Entrepreneur Archives - Page 3 of 3

Characteristics of Entrepreneur in Business and Socio-Economic Development

“The critical ingredient is getting off your butt and doing something. It’s as simple as that. A lot of people have ideas, but there are few who decide to do something about them now. Not tomorrow. Not next week; but today. The true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer.” Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese’s

This is what entrepreneurship is all about. You need to have ‘fire in the belly’ to be a successful entrepreneur; the adamant urge to make your business ideas transform into reality, and successful. According to Peter Drucker, entrepreneurship is “a systematic innovation, which consists in the purposeful and organized search for changes, and it is the systematic analysis of opportunities such changes might offer for economic and social innovation.” It is the inherent ability to build and create something relevant and successful from practically nothing. On a broader outlook, entrepreneurship is an attitude; a quality to seek challenging opportunities, take only calculated risks and drive the benefits in the way of setting up a profitable venture.

There are several roles that come with the quality of entrepreneurship, and most of these are aimed at wider socio-economic development. Discussed herewith are the primary roles of an entrepreneur.

Entrepreneur as Risk-Taker.

According to Richard Cantillon, entrepreneurship is all about having the willingness and foresight of assuming risks, while taking calculated actions in making a profit, or loss. According to him, an entrepreneur has to be risk-taking, forward-looking and efficiently alert if not innovative in true sense. The role of an entrepreneur involves two types of risks; measured and unmeasured. However, a successful entrepreneur is one who has the potential to foresee and assume the unmeasured risks in his business, transforming them into business opportunities for growth and profit.

Entrepreneur as Innovator.

Entrepreneurship has a major role in assimilating knowledge, which is not in recent use, and setting up new forms and functions of production to design, produce, and market new and innovative products. Joseph Schumpeter pointed out here that innovation does not mean that it has to be newly discovered. The quality of an entrepreneur lies in utilizing the existing knowledge that has never been used before in production. More from being an inventor, an entrepreneur needs to possess the potential of driving invention into lucrative commercial exploitation.

Entrepreneur as a Leader.

This is one of the primary roles of entrepreneurship. According to Alfred Marshall, an entrepreneur “must be a natural leader of men who can choose assistants wisely but also exercise a general control over everything and preserve order and unity in the main plan of business.” He should be on constant lookout for innovative methods that guarantees to be most effective with respect to the costs presently in use. He should possess the inherent quality of leading the business and work force, towards a better socio-economic scenario in a broader perspective.

Entrepreneur as Restorer or Perceiver.

John Bates Clark views entrepreneurship as the process responsible for maintaining coordination that helps in restoring the socio economy to the position of effective equilibrium. Through a comprehensive “discovery process,” entrepreneurs identify new lucrative opportunities and risks, thus, driving the market towards equilibrium. Role of entrepreneurship lies in being alert to the profitable business opportunities, and for this, the quality of perception is a primary trait of a successful entrepreneur.

The Advantages of Entrepreneur Club

You have heard of card game clubs, sports club, press club etc. but, now there are Entrepreneur Clubs also which can solve the entrepreneurial problems. Popularly known as Entre Club, the club is actually a group of people who get together to implement and promote entrepreneurial practices in the respective areas.

Entre Club and its Functions:

Every entre club has some objectives. Some clubs aim at educating students about entrepreneurship and some provide financial aid to the students for participating in a competition. Whatever be the objectives these clubs follow, they are directly and indirectly involved in the promotion of entrepreneurial spirit.

Generally, an entre club performs following functions:

1. The participants share their ideas and problems with each other.

2. A club organizes events to strengthen the network.

3. It invites experts to answer to the queries of club members.

4. It aims at getting the right knowledge to solve a problem or investment issues.

5. It invests its time and money in problems and sells solutions for the same.

6. It doesn’t work as a committee or commission. But, it works as an individual who has an ample amount of freedom to exercise.

7. It works on its own evaluation level and takes decisions more swiftly.

8. It promotes commercial goods and services by pooling the knowledge of various experts.

9. It solves problems of all its group members and provides them with enough opportunities to work upon.

If you want to be an entrepreneur, you don’t need to have money but you must have an urge to earn money. You don’t need scholarly sense but you must have great ideas.

An entrepreneur must have right knowledge and above all a risk-taking attitude. He should have capability of converting few pennies into thousand dollars. An entre club uses the knowledge of all such entrepreneurs who have got skills, attitude and temperament to perform well.

As a small business owner, you must be a part of such clubs to get right kind of support to grow. You must share the problems and challenges you are facing and the ideas you are exploring. A group of opportunists in these clubs can act as mentors who can show you right path to follow and right strategies to implement.

