We plan to bring eChai across 100 cities in India. It starts with eChai Startup Demo Day on 26 September, all in person. 13 cities confirmed, 698 founders registered. Any city that reaches 20 interested founders is on too. See your city

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How do I build a founder network intentionally instead of hoping it happens? Treat it like a habit, not an event: pick a weekly cadence (one meetup, three helpful DMs, one thing shared in public) and keep it up for a year. N... Intermediate 3 resources → Should I set up a formal advisory board, or just keep a few informal advisors? At pre-seed and seed, skip the formal board. A named 'advisory board' with titles and equity grants creates admin, expectation, and cap-table clutt... Intermediate 3 resources → How do I turn my early customers and investors into informal mentors? Your best mentors are often people already financially tied to you, and you are underusing them. Investors want you to win, so send a short monthly... Intermediate 3 resources → How do I get a warm introduction to an investor when I don't know anyone who knows them? Stop treating warm intros as something you either have or don't. You manufacture them. Map the target investor's portfolio founders, then get to kn... Intermediate 3 resources → How do I build a peer group of other founders at my exact stage, not just senior mentors? Senior mentors give perspective, but founders one step ahead of you give tactics you can use this week. Build a tight group of four to six founders... Beginner 3 resources → How do I stay on a busy mentor's or investor's radar between meetings without being annoying? The founders who get ongoing help are the ones who keep the relationship warm without asking for anything most of the time. Send a short progress n... Beginner 3 resources → How do I find a mentor for one specific gap like sales, hiring, or pricing rather than a generalist? General 'startup mentors' are overrated. What moves the needle is someone who solved your exact problem 18 months ago. If you need sales help, find... Intermediate 3 resources → How do I know when an advisor or mentor relationship has run its course, and how do I gracefully end it? An advisor who stops adding value but keeps vesting equity is a slow tax on your cap table and your time. Signs it is over: their advice is now gen... Advanced 3 resources → As a founder building from India, how do I build a network with global investors and operators without moving abroad? You do not need to relocate, you need to be discoverable and credible from where you are. Build in public on the platform your target buyers and in... Advanced 3 resources → How do I actually use an accelerator or program alumni network after the program ends instead of letting it go cold? Most founders get 5 percent of the value out of an alumni network because they wait for it to help them. Treat the alum directory as your highest-t... Intermediate 3 resources → How do I evaluate whether a well-known name actually adds value as an advisor or is just borrowing my traction for their portfolio? A famous advisor with 40 logos on their profile is usually collecting equity, not giving time. Before you grant anything, run a diligence call: ask... Advanced 3 resources →

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