An Opportunity: Startup Weekend Ahmedabad 2013

Most people have bright ideas and they stop at that. Ideating something is a sort of romantic affair because you don’t need to do anything then except putting your bright idea on a piece of paper. We come face-to-face with fear (of failure) when we have to take that first important step, initiate and get into action – and that too, without any support or guidance. The essence is in the act.

Most people with these glorious ideas don’t necessarily need capital alone. They need other people who are passionate, who can validate their idea and help them in executing. They need handholding through this process.

Last week, I was reading about Startup Weekend (SW) – a global entrepreneurship movement that focuses on experiential education for entrepreneurs and would-be entrepreneurs. This event has happened in 195 cities covering 65 countries (as in 2011) and is helping people realize their ideas.

The concept behind SW is simple – people with interest in starting their own ventures spend a weekend together (54 hours) in a group and present their ideas, get like-minded individuals on-board, collaborate and start quick prototyping. During this time, they get support from well-known mentors and industry experts to fine-tune their ideas before pitching their business idea to Venture Capitalists on the last day.

In India, SW is happening in almost every major city and I am particularly excited about the fact that it is happening in the city I live in – Ahmedabad – a city known for a very diverse entrepreneurial culture. The event is scheduled from 1^st to 3^rd March 2013 at IIM – Ahmedabad. The line-up of mentors and judges is impressive.

If you are someone who wants to bring your ideas to life, this is an opportunity to do just that. Even if you are not ready yet and wish to start in a few years down the line, this is a great opportunity to make yourself aware about what goes into building a venture. Who knows, you may start sooner than you planned!

A statistic by CEO of Startup Weekend says that 58% of teams had a working beta at the end of the weekend. Great stuff, isn’t it?

Check out Startup Weekend Ahmedabad’s website for more details about the event.

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