I hated ‘Survive & Thrive’ because I just didn’t want to come back! Had it not been for my start-up & family back in Delhi, I would have extended the trip! May be few vintage old like me would know this, it was like ‘Essel World main Rahunga main, ghar nahi nahi nahi jaunga main’! It was so much fun!
Friendly Disclaimer: I am not into writing and hence let me make this simple :) those who don’t have much patience: first para (what/how/why) is the summary, others: go for it!!
Moral of the story!
- What was ‘Survive & Thrive’ & how were we (PeeBuddy) there !
We (PeeBuddy (my start-up) : India’s first portable disposable device using which women can stand & pee in all dirty/unfriendly toilets) were selected out of thousands of start-ups to attend this amazing 3 day boot camp at New York !
It was an event for mission driven entrepreneurs to meet some amazing Fellow Entrepreneurs, seasoned investors, learn incredible start up hacks and network. Food, alcohol was icing on the cake and staff & hospitality at Camp Getaway was mind boggling.
2. How to get there
From India, Start-ups were expected to apply. We were one of them. My recommendation: Next time ‘Survive & Thrive’ is happening — apply — be there!
3. Why
It’s not what the event offers, it’s what you make out of the opportunity. And opportunity (people willing to help / great mentors/ fellow entrepreneurs) at this place: knocks every second! Not only did it offer structured meetings, high power mentoring sessions, there were some really good fun games linked to start ups (made us kids again & hence essel world analogy — it was a perfect work life balance mix there!) If you want to go global, you have two options… Dig out the data, make cold calls, line up meetings (if you are lucky) and spend a month to meet good 30–40 people (you will have to work with their schedule / availability/ location etc). Or you can attend next season of survive and thrive and meet the movers and shakers — all at one place — at least there is a warm/casual introduction for your subsequent outreach (now I need any introduction, I know good 100 people who can dig into their network)!
The Journey
So first things first: Camp (Club Getaway) is so beautiful, it’s next to a pristine lake (gorgeous is the word) and the whole setting is so wonderful that you won’t want to ever come back! It works like therapy, it cures it all (headache/depression/mood swings anyone?) — And the people at Camp Getaway are so welcoming! Even independent of the event, it’s a great venue for you to spend a couple of days with family & kids. More details can be found here
PS : David is the owner, great guy! Find him there!
I took so many formal shirts but the program was so nicely designed that you could be dressed how you want! So for me it was T shirt and jeans (looks funny in some important pics but then!!) and 3 days of pure bliss.
The flow included meeting established Entrepreneurs, Start-up linked activities on various topics including Digital Advertising, PR, and Raising Funds & even writing your own book!!
For me personally some amazing moments were
- Star Struck!! Meeting THE amazing ‘Kevin Harrington’. I hate to admit but I am star struck when it comes to accomplished entrepreneurs and for me (ask my wife!!) Shark Tank is an every Sunday binge watching Ritual on Netflix!! So the world came to a halt when I saw him at the event! Not only did I see him, I took a picture with him, he gave me good 5 minutes understanding my product and even shared his email add (and I got 3 replies from him !!) it wasn’t how some Indian mentors give you email addresses and then you never hear back ! For me, the whole 24 hour of travel and jet lag was done the second this happened. I even got his autographed book! My favourite from Kevin’s talk was: WHEN ON FIRE, ReWIRE
You can get to follow KEVIN here
There is more..
2. Meeting Jesse Itzler ! ‘Living with A Seal’ Fame!
Watching Jesse talk was a treat! A true entertainer, motivator, he owned us (the audience) within minutes of starting. While he is a Billionaire entrepreneur (been there done that!!) who connected with each & every member in the audience with his incredible story telling. His journey including selling him company to Waren Buffet, going on to run 100 mile and scripting a book by living with navy seal was nothing short of a spell. I had multiple take away from his talk but favourite was ‘I didn’t get this far, to get this far’ which is such a powerful statement. One should refer to this whenever the going gets tough!
You can get to follow Jesse here
3. Meeting Susie Carder
The real Black Magic Woman! Susie casts a spell the minute she starts, she is awe inspiring, jaw drooping power house presenter who (in her own life) has time & again, risen from ashes and created a brand which is unparalleled — and it shows when she is talking. Her talk (Motivating the masses) was sharp and became a reality check for so many of us, she shook me out of my comfort zone. Find her here
There were many other great speakers including the hilarious International Speaker Ryan Foland #GingerMC and one thing it taught me was the art of presentation. Something we need to learn, and I have already started working on it. Americans are another league when it comes to packaging, presentation & branding. They know how to sell ‘concepts’ and hence every presenter was great. Even regular attendees were accomplished professionals working with Fortune 500 companies from consulting/investing/banking/media sector.
Four biggest takeaways: Connects, Reality check on presentation, market insights & distribution offer.
Some friends for life
And then I made some really good friends, hopefully some for life. Though each and every one who came from India & all over the world was an achiever but I was personally touched with the way the following have dedicated their lives to a cause much bigger than ‘money’ alone. They all deserve a huge Round of applause and if you see any synergies or if you can help them; please reach out to them.
1. Ihitashri Shandilya : Young, dynamic lady who gave up a steady corporate life to promote Madhubani Art ! Am acumen fellow, she is a true fighter.
2. Sivaprakash Lottanakeri : Another great find from the trip. Siva too gave up a well-paying job to do something for farmers who suffer every year due to crop infestation/failure. He created an app for farmers (Video/text/multiple languages/crop wise) who has helped millions of farmers in India (he has 500,000 downloads!!).
3. Hemkesh Agrawal : So now I know how and where complex starts from! This kid is 16 years old and has made a glove for the visually impaired using which they can dial important numbers, call a cab, switch on /off AC/TV etc! What was I doing when I 16 again :) On a serious note: you must watch out for this kid! So proud of him !
4. Special mention to Monalisa Sagar : the Royal Bengal Tigress ! Her struggle story is heart wrenching. I can write another piece on each of these amazing entrepreneurs.
Last but not the least, people who made it possible
- Rahul Narverkar & the whole team of Indian Network: Thank you for everything. Sonia from Indian Network worked day in, day out organizing everything. Rahul was himself there to ensure everyone was charged up !
2. Sachin from Xenia App : Look this guy up and you wouldn’t ever want to miss meeting him if you are in New York. The man behind mango revolution (and who gave it up), who is now disrupting the travel booking space with Xenia — has a packed schedule with investors chasing him (and he doesn’t want the money!) and still managed to pull off Surive & Thrive. His wife to be — Mithila — took the hospitality even post event to another level. Together, these two are a magnificent!
3. Kean Wong : He is another great find for us. A magician with videos and an even better human being. Thank you Kean for being you & thank for the amazing dinner in New York!
4. Marva Allen — You are a true inspiration. I am thankful to the almighty for putting is in touch. Keep inspiring & smiling.
5. David Schreiber — Thank you for the amazing venue and even better hospitality!
All in all : amazing experience. 5/5
