10k in Hyderabad

SK sent me a mail yesterday about successfully completing the 10 K race in Hyderabad. Here is a blog entry from the race.

Quite impressive the Hyderabad 10K has been organized for the past two years at least. More details about the Organizers on the official web-site.

A small idea - GIANT step

Wonderful idea by our pal N.P to bring in the importance and make people health conscious, It would be a great idea to be conceived in India. RUN, JOG, WALK, Lots of people (Indians) do all these regularly or at their ease without being noticed or rewarded, but they are truly rewarded with a good health. If the same people stand to call upon a friend , fellow-human and give him this reward which he may not have assumed to get for the silly RJW (run,jog,walk) then he is doubly rewarded with both health and satisfaction in helping. Lets all put our legs forward which may be a giant step towards the public health. Opportunity to give back to the society around us.

For-profit or Non-Profit

One key question to be answered before starting up a full-fledged company is "Will this be a for-profit organization or will it be a Non-profit organization?"

It seems very obvious this should be a non-profit outfit given the objectives.

However, I am fairly convinced that social welfare initiatives need not be money-sinks, and that charity has its limits in advancing any initiative very far. In my view (to a large part influenced by the Capitalistic economy I live in, and the ideas expressed in the book Games Indians Play having everyone's best interest CAN MEAN people make money.

I have to figure out if there is a way to package the product of this company in such a way that the objectives will be achieved as well as the company can sustain itself.

How to Start a Business in India

On checking with my MBA classmates about where to look for information on business law aspects related to starting a new company, JP referred me to the India National Portal.

The web-site is well-organized and seems to have useful information for anyone interested in starting a business in India.

Picked up the book My Start up life from the library. A handy book to have read while jumping onto the entrepreneurial boat.

Birth of an idea

I have been running in 5K races in US for the past year; have run in 7 or 8 races so far. I find these events to be a good way to be physically active as well as get to know people. I am proud of accomplishing something significant by the end of the run. I also enjoy the fun ambiance at these events. The 5K run, the kids run, the 1 km walk, the bazaar-like atmosphere, the refreshments, the sense of contributing to something bigger than myself, etc. all make it a wonderful experience.

Got to know about people organizing Ultra-marathons in India. This idea - with an objective to popularize running in India - seems to be totally misplaced!

When majority of the population have no time for "wasting" on health-related "luxuries" of even devoting 15 minutes of their day on exercising, promoting Ultra-Marathons only serve to make the sport even remote for the majority of the population.