‘Curiosity is a trait that can serve you well in entrepreneurship’ – 40 quotes from Indian startup journeys

Launched in 2014, StoryBites is a weekly feature from YourStory, featuring notable quotable quotes in our articles of this past week (see the previous post here). Share these 40 gems and insights from the week of April 1-7 with your colleagues and networks, and check back to the original articles for more insights. See also our compilation of Top 50 Quotes from 2018 here.

Inculcate the habit of critical thinking and strategic thinking. - Praveen Sharma, Interactive Media

No matter where you’re from, your dreams are valid. – Lupita Nyong’o

The flip side of being on your own is loneliness, lack of mentoring, networking, and a defined career path. - Srivatsan Padmanabhan, GoFloaters

Studying in a Kendriya Vidyalaya really makes you very egalitarian, and you learn to respect people from every background. - Meena Ganesh, Portea Medical

With so many customers and so much to be desired, the trick is to be disciplined. Knowing what to really go after and what to leave on the table can make a significant difference. - Pavan Soni, Inflexion Point

Sales teams are looking for insights while making presentations to clients. Many times the knowledge is already in the company; AI can contextually find the knowledge sought after by the sales team on a real-time basis. - Vijay Swaminathan, Draup

Unlike other technologies like cloud, mobile or Internet, there's no one company leading AI. AI is domain context-specific, so you're going to see platforms instead of a leader. - Beena Ammanath, HP Enterprises

The inherent problem with a free platform is that people often end up misusing it. - Kritika Kapur, WisTree Solutions

An insights-driven bank complete with sales and marketing functions, and custom offerings based on global trends is the future of Fintech. - Gautam Rege, Josh Software

Fund managers seek maximum protection on making investment calls and Blockchain could be the answer. - C S Sudheer, IndianMoney.com

The future of cryptocurrency seems quite uncertain in the Indian scenario as we are still holding on to the old notions of money transaction, and have failed to work on new ideations. - Sonam Chandwani, KS Legal and Associates

Everyone should be able to wield technology while investing, which was so far only accessible to institutional investors, HNIs and hedge funds. - Jayalakshmi Manohar, Streak

There is a colossal need for using technology to disrupt urban commute and make it cleaner and sustainable. - Rahul Sharma, Revolt Intellicorp

Technology allows us to monitor patients anywhere and everywhere, and advances in AI enables us to pick up subtle patterns in the patient's vitals data. - Rahul Shingrani, ten3T

The youth are the future leaders of our country who will get into the bureaucracy, government, politics, and corporate jobs. As leaders if they are more informed and engaged in public policy we will have a better outcome for India. - Milind Mhaske, Praja Foundation

The concept of community data as envisaged in draft ecommerce policy is a threat to the freedom to innovate that propelled India as a global startup hub. - Kazim Rizvi

Thanks to the new FDI policies, discounting will not be a game changer anymore. - Ankit Garg, Wakefit

Larger ticket sizes are a consequence of the ‘new normal’ in venture capital globally. There is more capital in VC now and more VC funds than ever before. - Pranav Pai, 3one4 Capital

Building tech companies out of India isn’t easy; there are challenges and the biggest one is working with no rule book or the right talent. - Aakrit Vaish, Haptik

Currently, 90 percent of the MRO needs of Indian carriers are done outside India. - Alok Nanda, GE India Technology Centre

Despite the booming OTT space, the paid TV industry is bound to still stick around for a while, leading to a harmonious combination of the two in the entertainment space. - Vineet Govil, Sling Media

While genres like comedy, food, health and beauty continue to rise, we are seeing tremendous growth in uniquely Indian content like village food, farming, etc. - Satya Raghavan, YouTube Content Partnerships, India

The major challenge is to make brands understand the value of video content, as not many understand the concept of video content strategy. - Noreen Sodhi, Paper Weight Entertainment

Customer experience software is stuck in the 2000’s era. Consumers have moved to smartphones and conversational interfaces, especially in the last few years. - Amit Somani, Prime Venture Partners

Manufacturers of printed circuit boards (PCBs) are plentiful, but few make medical PCBs, where accuracy and safety are critical. - Arun Agarwal, Janitri Innovations

Every person encounters a point in their life when they need extra help with their finances. - Gaurav Chopra, IndiaLends

The older you are without health coverage, the more expensive and difficult it becomes to buy a policy. - Adhil Shetty, BankBazaar.com

A year's rainfall collected from a bungalow built on a 2,400-sqft plot can save water for up to 180 days’ use. - Ashvin Raghavan, FORCE

Sustainable fashion is the need of the hour, but it can also be ‘trendy’. - Sayesha Sachdev, Core by JSI

People with autism hold unique strengths, and possess a certain set of skills that need to be explored and used. - Indirani Basu, Action for Autism

Without the standardisation and digitisation of quality assessment of agricultural produce, e-Mandi, and digital agri markets will remain a distant dream. - Puneet Kumar, Nexus Venture Partners

With perishables, the supply chain has to be very efficient. There cannot be any hoarding when it comes to perishables. - Vivek Rajkumar, AIBono

Food travels miles before it gets to our plate, and most vital nutrients are lost. - Linesh Pillai, UGF Farms

Wellness is 80 percent nutrition and 20 percent exercise. - Preeti Sinha, Greens & and More

India is ranked second in potato production. About 90 percent of the potatoes are grown in just four states - Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar and Punjab. - Abhijeet Kudva, Zephyr Peacock

You can never go wrong by adding higher proportions of whole foods - vegetables, fruit, and whole grains in your diet. - Karishma Maini, Strand Life Sciences

Conversation on food and food habits and food culture helps us connect with business partners, understand differences and come closer together. - Devdutt Pattanaik

Travelling to places that excite you and learning about different cultures will build character. - Arun Ashok, Luxury Escapes

In a market where 90 percent of startups fail, incubators and accelerators can play a key role in growing the number of sustainable businesses. - Pranav Marwah, thinQbate

Entrepreneurship isn’t about achieving goals alone. The journey is what makes it such an incredible experience. - Amrita Nambiar, Olie

Curiosity is a trait that can serve you well in entrepreneurship — when you are curious about how something works and how it can benefit the masses or solve a problem, then you have in you the makings of a successful entrepreneur. - Vani Kola, Kalaari Capital

YourStory has also published the pocketbook ‘Proverbs and Quotes for Entrepreneurs: A World of Inspiration for Startups’ as a creative and motivational guide for innovators (downloadable as apps here: Apple, Android).