Think. Wait. Fast.

As the world attempts to untangle itself from the mess created by the novel Corona virus (which, at least to me, has some clear opportunities) I recently read a book called “Siddhartha” by Hermann Hesse. This book was previously recommended to me back in college, but I found the inclination to read it only recently. This wasn’t tough at all, as it takes less than four hours to read (I would advise reading it slowly and absorbing what it has to say than skim-reading). It describes the spiritual journey of a boy called Siddhartha living in the times of Gautam Buddha.

While I resonate very strongly with what Buddhism has to say, I am generally averse to books on spirituality and religion. There is no specific reason, I just feel that I am probably not at the stage in my life to be able to appreciate what these topics teach.

Also, in no way is this blog post a recommendation to read Siddhartha. With time, I realized that recommendations (unless they are coming from someone with whom I fundamentally connect with) usually don’t work for me, and in that sense finding something holds much more value than searching for something (even if it’s just a book). The joy that I experience when I stumble upon something of value (in life, on the internet) is extremely high compared to a recommendation.

With that out of the way, there is one message in the book that I resonated with deeply and wanted to write about. It might be relevant for some people (entrepreneurs certainly) but I won’t claim to know that for sure.

The boy Siddhartha, at a very early stage in life, is able to master three skills that become his mantra for a meaningful existence – Think, Wait, Fast. I felt an entrepreneur needs the very same skills in abundance to be able to create a company which is solving genuine problems and exists for a long time.

Think – The ability to understand the environment around us, recognize inefficiencies, to be naturally curious, to solve problems. In Siddhartha’s context, this meant gaining knowledge and perspective through books, religious teachings and surroundings. For a founder, this skill essentially means to always have a focus on problem solving, to be forever conscious of improving. Don’t get me wrong, this in no way means that you are unhappy or dissatisfied with what you have built so far, but just that your mind is configured in a way that it automatically focusses on the next stream of improvements to your service/offering than relying on what has already been accomplished.

Wait – The ability to have infinite patience. Looking for a fund-raise but the times are not conducive, Wait. Not sure which idea to work on, or you fell out with your co-founder? Wait. Waiting, or having patience should not be confused with inaction, as it usually won’t be the case for someone who Thinks. Siddhartha echoes this ability several times on his journey, and he feels ironically far away from spiritual nirvana when he becomes impatient for it.

Fast – One clarification, this is not fast in the speed sense of the word but rather the ability to survive despite being hungry. Siddhartha is able to develop a skill along his journey where he can go hungry for days, even weeks. And when he eats, even a couple of bananas or some rice are a delicacy to him. For entrepreneurs, this would translate to essentially being frugal in their outlook. Ask yourselves what is the absolute bare minimum you need to survive, and adopt that as your motto for your company, and even personal life, spouse permitting 🙂

There is another epiphany that Siddhartha experiences – while knowledge can be shared, wisdom can only come from personal experiences. So while it is all good to write about this kind of stuff, you will only truly connect with it once you have been in multiple situations that need you to Think, Wait, Fast.