Rohan's contribution to Small is Beautiful was a talk about the business side of things: a self-vivisection of his business, 21 Awake. 21 Awake solves mindfulness problems, helping you to bring more calm and insight into your life. Rohan asked himself: How do you create products that you can scale, but maintain integrity in your practice of mindfulness?
21 Awake & Buddhify – 21Awake is a microbusiness, run by Rohan – but he often says "we" when talking about the work. 21 Awake solves mindfulness problems. Mindfulness is a buzzword in mental health circles, but the premises are: How can I bring more self awareness, calm, compassion to my life? How can I bring those qualities to my work-life, relationships, family, digital life, and general urban over-stimulation?
3 Metrics of Success – for the 21 Awake app, Buddhify, these are 1. Sales, 2. Coverage & 3. Feedback. They are all as important as each other, and all feed each other.
Sales: 60,000 units sold, which Rohan is happy with.
Coverage: is important – traditional and online media coverage supports sales and changes the conversation about the product.
On Feedback – The sales are nice, they mean that mortgages get paid, the coverage is nice, but the feedback is the stuff that knocks you for six. That is when you hear about the value people are getting from it. Feedback is the stuff that knocks you for six. User feedback is a dominant factor in decision-making for moving forward.
On Competition – Buddhify has 2 main competitors in the space – and are often mentioned side-by-side; but these 2 competitors come from big, well invested tech companies, Rohan is a one man band in Glasgow. "I have a big Fear Of Missing Out. At the moment I'm in the top 2 or 3 people doing this work, but the market is really taking off. In 2 years time there will be 10, not 2, companies working in this space. I have a genuine fear that I'll still be the small guy in the garage being ignored."
The Challenge – How do you create products that you can scale, but maintain integrity in your practice of mindfulness? Rohan identified 3 possible routes: The Start-Up; The Producer/Artist; and The Studio.
Space, Love & Understanding – "Money can buy us the space to do what we do, to make the product, Love is so important for us, to generate love within our community, and Understanding is vital, because the conversation about mindfulness, the conversation about technology and the mind is very poorly understood in the mainstream, so we need to support that conversation and the community of practice and make that a primary part of our objectives."
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Watch Rohan's talk:
Rohan Gunatillake from Small is Beautiful on Vimeo.
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Here's more from Rohan Gunatillake through our Twitter live feed!
Today Rohan is talking about the business side of his app & mindfulness work. "A self-vivisection of my business." #smallisb
— Small is Beautiful (@SmallisB) June 5, 2014
3 Metrics of success: Sales, Coverage & Feedback. All important as each other. But feedback is the stuff that knocks you for six. #smallisb — Small is Beautiful (@SmallisB) June 5, 2014
For Rohan & Buddhify, user feedback is a dominant factor in decision-making for moving forward. #smallisb
— Small is Beautiful (@SmallisB) June 5, 2014
.@rohan_21awake - mindfulness anywhere & everywhere w @buddhify - can't wait to try it! Thanks for sharing #smallisb pic.twitter.com/g1sex3LU7L — Jessica Armstrong (@jlarmstrong_pro) June 5, 2014
Dichotomies at play: the city & the forest; the arts & the heart. Rohan realised they're the same thing, have the same issues. #smallisb
— Small is Beautiful (@SmallisB) June 5, 2014
Another common factor: a bit part of starting a business for @rohan_21awake was creating a lifestyle he wanted. Show of hands? #smallisb — Small is Beautiful (@SmallisB) June 5, 2014
"That's all the good news… the bad news is I have a fear of missing out." @rohan_21awake #smallisb #FOMO
— Small is Beautiful (@SmallisB) June 5, 2014
.@rohan_21awake's metrics of success: space, love, & understanding. #smallisb — Tara Gentile (@taragentile) June 5, 2014
Going to borrow this slide in the future - lush #smallisb pic.twitter.com/yenUTLuN0R
— Gill Nicol (@lightsgoingon) June 5, 2014
"How do you create products that you can scale, but maintain integrity in your practice of mindfulness?" @rohan_21awake #smallisb — Small is Beautiful (@SmallisB) June 5, 2014
"The market is taking off…. I have a genuine fear that I'll still be the small guy in the garage being ignored." @rohan_21awake #smallisb
— Small is Beautiful (@SmallisB) June 5, 2014
"Small is Beautiful, but Scale is Seductive" —@rohan_21awake #smallisb #FOMO — David Kelly (@dvkly) June 5, 2014