Starting: The bigger the picture the wider the spectrum!

A dream doesn't need money! It makes you search for creative ways to make money!
When the money comes you will know where to put it! Start dreaming of a solution! Share it and see the magic happen!

When starting a business the hardest part is keeping enthusiasm! The bigger the picture the wider the spectrum for of things to keep you busy!

Understanding that in business you will always have limitations in terms of finance and logistics as a startup, you need to look at the best creative method for assembly and delivery, then make your presentation to your market and see what happens! There is always a client that will take you to the next level!

Lets have an analysis of the following picture.

Point 1: Knowing the cost of not solving the problem: No Need and Awareness phases!
Every entrepreneur starts with the question "do they need my solution"? this is where startups put themselves in a fix, instead of having a basic concept they venture into creating a product. What they should be creating is an IMAGE "standing out as an expert like a consultant, its a cheeper way in starting in business".

How does one start in becoming a consultant? For starters the question to ask is "is the market aware that they have a problem"? Does the market know the consequences in not solving the problem? To me this is usually the first point in finding out if you have the opportunity to connect to a market. This is usually done through the PR channels. Radio is most effective and at times cheep  for bringing news to a wide public. Usually a market isn't aware that they have a problem let alone identify solution providers, so one is more likely as an entrepreneur to first draw awareness to the problem and then show them the solution.

Point 2: Knowing solutions for me are available. Research and shortlisting!
Your solution is what pays the bill. At what cost it would be for you to provide the solution is only gotten when your leads contact you. Here your basic design of solution pathways start developing. Through Investigating their unique problems you will be able to design specific solutions to them. Do not rush in sending out invoices because you need to look at all the available complaints of your leads to design one or 2 solutions that can possibly solve all their problems.

Usually those who have identified their problems are in a rush for a solution but don't like to pay until it is solved so you will have to have the skills in managing their fears. also at this point you may have to turn down some leads because it may become too expensive or expansive to deliver the job. In the process of shortlisting you need to categorise your leads into stages i.e.. who can be fixed now, soon or later. This is a time and resource management skill.

Point 3. Closing up the deal and Implementation. 
Remember you are not the only one in the market who could possibly be providing same solutions as you. there are always bigger and smaller competitors too deal with leads you may not be able to handle. So network with competitors as partners. Clients choose for many reasons but trust is what they stay with.

Project management guidelines are available on the world wide web look it up and you are in business.

see next: Continuum

Creating opportunities!!!

Continuum

Creating  your own opportunities is the very meaning of having a Continuum! As you go on into providing solutions as a consultant you need to be aware that consulting isn't necessarily a business, it is a process of delivery. i.e. researching and analysing data. A business is an organisation! it is more complex than just its services or products. It is more involved with managing not just clients but staff, partnerships and investments. As one grows one is attracting or needs to attract more resources, this is done through using processes and procedures i.e. the very meaning of organising resources and resourceful alliances that help not just you but at minimum having a meaningful contribution to  "economic" growth.

You will be dealing with establishing and maintaining a Vision and establishing your Mission path if you are on your own.
Your company vision is tied to a growth development phase of a given country(s) you are established in, and your mission is to identify how you choose in supporting that growth. If the country is growing then usually it should mean your company is growing too, however most startups are more inclined to providing a vision and designing a mission that isn't revolving around a country but its owner.

In a perfect situation the government should be connecting with business owners and their companies to drive the economy, this usually happens through professional associations but if not  then everyone ends up on their own and only by a  miracle find themselves solving problems from different ends and it will take time to achieve  objectives.

The objective of a business is to make money for growth and expansion; the well being of management, staff and the value added resources that support the company's growth. The objectives show commitment to the care of those who are within the company. The Mission shows commitment to managing the market and The Vision shows the commitment to growing further. Objectives never change but the Vision and Mission changes as one gets from one phase to the next.

