Kunal Shah on winning in India, second-order thinking, the philosophy of startups, and more

Mar 24, 2024 1h 18m 15 insights Episode Page ↗
Kunal Shah, CEO and founder of Cred, discusses the unique aspects of building products in India compared to US markets, including challenges like low ARPUs, high risk aversion, and the role of trust. He shares insights on the success of Indian CEOs, the power of curiosity, and second-order thinking.
Actionable Insights

1. Cultivate Curiosity & Adaptability

Prioritize demonstrating curiosity over expertise to foster continuous growth and adaptation. Cultivate the security to ask ‘dumb questions’ and embrace problems you don’t know how to solve, as this drives learning and innovation, allowing you to adapt like long-lasting species.

2. Develop Second-Order Thinking

Cultivate second-order thinking by asking ‘why’ questions about origins, choices, and future consequences, especially when observing successful individuals or historical events. This practice helps uncover deep insights and trains the brain for complex problem-solving.

3. Embrace Long-Term Thinking

Cultivate a long-term mindset, as short-term thinking often leads to bad behavior and limits lasting success. Choosing a long-term perspective is a significant decision that contributes to enduring achievements and cultural resilience.

4. Sustain Founder’s Dharma

As a leader, focus on sustaining the ‘dharma’ (core principles and values) of the company’s founders rather than imposing your own identity or seeking personal legacy. This humility helps maintain the company’s pure form factor and ensures long-term success.

5. Be an Uncertainty Absorber

As an entrepreneur, embrace the role of an ‘uncertainty absorber’ for employees, investors, and customers. Your ability to provide stability and remove uncertainty is a key value proposition and a driver of reward, especially as the company scales.

6. Apply Delta 4 Framework

Use the Delta 4 framework to assess product viability by rating existing solutions and your product on a 1-10 efficiency scale. Your product needs to be at least 4 points higher to be irreversible, have high failure tolerance, and generate unique brag-worthy propositions (lower CAC).

7. Focus on Hard Problems

Regularly reflect on and prioritize solving the hardest problems, especially as a senior leader, rather than just being busy. Emulate predators by expending minimal energy for maximum impact, focusing on high-conversion, significant challenges.

8. Filter Criticism Wisely

Filter criticism by prioritizing feedback from those who have achieved more than you or deeply understand your context, while largely disregarding comments from those who lack nuance or empathy for your work. This allows you to evolve without being derailed by unproductive negativity.

9. Learn from Others’ Failures

Actively learn from the failures of others, rather than believing you are special and immune to similar setbacks. This approach allows you to gain valuable lessons without personally experiencing every mistake.

10. Align with Country Values

Analyze a country’s existing profit pools to understand its inherent values, as these dictate where economic value is created. Avoid blindly copying profit models from other countries, as they may not align with local values.

11. Build Super Apps in Low-Trust Markets

In low-trust markets (common in developing nations), focus is a ‘curse’; instead, build super apps or leverage strong, trusted brands to offer multiple services. Consumers in these markets prefer concentrated trust over trying new, specialized products.

12. Adapt to Low ARPU Markets

When building products in low ARPU markets like India, avoid directly copying Western monetization strategies. Acknowledge that revenue per user is tied to per capita income, and plan for alternative monetization or international expansion if high ARPUs are critical.

13. Understand Time Value Differences

Understand that in markets where hourly wages are uncommon (e.g., India), the concept of valuing time is different, and paying for time-saving products or services may be challenging. This impacts product design and monetization strategies.

14. Adopt Conjectural Learning

Develop a learning method by forming conjectures based on existing knowledge, then actively seeking proofs across various domains (chemistry, physics, human behavior) to validate or refine them, using validated insights to connect further dots.

15. Share Learnings Openly

Share your learnings and evolving thoughts openly, without fear of judgment from peers. Your willingness to share your journey and insights can significantly benefit and educate many others.