Inspirational Quotes From Top 10 Entrepreneurial Leaders.

DIANA RANSOM, EDITOR Young Entrepreneur:8th Mar 2013

When you’re feeling weary,

 consider these brief words of encouragement

 from some of the top business leaders of our time:

1. Richard Branson: “Starting a business is a huge amount of hard work… You had better enjoy it.“
Entrepreneurs the likes of Richard Branson surely spend a lot of time answering questions about how they became successful. That may be why he decided to write it out in his regular Entrepreneur column “Richard Branson: Five Secrets to Business Success” So what’s his top secret? “Enjoy what you are doing… When I started Virgin from a basement flat in West London, I did not set out to build a business empire. I set out to create something I enjoyed that would pay the bills.”

Photo from Zap2It

2. Oprah Winfrey: “You must have some kind of vision for your life.” 
In a recent speech at Atlanta’s Spelman College the media mogul, Oprah Winfrey offered up her thoughts on the import of having a plan for the future. “Even if you don’t have a plan, you have to have a direction of where you want to go. Is there a plan, or are you just driving? You want to be in the driver’s seat of your own life, or life will just drive you.”

Photo from The IPKat

3. Steve Jobs: “People with passion can change the world for the better.” 
From the guy who not only said things like “put a dent in the universe” but actually did, it’s not surprising that the late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs was inspiration to people the world over. For more inspiring tidbits, check out “Steve Jobs and the Seven Rules of Success” by frequent Apple author and Entrepreneur.com contributor Carmine’s Gallo.

Photo from US Weekly

4. Martha Stewart: “I’m working — I’m on — all the time.” 
This hostess with the mostest often quips about the beauty of turning one’s passion into profits. But the truth is, entrepreneurship can be tough. At a panel discussion regarding ideas for fostering business ownership in the U.S. last year, Stewart notes the difficulties even she has being an entrepreneur. So chin up, she adds.

Photo from Harvard.edu

5. Tony Hsieh: “Chase the vision not the money.”
As the co-founder of Zappos.com, the online-shoe mega store, Tony Hsieh notes that power of purpose. “Passion will get you through the tough times, rub off on employees and have a ripple effect on customers, suppliers and business partners,” Hsieh tells Entrepreneur.com.

Photo from Talk Android

6. Eric Schmidt: “Find a way to say ‘Yes’ to things.” 
Speaking to new Boston University grads, Eric Schmidt the former CEO of Google shared his thoughts on the importance of being open. “Even if it’s a bit edgy, a bit out of your comfort zone, saying yes means that you will do something new, meet someone new and make a difference in your life and likely in others’ lives as well,” he says. “Yes is what keeps us all young. It’s a tiny word that can do big things. Say it often.”

Photo from The Richest

7. Michael Bloomberg: “You occasionally have to throw some elbows.” 
Speaking at a recent commencement ceremony at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the mayor of New York City and founder of the eponymous media juggernaut Bloomberg L.P. fleshed out his comment further. “It’s rough out there no matter what profession you’re in. I’ve been in the business world and I’ve been in government. People ask me all the time ‘what’s the difference?’ I always tell them, in the business world, it’s dog-eat-dog and in government it’s exactly the reverse. Don’t be afraid to assert yourself, have confidence in your abilities and don’t let the bastards get you down.”

Photo from Community Coalition

8. Russell Simmons: “You just have to pay attention to what people need and what has not been done.“
In 2009, when the hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons was ushering a new line of clothing into Macy’s, he commented on how he knows when a venture is worth pursuing. There will always be big holes in the market, Simmons suggests. “I don’t think I look for white space,” he says. “I think the world is a white space.”

Photo from Online PR Media

9. Gary Vaynerchuk: “The reason I became successful is because I touched. I touched my community.“
Social-media maven and author of Crush It! and The Thank You Economy, Gary Vaynerchuk describes what he says is the source of his success. “It was the 10 to 15 hours a day from 2006 to 2009 that I spent communicating via email and then later on through twitter and Facebook,” he says. “I responded to every single person,” he says. “I think that matters.”

