#28: Scaling Startups: Why Doing Fewer Things Better is the Key to Winning
From Zomato’s big pivot to mastering focus—this week, I break down why more isn’t always better in the startup world and why
Welcome to the 28th edition of More than Buzzwords—your no-fluff, weekly insight into the startup world. 🚀
This week, we're diving into the power of focus, the pitfalls of premature scaling, and the mindset shifts that separate doers from dabblers. Whether you're building your first product or scaling your tenth, this edition is packed with insights to sharpen your edge.
Here’s what’s in store:
🔹 Tweets that will make you smarter – 4 sharp takes on mastering focus, avoiding headcount bloat, embracing the messy first steps, and engineering your own luck.
🔹 Startup Spotlight – Meet HexaHealth, the healthtech startup making surgeries less stressful and more humane, with AI and real human support.
🔹 Zomato’s Reality Check – Why shutting down Zomato Quick and Everyday isn’t a failure—it’s a sign of long-overdue discipline.
Ready to rethink how you build, scale, and stay sharp in 2025? Let’s get into it. 👇
4 Tweets That’ll Make You Smarter This Week 🤓
I’m back with your weekly dose of top tweets on all things career, strategy, and startups. Whether you’re a founder, operator, freelancer, side hustler, or just someone trying to play the long game, this lineup is a goldmine.
These tweets hit hard, speak volumes, and most importantly, make you want to take action. Let’s dive right in.
1. Focus Is the Ultimate Edge 🧠
@HussainIbarra
The most valuable skill you can develop isn't coding, writing, or design—it's the ability to focus deeply when everyone around you is chronically distracted.
We’ve heard about deep work. We’ve read about dopamine detoxes. But this tweet hits the nerve; it’s not about developing a hard skill, it’s about sharpening the meta-skill that makes all your other skills useful.
This tweet emphasizes that focus is the new leverage. Especially in careers and startups, the real separator isn't talent—it's attention. Everyone's multitasking, scrolling, reacting.
However, the person who can sit with one task, one idea, one problem for two uninterrupted hours is already ahead of 90% of the world.
Think about it: If you can focus, you can learn faster, execute better, and ship more. In a world that’s noisier than ever, clarity is a superpower.
And here's the thing: focus isn't some mystical state. It's built like muscle—through reps. Block time. Shut doors. Turn off notifications. Treat your attention like your most prized asset, because it is.
You don’t need to do more—you need to go deeper into the few things that matter. Especially if you're early in your career or building something of your own, your ability to focus might just be your most unfair advantage.
2. The Real Startup Killer: Headcount Bloat 🌀
@kunalb11
Instead of investing in automation, early employees of startup hire people. Those hires do the same. The result is a compounding spiral of headcount bloat. Not being automation first in the post AI world is a death wish.
This one is a reality check, especially for operators and early-stage builders. The temptation to hire your way out of every bottleneck is real. But it’s a trap, and it compounds.
One manual process leads to a second, a third, and suddenly you’ve built a machine made of people, not systems. That might work in the early innings, but it breaks fast as you scale.
The tweet brilliantly calls out the ripple effect: your earliest hires mirror your approach. If they see you prioritizing speed via headcount instead of efficiency via systems, they’ll do the same. And before you know it, your startup becomes bloated, slow, and allergic to change.
In the post-AI world, the bar has shifted. You don’t get extra points for solving a problem with more people. The real win is solving it once and automating it forever.
Being automation-first doesn’t mean ignoring people—it means respecting their time by reserving it for high-leverage work.
Whether it’s sales outreach, customer onboarding, or internal reporting, ask: “Can this be automated?” If the answer is yes, you’re building for scale. If not, you’re just delaying your next bottleneck.
3. Your First Attempt Will Suck and That’s the Point 🛠️
@NLXmedia
“What if I don’t succeed fast?” You won’t.
Your first pitch will suck.
Your first post will suck.
Your first DM will suck.
Play the long game. Overnight success doesn't exist.
This tweet speaks a quiet truth that doesn’t get enough airtime—you will suck at first. And that’s okay. The fear of not being instantly good often stops people from even starting.
Whether it’s writing online, launching a product, or cold-pitching clients, most people quit not because they’re unqualified but because they’re impatient.
We want instant validation. But real growth comes from compounding effort, not quick wins.
The magic happens after your 10th flop, your 20th ignored DM, your 3rd failed campaign. Each rep sharpens your instincts. Each attempt brings feedback. Success isn't about nailing it the first time, it's about staying in the game long enough to learn how to nail it.
