Quotes by Ronnie Screwvala that inspire you to dream with your eyes open

UTV Motion Pictures is not new to us. It was founded by entrepreneur and philanthropist Ronnie Screwvala, one of the biggest names in Indian media and entertainment. UTV Group had produced one of the first television serials in India, Shanti.

Image credits: flickr

His book, Dream With Your Eyes Open, has a plethora of experiences and lessons for every businessman and budding entrepreneur. The book charts out Ronnie’s successes and failures through his thoughts and anecdotes. Here are 15 inspirational quotes from the man himself!

1. “Not everyone is cut out to be an entrepreneur, but that doesn’t mean that should dissuade”
2. “It’s phenomenal if you’re blessed that what you love and what you’re passionate about, which could easily have been your hobby, is also your profession! And that doesn’t come to everybody. So you need to be lucky about that.”
3. “16,000. That’s how many words the average human speaks a day.”
4. “It’s going to be on your CV for life! That’s when the penny dropped and I was like what if I don’t have to have a CV, then it won’t haunt me right? So why don’t I do something on my own, then I don’t ever need a CV.”
5. “Risk isn’t about rushing headlong into uncertain situations. That’s just foolish behaviour. Risk means pushing the envelope when others want to take the safe route, and caring more about potential rewards than possible losses.”
6. “Communication is a form of currency. And how you choose to use it—the speed at which you understand things, your clarity of thought, and your ability to deliver a strong message, so the audience has no doubt who is leading the show—can boost or burn your business.”
7. “Failure can be a stronger motivator than success.”
8. “Dreaming with your eyes open means being alert to challenges but refusing to let them stop you.”
9. “Culture is the life blood of successful endeavours. Everything you do and everywhere you go creates opportunities to communicate in impactful ways. Great communication becomes a part of a company’s culture. The more deeply it’s embedded, the larger the company grows. The larger the company grows, the deeper the culture.”
10. “There isn’t that kind of strong pride and enthusiasm for entrepreneurship in this country thatpeople perceive it to be.”
11. “I passed out of school, I was in cathedral school and I was supremely confident, bordering on arrogance! That’s when I flipped and went into the second year of college – that time you could jump a year in college if you did exceptionally well in what that time was 11th standard – and I failed that year.”
12. “The difference between predator and prey in a business ecosystem is determined by the strength of one’s next idea.”
13. “So it’s refreshing (and disappointingly rare) when someone actually listens and waits for others to finish, and crafts an intelligent, thoughtful response based on what had just been conveyed. It makes people feel respected. This guy is really listening because he has noted all the small points and has come back on them.”

Inspired much?