Photo from TV Fanatic

10. Sara Blakely: “Don’t be afraid to fail.“
In an interview with Entrepreneur.com’s Teri Evans, Sara Blakely, the founder of Spanx imparted some familial wisdom: “My dad encouraged us to fail,” she says. “Growing up, he would ask us what we failed at that week. If we didn’t have something, he would be disappointed. It changed my mindset at an early age that failure is not the outcome, failure is not trying.”

Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires -Patricia Narayan

Restaurant-chain owner Patricia Narayan started out as an amateur cook. Photo: H.K. Rajshekhar

Aditya  :Sharma  :Reader's Digest;March 2013

They’ve made big money, yet they’re just like you and I, except maybe in a few replicable ways

When you think millionaire, what image comes to mind? For many of us, it’s one who flies a private jet, owns several homes and expensive cars and lives a flashy lifestyle—affording most of it with loads of inherited wealth.

But many modern millionaires started out the hard way, live in middle-class neighbourhoods, work full-time and shop at discount stores like the rest of us. “For the rich, it’s not about getting more stuff. It’s about having the freedom to make almost any decision you want,” says T. Harv Eker, author of Secrets of the Millionaire Mind. Wealth means you can send your child to any school or resign from a job you don’t like.

According to the Merrill Lynch-Capgemini World Wealth Report 2011, the number of Indian millionaires (those who have a net worth of at least Rs5 crore, the equivalent of nearly a million US dollars, not counting the value of their primary residence) had more than doubled to 153,000 in two years.* (And remember, those counted here comprise only those who report their true incomes and pay their taxes.) Anyway, that figure is expected to triple in the next two years, according to a report in The Economic Times.

“When you are determined, 

the odds are in your favour.”

If more people are getting richer than ever, why shouldn’t you work hard and be one of them? Here, three self-made millionaires share the secrets that helped them get there.

No Guts, No Glory

Thirty years ago, Patricia Narayan hardly seemed on the road to wealth. Just into her 20s, she lived with her two small children and an abusive, alcoholic husband who couldn’t keep his job. “It was miserable and so hard to make ends meet, I returned to my parents’ home and yearned for a better life,” says Patricia. Today she’s a 54-year-old Chennai caterer and  restaurant-chain owner.

There was one big reason Patricia pulled ahead of others in her situation: Instead of moaning about her failing marriage, she decided she had to earn for herself and the kids and not be a burden to her family, although both her parents were gainfully employed.

Being ambitious and determined to succeed are crucial first steps. “The biggest obstacle to wealth is fear,” says Eker. “People are afraid to think big, but if you think small, you’ll only achieve small things.”

It all started after friends and neighbours routinely praised her cooking, something Patricia enjoyed. “They relished my pickles, jams and squashes. So I began to sell some to them,” she says. Next, she opened a food-kiosk at Chennai’s Marina Beach. “It was a whole year’s struggle getting the licence, but once I started, I made sure my home-made cutlets, sandwiches and other snacks were the best available  there,” says Patricia, who worked 16-hour days to cook, pack and sell, with the help of her husband and five employees. In a few years, she was also supplying food to the canteens of three big organizations, including a bank.

Meanwhile, Patricia’s life wasn’t a bed of roses. Her marriage unravelled and she got a divorce in 1991. In 2004, her daughter Prateepha and son-in-law died in a road accident, soon after they were married. After that Praveen, her son, resigned from his merchant navy job to join the business.

Realizing that Prateepha had died in an accident-prone area with no nearby medical facilities, Patricia started a free ambulance service to cover that stretch of highway.

“All along, it was hard work that kept my mind off the problems in my personal life,” she says. In 2006, Patricia opened Sandheepa, her own restaurant, which has since grown to 19 outlets in Chennai.

In 2009, Patricia won a coveted Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) Woman of the Year Award. “When you are determined, the odds are in your favour,” she says. “I constantly think about how to do better, and that usually gives me good ideas.”