Founders, freelancers, creators—this especially applies to you. Play the long game. Ship consistently, refine relentlessly, and detach from early results. Treat your failures as data, not judgments.
Because here’s the thing: overnight success is just a fancy term for quiet persistence. If you’re still doing the work long after others have quit, you’re already ahead. The ones who keep showing up are the ones who win.
4. How to Manufacture Your Own Luck 🍀
@LegacyBuilder__
This tweet speaks a quiet truth that doesn’t get enough airtime—you will suck at first. And that’s okay. The fear of not being instantly good often stops people from even starting.
Whether it’s writing online, launching a product, or cold-pitching clients, most people quit not because they’re unqualified but because they’re impatient.
We want instant validation. But real growth comes from compounding effort, not quick wins.
The magic happens after your 10th flop, your 20th ignored DM, your 3rd failed campaign. Each rep sharpens your instincts. Each attempt brings feedback. Success isn't about nailing it the first time, it's about staying in the game long enough to learn how to nail it.
Founders, freelancers, creators—this especially applies to you. Play the long game. Ship consistently, refine relentlessly, and detach from early results. Treat your failures as data, not judgments.
Because here’s the thing: overnight success is just a fancy term for quiet persistence. If you’re still doing the work long after others have quit, you’re already ahead. The ones who keep showing up are the ones who win.
This is one of those tweets you bookmark and come back to every few months. It’s part mindset, part roadmap and all truth.
People love to call others “lucky” because it absolves them of responsibility. But what this thread nails is that luck isn't just a roll of the dice—it’s often the outcome of deliberate choices.
Obsessing over a craft. Thinking independently. Surrounding yourself with ambitious people. Staying curious. Paying attention to emerging trends. These aren't magic tricks—they’re patterns. And the more you stack these behaviors, the more “lucky” outcomes tend to show up.
I especially loved point #1: “The world is set up to make you accept the status quo.” That’s the trap most people never escape. If you follow the crowd, you get average results. But if you’re willing to question the default, obsess over mastery, and push past comfort, things start to shift.
In short: don’t wait for luck. Engineer it. And when people say you’re lucky, smile. That’s what it looks like from the outside.
And that’s a wrap on this week’s dose of X-wisdom, delivered straight to your inbox! Drop your favourite tweet in the comments below. I’d love to hear what resonated with you most.
Now, let’s shift gears and look at a real-world example of what happens when great execution meets powerful ideas and unshakable motivation. A startup that’s making a meaningful difference in the healthcare ecosystem by serving people and making their lives easier.
Spotlight on a Startup: HexaHealth 👨⚕️
Making surgeries less scary—and support, more human
When you or a loved one is facing surgery, your mind is already racing.
Which doctor should I go to? Which hospital? Will my insurance even work? Who’s going to help me at the hospital?
It’s stressful, confusing, and honestly, the last thing you should have to figure out when your health is on the line.
That’s exactly the problem HexaHealth is solving and they’re doing it with empathy, tech, and one powerful promise: “We’ll handle it.”
Founded by Ankur Gigras, Vikas Chauhan, and Dr. Aman Priya Khanna, HexaHealth is on a mission to transform how surgical care is accessed and experienced in India.
HexaHealth isn’t your typical healthtech platform. It’s a patient-first ecosystem built to take care of your entire surgical journey.
Need a second opinion? Covered.
Looking for a trusted doctor near you? Taken care of.
Don’t understand your insurance paperwork? Sorted.
Worried about recovery post-op? They’ve got your back.
Need a medical loan? They’ll help arrange that too.
The real magic? Their care buddies—real human companions assigned to you during your hospitalization, helping with everything from logistics to emotional reassurance. It’s like having a guardian angel, at no extra cost.
And they’re not stopping at just human support. Enter HealthGPT, their AI-powered personal healthcare companion. Available 24/7, it answers your health queries, recommends next steps, and offers tailored advice.
In an era where everyone Googles symptoms, this is a game-changer—more accurate, more reliable, and actually personalized.
India’s surgical ecosystem is a maze for most patients. HexaHealth is helping people navigate it with clarity and dignity.
They’ve already facilitated 30,000+ surgeries, working with 500+ NABH-accredited hospitals and 1,500+ expert surgeons. From metros to Tier 2 cities, they’re empowering patients to make informed decisions—without hidden costs or confusing fine print.
In FY25 alone, HexaHealth enabled nearly 15,000 surgeries worth ₹150 crore, while achieving positive contribution margins, a strong sign of sustainable unit economics in a complex vertical.
