E-Cell started in Datta Meghe College of Engineering

LEGENDARY Bruce Lee once said, ”Knowing is not enough, we must apply. Willing is not enough, we must do”. The latter part of his quote is what lies at the heart of “ENTREPRENEURSHIP” is what I learnt when I attended a workshop organized by E-CELL DMCE in association with E-CELL, IIT Bombay, all due to the hard work of a final year student, Mr. Ankit Jaiswal, College Representative, E-CELL DMCE and the support of Mr. Samir Ekbote, Training & Placement Officer, Datta Meghe College of Engineering, Airoli, Navi Mumbai. The turnout was phenomenal. Almost 100 students, professors and businessmen had attended the “ILLUMINATE-prepare your B-plan” workshop.  Majority of the attendees of that workshop are also now the current working members of the Team of E-CELL DMCE. E-CELL DMCE started out as a Team that had participated in “National Entrepreneurship Championship”, an annual championship organized by E-CELL, IITB , but has now had a permanent place in the College, with its own Faculty Advisor, Dr. Aruna Henry, and the supportive authorities of the college. The team moved on to complete the tasks given under the NEC and in process has now become its own Organization ( some of the tasks being aimed at forming a structured organization, hats off to the task planners!) with like-minded and nevertheless talented individuals ranging from First Year to Final year of all branches.

E-CELL DMCE is currently at 25^th position nationwide! The team rejoiced and we went after the tasks harder than we did earlier. Mind you the Championship was held nationwide and hundreds of colleges had participated.

E-CELL DMCE is currently at  25^th position nationwide!

People now discuss ideas of tackling problems that arose during tasks. They collaborate selflessly to make E-CELL DMCE a credible organization. The Teams interviewed the Professors on the need of Entrepreneurship in Colleges. Event-heads voraciously took on each task as a challenge and involved students in various Competitions like Debate on the topic of “Job vs Entrepreneurship”, “Business Quiz”, Group Discussions, were organized within the campus.

Competitions like Debate on the topic of “Job vs Entrepreneurship”, “Business Quiz”, Group Discussions, were organized within the campus

It did not stop here. We teamed up with an NGO to organize a fair for the under-privileged children from slums of Mumbai to bring smile to their faces during Diwali festivities. E-CELL is currently looking for mentor entities that encourage entrepreneurship activities. A lot of events are yet to happen in Datta Meghe College of Engineering. Stay tuned…

We teamed up with an NGO to organize a fair for the under-privileged children from slums of Mumbai to bring smile to their faces during Diwali festivities

Student bodies like E-CELL helps students a lot to learn about the challenges, perks and difficulties in working in an Organization. These Cells provide them an outlet to voice their ideas. They get a hands-on experience of taking an idea from the phases of inception, to planning and Execution. Communicating your idea, or “Pitching” your idea, as we call it in the E-CELL, is one of the most important qualities one learns early on. People in E-CELL now share their enthusiasms, encourage others, work together and see things to completion. Learning your Strengths and weaknesses as a Team player at this stage in life saves a lot of leaning later on. The benefits are end-less.

So if there is no E-CELL in your Institution, it’s your chance to take initiative and start an ENTREPRENEURSHIP CELL.

POINTS TO PONDER FOR BEGINNER ENTREPRENEURS:

1 E for Entrepreneur, E for Executionist

An entrepreneur is all about executing the idea (s)he has in mind. You don’t need to be a jack-of-all-trades. Find the correct means and people to get the work done. No problem is impossible to solve in the world of entrepreneurship.

2 Be Optimistic

An entrepreneur must stay optimistic even in face of a trouble. Worrying never helps and people look up to you as a stable anchor who’ll keep the ship grounded.

3 Listen before you speak

Listening is a very important quality that you can possess (if you haven’t earned it yet, start right away!). A lot of top CEOs and other successful businessmen will attest to this lesson.

4 Be water, my friend

Never start anything un-prepared. The worst thing you can do is jump in the ocean without your scuba-gear. But remember also to improvise. A rigid plan will fail eventually. It never hurts to have backup ideas and contingency plans.

5 The Enterprise is bigger than the Entrepreneur

The enterprise is always bigger than the entrepreneur, in this case you. Yeah you may have started the organization, but it has now become bigger than any individual. Make decisions that are beneficial to the Enterprise irrespective of your personal loss or gain or anyone else’s for that matter.

(Courtesy : Vinayak Gosale and Shradhha Patel )