Innovision India

infosys co-founder and Chairman Emeritus N.R. Narayana Murthy 

headed the panel that looked at the body's role

India should be branded as a centre for innovation: Nasscom panel

Goutam Das In B T :: March 4, 2013  | 23:58 IST

IT industry lobby Nasscom on Monday shared the recommendations made by a committee that looked at the body's role, going ahead, and its organisational structure. The panel was chaired by Infosys co-founder and Chairman Emeritus N.R. Narayana Murthy. 

The Murthy report has suggested that Nasscom re-align its structure to focus more on emerging sectors such as Internet and mobile commerce, software products as well as the domestic market. Vertical councils should shape the agenda of the body, the report added. Other focus acres include: IT services, Business Process Outsourcing, Engineering, Research and Development, and Captives or the Indian arms of multinationals. 

 The report also highlights the role the lobby needs to play to re-brand India as a business destination - from a country of order takers to a centre for innovation. Nasscom and Murthy insist that the re-branding is essential because "what we do is what should be reflected in the brand". 

 "Given that we want to become end-to-end solutions providers, given that we need more interactions at the boardroom level, with CXOs, we said it is right to brand India as a proactive provider of solutions rather than a reactive developer," said Murthy, addressing a query from BT on the need to re-brand the country, during a press meet in Bangalore. 

In the current business climate, where unemployment is still very high in developed markets, "outsourcing" has become a dirty word. Nasscom has silently worked to change the terminology the industry uses. For instance, Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) is now being called Business Process Management (BPM). 

To position India as an innovative solutions provider, the Murthy committee has recommended Nasscom holds many more international events, publishes research and case studies, and hold workshops to enable an innovation culture. 

Other suggestions include enhancing Nasscom's effectiveness by expanding its membership from 1,303 members now to 3,000 new members in five years. Of the current members, only 400 are actively engaged. The Murthy report wants Nasscom to provide knowledge and certification facilities in specialist domain areas. 

Apart from Murthy, other members of the expert committee included Krishnakumar Natarajan, CEO of Mindtree; Rajan Anandan, Managing Director of Google; Ganesh Lakshminarayanan, President of Dell India; Ashank Desai, founder of Mastek; Pramod Bhasin, former CEO of Genpact; and Som Mittal, President, Nasscom. 

Nasscom says the Indian IT industry can touch $300 billion by 2020 from $108 billion now. To become an enabler and remain relevant, it has to move fast in adopting the committee's recommendations.

Will Vijay Mallya use his wealth to save Kingfisher Airlines?

K.R. Balasubramanyam in B T :  Edition: March 17, 2013

He owns one of the world's most expensive yachts, a Formula One team and one of India's biggest premier league cricket teams. The net worth of liquor baron Vijay Mallya and his family has almost doubled to more than Rs 8,000 crore since UK drinks giant Diageo Plc picked up a controlling stake in United Spirits Ltd last November.

But the man dubbed the "King of Good Times" is still having a hard time bailing out his grounded Kingfisher Airlines.

Business Today's research shows the net worth of Mallya and his family has leapt by Rs 3,500 crore in the past year to Rs 8,296 crore, while the Kingfisher Airlines stock has plunged to about Rs 11 from Rs 30 last year, wiping out almost two-thirds of investor wealth.

The stock of the UB Group's flagship company, United Spirits Ltd, has jumped to about Rs 1,800 from Rs 685 in February last year, pushing up the value of shares held by Mallya, his family and his investment arms by Rs 2,200 crore. The share price of another UB company, United Breweries, has also risen above Rs 680 from about Rs 410 in February last year.

This increased the value of shares held by Mallya, his family and his investment firms by Rs 1,400 crore.

Mallya has been talking to investors for months to sell a stake in the debt-ridden Kingfisher and raise funds to revive the airline which has not flown since October. But so far, he has made little headway, and the airline is nowhere close to taking off again any time soon.

Kingfisher is saddled with a debt of more than Rs 13,000 crore and lenders are now moving to recover their loans. The core group of a consortium of 17 banks led by State Bank of India (SBI) has decided to recall loans worth over Rs 7,000 crore because the airline's promoters have so far not infused fresh funds.

