This is a story about an MBA graduate who felt unfulfilled in his corporate job and decided to embark on an entrepreneurial journey. He came across a professor who was researching efficient solar cells but was struggling to commercialize the technology. Seeing this as an opportunity, he decided to help the professor create a business plan to bring this solar technology to the market.

A significant turning point was the 2004 tsunami disaster in Indonesia. It highlighted how the professor's solar technology could have been used to provide electricity and potentially save lives. This realization, although not directly related to business, ignited his motivation to commercialize the flexible solar cells. He managed to persuade the professor and some students to join his startup team. After years of pitching to investors, they finally secured initial funding to build a prototype production machine.

This story underscores the idea that an MBA education can equip you with entrepreneurial thinking, but it doesn't necessarily make you an entrepreneur. That requires an innate spark. Life in the corporate world after an MBA can seem mundane compared to the risk-taking environment of business school. However, it's important to remember that you'll never know if your business idea will succeed unless you give it a shot. After all, with the constant changes in the Fortune 500 list, job stability is more of a myth than a reality.

Another key insight is that creativity often peaks at a young age, making it an ideal time to start developing ideas, even if others doubt you. A student who built a keyboard cleaning business by chance serves as a perfect example of how simple observations can lead to innovative business concepts. To be a true entrepreneur, you need more than just the ability to run a business; you need persistence, vision, and business acumen.

In the early, chaotic days of a startup, an entrepreneur has to balance multiple priorities, keep the team motivated, and most importantly, pitch relentlessly to investors and partners. Strong presentation skills are crucial. It took some time for our protagonist to become comfortable with public speaking. This story, in essence, is a chronicle of the long, challenging, but ultimately rewarding journey of an entrepreneur who had the passion and vision to take a new technology from the lab to the market.