A simple get together at entre club can actually come out as a great brainstorming session. And you never know where you get the great idea to invest. So, enter into an Entre Club and enjoy the benefits.

To know what kind of club is suitable for you and how it performs, you can consult market advisors or you can search over internet to learn about various entre clubs operating in your area.

An Entrepreneur – Who Is He?

When we are talking about an entrepreneur, it means we’re talking about a starter, an innovative person that is ready to think “outside of the box.” He is a skillful person, that has problem solving skills, and also, has that ability to take risk in a calculated way.

Who he really is:

A risk taker, who set up a business at a considerable risk, he takes the bold step in starting or venturing into a business without the fear of failure. He takes a calculated risk for him to avoid “getting his fingers burnt”.

A decision maker, who is responsible for every action performed in the business which can decide the growth or the failure of the business, he takes smart decisions that can make the set goals achievable.

A leader, who posses that inner strength to succeed, he has a foresight, he sees the beyond things. He is that kind of person that “make things happen” and not watch things happen. He gives direction to the business which can decide the success of the business.

A focused person, who know what he wanted and set to achieve it. He is a determined person with goals and believes completely in his ability to achieve them. His self optimism can often been seen by others as flamboyance or arrogance but he’s just too focused to spend too much time thinking about un-constructive criticism.

A composed person, who is wise and does things in order, he’s a relaxed and sensitive person to avoid mistakes which can cost him the success of his business. He’s not scared about challenges but faces it and tackles intelligently and smartly.

A creative person, who is resourceful, that person that posses the “skill of discovery”, mental alertness, innovative and he is always looking for new ways to improve his business. He has a different way of thinking, different manner of approach towards things. His exploits will surely make achieve success with ease.

A passionate person, who loves what he’s doing, he’s comfortable doing what he likes and know how to do best. He’s always optimistic and can never for once think of failure as an option. Running and carrying out his business activities is a pleasure for him He’s going to be successful because he’s doing what he loves doing!

He is an entrepreneur because he is everything that was mentioned above.

He is that person of many “success characters”, filled with that drive to succeed in his business. And he is a wonderful person.

Forced Entrepreneur

The current recession is still on despite claims of recovery. President Obama recently spoke at the White House and quoted the Department of Labor which estimated that US citizens have lost 3.6 million jobs since recession began.

For most losing a job is a calamity and yet there are some who handle this setback better. The great American spirit of survival seems to exist in them. They look for alternatives to make a livelihood and to live well. They may not have opted out of their jobs, but they certainly can deal with it.

How do they manage it? Are their prepared for it? What’s their gameplan?

Forty eight year old Bob Carlos was expecting a promotion as the Vice President of his company. He was unprepared for the recession and it hit him below the belt. Carlos reeled but rallied back to life. It’s then that he decided to do what he enjoyed most in life- sail. Soon he started using his knowledge to train others and to lead small excursions. Bob Carlos now leads a full life enjoying his job. He is making money in a way he never dreamt of. He now has plans to expand online and increase the scope of his customers.

Bob relied on his talent and expertise to pull his new found business through. Through a well planned strategy he started organizing camps and workshops and hired more people.

Bob Carlos was not an entrepreneur by choice. He was a forced entrepreneur.

Entrepreneurship is the ONLY way you can beat the current situation. No one’s hiring, no one’s extending much credit, no one cares; and you need the money and an occupation to keep you going.

More and more Americans are turning to this solution. The number of non-employer firms has risen steadily in this decade, from 16.5 million in 2000 to an estimated 21.1 million in 2007. So now’s the time to go back to your core competency. To improve your skills that have been neglected over the years. You may steer away from the specific job or branch that you were into or use those skills to help others.

Many people are making the recession a blessing in disguise to hone their talent and skills, to spend time with family and community, and to get connected to themselves all over again!

All you need is

– An exemplary skill set

– An eye for detail

– Ability to plan

– Lot’s of enthusiasm.

Wait- Before you chuck your job and set out to challenge your skills there something you must know.

According to the SBA – an estimated 637,100 new employer firms began operations in 2007 and 560,300 firms closed that year.

“Two-thirds of new employer establishments survive at least two years, 44 percent survive at least four years, and 31 percent survive at least seven years, according to a recent study. “

These results were constant for different industries. Firms that began in the second quarter of 1998 were tracked for the next 28 quarters to determine their survival rate. Of special interest, the research found that businesses that survive four years have a better chance of surviving long term. After the fourth year, the rate of firm closings declines considerably.

