Why I Chose to Learn Entrepreneurship at LaunchX

Today's post is brought to you by LaunchX Alum, Sean Ojha. My name is Sean Ojha, and I’m a LaunchX ’16 alum. MIT LaunchX gave me the most immersive entrepreneurial experience of my entire life, endowed me with a powerful skill set, and introduced me to an unreal network of motivated individuals across the globe.Today, I want to explain to you all what exactly drew me towards LaunchX, what the program requires, its benefits, and why I chose LaunchX above other business accelerators.

What made LaunchX so appealing to me and my peers?

For me, summer vacation offers not only the necessary reprieve from the stress of school, but it also allows for a more “unstructured” education. By this, I mean to say that summer gives you enough to time to dedicate yourself to a passion. In past years, that passion was playing tennis, re-selling shoes, and blogging about music. As relatively trivial as these activities may seem, they shaped my personality as a hustler and an enthusiast. I had the attitude of an entrepreneur, but neither the necessary resources, research or experience to reasonably attain success as an innovator. MIT LaunchX offered me the chance to bridge that gap. LaunchX balances a core curriculum with a hands-on, do-it-yourself approach, which appealed to me greatly. I’m not alone in this. As my friend Cameron said, “I wanted to explore my entrepreneurial interests and expose myself to new ideas, so I researched summer programs that would allow me to do so.” I too saw LaunchX as a place where I learn the framework of entrepreneurship, the “map to success,” without compromising my personality or my passion.

What do I need for LaunchX to be beneficial for me, and what are these benefits?

If you want to be successful at LaunchX, there’s really only one necessity: pure motivation. Pardon the cliché, but your capacity to put in “blood, sweat and tears” is the only real thing that you’ll need. LaunchX is so rich in resources that if you work hard, you’ll do well. What are these benefits? Work hard and you’ll impress the right people. Impress the right people and your vision can become a reality. In my case, LaunchX pushed me past my threshold, and as a result, every goal I had set for myself that summer was accomplished. Whatever effort you invest in LaunchX, the rewards will be ten-fold.

Why LaunchX over the alternatives to learn entrepreneurship?

Without name-dropping, there is simply no real alternative to LaunchX. There are other high-school business incubators, some even in Boston as well. I have friends who have attended these programs as well, and their experiences have differed greatly from my own. Why? Firstly, Launch is intense. Yeah, there’s free time, fun get-togethers and a really chill community at MIT. But when it’s time to roll the sleeves up and get dirty, no program gets more intense with work ethic and dedication than LaunchX. Again, pardon the cliché, but pressure makes diamonds, after all. From my own experience working with Launch entrepreneurs, they’re incredibly tenacious compared to the rest of the crowd. Secondly, LaunchX is resourceful. I’m going to keep this short and sweet. At LaunchX, you’ll be exposed to connections and resources from:

• Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship
• MIT Sloan School of Management
• All divisions of the MIT LaunchX faculty
• A massive network of alumni
• Insanely knowledgeable and involved mentors

Leveraging these resources will take up a large portion of your time at LaunchX, and it should. Resources like those at LaunchX are unparalleled; no other program comes close. Finally, I’d like to add that LaunchX stays with you. Again, without dropping names, other programs don’t do this. Just today, the alumni chat had an extremely enlightening discourse about the potential of the Snapchat IPO. Tomorrow, I’m going to chat with a friend from LaunchX about including Snap Inc in my portfolio. The day after, I’m calling my team to give updates regarding our press release. Week after week, month after month, LaunchX remains fundamental in my career as an entrepreneur. And I can guarantee it will be as fundamental in yours, too. Hopefully this was a helpful crash course about the LaunchX experience and convinces you to prioritize LaunchX.Thanks for the read! -Sean Ojha // www.ojha.me