CHENNAI : It’s 6 pm and CEOs of several city-based startups line up outside the conference room of Crowne Plaza, to have a quick rendezvous with Shradha Sharma, CEO, YourStory. She is an inspiration to budding entrepreneurs. Sharma was in the city to kick off YourStory’s Tamil Nadu chapter. In a tete-a-tete, she walks us through her 10-year journey.
From being a BA history graduate, obtaining a master’s degree from Mudra Institute of Communications Ahmedabad (MICA), working in several news organisations, and starting her own digital media space in 2008, to becoming a successful entrepreneur, Shradha has come a long way. “I had written once that one should always remember their starting line. As we move forward in life we sometimes tend to forget it. In my case, I came from a background where expectations were less and sometimes our expectations from our own self is also less. So, to look back and retrospect the distance I have travelled makes me feel really good,” shares Shradha, who has been named the third most powerful influencer on LinkedIn in India, after Narenda Modi and Priyanka Chopra.
In 2008, Shradha says, there was a “madness” to start her own media platform, and without thinking twice, she flagged it off. “I didn’t think of money...I didn’t think of how hard it was going to be. I just wanted to be the voice of people, their business and ordeals. The last 10 years have been gratifying, hard, painful and sometimes even humiliating. There have been times when I wanted to give up. But, it’s all about waking up the next day and saying ‘I am going to move forward’. The purpose of telling these stories has driven me so far,” she shares.
For Shradha, every story matters. “To have been part of the startup boom has been very satisfying and healing. It is a very selfish exercise,” she says.Tamil Nadu is the fourth largest Indian state in terms of size, second largest in terms of GSDP and houses the maximum number of industrial clusters in the country. This evident potential of the state, she says can be further maximised by encouraging and nurturing entrepreneurship and start-ups. “We want to bring several stakeholders, the old and new world of business in Tamil Nadu together. Through Tamil Nadu, we will now strive to build and expand strong, profitable small and medium businesses, by telling their stories,” she explains.
Emphasising on how despite all the cynicism, she was able to waltz through, she says, “When you do something good, it always bounces back. That’s how my journey has been...I helped entrepreneurs and they have helped me back. They have helped me with love and criticised me with love. It goes on to prove that despite all the cynicism, if you stick to your true purpose, it comes back in plenty.”
An indefatigable crusader of mental health, and a depression survivor herself, she highlights why it is important to talk about one’s mental state, unapologetically. “In the business world, sometimes we tend to forget our needs and mental health. I have been through depression, taken medical help and have always been open about it. There’s nothing to be ashamed of,” she says.
Her advice: meditate for one hour every day and spend some alone time with yourself. “I do it every day and night. It has helped me a lot... it’s sometimes phenomenal to be with yourself and just breathe,”
she says. “Unlike a decade ago, today opportunities and support for start-ups are aplenty. People are ready to help and it’s a great time for SMBs, but they should be ready to take the plunge,” she shares.