01:18:20 · Anirudh A Damani, Akshay Chaturvedi
[01:18:20] S0: Wow. Wow. So so guys, if you're if you're if you're tweeting, tweet around 2AM and you'll you'll be getting getting your answers before he goes to sleep. [01:18:28] S1: All my all all my tweets are between 1AM and 2AM. Like, that's when I kind of take a break and I'm on the phone now. Now we set up a entity in The UK and Canada like I said. So we have folks in a different time zone who I'm talking to at the end of my day as well. So now it's kind of the days designed to essentially wean off into the late hours of the IST time zone. [01:18:49] S0: Amazing. Who's your favorite superhero? [01:18:54] S1: My favorite superhero is Spider Man. And and the reason for that is very interesting because I have seen all the Spider Man movies in Hindi. And the kind of impact that these dialogues have in Hindi is like absolutely fascinating. So when when when the same thing is said in English, he was like, okay, but when the same thing is said in Hindi, then I wish I would remember something to share right now. Even even the one about with Pavagam's responsibility and all of that. Right? Like, or the one about [01:19:26] S0: In fact, a new trailer just came out. Right? Far From Home. [01:19:29] S1: I think it's coming out. [01:19:29] S0: Yes. Yes. [01:19:30] S1: Yes. Yes. [01:19:31] S0: I did.
01:19:31 · Anirudh A Damani, Akshay Chaturvedi
[01:19:31] S0: I did. [01:19:31] S1: I just remembered I love, this was the initial Spider Man movie which I'd seen in Hindi, and my wife hates me for this. But there's this theme which spoke about, this Spider Man, Spider Man's enemy, who essentially says that destroy and it basically talks about the entire psychology in that scene about how like when you end up how you need to essentially have a very, very hard skin and a very, very strong heart to be able to go to do something, to essentially be able to make an impact. Because whenever you're doing... Whatever you're doing, whenever you're doing that, you will have at least at least 90% people throwing stones at you. And and I think that is just part and parcel of building a startup. How hard a skin can you really build through the entire piece? Because the problems are not gonna end. They're only gonna multiply with everything.
01:20:26 · Anirudh A Damani
[01:20:26] S0: Absolutely. Oh man, I think I wish I could just end the interview right here, because this is the peak if you ask me, because it is about having a really, really, really thick skin, right, as an entrepreneur. Like you said, there are so many, you know, I'm glad that I I've been in your shoes. Right? I'm I'm somebody who ran a company and you gotta deal with so many different things. Right? So many different processes, so many different people. And yeah, it just seems that, you know, if you, sometimes it happens, try to make one, one, you know, one faction of your entrepreneurial life happy, and that just sets another one off. And by the time you fix that one, a third one's off. And, and yeah, you gotta have really thick skin to to make it all work, to make make all that magic portion. I had
01:21:13 · Akshay Chaturvedi, Anirudh A Damani
[01:21:13] S1: I had an investor pull out when I was on my on the stage when my reception was happening. Reception and somebody walked up to me on stage. Congratulate me and said it was kind of helping put together the round. And I ended up kind of getting on the stage and just solving for that for thirty minutes and then getting back on stage. So, you know, shit can keep hitting you at all different points of time and if if there are 10 different parts to entrepreneurship, like you rightly said, these five don't even know what these five are doing, and this one doesn't know what this is doing. So... And these are all different facets. So there's so much context switching that is happening all that time. And I think that just makes things incredibly hard. But I think that's also the joy of it. That's why you do it. That makes it more fun. And you would not do it any other way. [01:22:00] S0: Yeah. If it was if it was easy, I don't think we we would be doing it. [01:22:03] S1: Correct. Absolutely. [01:22:07] S0: Share a quote that inspires you the most. [01:22:10] S1: Very interesting. So it's it's a longer way, in fact, Anirudh. I don't know if I have it right now, but it's a quote by... If you have the time, I'll read it out to you. I have it saved in my note. It's by Teddy Roosevelt, who was one of The US presidents, and it's called... It's not the critic that counts. You want me to read it out to you in about thirty seconds? [01:22:33] S0: Yeah. Sure.
01:22:33 · Anirudh A Damani, Akshay Chaturvedi
[01:22:33] S0: Yeah. Sure. [01:22:34] S1: It says, it is not the critic... And by the way, we have it plastered in our office along a big wall. So it's the the entire code. It is not the critic that counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or whether diet of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who's actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs, who comes short again and again because there's no effort without error and shortcoming, but who does actually strive to do the deeds, who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat. [01:23:20] S0: Oh, man. I I... Oh, that just gave me goosebumps. I remember reading that quote for the first time about in in my daughter dossier's career. Right? And and it would... And, like, you know, because you you 99% is no. Right? And, oh, that just gives goosebumps. [01:23:33] S1: Manager is not... It's like being the fucking player on the play, man. Like, be a player. Don't log in.
01:23:33 · Akshay Chaturvedi, Anirudh A Damani
[01:23:33] S1: Manager is not... It's like being the fucking player on the play, man. Like, be a player. Don't log in. [01:23:38] S0: And be ready to take a... Know, you gotta take a few punches, right, before you can throw some. So, you you know. Absolutely. Absolutely. Oh, good. I think now I shouldn't stop because you're just taking the levels even higher. But I have to give you about three more questions. Let's see. What is one business principle that you live by? [01:24:00] S1: This is a life principle of sorts and everybody who you are working with and everybody you're dealing with, you need to do good by them in your head. So I think I'm I'm a big karmic believer of sorts. So whoever you're working with, just ensure that they are better off than where they were before they met you in your... In their journey and in your journey as well. So I think that is something that I just sold by. And I think being very transparent about it, being very honest and communicating that kind of also helps you attract the best talent in the company. So I'm I'm... Like like I said, I'm I'm I'm damn fortunate to be working with the sort of people that I'm working with at Leverage today and these are the people who kind of taking the company to the next level. So I think having those principles in place super important so that you end up also having fun on the entire journey. [01:24:54] S0: Yeah, and that's the that's the point like having a bunch of people go across that finishing line together. [01:24:58] S1: Absolutely.