The Starting YardThe Starting Yard
An Operator's Guide to the Startup World
A structured, practitioner-led guide for experienced professionals in India who intend to build a business of their own, written by operator and founder Navin Prajapati.
Overview
India's startup literature largely addresses two audiences: first-time founders in their early twenties, and teams that have already raised capital. Between them sits a far larger group that is rarely written for: salaried professionals with eight to fifteen years of experience, real financial commitments and a credible business idea, who lack a reliable method for moving from employment to enterprise.
The Starting Yard is written for that reader. Its central argument is that professional experience is not a delay on the road to entrepreneurship but its most valuable input: the domain knowledge, networks and operating discipline acquired inside organisations are the foundation on which a durable business is built.
Structure of the book
The book is organised in four parts that follow the sequence in which a founder actually works:
| Part One: The Ground | The mindset and personal groundwork required before any business decision: reassessing career risk and moving from employee to owner thinking. |
|---|---|
| Part Two: The Idea | Structuring an idea, validating demand before resigning, sizing the market (TAM, SAM, SOM), founder-market fit and customer understanding. |
| Part Three: The Build | Operations, scaling, acquiring the first customers, business dashboards, and reaching a minimum viable product and product-market fit. |
| Part Four: The Game | Incubators, accelerators and studios, fundraising and pitch decks, founder self-management, and building the early team. |
Approach
- Operator frameworks. Each chapter is built around methods used in running real businesses, not on theory or motivation.
- Indian context. More than 25 case studies, predominantly Indian, with costs, constraints and examples drawn from the Indian market.
- Documented scenes. Situations observed first-hand by the author illustrate the principles in practice.
- A continuous narrative. Vikram, a composite character, moves from job loss to a structured startup idea across all eighteen chapters.
- Applied learning. “The Founder's Lens” insights, “Before You Turn This Page” reflection questions and 18 worksheets turn each chapter into action.
Navin Prajapati
Chartered Accountant · MBA, IIM Calcutta · Founder, MyStarterCircle
Navin Prajapati is an operator and founder with more than a decade of experience building and running businesses across D2C, B2B and SaaS in India. He founded SabkaMandi and has led revenue streams and business units at mCaffeine, Clensta, JSW and Sharpsell, with deep exposure to brand distribution, supply chain and startup advisory.
He founded MyStarterCircle to close the gap between professional experience and entrepreneurial action, helping working professionals approach company-building with the same rigour they bring to their careers. The Starting Yard is his first book.
Publication details
| Title | The Starting Yard: An Operator's Guide to the Startup World |
|---|---|
| Author | Navin Prajapati |
| Publisher | MyStarterCircle, Mumbai |
| Edition | First Edition, 2026 |
| Extent | 18 chapters in four parts, approximately 500 pages |
| Formats | Paperback (MRP ₹1,999) and hardcover (MRP ₹2,899) |
| Available from | Notion Press, Amazon.in, Flipkart, Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk |
Media, speaking and bulk orders
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