Earlier research has found that the major factors in a firm’s survivability include an ample supply of capital, being large enough to have employees, the owner’s education level, and the owner’s reason for starting the firm.

So where do you begin. Start with your heart and move on to brains.

I. Take a mental printout of these five attitude steps

– Start small if you want to but start today.

– Do not be afraid to fail.

– Everything in life is a learning experience to make a better you

– Enjoy what you do

– Find opportunities on the way.

II. Next start with your entrepreneurship plans. Ask yourself the following questions and write them down

– Your best skills

– Your strengths

– What you enjoy most

– Five years on what you would like to be

– The objective of your business

III. Next jot down opportunities associated with each skill

– Start with broad, get to specific

– Use the internet to search for opportunities. You’ll be amazed at what you’ll find

– Try to identify at least three opportunities

Now you will broadly know what you want to do or think that you know what you would like to work on.

IV. Time to get your brains into action

– Start to plan how will start the business

– Take into account the costs, time, demographic structure and ROI period

– Think of the area of your business

– Try to find a niche

If you follow this step you’ll identify the most suitable business to start with.

V. Time for research

The strategy for research will depend on your line of skill sets and the opportunity for them. Here it might be time for some expert advice especially if you are a bit shaky. You can either hire an expert to do it or do it yourself. Be thorough and explore all possibilities and start building a strategy.

VI. Strategy Time

If you are starting for the first time, ask an expert. There are lots of experts online who are willing to give away a few minutes of free consultation. Make most of it.

Opportunities

Opportunities for online entrepreneurship are galore; everyone seems to be moving online and finding a niche.

You can become an infopreneur by packaging your knowledge and selling it. The methodology may vary, but the objective will be to sell.

You have to simply decide a topic. It can be anything. Knowledge from your previous work/business experience, a hobby, passion or anything that interests you; even your grandma’s recipe!

Success stories need

1. Diligent Planning

2. Strategic Information

3. Goal Setting

4. Innovation

5. Contemporary Methods

6. Visibility

7. Good Customer Relationship

8. Identification of Opportunities

9. Sheer Hard Work

If you are one of those who think you have nothing special, I’m just an ordinary person with no skills or talents there are opportunities for you too. All you need to have is a website. From that website you can find affiliate opportunities, make ad money, manage content or sell products by partnering with drop shippers.

If still in doubt ask the expert.

Trigger the Entrepreneur in You

The thought rolls back to days when we used to pore over discriminating the terminologies ‘Engineering’ and ‘Technology’. As given to understand, Engineering is a design process bringing in innovative thinking and customized solutions in any field, be it construction, power distribution or design of machine intelligence. And by contrast, Technology is a process or tool to execute these designs. Over twenty five years back, as a young engineering aspirant, some of us have debated on this dichotomy of nomenclature, a civil-mechanical-electrical engineering as against a chemical-production technology. Nevertheless, ‘a professional course’ as we call it moulds and directs the student to make a profession of his/her stream of study. Apart from the opportunities in the mainstream functional areas like Project management, Design, Research & Development, or Pedagogy, the quintessential commonality in all streams of study also helps ‘the engineer’ adapt to swings of the market and make smart shifts in career. Year 2000, for instance witnessed a phenomenal shift of career of engineers from all streams of study into IT, a sector which then exhibited a tectonic boom.

Till a decade ago, our country continued to run short of the number of engineers produced annually as against the intake in both the private and public sectors as per a survey. The statistics shows that engineering colleges sprung up in number from a fair 1500 colleges in 2007 to a mind-boggling 3300 in 2015 in India, with a small state of Kerala alone shouldering over 150 engineering colleges. Has this lowered the bar or shrunk the demand for the profession, is for experts to comment. However, living facts like, India presently churns out more engineers than US and china put together, may add food to these thoughts. Haven’t we stratified multifarious our output of engineers in India. The premier group of IITs followed by a group of corporate backed institutes, NITs, the pick of state colleges and then the rest. On one, we see a brilliant topper from IIT Mumbai walk away with a plum crore plus annual CTC on campus placements and on the other an engineer from strata lower down, still struggling for an upkeep in the initial years. A leading UK based global recruiter firm suggested that engineering roles were the hardest to fill as has been agreed upon by 45% of recruiters globally. As per Nasscom report in 2011 only 17.5% of engineering graduates were deemed employable. India’s information technology industry spends nearly $1 billion a year to make them job-ready, the report said. Again, telling upon the prevalent quality crunch. Eventually we heard reports like, over 50% merit quota seats vacant in Kerala, AICTE bringing down the number of engineering seats by six lakhs etc.

