At BrilliantRead Media, we always strive to bring meaningful and powerful stories from India and around the world to empower and motivate our growing community. As part of this endeavour, we invited Rajat Vashishta for an exclusive interview with us. He is an Entrepreneur, Career Coach and Founder at Resumod. Let’s learn more about his incredible journey, background, and his advice for our growing community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Rajat:
We are aware of your contribution to the ecosystem, talk us through your background and your journey as an entrepreneur, please;
I started back in 2009 when Flipkart was selling books and Zomato was Foodiebay. The entrepreneurship bug was just catching up and I really wanted to get on that bus.
My first project was interviewelements.com – a site that me and my 2 friends started in a bid to help students with their placement interviews. After this I started an art-retail project called Living Room Canvas, that was conceptualized as a market place for hobby artists and potential buyers. This is where I left my job with Evalueserve as a senior analyst to pursue this fully.
While Living Room Canvas was building, and I was struggling to understand how the supply chain and logistics would work, I was running out of money too. So I started writing resumes for people.
This eventually materialized into GetSetResumes being born in 2011, again with 2 friends. Gradually my friends moved out, Living Room Canvas crashed, and GetSet was without clients and money.
I gave myself 6 months more to make it work, or move back to a job. Fortunately, I found a business client and my business saw an upswing gradually. By 2013, GetSet started hiring and we built a team around Resume writing.
What attracts you towards entrepreneurship instead of a corporate career?
I always saw entrepreneurship as an unparalleled opportunity to address to solve real-world problems, to craft consumer-centric products, and to have a direct, positive impact on consumer psychology. Corporate jobs limit you. As an entrepreneur, you set your own limits. That was the reason for the shift.
While corporate careers offer their own set of advantages, including stability and structure, entrepreneurship affords a creative and innovative freedom unmatched in traditional employment settings.
For instance, when I launched Get Set Resumes, the market lacked a dedicated provider of professional resume writing services, despite evident demand. Over a decade later, our commitment to customer satisfaction and the delivery of premium quality professional documents at competitive prices remains unwavering. We have assisted over 50,000 customers in advancing to the interview stages.
In the last 15 years, I have pivoted innumerable times, changed the direction of a project, started something new, shut down something else. The learning has been immense and the effect of this journey on me as a person has been even more.
‘Resumod’ is such a unique name; talk us through more about it, please. Our audience would also love to know what kind of problem you are solving?
Resumod originated in April 2018 as a response to the frustration job seekers experienced with costly resume services. Officially launched in January 2019 and later rebranded in June 2021, our platform offers modern, intelligent resume-building tools that level the competitive playing field for job seekers.
Today, Resumod stands as one of the fastest-growing resume builders, featuring smart functionalities like AI content suggestions and LinkedIn-to-Resume conversion. However, our offerings have expanded to include a comprehensive suite of job search assistance tools, from interview preparation to an upcoming job-match feature, solidifying our position as a holistic career development solution.
What does your company specialise in?
Resumod was conceived to empower professional advancement through affordable and efficient resume building, interview preparation, and career planning tools.
Our mission is to facilitate successful job market navigation for our users, offering a platform that stands out for its accessibility and utility in today’s competitive job landscape.
How do you manage to keep going despite the challenges? What drives you?
Facing and overcoming challenges is intrinsic to the entrepreneurial path. My drive and belief in the importance of well-designed products have been key in navigating these hurdles.
Despite initial setbacks and the disruptive impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Resumod demonstrated resilience by adapting to the evolving market demands and continuously refining our platform based on user feedback, thereby maintaining our relevance and competitive advantage.
Who do you believe has been the biggest source of motivation in your daily life?
Mostly challenges, they drive me. If something seems tough, or cannot be done, then my thought is simple – I will keep trying until it gets done. So that is a good motivation, it keeps me excited.
If you are talking about a person, I don’t have any role models as such. I am rather more inspired by the founders in my circle, some of whom I look up to and try to emulate.
What are some of the strategies that you believe have helped you grow as a person?
My personal growth strategies revolve around continuous learning, perseverance, and effective leadership. By focusing on design principles, believing in products, and fostering empowered teams, I strive for continuous improvement and success.
A transformative habit for me has been adopting an early morning routine, which has not only improved my health and well-being but has also enhanced my productivity and allowed me to engage in activities such as gardening, exercise, and meditation, enriching my daily life and contributing to my professional success.
In your opinion, what are the keys to success?
I don’t feel I am successful yet so I really cannot say. I am happy in my space and still striving for success.
What has worked for me are the following things:
– Being open to change, any time and every time
– Taking action on things that are of priority
– Not procrastinating
– Starting an early morning routine/exercise routine
– Talking to like-minded and smarter people
– Spending time with family
What advice would you give students and young professionals who want to have a successful career?
My advice to students and young professionals is to focus on creating cost-effective, efficient, and innovative solutions within their fields. Despite your career choice, a commitment to continuous improvement and adaptability are keys to creating a meaningful career.
Not everyone can be an entrepreneur. That doesn’t mean you cannot contribute. A lot of successful people built remarkable things within their jobs. Focus on your work, your dharma and your karma.
Last but not least, what are the three most important lessons you have learned in your life?
> Ups and downs are all part of life. If you are up, be humble, if you are down, be hopeful. Time will always change.
> Change is the only constant. If you are not willing to change, you will be eliminated
> Your energy attracts people to you. If you are sending the wrong energy outside you will attract the wrong people. So if you are positive, helpful, others will be positive and helpful to you. Your karma will come back for you.
BrilliantRead is committed to bringing stories from the startup ecosystem, stories that reshape our perspective, add value to our community and be a constant source of motivation not just for our community but also for the whole ecosystem of entrepreneurs and aspiring individuals.
Note: If you have a similar story to share with our audience and would like to be featured on our online magazine, then please write to us at [email protected], we will review your story and extend an invitation to feature if it is worth publishing.