“God” wants us to know that life is a series of beginnings, not endings. Just as graduations are not terminations, but commencements. Creation is an ongoing process, and when we create a perfect world where love and compassion are shared by all, suffering will cease. Bernie Siegel

KEY WORDS: GRADUATION, LIFE, LOVE

I had initially touched on the concept “theory” of building designs it was the theory of how new ideas evolve from one stance into multiple options, this is in reference to understanding perspectives be it relating to products or service options, in consulting there are in my view should be a varying amount of options, in products this is identified in levels of quality, there are also levels of effectiveness in services. In creating a manual for business schools to ponder on the originally set structure for revenue development is being reviewed. 

Raduation “raduga” (Prussian) in sound translates to rainbow, this for me works as a method of aligning up ideas into levels of importance for a person seeking transitions to seek opportunities/strategies and tactical execution of plans ie a gradual progression from one level into another. In examples taken from the business idea site. 

Idea Center: ANTIQUES - Interests

Under the antiques level of interests there are a series of businesses and each of them as stated applies to the antique this would mean studying what is considered antique, ie a perception of history ie there is a story attached to a piece of work or an art of a kind, Antiques are sold in aution houses these aren’t faly used but valuables that has meaning that appreciates or depreciates based on it use and what it represents, it is of cultural or personal value to someone or a society so it will be of a price. Going on to the point.

FLEA MARKET ORGANIZER – a flea market is an auction of a particular type segregated from high-end valuables you might as well have a café or restaurant for additional revenue with an entertainment center. 

On the list of presented businesses an analytic is placed based on interest level and resource availability to see the paths for building up a business design specific to antiques, have a look and build the blocks of executive methods that forms a plan, attach the cost, identify specialists and seek for investments that’s about as simple as it takes to setup, managing is a process of growth that depends on your will to see it happen than waiting for miracles where leads have been presented.

Considering that first professions were started through INTERESTS/TALENTS then it was organized under INDUSTRIES it now represented the PROFESSIONS, in this case professions are organized interests/talents, this leads me to address the rainbow based on colors.

In an environment that is simple ie a nations development level talent is what people can easily identify with. What are categories of talents and how does it link to interests? I would first define interest it is either directed by craft or trade. 

Before choosing a line of profession first identify either desired skill to acquire or identify by yourself what you can, have trained yourself by yourself outside of institutions, the following are identified talents.

INTERESTS/TALENTS
Singing, dancing, varying sports, burping the alphabet, whistling , recite alphabet backwards , being good at math , reading upside down , fastest text messenger , rolling your tongue , holding breath uinder water , cooking , baking, coughing up intestines , read with eyes closed , play piano , play guitar , play flute / recorder , play clarinet , play clarinet underwater , making clothes , building houses , play violen , play saxophone, eat grapes until they start coming out of your ears , fart without it smelling , clap hands and destroy a planet , give birth to penguins, tongue touching your nose , licking your elbow , tap dancing , magic tricks , driving , walking on water , living on the moon , going a week without sugar , hula hoop , jump rope , writing , spelling , smelling , smiling , partying , coloring , drawing , painting , imitating farm animals , punting , throwing , hitting , catching, swimming, yelling , whispering , breathing , tying shoes , giving , listing talents , measuring , drinking, lying , flying , flying a kite , being a duck , herding, lassoing, imitaing billy crystal, imitating keanu reeves, slam dunking, dodging, bullets, playing frogger, picking good outfits, listening, fishing, surfing, making, camp fires, making pancakes, planning, being nice, blogging, playing dead, pretending to be a shark in a swimming pool, typing, scaring off a bear, scaring off a frog, mocking, voting, building, hiking, kayaking, shoveling snow, cheating, without getting caught, answering questions.

These are talents that are used in industries, what we see today lay in these foundations someone improved on it and we have what we have, personally I yell out in my car to have done what I had, singing may not be my outmost forte even if I am looking forward to making at least one single. I studied sounds that way, my son needs me to practice on myself to enable him in a world of bastards who would rather drug him to ease their job.