The scenario here triggers the need for an entrepreneurial upbringing of our young engineers. If we track the career path of engineers from premier institutes in India in the recent past we can see that a good share of them either venture on their own or take a short term industry exposure and then go enterprising. The story from the premium B schools in India is no different. Moreover their curriculum itself introduces entrepreneurship. IITs and IIMs have shown growing fervor for entrepreneurship with as high as 4-5% of students preferring startups to plush placement offers. At IIM Kozhikode 15 of the batch passed out the previous year are entrepreneurs. A recent report reveals that 41 students out of the new batch of various IITs are at various stages of their startup blueprints. Interesting statistics there! The question is, why are such initiatives just restricted to premium institutes and not others? Why can’t we raise the bar and bridge the gap. To be a successful entrepreneur is perhaps the toughest of all assignments, but certainly the most gratifying one at the end of the day.

Let’s go through a few successful examples. Sachin and Binny Bansal, two ex-IITians from Delhi after some initial exposure in Amazon, ventures into an e-commerce start up in 2007 beginning with small transactions of book and electronics. Now, in less than eight years the company has evolved into a billion dollar business house Flipkart, on an M&A spree gobbling over all small timers. The case study of Make my trip, OLX and UBERs of the world, unfolds similar success stories. A 19 year old young lad, a Harvard sophomore invented a networking tool with a simple intention of getting connected to his friends in college, in 2004 which turned an instant hit. The site now is one of the biggest in the world with over 40crore connections, Facebook by Mark Zuckerberg. Endless goes the success stories of startups in India. This is not just restricted to the IT and e-commerce sector. Services sector, logistics etc also has witnessed flavors of success through startups. Redbus, Taxi4sure goes the names of innumerable startups conceived by brilliant young engineers and in a span of just 7-8 years established a, strong brand equity. Grey orange robotics established in 2009 is the first of its kind venture offering logistics automation solution. Robots move shelves stacked with various products scanning barcodes, yet again the brainchild of two BITs pilani youngsters.

“Zao Foods”, a Mitali Khalra vision to inculcate a habit of eating nutritious food. She came up with ‘cafe Crostini’ in south delhi. Indiblogger. in was started as a free blogging platform, but the founders had some bigger game plans, to connect the corporate world, companies and brands to their customers as a revenue model.

‘Under the mango tree’, a social venture promoting bee keeping, by Vijaya Pastala, an MIT alumni took 14 years to establish. Swapnil kamat and his wife Ruchira had to undergo hardships before establishing their dream venture, Work Better-Training and Development, an executive training company focusing on teaching behavioral and cognitive skills to corporate employees. Helpingdoc. com, an online venture by a team of medical professionals conceptualized the idea of providing medical support online. An overview reveals that, innovative ideas have explored all facets of life, low cost energy, artificial intelligence, robotics, biotech, health, fashion, food, technology, service, and what not. Investors are now running after genuine ideas of business to fund for. Not just the angel investors or venture capitalists but even the corporate allot funds to invest in startups.

Ratan Tata, the ‘Tata group’ honcho, stepping aside from the day-to-day responsibilities of the corporate conglomerate, took interest in investing in 10 startup ventures shortlisted. The investments typically vary between 1-5 Crore and spread across dotcoms, health care, clean energy etc. The pick of them all is ‘Swasth India’, a Mumbai based affordable healthcare setup providing medical services to low income population, again an IIT Mumbai alumni venture. Franchise India, recently hosted a forum in Mumbai inviting business ideas. We also have Pro Bono consultants providing services to startups non-profit with social relevance and commitments. IIT Mumbai has an Entrepreneurship Cell, a non-profit independent student body which instills the spirit of entrepreneurship among students and working professionals. The Entrepreneur cell of IIT Kharagpur recently held an entrepreneur awareness drive, a massive initiative to encourage students across the country to embrace the concept of entrepreneurship. These E-cells incubates startup ideas by connecting investors and entrepreneurs of similar interests. The Global entrepreneur summit, Eureka – International Business plan competition etc are some of the events which drive the young budding engineers. IIT Chennai also runs an incubation cell C-Tides and Research Park for Startups. Kerala is no behind in startup initiatives and promotions. We have Kerala Startups Society, a not-for-profit organization with the objective of building a vibrant startup ecosystem. Regular meets are organized to interact with investors, successful entrepreneurs and players. Based in the IT technology park- Trivandrum, is Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) formerly known as ‘Techno-park-Technology Business Incubator’. Under the guidance of Kris Gopalakrishnan of Infosys we have the startup village, another technology business incubator in kochi.

