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Launched in 2014, StoryBites is a weekly feature from YS, featuring notable quotable quotes in our articles of this past week (see the previous post here). Share these 40 gems and insights from the week of April 5-11 with your colleagues and networks, and check back to the original articles for more insights. See also our special compilation of quotes related to India’s coronavirus responses here.

As the startup and investing ecosystem matures, it is natural to see large, well-known startups plan their IPOs to create liquidity for existing investors, and tap the public markets for their long-term financing needs. – Rahul Khanna, Trifecta Capital

Today, there are enough professionals willing to bet on startups as an asset class. – Vinod Shankar, Java Capital

The gestation period for cultural enterprises is often longer than other products and services. It’s therefore important to stay confident and keep doing the right set of things. – Aayush Rathi, Roobaroo Walks

While advisors will keep guiding, the onus of getting the best out of them lies with the founders/co-founders. – Anurag Jhanwar, Fintrust Advisors

India has one of the largest market sizes, but the most successful startups come out of a handful of cities. – Piyush Verma, Manush Labs

The Indian startup ecosystem is emerging as a strong value creator. – Vinod Murali, Alteria Capital

Consultative selling rather than product-based selling is the approach that finds greater resonance among new-age businesses. – Vivek Bindra, Bada Business

Emotional intelligence is THE critical success factor for a strong organisational culture. – Michael Sutton, ‘Emotify’

It is critical for us to have not just inside-out innovation, but also outside-in innovation. – Shrijeet Mishra, ABMCL

The capacity to hold meaningful, quality, and impactful conversations is a core knowledge management capability. – David Gurteen

Designers will play the role of design facilitation. They will nudge the teams to come up with solutions, and provide platforms and environments where design can lead the conversation. – Manish Vashist, IBM

Lithium-ion batteries are the cornerstone of the country’s ambitious green energy development plan. – Shiv Nath, Waaree ESS

The used car market in India is huge and ripe for reinvention. – Adam Valkin, General Catalyst

Car leasing and subscription is fast-catching pace in the country and has a great future ahead. – Tarun Lawadia, PumPumPum

The new age workforce mantra is to lease assets like house, consumer durables, and even cars so that it keeps them detached and mobile when changing jobs or home base. – Vinay Bansal, IPV

Cloth diaper penetration in India is expected to reach global levels due to the preference of Indians for cloth nappies. – Deepak I. Shahdadpuri, DSG Consumer Partners

Milk is a recession-free business, capable of growth in COVID-19 times. – Prashant Narang, Agility Venture Partners

MSMEs face a frequent need for urgent credit, catering to which becomes a challenge causing drastic cash flow disruptions. – Shachindra Nath, U GRO Capital

The modern-day consumer expects products to possess German engineering, Japanese quality, Italian finish, American marketing, and Chinese pricing combined with India’s hospitality. – Kanishka Arumugam, EKKI

We have about 65 crores young Indians, and if each of them chooses one underserved section of the society, things can look very different for India. – Girish Kulkarni, Snehalaya

Families and children are so important to our society, and to dedicate your life to trying to improve their lives is completely satisfying. – Jane Bolin

Sustainability is the future of everything. If something isn’t sustainable, it isn’t worth having. – Shahnaz Husain

For any soil to be referred to as organic, the land must be free from all prohibited substances for at least three years before the harvest of a crop. – Rajashekhar Reddy Seelam, Sresta Natural Bioproducts

Adopting sustainable fashion is a lifestyle choice, and we need to realise that caring about the planet is not a seasonal choice, but needs to be done all year round. – Premal Badiani

The biggest win for any idea or change is when people accept it to be their practice of change. – Garvita Gulhati, Why Waste?

Happiness and health comes when you are in sync with nature. – Dimple Jangda, ‘Prana by Dimple Jangda’

Inclusion is not just for women, but for those with disabilities, those from the LGBTQIA community. – Jayanthi Vaidyanathan, PayPal India

There are very few organisations that look at diversity in a holistic way. – Tina Vinod, ThoughtWorks

The chasm is closing in now as we have more role models, more women VCs, and more accelerators focused on nurturing women-led startups. – Anisha Singh, She Capital

Women investors will be helpful in explaining why females will look at financial products differently than men. – Radhika Agarwal, Blume Ventures

Women being allowed in mining has been a revolutionary decision. – Arun Misra, Hindustan Zinc

Female workforce participation in India has been declining from an already low 35 percent in 2010 to about 20 percent in 2020. – Sumita Ambasta, Flowering Tree Inc.

Half the women in the developing world do not have access to any kind of period product. – Ira Guha, Asan

People still largely think that it is immoral to discuss women’s periods. – Peerzada Aaqib Nazar

Anything that touches your heart is art, and it is present in our daily life. Just slow down, look around, and you will sense it. – Rohini Choudhary, Chitra Santhe

One only thinks about the stars as the pinnacles of success but there are many people who are busy within the [music] industry and successfully living fulfilling lives. – Ashutosh Pathak, True School of Music

Success is courage, passion, and perseverance – and the opportunity to put a smile on an individual’s face. – Sowmya Beena, Chitra Santhe

There is always a mix of conventional and contemporary elements, but however one prefers their images, photographs will always bring back memories of moments long gone, but deeply cherished. – Shrey Bhagat, KBWPV

Discover your heART from within and live with your heART. – Thomas Kallarackal, Chitra Santhe

First, discover your passion, and money and success will follow. – Rina Shah

The most beautiful thing about a person is confidence, and a person who is comfortable in their skin exudes confidence like no one else. – Shahnaz Husain

If you don’t believe in yourself, who will? Go for it! – Sahar Mansoor, Bare Necessities

Start now. There is no perfect time or place or idea, so do it now. You can figure it out while building it. You will either have an experience or an experiment. – Arjita Sethi, New Founder School

Don’t fear failure. Failure just means you are learning, Keep failing, because you will be learning your entire career. – Rohini Choudhary, Chitra Santhe

YS has also published the pocketbook ‘Proverbs and Quotes for Entrepreneurs: A World of Inspiration for Startups’ as a creative and motivational guide for innovators (downloadable as apps here: Apple, Android).