‘While criticisms are temporary, learnings are permanent’ – 30 quotes of the week on entrepreneurship and leadership

Launched in 2014, StoryBites is a weekly feature from YourStory, featuring notable quotable quotes in our articles of this past week (see the previous edition here). Share these 30 gems and insights from the week of March 7-13 with your colleagues and networks, and check back to the original articles for more insights.

See also our pick of Top Quotes of 2021 on Entrepreneurship, Investment, Digital Transformation, Storytelling, The India Opportunity, Pandemic Resilience, Failure Recovery, Design, and Art.

Never step back from living life on your own terms and never let people tell you what is right or wrong. That is the premise of our lives – yours and mine. - Kena Shree

Your experiences are a treasure trove of ideas, opinions and stories. Tell a story that is uniquely you - don’t try to mimic another author. - Rashmi Parekh, 'Inscape'

Define your own success, your biggest competition is you, strive to be a better version of yourself … and feed your strengths. - Shalini Chaudhari, Infosys

Self-care makes you a better caregiver and it can therefore never be an act of selfishness. - Neha Gupta, Proactive for Her

Saying no is also essential, because [agreeing to everything] sometimes takes away the focus from your priorities. - Manali Das, Kyndryl

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When you start thinking big, no one really supports you or your decision, but once you achieve it, everything falls into place and people begin to appreciate you. - Arunima Sinha

It's easy to get caught up worrying about the future or regretting the past. Instead, focus on appreciating the present. - Kush Mahajan, Kyndryl

Bias often starts in our own head and it’s something we can control. - Radhika Gupta, Edelweiss

Follow your passion and interests and be open to adding new elements to your skill set. - Jennifer Andrews, Kyndryl

Women must take care of their heart, because they also suffer from diseases like heart problems, hypertension, obesity, sleep apnea, arthritis etc. - P.K. Hazra, AMRI Hospitals

If women representation improves in roles that are closer to value creation, then equity would seem to be a more achievable goal. - Mansee Singhal, Mercer

Women today are creating exceptional and ground-breaking accomplishments in every sphere of life and are optimistic about what the future holds for them. - Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma, Minister of State for MSME

There is a lot of investment that happens to help women grow in an organisation, but the woman also has to seize these opportunities. - Nasreen Dawood, Kyndryl

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[Year in Review 2021] Times are changing as women in tech reach new heights

Hopefully someday we will no longer feel the need to create a separate category of 'top 100 women leaders'. Instead, we will just find women entering the ‘top 100 leaders’ list. - Jyotsna Krishnan, Elevar Equity

With just the quest to learn, a passion to create unique solutions or by exploring a simple idea, women today can create an empire. - Aayur Kaul, Skillshare

Starting up is a waiting game – it takes a lot of thick skin and efforts for women to fend off criticisms from family members and society. - Vidya Sridharan, Riskcovry

There are complementary strengths between genders, which help build a much more valuable venture. - Padmaja Ruparel, IAN

If you don’t start up, you will not know how far you can go. Don’t be afraid to fail or make mistakes, because only then can you learn to do better. - Elvira, Chezvies Patterns

We all fail. We all make mistakes. The key is to not be oblivious to the mistake. - Kumar Mangalam Birla

Risk management is important, no doubt about that, but not taking calculated risks, especially in the startup ecosystem, is plain cheating. - Appalla Saikiran, SCOPE

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Opening markets and mindsets: What to expect from India’s femtech sector in 2022 and beyond

It is crucial to put ourselves in various challenging situations to build confidence. - Sheela Siddappa, Kyndryl

While criticisms are temporary, learnings are permanent. - Shrijay Sheth, LegalWiz.in

Do not take rejection personally and try rising about it. Only a rejection can prepare you for another. - Kamakshi Agarwala, Butt-Chique

Early-stage entrepreneurs not only need access to capital, but also a lot of help in refining their business model, product thinking, and go-to-market strategies. - Krishna Kumar, Simplilearn

Financial institutions have lately been focussing on SME lending and by virtue of that, there is tremendous interest in SCF (supply chain financing). - Rajesh Rajendran

Community participation in the development and implementation of mitigation strategies ensures ownership which contributes to their sustainability. - Manu Gupta, SEEDS

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[Year in Review 2021] How women entrepreneurs pivoted during the pandemic and saw tangible results

This target group [millennials] is not brand-loyal. They are always on the hunt for something new, something unique. - Aakanksha Gandhi, Vadilal

Authenticity and human connection are the crux of the Human Age mindset. - Marut Bhardwaj, Potential Project India

Culture obviously is not about talking about things in the all-hands meeting or putting up some nice posters… culture was just defining our own acts every day. - Rajnish Kumar, Ixigo

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Having a diverse team ensures creating easy-to-use, accessible, and inclusive products. - Ankit Mathuria, OYO

It’s important to also find someone to talk to, find your cheerleaders. - Rachael Zavodnyik, Infosys

Corporate wellness is something that is the need of the hour. It is important to curate a policy or a session that benefits your employees as well as their efficiency and productivity. - Sanchit Malik, Paz Care

There is no point in learning the tactics if you’re climbing the wrong mountain! - Robin Sharma, ‘The Everyday Hero Manifesto’

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).