I am sure that in the minds of most parents there is a question that stands “how do we prepare our kids to see and take opportunities by the horn in preparation for adulthood without being brainwashed by academic demands in certain professions, the above listed are activities that kids will find as fun and most of them gives a general understanding of how things evolved, as regards how societies evolved cultural themes through artistic expressions helps them to be more lenient to change rather than subjecting them to a particular type, its time to accept that there will always be white, black, and understanding the varied colored culture of lifestyles all over the world both within and outside their reach. White just as black is limited in their extremal understanding of life and they also need to realize that however they may not like it. I have a son who is of Tatar, Sierra-Leone, Ghanaian, Nigerian “edo/yourouba”decent and that puts me in a position to demand from anyone to realize that his dark skin has nothing to do with him, I may sound off-handish at this point but never the less it is the reality of an inexposed world we live in, this is the world I am in its colorful and I will not have anyone limiting him to their ocular receptivity and limited experience of life. I am still having to deal with in SA with the fact that a nation of couloreds cant comprehend that there is a mixed culture also existing, sorry but no sorry there is a distinct difference, aggression doesn’t exist within it is determination due to knowing where my roots come from, I am not about to loose who I am like they did, say you all thanks to the methods of apartheid just as the coloured Americans who cant find their bearings around the pains passed on through generations, yes the vast majority of coloureds are in a bad state emotionally, that would be the first thing to look at before proceeding into economics, I have paid the price of distrust because of that. I am very aware of what mixed and coloureds went through and still do, it is a violent nature we were plunged into by greedy and ignorant societies, no jokes made. To see only Trevor Noah as a face internally and internationally is appalling same it is with Nigeria as Osas is the only mixd boy representing and this is why I am questioning the stand of the mothers who call themselves diaspora, to even speak of other worlds would take half a page. hello what happened? Are the colureds so faceless that living in penury is the only way? Sad.

Should interest levels be defined by earning power what you gain in financial terms you all will find yourselves depressed at the effort it takes to pull oneself out of a hole that systems had built and it is honestly in your minds and hearts nothing more or less. To have an attitude towards your own lies is as good as trapping yourselves. 

The study of talents leads to understanding the industries when at a growth level stage.

Antiques Headline | Business Idea Center

Antiques business ideas that you can start today from Entrepreneur.com.

ENTREPRENEUR.COM

A business plan - how can it fly?

Investors get bored with lack of imagination in interpreting concepts. Use and show your Imagination- thats what i think a business plan should be! A business plan is not just a fine presentation paper on your hopes!

Have you ever held an eagle or a dove and wonder how it can fly? Different investors have different objectives. Remember that you are your own major investor so your business plan has to capture it all but your other investors need to see what part of the company they are investing in and what they will get in return. Lets look at the variety of investors that may exist. Your staff, your suppliers, shareholders, partners, consultants; what i mean is that any party that is contributing to your business is an investor.

You should be prepared to shed of the weight of your dream to enable it fly! Business Plans vary depending on who you are presenting it to. The Business plan that you need to draft for yourself as the owner is different from the one you show to investors in your solutions and or the investors in your company. Think of your plan as a Trade secret. A magic Blue print that not everyone should see in full because hey you may loose your nest and the golden goose to a competitor! Investors also should be screened just as you are being screened by them. Who said that everyone you shake hands with is a friend? Your confidence level isn't to be submitted just because you are looking for funds or other types of resources. You are the golden goose who lays the golden eggs and those who want a share should also be prepared to build the nest. Investors are not gods, they are same type of people like you with limitations, limits and fears. You owe it to yourself that they not only see your perspective but their perspectives on the market is relevant! They are actually a source of valuable information too.

You will have to accept changes, keep the discarded parts in mind as banking on future investment opportunities! Seeking Investment is like a job interview, you have to show you know your investor and show who you are and knowledge of the market space! Also bear in mind that your competitors might be speaking to them as well and your Business could be opposing their strategies!

They are investing in you and it is a risk because they could be mistaken, we have a lot of individuals who are smart enough to present a fine face but no substance! Heart isn't enough, taking things personal doesn't help because your lack of knowledge in who is sitting in front of you is clouded! You may have a passion but keep it to yourself so that no one dampens your drive!