The loan recall is a demand for immediate repayment or else the lenders can take control of any Kingfisher assets they hold as collateral.

"We will quickly proceed on the recovery process," says SBI Deputy Managing Director Shyamal Acharya.

Kingfisher has pledged several assets as collateral against the loans. They include the Kingfisher brand, prime properties in Mumbai and Goa, and shares of UB Group companies United Spirits and Mangalore Chemicals & Fertilizers. National Stock Exchange filings show 90 per cent of the promoter's 36 per cent holding were pledged as of December-end.

But experts say bankers and creditors such as airports and oil companies may have a tough time recovering even part of their dues. The banks have written off the airline brand which audit and consultancy firm Grant Thornton valued at Rs 3,000 crore in 2010 because they think it has little value under the circumstances.

Grant Thorton's valuation was based on the assumption that the airline would turn around with an infusion of funds. "Banks recall loans if a business ceases to be a going concern and stops operations altogether," says former Federal Bank Chairman M. Venugopalan.

FULL COVERAGE: Kingfisher crisis

The lenders have threatened to sell the shares of United Spirits and Mangalore Chemicals & Fertilizers put up as collateral. But one banker says selling the shares in the open market is not a practical solution as it would drive down the stock price.

Acharya says the consortium owns shares worth about Rs 500 crore in the two companies. UB Group officials are talking to banks about transferring the shares to Diageo through off-market transactions.

"The banks explicitly support the transaction with Diageo and will work with us in finding an orderly method of disposal of some of the pledged shares to Diageo if appropriate," says a UB spokesperson. 

Last month, the management paid a month's salary to some employees, but that may not be enough. The Airports Authority of India has taken steps to recover its dues from the troubled carrier. It has seized control of some planes parked at its airports and refused to allow lessors to retrieve them until the carrier pays airport dues of Rs 390 crore.

 "The banks and the government have done all they could, but there are no positive signs visible from the Kingfisher management to restart the airline," says Minister of State for Civil Aviation K.C. Venugopal.

Last month, the main stakeholder in Kingfisher, United Breweries (Holdings) Ltd, sought shareholder approval to more than double its loan limit to the airline to Rs 750 crore and slash investments to Rs 750 crore from Rs 1,200 crore. 

While markets gave the thumbs-up to the proposal, analysts say the move suggests the promoters prefer supporting the airline with debt rather than equity because they have little faith in its profitability. "If and when the airline goes under, UB (Holdings) too will cave in under the weight of the airline debt," says Kishore Ostwal, head of CNI Research in Mumbai.

Some media reports said Mallya may refer the ailing airline to the Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR), the government agency charged with turning around sick companies. Kingfisher is saddled with accumulated losses of about Rs 10,000 crore. But BIFR officials say the board does not consider non-industrial companies for rehabilitation. Either way, Kingfisher's turbulent patch is far from over.

Govt infuses Rs 1,248 cr in PNB, BoI gets Rs 809 cr

 BT :PTI    New Delhi   : March 7, 2013  | 00:00 IST

Two state owned lender Punjab National Bank (PNB) and Bank of India (BoI) on Wednesday said they have received capital infusion of over Rs 2,050 crore, following the allotment of preferential shares to the government.

The bank has received allotment money of Rs 1,247.99 crore from the Government of India on March 4, 2013, PNB said in a filing on the BSE.

It allotted 1.42 crore equity shares of the face value of Rs 10 each at a premium of Rs 863.05 on preferential basis to the government.

BoI, on the other hand, received Rs 808.99 crore from the government following allotment of 2.21 crore shares at a price of Rs 365.70 per unit on preferential basis.

Meanwhile, shareholders of the UCO Bank have approved the capital infusion of Rs 681 crore by the government on March 4, 2013.

The exercise is part of the Rs 12,517 crore capital infusion plan announced by the government in January.

Last year, PNB got capital infusion of Rs 1,285 crore.