Let’s talk about funding. In April 2025, HexaHealth raised $12 million (₹101.82 crore) in a Series A round led by Orios Venture Partners and 3one4 Capital, with participation from Enzia Ventures, ITI Growth Opportunities Fund, and existing backers Chiratae Ventures and Omidyar Network India.
Ankur Gigras called the raise “more than just capital—it’s a vote of confidence” in their mission to make quality surgical care a right, not a privilege. The funds will be used to expand into new surgical specialties, deepen their AI offerings, grow geographically, and strengthen their leadership team.
HexaHealth is redefining what “healthcare” should mean: proactive, human, and accessible. With strong traction, smart use of AI, and a rock-solid patient-first mindset, they’re poised to become India’s most trusted surgical care partner.
The long-term vision? An India where no patient is left alone, confused, or unsupported in their health journey. And if they keep this momentum, they just might pull it off.
Image taken from the HexaHealth website.
Talking about bringing much-needed changes in the healthcare space, I’d like to take a moment to mention that I’m building too — in healthcare.
I’ve stepped into a venture that caters to new moms and newborns, keeping their safety, care, and needs in mind.
I talk a lot more about this journey on my LinkedIn, so follow me there and keep a lookout for my posts to know what I’m up to!
Coming back to the newsletter, and this one’s a hot take. We’re talking about a startup that’s become a household name in India, serving lakhs daily, and is finally…maturing.
After years of expansion experiments, Zomato is showing real maturity by cutting the fluff, realigning its focus, and getting serious about discipline.
Yep, I said it. Zomato’s growing up, and here’s why that’s a big deal.
🍽️ Zomato Shuts Down ‘Quick’ and ‘Everyday’ — and Honestly, Good Call
Zomato (now Eternal Ltd, but let’s be real—it’ll always be Zomato in our hearts) just announced the shutdown of two ambitious bets: Zomato Everyday and Zomato Quick. The reason? Low demand, poor sustainability, and tight margins.
And honestly? I don’t think this move is a failure—it’s focus.
Let’s talk about Zomato Everyday first. It promised affordable, home-style meals, think ₹89 thalis, dal-chawal, sabzi-roti—delivered to your doorstep. But let’s be honest: home-style food is a category that sounds more appealing than it actually is.
When people open Zomato, they’re usually craving indulgence, novelty, or convenience—not karela sabzi in a plastic box. The target user already has a dabba, a ₹60 biryani joint nearby, or a mess. Why would they want the same meal, reheated and delayed?
Then there’s Zomato Quick, meant to deliver food in 10 minutes. But Blinkit already owns that mindshare, and it has the infra, inventory, and logistics muscle to back it. Zomato playing the speed game felt off-brand and operationally risky.
And here’s the real problem: the economics just didn’t add up. ₹89 meals leave margins thinner than a dosa. Moreover, the kind of customer who eats on a budget daily is also the one who won’t forgive delays or poor quality.
Scaling a low-margin, high-frequency model means tight ops, zero errors, and ruthless efficiency. Not easy when you’re also running a national food delivery platform.
But here’s why this isn’t bad news, it’s a sign of maturity.
Zomato is finally trimming the fat. In its early years, it threw everything at the wall: groceries, nutraceuticals, even intercity food. Some stuck. Most didn’t. Now it seems they’re less interested in being a lifestyle brand, and more focused on being the default food delivery app for India.
Fewer distractions. More discipline.
Zomato isn’t playing feature bingo anymore. They’re tightening the belt, doubling down on what works, and being okay with killing what doesn’t.
That’s maturity. And in a post-funding-winter world, focus is strategy.
It also reflects something bigger: Indian startups are getting sober. The spray-and-pray era is ending. The pressure to be profitable is real. Venture money isn’t flowing like it used to.
Founders are learning that chasing too many verticals dilutes both product and brand.
Zomato’s strength lies in indulgent, urban, food-first experiences. Let CRED be luxury. Let DMart be mass. Zomato should stay in the indulgence zone. That’s where the money and the brand love is.
In short: Zomato killing Quick and Everyday wasn’t them backing out. It was them doubling down on what works. And as the food wars heat up, the winners won’t be the ones doing the most—they’ll be the ones doing fewer things, better.
And that brings us to the end of this edition of More than Buzzwords!
I hope you enjoyed reading this week’s newsletter and found some fresh insights on all things careers and startups.
I genuinely enjoy diving deep into careers, startups, and strategy — and this newsletter is my way of sharing that passion. If these topics get you thinking (and talking), then you’re in the right place and this newsletter is meant to land in your inbox every week.
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