An innovative business model is all about identifying a social problem to work an effective solution. Thus the startup drive is not just a commercial drive but one of social relevance. A friend of mine recently travelling from Orlando airport to the hotel while on a business tour took an airport cab to destination paying about 90 bucks, but on return smartly took a Uber cab for as low as 25bucks for the same distance. A cost effective solution offered here. A decade ago if one planned a multi city travel in India, it involved a lot of planning and follow-ups with travel agents, hotels, cabs etc. Whereas now it all gets done in a jiffy fiddling with a chosen smart mobile App. Instance of life made easy and smart with start ups. Understandably the mortality rate of startups, are high and not all ventures flourish evenly. But for the youth it is a learning curve to introspect, re-model, and evolve to success.

The recent business visits by the Indian PM to the US, EU and middle east especially the one to the silicon valley, has generated overwhelming response in terms of investments proposals to India. The digital India drive by the Prime minister intends to generate innovative ideas in digital Technologies which include Cloud Computing and Mobile Applications. As we all know the new generation engineer is sharp, innovative and creative with a higher level of IQ than their predecessors. Now we have the brains, the bucks, the governance and all it takes is some out-of-the-box thinking to churn out the “ideas”. Let the academia with the conducive faculty instill this passion in our youths.

May the buzz line for the budding engineers be ‘trigger the entrepreneur in you’. Thank you!

(The writer is a Mumbai based corporate marketer)

How to Be a Successful Entrepreneur – Making Decisions, Part 4 of 6

Placed Successfully!

Congratulations! You are really doing well with your deep dive into planning, making conscious choices, sorting through a number of decisions, and crafting your strategy for starting a business. It might feel a little overwhelming – or maybe it feels a bit tedious and slow – but hopefully it is bringing you clarity and narrowing your focus! What you are doing now is ensuring your success and the ability to sustain your venture. You’re not leaping without thinking. Being actively engaged in creating a process is a lot of work and it will really help keep you moving in a common sense, organized fashion!

One of the things to consider is where do you want to do business. What are some of your options?

WHERE, personally, would you like to do business?

from your home with unrestricted hours (to meet a variety of time zones or because your life and work are intertwined by choice)
from your home, knowing that you are a part-time resident of several locations rather than of one year-round residence
from your home with standard business hours
from an office but with trips to clients, for instance, as a consultant or insurance broker or financial adviser
from a retail environment – your store or restaurant, for example)
from out in the field (think about drilling wells or training horses)
from a warehouse or manufacturing environment

WHERE would you like to your customers to be?

in cyberspace, shopping online from you
In your local market only (ie, someone who comes directly to your store for purchases)
In regional markets
In domestic only markets
In a combination of domestic and international markets
Only in one foreign country – or anywhere overseas

WHERE would you like your customers to work?

Are you selling directly to individual consumers (B2C)
Are you selling only to other businesses (B2B)
Are you selling to companies in a certain revenue category – only Fortune 500 companies, for example
Are you selling only to non-profits
Are you selling only to schools or to government entities or to religious organizations

WHERE can you access things important to small business start-ups – and what things are important to new business?

How many patents are issued per 10,000 people (the national average is 1.8)
What is the cost of living and can you find access to affordable and/or flexible lease space (the Council for Community and Economic Research calculates cost of living indexes specifically for the self-employed)
Can you find creative talent and/or a skilled work-force (what is the density of universities and/or tech schools and community colleges with job-training programs)
Is there a density of small businesses and/or incubators with a track record of creating start-ups
Is there access to private seed capital and/or a track record of such monies being available to start-ups
Is there a state income tax
What is the franchise tax cap
What are the local zoning laws (including parking regulations) and do they allow for or promote co-working space
Are there regular gatherings or networking events for start-up minded folks?
Are there financial incentives and are there mentoring opportunities, some of which are often provided by business incubators or business accelerator programs
Is there access to low-interest business loans
Is there access to government contracts
What is the corporate tax rate
Are there tax credits available promoting certain industries or certain geographic locations

The fact is new businesses start everyday and they start even in places that can’t claim to have everything on the list above. If you are willing to move and interested in moving, you might increase your odds of success by making a decision to move to a location that meets the majority of the considerations listed above. I happen to be quite fond of Beaufort and believe there are many attributes here that will contribute to your success, not the least of which is quality of place. My personal bias says that living in Beaufort, SC – a community where people you don’t know wave when they drive by or say hello when they walk by, with people who slow down to let you walk your dog across the street or who stop to chat in the grocery line even if it slows things down, a place that celebrates our Gullah influences, our French beginnings, our military presence and sacrifice, and a place that provides beautiful flowers and bench swings so that living here is calming and visually pleasant – means living in a place where you are reminded that being an entrepreneur is just one component of your life, a life that is interconnected with family, friends, and community. And besides, the more of us who commit to being part of job creation and the entrepreneurial scene here in Beaufort, the more vibrant our town will become!