What problems are we solving for Unemployment.

What problems are we solving for Unemployment???
Youth & Young 16 - 45

The current employment market in Africa does not support inexperienced in the business environment youth! This is because we are no longer in the industrial era, which provided the educational institutions with a specific task to train individuals for specific duties and skills.

No one is now taking in students with only technical skills. 2 additional skill set is required Management & Strategic thinking. We are now in the commercial era, and this means strategic mind-set! Critical thinking!

The current employer in the bid to sustain and grow the company can not afford even the minimal time to be spent on those with no experience. He is pressured by the return on investment, high demand on standards from his market. The public sector is doing all its best but the rate at which we are graduating youth into the job market leaves very little space for every one.

The business world is now very distant from the educational institutions, no bridge for feedback or collaborative projects. We have developed a program that supports graduates and undergraduates receiving practical experience in business. Employers are requesting assessment of capabilities prior to employment and this isn't possible given that entrepreneurial skills can't be theorised.

The skills that would best serve people in the 21st century employment arena are people who think abstractly, have conceptual abilities, can think critically, can analyze problems with their solutions, have research skills and can communicate effectively will be the most employable and have leadership in supporting and leading a business.

StartUpSity work practice development

Participants feedback


1. Goodness Lindsley Ncube. (Zimbabwean) Graduate Human resources.
There were ten students that were selected from the college and I being one of them really came as privilege. I did not know what to expect there but was grateful that I had been selected.

We were first introduced to the whole process that goes on before a brainstorming session. Then we got to the brainstorming process session which also showed us that working as a team is the starting point for a business. One important thing that we discovered was that in order for a business to start developing, one needs to partner up with people from different spheres and backgrounds, so that the ideas brought forward are not biased towards a certain group’s preferences but is a good and sound business plan.

The reason why most youth cannot start a business or get employed is sometimes due to the pre conceived idea that things always do not turn out the way you want them to. The starting point of a successful employee, one needs to first develop an understanding of the business as a whole regardless of their specialized field of expertise. One needs to develop a passion for that particular field at which they get employed in.

I learnt that a service plan needs to be developed before coming up with the business plan. These two are the founthetion to the success of a business because they give you a structure of how the business is going to operate. Giving us a total insight as to what resources are taken to consideration when one needs to get their business out there. Startupsity also equipped us with skills that one needs in order to make it out there. This experience was a real eye opener; I am wishing that more students get the same opportunity as the one we got. It really was an experience.

2. Dineo Rainers (South African) Graduate of Human Resources 
My experience with StartUpSity...!
Am Princess Rainers an H.R student in Boston college in Orange Grove campus Johannesburg, I was chosen to participate in an internship programme with StartUpSity, so I want to share all the magnificent experience with you.

Alsu Odemwingie the founder of StartUpSity & CEO, what an exceptional woman, working with her through this pilot incubator was very exciting, She introduced the programme to us as team members or group managers of the StartUpSity incubator, it was a bit overwhelming cause we were not sure of what her expectations were, she warmed us to the programme to be comfortable. We started brainstorming creative ideas how to implement strategies, all my fellow students were on point very creative, nothing was cliché', studying in Boston college I was able to utilize what they have taught me throughout my course on this programme..

THE HIGHLIGHTS
Being part of the StartUpSity team now I have in extensive knowledge of office procedures, tolerance of different and complex situations n I have strong communicative  skills and able to tolerate stress

In addition to the FREE wheeling pleasures of spending 2 weeks in a entrepreneurial string of classes and testing experience I was able to improve my financial and editorial skills to step forward as a student who is studying human resources and more examine the employment industry

OUTDOOR-ACTIVIES & CREATIVE SIDE
Between time spent in the office implementing strategies, ideas and outside meeting potential clients, real Estate agents, sales marketer, and the creative director I was able to learn on how to approach investors and understanding what business is about.