The government infused about Rs 20,117 crore in public sector banks during 2010-11, and Rs 12,000 crore in 2011-12. 

Women Still Missing from Top Jobs in Business, Government in India: MasterCard Survey

Master Card Survey : 07 Mar 2013 04:07 AM PST

Women are still facing barriers to leadership positions in the government and private sector in India and across the Asia/Pacific region, according to MasterCard’s latest Index of Women’s Advancement.

The ‘MasterCard Worldwide Index of Women’s Advancement’ measures the socio-economic standing of women across Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa. The Index is comprised of three main indicators which are derived from additional sub-indicators: Employment (Workforce Participation,

 Regular Employment), Education (Secondary Education, Tertiary Education) and Leadership (Business Owners, Business Leaders, Political leaders). Each indicator measures the ratio of women to every 100 men in each of the 14  Asia/Pacific markets covered by the research. 

Scores are indexed to 100 to indicate how close or how far women in each market are to achieving socio-economic parity with men. 

A score under 100 indicates gender inequality in favor of males while a score above 100 indicates inequality in favor of females. A score of 100 indicates equality between the sexes. The Index and its accompanying reports do not represent MasterCard financial performance.

Overall, amongst the 14 Asia/Pacific markets, New Zealand ranked first (77.8 Index Score), followed by Australia (76.0), the Philippines (70.5), Singapore (67.5) and Taiwan (64.7). At the other end of spectrum, India (38.0), Japan (48.1) and Korea (49.7) had Index scores indicating that much more can be done to achieve gender parity. 

The education ranking of 79.3 shows that Indian women have access to secondary and tertiary education, but there are barriers preventing them from taking top positions in the government or private sector, as indicated by the leadership ranking of 15.9. 

Hence there is clearly much work to be done to remove such institutional barriers thereby allowing women to take up these leadership positions in business and government.

Again the employment ranking of 43.6 shows that some immediate improvements are required to enhance women’s participation in the workforce and to ensure that they are able to find regular employment.
Overall the survey indicates that there is a lot of room for improvement and a clear need for affirmative action to ensure Women’s advancement in Indian society and the workplace.

Georgette Tan, group head, Communications, Asia/Pacific, Middle East & Africa, said: 
“There is still a lot to be done in our region to enhance the role of women across all aspects of society; there are still too few women leaders in government and business, and not enough women-owned and run businesses.

 There are standout markets which have repeatedly improved in terms of advancing opportunities and access for women, but more needs to be done.” 

MasterCard and its Suite of Research Properties

The MasterCard Worldwide Index suite in Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa includes the long-running MasterCard Worldwide Index of Consumer Confidence, as well as the MasterCard Worldwide Index of Women’s Advancement, Online Shopping, Index of Financial Literacy, and the Index of Global Destination Cities. In addition to the Indices, MasterCard’s research properties also include a range of consumer surveys including Ethical Spending and a series on Consumer Purchasing Priorities (covering Travel, Dining & Entertainment, Education, Money Management, Luxury and General Shopping). 

MasterCard also regularly releases Insights reports providing analysis of business dynamics, financial policies and regulatory activities in the Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa region. Over 80 Insights reports have been produced since 2004.

MasterCard has also released a series of four books on Asian consumer insights, authored by Dr. Yuwa Hedrick-Wong, Global Economic Advisor for MasterCard Worldwide and published by John Wiley & Sons. 

Indian energy firms concerned about Venezuelan investments

Indian Oil corporation headquarters, Delhi. Photo: Ramesh Pathania/Mint


Utpal Bhaskar Live Mint :Thu, Mar 07 2013. 11 39 PM IST

Companies worried about the country’s hydrocarbon policy in the aftermath of President Hugo Chavez’s death

New Delhi: State-owned ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) and Oil India Ltd (OIL) are concerned about their investments in oil-rich Venezuela in the aftermath of President Hugo Chavez’s death.

These companies, which have invested billions of dollars in the South American country, have little option but to wait and watch whether the post-Chavez regime continues its hydrocarbon policy.

