Entrepreneurship is tough. And on top of that, people around you often tend to ask questions that can irritate the hell out of you (especially when you are new to this crazy world of entrepreneurship).
We have curated most frequently asked irritating questions that entrepreneurs often face and in no particular order, here goes the list:
#1 What do you do?
Okay. This is by far the most difficult question you have ever encountered. “What do you do?”
“I am doing a startup.” Bravo, if you are in Bangalore, but if you are in NCR, read the next question! 🙂
#2 How much money do you make?
We Indians are quite inquisitive about other’s salary etc and quite natural that your friends, colleagues and the world is interested in knowing ‘how much money do you make?’.
If you have been working for a long, the next question would be if your current monetary state matches the salaried lifestyle you once had.
#3 Are you full-time into this?
A lot of people still ask me if I am full time into NextBigWhat!
If you are an early stage entrepreneur, be ready to answer with PRIDE (a F**KING PRIDE) that YES! I am full time into this.
But brace yourself to face this question over and over again, and mostly by your ex-colleagues and bosses who didn’t know the entrepreneur in you.
#4: What if..?
“What if this idea fails?” Truth is that you really don’t know the answer, but everybody around you wants to know what will you do if the idea fails?
Mostly, they are your well wishers and it’s just okay to live with this question. Truth is even you don’t know the answer and you aren’t even interested in finding one.
Read: Why you should NOT be an Entrepreneur [And why I am still an Entrepreneur!
#5 : Why can’t Google/Facebook do this? And what if they did?
That’s a fav question among all the startup gurus and the community (including investors). The fact is that Facebook took a while to realize the Instagram and Snapchat opportunity; and while biggies are fighting their own battle, you are better off not answering this question. Instead, execute on your plan while biggies are still whiteboarding and discussing their plan over loong meetings.
But hold on! What will you really do if they launch the same feature?
🙂
Read: It’s not about features, stupid!
#Bonus Expression: Oh you got laid off? Didn’t get a job..?
This question may not come directly to you, but your family is often bombarded with these cynical questions. You can’t prove them right and maybe you aren’t even interested in that, but pass on a ‘answerable’ answer to your family.
For example, when I joined a startup called Ketera, my parents were often asked if I failed to get a job in big companies. Though society has now started accepting words like ‘startups’ etc, do not expect a pride face when you tell them that you have started-up.
Great if it happens. Damn if it doesn’t!
What are the other ‘irritating’ questions you have faced as an entrepreneur? And how do you answer them? We’d love to know.