THE OUTCOME OF THE INCUBATOR
Fortunately, the work experience that I have gained through StartUpSity, I now fully understand the working world, what skills are needed as an Human Resource Practitioner and skills on being an entrepreneur.

3. Tumelo V. Mokoka (South African) Student Finance at Boston College.
The past week at StartUpSity has been really educational. The whole Idea of this program in my understanding was 2 actually promote the understanding of the corporate world and what is required to succeed in it.

I was given the opportunity to be in the employers shoes. When our coach/mentor presented the history of Startupsity and also the personal entrepreneurial experiences she went through while trying to get the business started, at that point I understood how much Startupsity meant to the Boss, I began to change my attitude towards business and how i viewed the position of the boss. Today I fully understand what it means for a business to have a service team, I fully understand how my unwillingness to take part in meetings and activities can affect the Service Operations of a company.

The importance of taking care of both our clients’ and colleagues is very much admired at Startupsity coaching practices. so in return I was able to give my full attention in meetings. By doing so, I quickly grew closer to the duties of the employer, and my team mates.

Startupsity values its client’s and customers who are part of Startupsity. I believe with such values Startupsity can orientate our clients and staff in believing in our morals, this way both parties (being customers and Startupsity service team) benefit from each other.

"In order 4 u 2 b served, 1 needs 2 serve 1st..." Quoted 4rm Alsu, CEO of Startupsity Global pty.

one of the skills I learnt was to be creative in all aspects of  Business Entrepreneurship, I learnt that many businesses fail to operate on the market because Entrepreneurs relay much on capital rather than encourage new ideas to get the business operating without capital. One of the good things bout Startupsity is that, it encourages students to be creative and also pushes students to be hardworking towards their work, and profession.

I have benefited a lot 4rm Startupsity and from my fellow team mates, I now know who am and where I am heading. One thing I'll always remember is that Dreams can only become a reality, if have Faith that I can do it...

###
4. Kelebogile Ruele "F" (South African) Graduate of IT

Got understanding from different aspects of employment.
Learnt that one shouldn't think around the gutter, not narrowing options on how to make money...
The experience also enhanced my knowledge not only in the IT section but also in each and every department that we have identified….Human resources, Marketing, I regard myself extremely fortunate to have been given this opportunity to be part of SUS, to help create employment...

This opportunity opened my eyes and made me aware that youth needs employment skills and not just technical theory


5. Collen Lepulana http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nS4J5IGAlEI  (Video Interview) Graduate of Information Technology.

6. Mlungisi Mk Makhubu "M" (Swaziland) Graduate Graphics & Data Management 
through the Internship program that was offered to Boston City Campus & Business College in Johannesburg, myself and 9 other students were selected out of thousand hopefuls to be the first to participate in the entrepreneurial program.  what i had experienced covered the vast areas of business and especially team work. we were introduced into the Media world

7. Amen Nastasha "F' (Nigerian) Undergrad 
Since i met My mentor she has been really good to me and have touched and influence me positively, she had shown me how i can manage myself as an individual, how i should always try to stand for whats right and she had also enlightened on why i shoudnt be famous/rich before i can be able to help people, she guides me to learn about my weakness and convert them to strengths. she has helped me to realize how much i can do for myself and the society and how i could reach out to the yougsters like me. i am gradually believing in me! i am undergoing coaching on Media and Social communication. i look forward to my experience completion.

8. Lebogang Ngwenya "F" (South African) Graduate of Business Administration
My experience at Startupsity has been Mind Blowing. i was able to understand how the workplace is and what was required of me as a graduate of Business Administration. it has been a revelation to see how all the different views came together in team work. i saw a different view on how the outside world works and the expectations. this program showed us how theory becomes practice. It will be my wish that many students before graduation experience this. I feel i am ready to go into the corporate world and put my potential to good use.

Why are we for StartUps!

Why are we for StartUps.

Industrialisation is the one thing that all the countries in the developed world has in common! With industries came jobs and business opportunities! Innovations are based on the foundations of skill and capacity!