DO’s

DO keep constantly in mind that planning to start a business is a process that requires you to lay a foundation. Keep deliberately slogging through this decision making process in order to create a business that meets your needs and lifestyle
DO consider your flexibility, or lack of it, in considering where you want to live when you start your business and as you grow your business. If you start a business with a physical location you have committed yourself to staying put. That is neither negative nor positive – just make sure you have decided in advance you are content with that outcome.
DO consider whether traveling is something you want or can accommodate. A good friend recently advised me he logged over 200,000 flying miles last year – and he has twin 9-yr-olds at home. He loves his work and is very successful – and he loves his family. But it takes a lot of energy to travel that much and there are very real sacrifices made by all because of the type of business he does. I also know of people who limit their travel by limiting the frequency and destination of their trips. But they go on buying trips to places they would have traveled even wthout a business. Having a business purpose to visit their favorite places is a real bonus for them on a number of levels!

DON’Ts

Don’t choose a new location for starting a business based on the false pretense that the grass is always greener somewhere else. If moving makes sense after doing your research and laying your foundation, then go. But don’t go TO somewhere new just to get away FROM your current dissatisfaction. Problems have a bad habit of traveling with you so it’s best to fix things right here first.
Don’t minimize the impact of a move on your family members. If you aren’t single, consider the issue of ‘the trailing spouse’ – will there be things your ‘significant other’ can do for work and recreation that they will enjoy enough to make the move satisfactory to both of you? These days we often spread out pretty far geographically but it does create considerations when there is a need to be close to aging parents or a desire to be close to young grandchildren. Don’t forget to consider the whole big picture when deciding on the best location for your new business and it’s success.

ACTION ITEMS:

Sit down and review this article. Write down where you want to work from ideally, where you anticipate your customers will come from, where you anticipate the bulk of your sales to come from, and where there are resources that your business will need for its success.
Think about where you spend the majority of your time now and where you’d like to spend your time – in one place year-round, in one location for the summer and a different one for the winter, not currently tied anywhere and interested in visiting or living briefly in as many places as possible? Also think about where your family members are now and determine if their circumstances will affect yours in the next 1-2 years and the next 5-10 years, and think about how this might affect your choice of where (and how) you want your business to operate. Depending on the type of business you choose and its success, you may create greater freedom through increased flexibility and finances. If these are your goals be sure you are clear on the outcome you want and in understanding if the business you propose to start will indeed land you this outcome.

The Mindset of an Entrepreneur

A country such as Nigeria is ranked among the poor countries according to the Human Poverty Index though we have a large oil production base. Since the wealth is not trickling down to the common man, we have to put measures in place to ensure that other sources of wealth are attained. In addition to this, up to 60% of those who have graduated from institutions of higher education do not get formal employment hence the need for alternative sources of income. There are currently very few institutions that have made it their mission to spread the gospel of entrepreneurship to the populace as a sustainable method of poverty eradication. Our Institutions should be able to educate the populace on issues concerning entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneurship vs. Self Employment

Our citizens should learn the difference between self employment and entrepreneurship. The two seem to be one and the same thing to many Nigerian entrepreneurs however, they have a distinct difference. An entrepreneur is a business proprietor who carries out business with ease and maintains growth while getting satisfaction of all the business activities. The entrepreneurial mindset is that of a strategist and a visionary. On the other hand a self employed business person is one who simply seeks to tap a financial niche without much regard for objective planning. This type of business person may not necessarily enjoy what they do. While an entrepreneur is focused on growth and expansion, a self employed business owner may be content with the current income levels, thus seeing no need for new strategies. Many Nigerians are self employed but their current state of living does not reflect much prosperity and it is until entrepreneurship is instituted that things can change. Given that the unemployment rate is about 6% according to statistics, it is vital for Nigeria to consider Entrepreneurship as a solution for creating jobs for the unemployed.

Innovative Entrepreneurship

The lay person needs to know that being an entrepreneur requires a considerable amount of sales and marketing skills. This may put some people off because they do not consider themselves as business people. However, there is no business that can progress without an aggressive sales strategy. We should also know that entrepreneurship is dynamic and plenty of thought has to be invested in coming up with new innovations to enhance business. It is evident that consumers’ needs change every so often therefore new strategies need to be put in place and old methods reviewed for out entrepreneurship sector to be successful and effectiveness.

