Serial entrepreneur Sandipan Chattopadhyay believes one should quit the things that hold you back

Sandipan Chattopadhyay has developed a habit he is in no hurry to quit. He is a serial founder and one of the brains behind JustDial, MoneyControl and Xelpmoc Design and Tech Pvt Ltd, (which he co-founded with Srinivas Koora and Rajesh Dembla), where they work with startups who are building the solutions. The reason he can’t kick this habit is simple. He is determined to build solutions for the next 500 million Indians.

Speaking about his startup journey, and what inspired it, he says, “It started with a small step and a big vision. The products and solutions I build should be for Bharat, and not only for India.” His passion for building solutions for the masses can possibly be traced back to his childhood, which he spent in a small town in West Bengal’s Hooghly district. His formative education was also in Bengali, which fuelled his love for the language.

He believes that both problems and solutions will come from the 130 crore Indians, ‘whether it is building information platforms or reducing the cost of logistics’. 

It’s all in the game

Despite the success of his ventures, Sandipan’s journey, like every other startup founder, has seen its fair share of ups and downs. So how did he keep himself stay motivated?

“I’ve always believed in having a gamer mindset. I keep on trying until the problem is solved. This mindset encourages me to find ways to beat the system and that’s what keeps me motivated.”

He is also quick to give credit to all the people who encouraged him when there were others to pull him down. “I owe a lot to my peers, fellow entrepreneurs, civil servants, and CXOs. Value protection and value distribution can be learnt from anyone around you. You just need to have the heart to learn.”

On creating discipline, inspiration and motivation

It is crucial for entrepreneurs to have a strong sense of discipline if they want to succeed, and Sandipan shares where he finds inspiration and motivation.

“My motivation hack from day zero has been to think about the people will be impacted by my creation. The prize is the derivative of that hack. It is a post facto realisation of every small step taken towards that goal,” says Sandipan.

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Quit your dependency and comfort zone

When it comes to moments of self-doubt, which are inherent to every startup journey, Sandipan believes that one of the key aspects of not quitting on oneself when the going gets tough is to quit the things that hold you back. “You should quit your dependency and comfort zone. You should strengthen yourself. For example, one should decide to quit smoking in a single second.” 

However, unlike most people who recommend diet, meditation and exercise, Sandipan believes self-care can be achieved by other means. “I believe focussing on happiness is more important than just fitness goals. And for me, being happy could be about eating biriyani at 2-o-clock at night from a roadside joint.”

And while the future of this habitual founder holds limitless possibilities, one thing is certain. He has no intention of quitting his one true dream – empowering and enabling future generations of Indians.

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