Three years ago, Priya Mohan, an investor, sold her edtech business Vidyartha to BYJU’S. She feels that being genuine and acting in the manner that is most natural to you is the key to tasting success. “The cost of all this is that you are constantly fighting to manage your perception rather than solving issues at hand,” said Priya.
Clarity of thought, interpersonal dynamics between co-founders, and the company’s past are the three things she looks for. This entails getting others to accept you and open up to you.
“When you’re sitting across from investors, there’s an expectation that you’ll have all the answers, and no one expects that of you,” says Priya. She goes on to say that there have been a few occasions when founders have told her frankly about areas for which they don’t have a definitive solution but are prepared to work on.
Being genuine and providing feedback to each of them reduces the number of startups with which she may communicate. This, according to Priya, is due to the fact that she prioritises people before profits. “The least I can do is interact when the founder is vulnerable,” she stated.
Priya explains that discussing the economic benefits of authenticity is one way of encouraging more people to be themselves. Julian Baggini’s ‘The Pig That Wants to Be Eaten’ is a book she recommends for readers who want to think about problem-solving in a new way. Priya is currently reading Tim Marshall’s book, “Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics.”
