The passion for entrepreneurship seems to have engulfed the Generation Z.
Ojas Batra, 16, from Agra is an extraordinary teen entrepreneur who quit school at the age of 10 and ventured into entrepreneurship with the conviction the current education system is not adequate in adding the skills needed for success in the digital era.
Ojas was more comfortable in interning with top companies to acquire new age skills in areas like Web 2.0, Gaming industry, Digital Marketing, and E-commerce among others. Ojas calls himself a purebred entrepreneur.
Having bootstrapped many E-commerce ventures and acquired by big brands, Ojas is running his own consultancy and offering marketing and product advice to many brands and companies.
In his conversation with Business Views Editor G. Kalyan Kumar, Batra opens up on the rationale of his career decisions that won him earn 6 figure income, new goals, and vision of the emerging digital world.
Read on…
You quit school at the age of 10 and what gave you the confidence that you will succeed? Also, how supportive were the parents?
I had the confidence that my strategy and vision will make me succeed and the bigger thought that I do not have to fear failure, I am just 10 and I have nothing much to lose. My parents were curious.
They stood by me despite the idea of leaving school was a bit surprising as they understood my reasons and were convinced I had a backup plan and we agreed on a certain time frame for this experimentation.
The consensus was if during the trial phase something good happens and the path is promising I would stick to it else I will go back to school. Now I don't have to go to school as the path has taken me miles ahead.
What were the early influences that made you explore the space of digital markets and e-commerce for grooming as a consultant and entrepreneur?
To be frank, I did not have any influencers who shaped my mindset. I had set my sights on E-commerce and marketing. But the first person who inspired me and I got connected was Gary Vaynerchuk and I still follow him because I like his thinking and mindset.
Could you explain the core idea behind your Drop Shipping concept in layman language?
Dropshipping is not a concept created by me. It has been in use all around the world and the basic concept is that- one person has the product, I sell that product if someone buys it I pay the person to ship it to consumer and there is no burden of maintaining an inventory and the process stays safer.
Although you were averse to traditional schooling you have interned with many organizations, how fat that has helped you in the growth?
That helped me in two ways, one knew more about the corporate structure where I interned with and it also gave me a closer look at the employees working there. In startups, I benefited a lot from the guidance of mentors like founders, CEOs, CMOs, and CTOs in terms of new learning that aided my growth.
What are your top achievements so far? And what are the major plans for the future?
My top achievement has been getting my first startup acquired within a year. Plans include continuing with my start-ups, expanding my marketing agency, and network.
What is your message to students In India who normally face a struggle in developing their careers?
I have learned that there are problems in our education system. The question is--can you leave it? If yes, then leave it with good planning. If you cannot leave, then weeping about it makes no sense.
Perhaps the best thing you can do is learning new skills in extra time and experiment with those skills for broadening career options and see where that takes you!
I would recommend using social media to connect with good mentors to grow and do everything you want in a particular field. Give it 3-9 months if it works, and you like it then you've found your calling if don't regret and move on to the next skill!
