Must We Have It Big Before We Start

What do you have? How can you build what you have to start the business in the most minimal level possible?

The problem with most people have been the fact that they must do it big. People must know that they have started a business. If your focus is profit, if your focus is value, then you should be willing to start small. And then build and generate. All this depends on your space you want to create value in, what kind of business you want to do. You are asked? Okay you want to do this kind of business, show me a proposal and you're calling exorbitant figures. You have not even mastered the dynamics of your business. Another big way to make money to start your business is your social capital, and character. What I mean here is the value of your character. Like can someone trust you with money they have sitting down somewhere and not doing anything, can they trust that if they give you that money to start something you'll return it back.

Trust goes with partnership. If one doesn't have social character, no trust, no integrity, then nothing works for such a person.

Are there particular skills a person should have in order to succeed in business?

There are skills any person should have as they seek to venture into business. These skills are skills that cannot be thrown under the carpet. They are needed, they are needs, not want. One of such skills is basic bookkeeping skills. You're wondering why I didn't say accounting? Let's leave that for now. Most people if I'm not wrong tends to run away from this particular skill because it seems to involve a lot of mathematics, a lot of calculations and all that. If a person who is planning on starting a business can't do simple calculations, then such a person has no business being in business because they can't totally depend on a third party to know the financial figures of their business.

If that's what they want to do, then they are not the one running the business because it means anything the third-party feeds them with, they'll take it hook, line, and sinker. As a person who is planning on starting a business, you need to know a simple arithmetic that you put $5 into the business, this is what came out as profit. I think that is one major skill.

Another skill I think people need to put into consideration is the knowledge of what gives, what is obtainable in your local environment when it comes to government. As a person going into business, you can't be a loner. You won't go too far being a loner, you have to have your ears out there and be willing to share information with other people. I want to share something to correct an anomaly; Recently my friend was telling me about a conversation her cousin was having with someone and to cut it short. Her cousin said,"Knowledge is to be shared." God did not make knowledge, so you make your boast in it and say?..oh! Do you know that I know?

Whatever knowledge that we have is to be shared. Why? For posterity, for the betterment of our society, and environment. So why I'm saying this is that, things will be such easier if what I know I can trust you enough to share it with you. Knowing that I couldn't possibly meet the needs of everybody in that line of business, we have decided to. Now I can meet this niche, you meet needs of this other niche. If I share my knowledge with you, we have a bigger and better market share. So knowledge is not something we should Hurd, it should be shared. I think that is one major issue people have, and I know its birth from that place of not being able to trust each other.

Is money the be-all and end-all need for a successful business?

I don't think money is the be-all and end-all need for a successful business. I have seen situations where people come in contact with money, and it fizzles out, the money just disappears, and they go back to put blames on other people. This happens because this people lack some core character values. Sometimes they go into business just to show their neighbor that they actually went into business. They are really not creating value. That's why I said from the beginning, your quest to go into a business should be birth out of a desire to create value. Now, that value is now used as an exchange for money.

Another thing I would like to point out is apprenticeship. We all make the joke of when we see somebody who is supposing doing business well, with doggedness and grits we say ah! They are from a business oriented family or tribe. And it's a joke, sometimes we speak of it like in a derogatory manner. But could we learn, could we take a cue from what they are doing. Everybody wants to answer "I AM A BUSINESS OWNER", and you've not even started your business. Could we come off our high horses and learn? So you go to learn, for instance from some other person, rather than empty your cup, so you'll get it full. You go there with preconceived thoughts of I know, I just want to add up. You won't get anything from it. Apprenticeship is something we must get back to learn. There is nothing derogatory about servant hood.

Would having a mentor to teach one make a difference?

I don't want to use the word mentor because we'll bastardize the word mentor. Oh, Mr!. A be my mentor, Mrs. T be my mentor. You want somebody to be your mentor, and the person will have to drag you off the bed to now teach you. You choose to desire to learn, not to be taught. Because when the desire is there to learn, even when nobody is teaching you, you're learning. Apprenticeship is a big deal. We just have to humble ourselves and be ready to learn. Don't be quick to answer boss cos it doesn't translate to real money.

In my next article I'll talk about the success tips we should know before starting a business.