Creating the Mindset

Nigerian entrepreneurs should be good strategists not afraid to make calculated risks after making a careful assessment of situations. The moment an entrepreneurial mindset has been instilled, any type of business whether big or small is able to achieve significant growth. Entrepreneurs in most cases have prosperous personal lives as well because they are able to align their business vision with their life objectives. This combination will ensure that all aspects are catered for because it is of no use to have a flourishing enterprise at the expense of a fulfilling personal life. Entrepreneurship can aptly be described as a business lifestyle in contrast to regular business self employment which is merely an activity. The achievement of an entrepreneurial mindset is able to turn around any business towards greater heights.

Role of the Populace

We need to adapt a focused mind and emotional state as entrepreneurs. Self examination is important in helping us to figure out our strengths and weaknesses. To be successful in business, there are several questions that all Nigerian Entrepreneurs should think about in order to make any project successful.

o Am I a self starter? In business it is not possible for things to just happen. As a business owner, you have the responsibility for initiating all the business practices that will stimulate sales. The vision of the owner is the driving force for any business enterprise.

o Do I think positive? Any time a person becomes a business owner, you have an optimistic outlook on your activities which will reflect on the progress made. Any employees or fellow entrepreneurs will notice this optimism and are likely to feed off this energy.

o Do you have discipline? Compared to formal employment that has fixed hours and limited motivation, an entrepreneurship is an on ongoing commitment that requires dedication beyond the standard working hours and there needs to be lots of attention to detail to ensure business is maintained. Our entrepreneurs require the will to resist any distraction and temptations that could keep them from achieving their objectives.

o What are your objectives? The expected goals and target need to be set in advance and our entrepreneurs should always have them in mind when conducting business

Following Suit

Africa is able to learn a lot from the developed nations concerning entrepreneurship activities and their impact on the lives of citizens. The European Union (EU) for instance has put plenty of emphasis on the promotion of small and medium sized enterprises which has resulted in the creation of over 75 million jobs. In fact, many of these jobs in the EU are being done by Africans who have fled their countries to earn a better living elsewhere. With the right economic mechanisms in place, these migrants would not need to go to far flung countries to seek a decent living.

Governments’ role

Currently, most sub Saharan countries use less than 2% of their gross domestic product (GDP) on infrastructure that will help scale up trade. This is considered very little and in order for trade practices to greatly boost the economy of Nigeria, approximately 10 % of our GDP should go into building of investment capacity. Only when this happens can there be a shift in our people’s mind frame leading to a more productive and self sufficient nation.

What Is a Biblical Entrepreneur?

Psalm 127:1

” {A Song of degrees for Solomon.} Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.”.

Commentary

They labor in vain that build it – literally, “In vain toil its builders in it.” The idea is, that they are entirely dependent on God. No matter what their skill, their strength, their industry may be – all will be in vain unless God shall assist them. They are dependent on Him for life, for health, for strength, for practical wisdom, for a disposition to continue their work, and for success in it.

Notes on the Bible by Albert Barnes [1834].

MODULAR 1: What is a Biblical Entrepreneur?

Whether you are an inspiring entrepreneur or a CEO of a major corporation, the Bible

is the ultimate source for valuable, pertinent advice and guidance; it provides you with the keys to your future successes. Jesus used scriptures by quoting passages as He taught. He used Isaiah’s prophecies to bring to disruption the Pharisees’ false piety (Mark 7:6-13). In Luke 24:25-27 he explained that the things concerning Himself had been written by Moses and the prophets. Most notability, when being tempted by the devil, Jesus used scriptures, (Matthew 4:4 – KJV), “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God”. Also, read Matthew 4:7 and Matthew 4:10.

So, what is a Biblical Entrepreneur, (also in some circles the term Christian Entrepreneur is used. To fully understanding the meaning (and heart) of a Biblical Entrepreneur, you must understand how the world God views business and entrepreneurship.

In college I studied business on several levels, both undergrad and graduate programs. Both taught (by definition) that an entrepreneur’s main concern is the generation and accumulation of wealth for shareholders and stakeholders. The success of the business is determined by that end goal. Everything about the business from the customer to the employees, finances, product, marketing, and management team worked to reach the goal to accumulate wealth (grow the business).

Although, making money is a key objective for all business ( no profit, no business), the focus of a “Biblical Entrepreneur” (by definition) is someone (a Christian) who uses their talents, treasures, and time to operate a business, in which God has place them as a steward, in a manner that will bring Him glory, as well as be a blessing to his or her community, nation, and world.

