Just when I started building 1place, I conducted a research on all social media giants and found this compelling statement made by facebook - changing the way people communicate, will always change the world.
Now that we are only communicating through whatsapp, they certainly did a good job! So facebook has changed the world - we don't talk to each other anymore, we communicate through whatsapp.
After researching for months and reading numerous books and articles, I realised - what happened to SMS, will eventually happen to whatsapp. And when it does, what will be the next big thing? Will it be Indian?
As I set out to understand the landscape through the eyes of consumers, by talking to them, one thing stood out - till the age of 40 or 50, a normal person’s needs change every 5 years or so.
Being “social” is a human need. And like everything else, our social needs change too. Platforms that started as “social networks” to support our social needs have long ago turned into social media.
If you echo my sentiments, please read on. I have spent the last 1 year agonising about what my life would be like 5 years later if I continued using the same social media, with the same content being repeated again and again. I also deeply immersed myself in understanding consumer psychology and product development.
I grew up in a simple middle class family. My father was deputy GM at Ultratech cement before he passed away. I’ve been trying to fill his space ever since.
My dad with me when I was 2/3 years old.
My parents did not have a son, so I was raised like one. Being an Indian, I’ve always felt incomplete during the Rakshabandhan festival.
My mom with my sister and me - on my sister’s 2nd birthday
When I was 8 years old, a girl friend suggested I tie rakhi to her brother because I did not have one. So I asked them to come home after school. After they left, my mom ran behind me with the “chappal”.
She did not appreciate the new relationship I was being forced into(by my friend) and one she didn't sign up for(because I called them home)!
Both my grandfathers died when I was very young. They were both strong, influential men with leadership that passed on generations after.
I skipped a grade(junior kindergarten) because my teachers believed I was a fast learner and had a bright mind.
My dad bought me a computer when I was 12 - because I spent a lot of time going to the nearest cyber cafe at the age of 11! That was the first time I fell in love - yes, with the computer. We got the dial-up internet too and I felt like there was nothing in the world I could not achieve.
I spent my Sundays at Narmad library in Surat where I borrowed the famous five, secret seven, nancy drew books from. I loved reading them as they transported me to the world of imagination.
I had a strict and disciplined upbringing. On most days I remember my father’s tenets that he repeated often for us -
<aside> 💡 “Knowledge is power”
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<aside> 💡 “Simple living, high thinking”
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<aside> 💡 “Early to bed, early to rise”
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<aside> 💡 “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing”
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