Decision Rule
        5. Just Get Started
  • 31-35
        1. Circle of Competence
        2. A Compass, not a Map
        3. Live Life Forward
        4. Book Club
        5. Disagree and Commit
  • 36-40
        1. Entrepreneurship vs Investing
        2. Latticework of Mental Models
        3. The Moat
        4. Worst Case Scenario
        5. Ego as the Enemy
  • 41-45
        1. The Monkey Problem
        2. Talk not Text
        3. Margin of Safety
        4. Debt can Kill
        5. Reflection
  • 46-50
        1. Work-life Balance
        2. Creating Options
        3. Today and Tomorrow
        4. The One Number
        5. Inflection Points
  •  51-55
        1. Failures
        2. Strategy as Choices
        3. Pivots
        4. Hiring a CEO
        5. Stock Options
  • 56-60
        1. Flow
        2. Steps and Stones
        3. Culture
        4. New Growth Platforms
        5. Acquisitions
  • 61-65
        1. Return on Capital: 10-20-30
        2. Rule of 100
        3. Where to Invest
        4. Mountains beyond Mountains
        5. When Things Go Wrong
  • 66-70
        1. Every Idea Is a Failure Until…
        2. Competition
        3. Know the Law
        4. Leadership Transition
        5. Three Horizons
  • 71-75
        1. Startup Capital
        2. Growth Capital
        3. To Raise or Not
        4. First Hires
        5. Product-Market Fit
  • 76-80
        1. The IndiaWorld Idea
        2. The Khoj-Khel-Bawarchi-Samachar Ideas
        3. The Niti Idea
        4. The Netcore Idea
        5. Saying No
  • 81-85
        1. Hiring and Onboarding
        2. After the Exit
        3. A Different Journey
        4. Looking Ahead
        5. The Obituary Question
  • 86-90
        1. From Employee to Entrepreneur – 1
        2. From Employee to Entrepreneur – 2
        3. Bootstrapping a Business – 1
        4. Bootstrapping a Business – 2
        5. Bootstrapping a Business – 3
  • 91-95
        1. Crucible Experiences – 1
        2. Crucible Experiences – 2
        3. Crucible Experiences – 3
        4. Markets as Menaka
        5. 100X Disasters
  • 96-100
        1. Focus on Non-consumption, not Competition
        2. Rethinking Assumptions – 1
        3. Rethinking Assumptions – 2
        4. 20 Mile March
        5. A Century