Book Excerpt, By Kemi Olowoyo-Otegbade, Author of ‘BUMPS ON MY ROUTE’
Many young entrepreneurs go into business only because of money. But what they fail to know is that it is not all about the money. Of course, we start our entrepreneurship journey with the aim to make money, lots of it; it is not the only reason why successful entrepreneurs start their own business. Another mentor once said to me, “It’s not about money or connections. It is about the willingness to outwork and out-learn everyone when it comes to your business.”
Entrepreneurship is not for everyone. The tenacity and sweat that go into starting and growing your own business are enough to scare some people away. It is not for the faint-hearted. You need to make friends with success and learn to live outside your comfort zone. You also need to take action on your ideas and manage your time efficiently too. It does not matter how slowly you go, as long as you do not stop.
Starting a business can be lonely at first. You might have a co-founder or partner, but it could still feel like the two of you against the world. If you are going it alone, it is not easy to remain positive and push through roadblocks. Even if you do persevere, you could still fail at some point. It is inevitable for entrepreneurs. You have to pick yourself back up, learn from the failure and keep going. Not everyone can do that. If they could, everyone would be an entrepreneur. Beginning with courage followed by hard work, strategic planning, and ways to execute them systematically is the foundation for business success. Remember to dream big, think long term, underachieve on daily basis and take baby steps. That is the key to long-term success.
Striving hard and not surrendering to failures but learning from them, should be the motto that every entrepreneur should imbibe. A successful entrepreneur not only satisfies his creative ideas but also contributes to the society at large. The plans that seem easy on paper, such as creating a website and start blogging could take weeks to eventually actualize and years to get high traffic on the sites.
The end product, however, is that you end up becoming an expert in your field. You keep putting one foot in front of the other and then one day you look back and realize you have climbed a mountain.
Great entrepreneurs look so calm and composed on the outside, however, they deal with emotional roller coaster that comes with running a business, one of which is self-doubt. Self-doubt is normal and natural in entrepreneurs, but that does not mean that self-doubt gets to be the master. Learning to quickly overcome these feelings and any other form of emotional instability is part of the journey you must learn. Although it may seem that entrepreneurs lavish their money on luxuries, they are one of the most frugal people you can think of. Entrepreneurship teaches most entrepreneurs to be extremely conscious about how they spend their money. They believe in a frugal lifestyle so that they can save enough money to invest in order to reach a certain financial milestone. After which they become a bit freer with their spending.
Getting funds and capital to run your business, taking your business to the marketplace and all of the other steps/processes that come with entrepreneurship is not one of the easiest things to do. If you think it is a lie, try convincing a group of friends to buy a product they have never heard about, not to talk about a bunch of strangers that do not even see the relevance of your own product over another.
You see, before anyone would cut you a cheque, you have to put in a lot of work. Talk about investors as well, they are disciplined enough to not jump at every business talk that comes their way. They would request that you build a minimum viable product and gain traction before investing a penny into your business. It takes a lot of work to put all of these together.
Entrepreneurship involves failure before success. In entrepreneurship, failure is inevitable. It comes in different shapes and sizes, but it is still a failure, and it is bound to happen. The fastest runner does not always win the race, and the strongest warrior does not always win the battle. The wise sometimes go hungry, and the skillful are not necessarily wealthy. Being well educated does not necessarily lead to successful lives. It is all decided by chance, strategy, being in the right place at the right time. It takes perseverance to remain in the right place even when it looks isolated or uninteresting. In business, especially the early years, you are most likely going to be on your own. It is your vision, no one sees it as clearly as you do, so no one will move at your own pace which is why it takes time to build, even though we are in a hurry to get to the top. Entrepreneurship requires perseverance and “never give up” spirit.
A lot of people have great ideas and may want to start their own business. But how many of these ideas actually become successful businesses? However, a running business can sometimes be scary. You are giving up your safety from the predictable daily grind to take a chance on your own. Sometimes you succeed; other times you do not. Your business idea could be copied by someone else who is faster with more funds to invest. You will have to work harder to stay competitive. Many new businesses underestimate competition. The fact is that many other companies are trying to sell the same thing you are trying to sell. I have seen many new entrepreneurs who think that their product is so different that no new brand can outdo or overtake it. But when they start selling, they realize that their product is so unique and that their competitors have been in the business for a long time. Therefore, you have to understand the market you are trying to break into and the competition you will face.
If you are young entrepreneur venturing into a new business and are looking at what you should know before putting yourself out there, here are five things to keep in mind:
If you are truly passionate about an idea, the first step is to spend time on market research. Understand your target audience, their needs and challenges. Interact with potential customers to know more about how your idea can help solve a problem. Take the time to understand if your product will stand out in a crowded market. If there is heavy competition, find your niche. You should work towards creating a product or solving a problem that is unique. When you are starting young, it’s easy to get carried away with your idea and lose focus on the larger picture. Find a mentor who can guide you with business strategies, crunch obstacles, connect you to the right group of people and maybe provide insights about the market. An experienced mentor can play a key role in the success of your business. If all you focus is on making money, you will end up jumping all over the place, which will eventually lead to a disconnect from the essence of who you are as a creative entrepreneur and the value you can uniquely add. Entrepreneurs start out doing what they love, providing value over and over again. As a matter of fact, they may eventually have little or nothing to show for their efforts initially. However, when the focus is on creating value, wealth will come eventually.
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