How Clash of Clans can help you strategise while starting up

Disclaimer:

• Playing only Clash of Clans is not going to make you a good entrepreneur.
• I am a very big fan of Clash Of Clans.
• This is written assuming you know what Clash of Clans is.

I think it started when I bought my new iPhone four years ago. Like everyone else who has bought a good smartphone, I was also searching for some free games and I found the strategy game Clash of Clans. Seeing all the good reviews, I downloaded and installed it. It was also around the same time when we started establishing Mypromovideos as a company.

Fast forward to present, when I open my Clash of Clans in my office I am really amazed to see how both the things have many things in common and why this non-racy game is very famous among many entrepreneur friends I know.

Here is some cheap advice for a successful clan and a startup:

Start small and be wise:

Once you finish installing the game the game opens with a very small hut-like structure called town hall. It gave me a few gems, showed me how to start building things and that's it. You are left alone in this huge clan world, exposing yourself to attacks at any time.

At this level you will feel so restricted, powerless and sometimes even demotivated to see the big villages with fancy troops attacking you. Only later I realised that only because of this small size I was able to make more mistakes and still come back to the game without getting burned out. I also realised that I was only learning the game and not playing the game.

Starting small comes with an advantage of making mistakes with freedom. You will have the liberty to do all the wrong things, and the strength to take blows which you can stand and, most importantly, the wisdom of playing the actual game.

Mature a level to go to the next:

In CoC, one common mistake everyone does is to jump into the next level just by upgrading their town hall, while their entire defence is still in low levels. People do this mainly because of two reasons, either they don't know the importance of the defence or have the urgency to grow. I too made this same mistake and was attacked by the next level villages and unable to defend even one attack.

Even in a startup there is no turning back once you start scaling or expanding prematurely. You have to be strong to bite the bullet or you will take the bullet and go down. Just don't hire new employees or open new outlets just for the sake of it. Make sure there is a need.

Build a good team to go to war:

Once you reach a certain level of the game, you can start creating your own clan or team and start waging a war against the other clan. The only way to win a war is to make all your clan members donate each other the troops, plan the war and attack with a plan. There will be a leader, co-leader and members present in the clan discussing the attack plan. The leader will make sure that he sets clan rules and communicates it to the team. Whoever does not follow the clan disciplines is kicked out from the clan after a few warnings. It is pretty simple: if all your members don’t attack, you don't win the war. So, it's now not only about building your village strong, it is also about building your clan member’s village strong as well.

Similarly, in your startup there will come a time when you will start hiring to share responsibilities as a team. In most cases you can’t skip this stage in order to grow your startup. You should be having a strong culture and higher vision to hold your team together or to let go of those who don’t fit. A good team will win you wars and make the company, while a bad team is going to just suck your energy and break the organisation.

Plan well and play hard:

Every attack comes with its own cost and purpose. Some are for loot and some for trophies, and sometimes it is for both. So know what your priorities are. You have to invest time in choosing the bases to attack. Plan which troops to farm and what spell to brew based on your need.

Gain from each other's attack and repeat the same. The whole point of this game is to attack, win wars, and use your resources carefully to build your empire.

It is very important to remember that there is an opportunity cost associated with every new thing you do. That doesn't mean that all the things you do have to reap money. Sometimes we do certain things to learn, and explore new territories. Some will fail and some succeed. Finding the balance between both is the key. This is where you have to have a plan for your time and resources properly or else you will get stuck in an illusion of growth while you are actually not growing. Keep reviewing your growth, adjust accordingly and keep growing.

(Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of YourStory.)