“We have asked our people to carefully watch the situation and advise us,” said T.K. Ananth Kumar, director, finance, at OIL. “We are carefully looking at the situation and taking appropriate action.”

Vice-president Nicolas Maduro is expected to contest the next presidential election against Henrique Capriles, governor of Miranda state, who lost to Chavez in last October’s poll.

With the election to be called within 30 days, under the Venezuelan constitution, and conventionally falling on a Sunday, it is expected to take place on 31 March.

Some significant investments made by the Indian firms in Venezuela include the one as part of a global consortium that is developing the Carabobo 1 Norte and Carabobo 1 Centro blocks in the Orinoco region.

OVL, IOC, OIL, Spain’s Repsol YPF SA and Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) are partners in the $13.63 billion project, where OVL, Repsol and Petronas each hold an 11% share, and IOC and OIL hold 3.5% each. The remaining 60% stake is owned by Corporación Venezolana del Petróleo (CVP), a unit of state-owned Petróleos de Venezuela SA. Initial production has started at this project.

Also, OVL has a 40% stake in San Cristobal project along with CVP, where it has made an investment of $355.7 million.

“There is likely to be continuity between the regimes. One thing that bodes in favour of investors is that the new person may look at things dispassionately,” said D.K. Sarraf, managing director of OVL. “At the same time, there are immediate short-term risks such as forex and economic concerns.”

Private sector refiners such as Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Essar Oil of the Ruias are the largest importers of Venezuelan crude oil. Venezuela has emerged as an important source of crude imports for India and supplied 15.14 million tonnes (mt) from April till December , as curbs imposed by the West on Iran for its suspected nuclear weapons programme affected sales of Iranian crude.

An RIL spokesperson didn’t respond to questions.

“Essar Oil enjoys good relationship with Petroleos de Venezuela SA, the state-run oil firm of Venezuela, and we understand that this development should not impact supply of crude from Venezuela to Indian refiners,” an Essar Oil spokesperson said in an emailed response.

Essar’s Vadinar refinery and RIL’s Jamnagar refinery are among the few facilities capable of refining heavy oil from Venezuela’s Orinoco region.

“There will be some confusion initially. Everybody is careful and watching how things evolve,” an IOC executive said, requesting anonymity. “It will be interplay of various forces. Given the fact that hydrocarbons are the biggest source of revenue for Venezuela, ultimately it is the economics that will bind people.”

Interestingly, Maduro has an Indian connection. He is a devotee of the late Sathya Sai Baba and visited Prasanthi Nilayam ashram in Puttaparthi, Andhra Pradesh, in 2005 along with wife Cella Flores, according to professor A. Anantharaman, spokesperson of Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust.

Supplies from India’s domestic energy sources are limited and the country depends heavily on imports—as high as 80% for crude and 25% for natural gas.

India’s energy demand is expected to more than double by 2035, from less than 700 million tonnes of oil equivalent (mtoe) today to around 1,500 mtoe, according to the oil ministry.

“The succession issue is very important, given the fact that the predecessor’s policies will be followed or not. One has to act diligently,” said Anil Razdan, a former special secretary in the petroleum ministry.

An Indian government official said Venezuelan supplies to India were unlikely to be affected. He declined to be named.

The concerns come in the backdrop of India’s overseas equity investments suffering even as Indian state-owned firms invested Rs.64,832.35 crore towards the overseas energy security efforts.

“ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) has produced about 8.753mmt of oil and equivalent gas during the year 2011-12 from its assets abroad in Sudan, Vietnam, Venezuela, Russia, Syria, Brazil, South Sudan, and Colombia. The estimated crude oil and natural gas production in 2012-13 is about 6.865 million metric tonne (mmt). The reasons for lower overseas production are geopolitical problems in South Sudan and Syria,” said the economic survey presented last month.

OVL’s D.K. Sarraf said that in an attempt to lower political risks, the company had invested in properties in different parts of the world, being ruled by different types of governments.

Yogendra Kalavalapalli in Hyderabad contributed to this story.