Founder: Dr. Malpani, everyone keeps telling me I need “grit” and “hustle.” But honestly, those words feel like motivational-poster garbage. What do entrepreneurs actually need?
Dr. Malpani: Good. At least you’re allergic to clichés. Let’s skip the Instagram gyaan and focus on what really matters. I call them the 11 Cs. If you get these right, you won’t need hustle; your business will run because it deserves to.
1. Curiosity
Founder: Curiosity? Isn’t that for kids and scientists?
Dr. Malpani: And for the founders who don’t become dinosaurs. Curiosity makes you ask, “Why is the customer doing this?” “What’s the friction?” “How can I make this 10× simpler?”
The moment a founder stops being curious, they start defending their assumptions—and that’s when the market slaps them awake.
2. Creativity
Founder: Is creativity about making cool features?
Dr. Malpani: Features? No. Creativity is about problem-solving. It’s the ability to say, “Everyone is zigging; let me zag cheaply and cleverly.”
In India, frugal creativity is a superpower. Jugaad works only when backed by thought, not when used to hide incompetence.
3. Capability
Founder: This one sounds like common sense.
Dr. Malpani: Common sense is rare—especially in entrepreneurship. Capability is about competence: can you actually deliver the value you promise?
Your product, your tech stack, your operations—they all need to work even on days when you don’t feel “motivated.”
4. Culture
Founder: Culture is what big companies talk about, right?
Dr. Malpani: Wrong. Culture starts on Day Zero.
Your culture decides whether your team hides problems or fixes them… whether they blame customers or listen to them… whether they burn cash or respect it.
And your culture is always a reflection of you. If you are sloppy, your startup will be sloppy. If you are ethical, your startup will be ethical.
5. Customer Centricity
Founder: Everyone says this. No one does it.
Dr. Malpani: Exactly. Most founders treat customers as an ATM: “How do we extract money?”
Customer-centric founders ask: “How do we solve a real pain in a way people will happily pay for?”
Your customers pay your salary. Your investors do not. Build for your customers. Investors will follow.
6. Collaboration
Founder: I prefer to do things myself. It’s faster.
Dr. Malpani: Only until it isn’t. Collaboration isn’t about endless meetings. It’s about leveraging brains smarter than yours.
Great founders surround themselves with people who challenge them. Lone wolves look cool until they starve.
7. Challenge
Founder: Challenges are inevitable. We just power through, right?
Dr. Malpani: No. Smart founders choose challenges.
Anyone can complain about problems. Great entrepreneurs ask:
“Which problem is worth solving for the next 10 years?”
Pick your challenge wisely. Mediocre founders chase shiny objects. Great founders commit to solving unsexy, painful problems.
8. Competition
Founder: Competition scares most founders.
Dr. Malpani: It shouldn’t. Competition validates the market.
If nobody else is doing it, maybe nobody wants it.
Healthy competition forces you to innovate, to stay humble, and to serve customers better.
Just don’t focus on competitors so much that you forget the customer.
9. Change
Founder: Startups change fast. It’s exhausting.
Dr. Malpani: Welcome to entrepreneurship.
Change is not a threat; it is the rent you pay to stay relevant.
Markets shift. Technology mutates. Customer expectations evolve.
If you can’t adapt quickly and cheaply, you’re done.
Change is only painful for founders who become emotionally attached to their first idea.
10. Confidence
Founder: How do I know if I have enough?
Dr. Malpani: Confidence is not arrogance.
It’s not pretending to know everything—it’s trusting that you can learn anything.
Confidence grows from competence. When you’ve done the homework, talked to customers, built iteratively, and understood your numbers—confidence becomes natural.
Arrogance comes from pitch-deck fantasyland. Avoid that.
11. Coin
Founder: Ah, finally the money part. Should I raise funds now?
Dr. Malpani: Ah yes—the favorite topic of Indian founders.
Here’s the simple rule:
If you haven’t found product-market fit, don’t take investor money.
Money is not oxygen. Customers are.
Coin is not about fundraising; it’s about managing cash responsibly.
Bootstrapping isn’t punishment—it’s discipline. When you build with your own money (or your customers’ money), you automatically build smarter, leaner, and more sustainably.
Good businesses generate cash. Great businesses respect cash.
If you need investors to survive every six months, you don’t have a business—you have a Ponzi scheme with a pitch deck.
Bringing It All Together
Founder: This is a lot to take in. How do I apply the 11 Cs in daily startup life?
Dr. Malpani: Start with curiosity. Understand your customer deeply.
Use creativity to solve their pain in a simple, elegant way.
Build capability through continuous learning.
Shape culture through your actions, not your slogans.
Stay obsessed with the customer.
Collaborate with those who level you up.
Pick meaningful challenges.
Respect competition but don’t be scared of it.
Embrace change like an old friend.
Build confidence through competence.
And treat every rupee of coin as if it’s your last.
Do this consistently and you will build a startup that survives long after the hype dies.
Founder: So the secret isn’t growth at any cost?
Dr. Malpani: Growth at any cost creates unicorns.
But discipline, customer obsession, and frugal innovation?
That creates camels—startups that survive the desert. This is the 12th C !
And trust me, the Indian startup ecosystem is definitely a desert.
Want to learn more about bootstrapping and creating sustainable businesses? Explore more insights and resources for entrepreneurs at www.malpaniventures.com. Let’s build businesses that put customers first!