Navigating the Entrepreneurial Journey in Healthcare: Insights from Priya's Story
In a recent discussion, we had the pleasure of hearing from Priya, a seasoned healthcare entrepreneur, strategist, and advisor with over 18 years of experience. Priya's journey is a testament to the power of continuous learning, adaptability, and the importance of community in the entrepreneurial landscape. Let's look into the key themes and insights from her journey, offering actionable advice on lessons present for entrepreneurs in the healthcare sector.
Early Influences and the Montessori Education System
Priya attributes much of her entrepreneurial mindset to her Montessori education, which she describes as "freedom within boundaries." This student-centered approach emphasizes participation and responsibility, encouraging children to drive their own education while being guided by teachers. Here are some key takeaways from Priya's discussion on Montessori education:
- Encouraging Curiosity: Montessori education fosters a logical and inquisitive mindset. Aspiring entrepreneurs must encourge this in themselves by intentionally dedicating time to learning the skills and knowledge that is relevant to their business. Problem-solving and innovation are absolutely vital skills in all of entrepreneurship, as without them a business cannot be expected to disrupt competitors in the space.
Embracing the Entrepreneurial Role
Priya's path to entrepreneurship was not straightforward. Initially, she did not see herself as an entrepreneur but rather as someone passionate about science and healthcare. As her business grew, her role as an entrepreneur became harder and harder to deny. Eventually, she fully embraced her role, and started to deligate, from which the growth of her business took off.
- Unexpected Opportunities: After being laid off from her job, Priya reached out to her network and secured consulting projects, marking the beginning of her entrepreneurial journey.
- Gradual Evolution: Over time, her consulting work grew, and she transitioned from a freelance business model to establishing a full-service agency, PFG MedComm. Rushing too quickly to the end of that evolution can cause instability in a venture, thus whilst it's important to move quickly in entrepreneurship, your business must be able to overcome the challenges put to it.
Actionable Advice
- For Aspiring Entrepreneurs: Embrace unexpected opportunities and be open to pivoting your career path. Often entrepreneurs are faced with important and unexpected decisions, being capable of pivoting to handle these opportunities will be vital in the journey of any entrepreneur.
- The Importance of Delegation: The ability and willingness to delegate is absolutely necessary for any growing business. Many founders find this incredibly difficult, but the inability to delegate has stifled the businesses of many entrepreneurs.
Building a Successful Healthcare Communication Agency
Priya reflects on the evolution of her company's identity, noting that it took time to embrace the label of an agency. Key insights from this part of her journey include:
- Value Communication: PFG MedComm operates under a 360-degree approach to access, focusing on three pillars: anticipate, adapt, and accomplish. This framework aims to streamline communication and collaboration among key stakeholders in the healthcare industry.
- Importance of Access: Priya emphasizes that without access, innovations and treatments are meaningless. Access to key stakeholders and the economic buyers of her services is the bridge she uses to build her vision of the future of PFG MedComm.
Actionable Advice
- Value in Communication and Alignment of Effort: Focus on value communication and ensure that all efforts are aligned toward achieving market access for your business and the clients you serve. How effective a business is at aligning the effort of it's team members, and aligning the business to the goals of the whole industry will determine the direction of headwinds for your business.
- Embrace Business Evolution: Embrace the evolution of your company's identity and be open to rebranding as your business grows. No industry remains stagnant for long, and your business needs to be ready for change to remain relevant.
Mentorship and Supporting Startups
Priya's recent venture, PFG Stealth LLC, focuses on consultancy for startup commercialization. She also mentors at FemTech Lab, a startup accelerator focused on women's health. Key insights from this part of her journey include:
- Supporting Startups: Priya recognized that many startups struggle with strategic thinking during product development and wanted to create a service that is accessible and tailored to their needs.
- Mentorship: Her participation in the MIT Health Innovation Bootcamp played a crucial role in shaping her understanding of the startup landscape and identifying opportunities to provide guidance and support.
Balancing Professional and Personal Life
Priya shares her approach to balancing her professional and personal life, reflecting on her journey as a mother of twins while running a growing company.
- Work-Life Integration: Priya has learned to integrate her work and family life, finding joy in activities like CrossFit and painting, which help her recharge and foster creativity. Whilst entrepreneurship constantly makes unreasonable demands of those following it's trail, it is also a marathon, not a sprint. Any aspiring entrepreneurs will need to learn when they are on the edge, and how to ensure they don't let themselves get burnt out.
Actionable Advice
- Self-Learning: Find activities that help you recharge and foster creativity, and strive for work-life integration rather than balance. The greater awareness a growing entrepreneur has of themselves the more common pitfalls that entrepreneur can avoid.
Conclusion: Embracing the Entrepreneurial Journey
Priya's journey as a healthcare entrepreneur is a rich tapestry of continuous learning, adaptability, and community engagement. Her experiences and insights offer valuable lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs in the healthcare sector. By embracing unexpected opportunities, focusing on value communication, supporting startups, and striving for work-life integration, entrepreneurs can navigate the complexities of the industry and achieve success.
We hope this comprehensive breakdown of Priya's journey provides actionable advice and inspiration for your entrepreneurial endeavors. Remember, the key to success lies in continuous learning, adaptability, and the support of a strong community.
You can listen to our edited podcast under Founders Voyage on your favorite podcast platform or directly on our website: https://www.foundersvoyage.org/
If you’d like to support the Founder’s Voyage podcast that we have been working hard to edit, you can donate to that directly through our Patreon. https://www.patreon.com/foundersvoyage
If you wish to learn more about her journey you can follow Lalitha Priya Chandrashekhar on LinkedIn.
To learn more about PFG Medcomm you can find them here.