Why is this distension important? As a Biblical Entrepreneur you will have many ups and downs. Knowing the “why” you are in business will give you the strength, courage, and tanistry to face the hard times. Knowing the “why” is the start of building a successful business based on the Kingdom Principles.

Foundational Question(s).

1. Do you pray (daily) for God to guide you in every part of being a “Biblical Entrepreneur”?

2. Do you invite God to your Board Room Meetings? (Even if you are the only person in the Board Room)?

3. How will your business glorify God? (More on this in later chapters).

Vocabulary

Biblical Entrepreneur: Someone (a Christian) who uses their talents, treasures, and time to operate a business, in which God has place them as a steward, in a manner that will bring Him glory, as well as be a blessing to his or her community, nation, and world.

Business Playbook: A Playbook provides a clear and measurable “audit path” for

accountability.

Business Plan: A document setting out a business’s future objectives and strategies for achieving them.

Kingdom Business Plan: A kingdom business is an enterprise directed by the Holy Spirit and managed by a godly leader that uses its time, talent, and money to meet the spiritual and/or physical needs of the community around them to advance God’s purpose.

Shareholders: A person who owns shares in a company. Someone who owns stock in Apple is an example of a shareholder.

Stakeholders: A person, group or organization that has interest or concern in an organization. Stakeholders can affect or be affected by the organization’s actions, objectives and policies. Some examples of key stakeholders are creditors, directors, employees, government (and its agencies), owners (shareholders), suppliers, unions, and the community from which the business draws its resources.

The Four Types of Education You Require to Become a Successful Business Entrepreneur

As an aspiring successful business entrepreneur, you dare to tread a different path to 97% of society. You seek to become rich so you can design your own life independent of your paycheck. Instead of a J.O.B. you prefer to work for yourself and be your own boss, maybe work from home or anywhere you like, and to become financially free to live out your dream lifestyle.

Whether you start a traditional business, a home based business or an internet business, Robert Kiyosaki (Rich Dad, Poor Dad and The Business School) talks about three different types of education that are required for the successful business entrepreneur. If you want to achieve this financial freedom to live your own life, you need scholastic education, professional education and financial education.

Let’s unpack those three first.

Scholastic education basically is what you get at school. In the main part, it’s about basic literacy. You are taught how to read, write and do maths, very important for survival in today’s information age. Throughout our childhood we are taught the importance of getting a good education. As adults, we are encouraged to become lifelong learners and invest in our personal development. It is pretty much indoctrinated in us that getting good grades at school, even going to university, is the best way to get a high paying job.

Professional education is what teaches you how to work for money. This type of education you can get from apprenticeship and training as well as through to your work experience. This type of education can range from apprenticeships in a trade or service to higher level training to become a doctor, lawyer, accountant, pilot, and so forth.

Financial education is rarely taught at school or at home or anywhere else for that matter! This is where you learn how to make money work for you (as distinct to you working for money as above). Most people don’t even realise that scholastic and professional education will only get you so far.

Without financial or wealth education, you may not appreciate the ‘different path’ available to you and will end up always working for the rich, not becoming rich. This is how Robert Kiyosaki’s distinguishes the two with his Rich Dad, Poor Dad concept.

However, these days if you are doing business mostly on the internet, there is, in my opinion, a really crucial fourth type of education and that is social education. So I’ll add this one into the mix.

Social education is important in any business where you are making sales and dealing with customers. But online, it’s even more important since you cannot ‘meet’ in person and much of our social behaviour relies on body language and visual and auditory cues.

Social education is about developing “emotional intelligence” towards others. It is learning to communicate effectively with people with regard to their situation, needs and feelings. It’s about active listening and empathy. It’s about connecting with a person’s highest hopes and worst fears.

Some would say that you develop the ‘sales’ skills to manipulate people. I advocate you develop social skills to match what you can offer to what people are looking for! (In that scenario, there is no need for a hard sell.)

On the internet, social education is critical to every part of your marketing, sales and support. This is because buying decisions depend so much more heavily on people’s sense of trust. Being seen as an authority and a leader builds your online credibility.

This is evident in the growing trend towards social networking and personal branding – what is termed “attraction marketing”, which is nowadays the business model of all successful internet marketers. People need to know you, like you and trust you before they will do business with you, become a customer or partner with you.

Social education is therefore one of the cornerstones of effective marketing. It teaches you aspects the psychology behind different personality types, how people make decisions, how to attract others to you, how to reach win-win outcomes, and so on.

If you spend time learning how to translate that knowledge and understanding into your personal branding, your copy writing, your presentations and your conversations, it will skyrocket your business success.