We invited Vivek, Co-Founder of SolveMine for an interview with Most Popular Stories to know more about his entrepreneurial journey.
SolveMine is a Fresh new kind of social media where they build solutions to your problems and will help you sell it in the market.
- Tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey as an entrepreneur.
Just like every other kid, I had always dreamt big. Some stop dreaming and some continue and some among that will achieve it. I would not take all the credit for never stopping to dream. It all began when I joined Sri Ramakrishna Vidyashala for my high school. That place taught me that there was nothing impossible in the presence of persistent effort. Rule number one, never remain mediocre. So that is when I decided I will do something special. We were always taught to serve people and that has remained my top priority.
After Vidyashala, I went to Sri Chaitanya in Vijayawada and the MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology. I took up computer science engineering just like any other kid with a good rank would do. I never really wanted to just finish my engineering course, take a job and survive. I wanted to make a difference in our society with what I learn and what I can do.
In my first year, I was a part of an entrepreneur club. There I learned that if you can come up with an idea, there are people who will invest their time and money in bringing it to reality. The only criteria were for the idea to be worth it. Coincidentally, a senior of mine had an idea that he wanted to work on. I saw that it had the potential to change the lives of daily laborers and unemployed youth. I fell in love with the idea. We together planned the execution and worked on it day and night for two years. I was also backed by a wonderful mentor, Dr. Lingaraju sir, who has always had my back. We had an investor who had set up an office space for us too. These two years were the most effective in my lifetime. I learned so much, ranging from bureaucratic things of a company to how to manipulate people.
As there is always a bad part for a story, I had to step back from this start-up because of numerous issues. I was taken aback because of what was done to me and I had almost given up on my dreams. I remained silent for over a year.
On one lucky day, I was forced to attend a lecture just so that I can bunk the boring software engineering class. There I met Ben Heydecke who was the then product manager at ThyssenKrupp Inc. in Germany. He was in India to hire a few interns for one of his projects. Thanks to our ISE HOD Dr. Vijay Kumar for having him in our college.
I happened to tell Ben one of the ideas that were in my mind for a long time. He was interested and we got connected over LinkedIn. He stayed back for a couple of days more during which we met and discussed more about the idea and its execution. We later discussed over the phone for a month and then he confirmed that he will be investing in my idea and was willing to work as my financial partner and taking care of the business side of the company. We got Epikratech IT Solutions incorporated, through which we are launching the platform called SolveMine, which is going to have a huge impact on the lives of common people through technology, something that I have always wanted to do.
- Describe the services that you offer to your customers and in what way they are unique?
SolveMine is a platform to connect technological laymen to developers who can develop solutions through technology. While we solve problems for one individual, there will be millions facing the same problems. Therefore we sell that product in the market while the idea owner and the developer hold the stakes too.
- What difficulties which you have faced or you are facing?
The first and most obvious problem for any entrepreneur would be building the capital that is required. While it was taken care of during the initial stages in both of my ventures, the only other issue I always find is finding talented man-power.
Students in this age lack the skills. They concentrate on scoring marks more and the least on building their skills.
- How do you handle the pressure and manage stress?
This has always been one of the most challenging questions for me. The answer is always changing. I have been pursuing photography as a hobby. I have also done it professionally for over three years now. I play handball and hockey which helps me forget things for a while. Forgetting the problems for a while helps your brain to tackle them easily. Rarely, I meditate too.
- What is one strategy that you believe has helped you grow as a person/startup?
We all find solutions to our problems. But, if you find a solution that can serve millions instead of you alone, then you have a product and you are an entrepreneur. The constant search for problems and solutions in your daily life is the secret.
- How your company is helping India to grow?
We at SolveMine are helping every individual to discover the capabilities through technology. We are encouraging and making it possible for people to involve technology in everyday life in every possible way. This way, we are also helping the goal of Digital India.
- In your opinion what are the keys to success?
Persistence is the key to success. It does not matter if your decisions are bad or good. If you can hold on to it and work towards getting a positive outcome, you are the winner. Success does not depend on what path you have taken, instead, it is defined by how well you work along.
- What advice would you give to someone starting out as an aspiring entrepreneur?
Never be scared to start something. You are never too old or too young to start. It can range from starting a small hobby or starting a company itself. Never be scared to express your ideas. Take the reviews positively and work on those. Meet people and build your network, because your worth is measured by your network.
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