So many startup projects and businesses die due to lack of seed funds for piloting production processes and product refinement. This isn't only due to the lack in start-up capital.

The scarcity in skills sees many early stage businesses not being able to afford the skills that they need to get going. Companies are built by people, not machines. By definition, these people are skilled in chosen technical areas but are failing to understand the basic business and its life cycle principles to keep survival of their dreams, for the youth the Universities educational content isn’t meeting the demands of the business world ie customized practice.

Entrepreneurship is not the endeavor of a single person. Knowing how to build a business and motivating people to support them and help them. Startup companies are predominantly one-man businesses. Some of the startups manufacture products from their kitchen or garage, and sell to the surrounding neighbourhood. The products are predominantly of poor quality due to poor manufacturing practices and in some cases assembled with low quality materials. The end result is that the final consumer – be it government department or individual consumer – ends up with a product that is sub-standard.

Africa is not used to funding start-up’s. These businesses often burn a lot of cash and are built on a model called “build it and they will come”. Often this fails. Experienced funders focused on startups know how to fund in rounds and experienced entrepreneurs know how to select the right funders.

Many start-up’s forget who comes first - The idea of the entrepreneur or the need of the customer. Who is the customer, how to find them and most importantly how to build towards their needs is the single biggest challenge that we see facing entrepreneurs. Get this wrong (or worse assume it and do not do it) and you will be hacking away for years to come thinking that the world is against you and customers are stupid. This is not uncommon.

This is a massive challenge for all start-ups as they cannot properly advertise and brand their products to compete with established brands. This directly affects their sales and consequently their revenues.

Business Training & Solutions
Virtual Development Incubator
www.startupsity.biz

Status through purpose!

Status "Brand" is only achieved through purpose be it in any thing or with anyone.

Does it matter who, or is it about what do you want to do? Your interests, your values, your experiences, all binding to create YOU! You are a Brand, thats the face of purpose!

No one is higher than the purpose, it is your ego or pride zone. Through purpose you find the  strengths and weaknesses and will be able to outline the threats and opportunities. SWOT to SWAT, which is why i often say there is nothing like a mistake, only unsolved circumstances, TWIK, not the bogus word CHANGE. Risk increases by doing nothing. Little issues grow into big problems. The only thing you have to do is work out the parameters; the scope of works that reveal the vision behind the collaboration. 

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT called body language. PR is what helps you navigate the market and file out the initially made mistakes. PR is a method for collecting feedback "are you on the right path?". What is a path if not different roads leading to a "SOLUTION".

Cause of unemployment in Africa!!!

I was asked "What is really the cause of unemployment in most African countries"?  I hope my one bit experience can try to explain.

First and formost we need to disabuse our minds from what we have been made to think employment is. Employment in my sense represents Purpose. Jobs, Contracts, Entrepreneurship, Supplying, Investments are descriptors of paths to making money, it isnt purpose itself. We have a lot of problems and that means one needs to apply themselves.

Politically we don't have a purpose, there is no blue print that we are following ie how do we get there. Our leaders are not educated or wrongly orientated when it comes to development steps but if speaking in business terms, we have all focused on managing the visible natural resources but built very little resembling an industry, even now the companies busy in extraction cant sell their products because there isnt a diversified need in the market. they are also suffering the effects of underdevelopment.

As people and our leaders alike who are a product of us, we have no respect development process since natural and artificial timelines had been created as well as keeping in mind what available resources there is.
These are industries that have been developed in foreign countries.

Advertising- what products and services do we produce for the advertising world to present to the market? We are seeing ads of foreign brands. We have no faith in what we produce in-house, by buying what foreigners make we are giving out our hard cash.

Arts & Crafts- we have no endearing for the works of art of our artists. How lovely it would be to hang a painting with the curves of our women and illustrations of our lands?! We dont study arts anymore in schools and that is a foundation of architects and the works that give us jobs in building stadiums, so it also affects the real-estate industry. A craft is what a profession is. Crafts is the core of any industry, it supports the engineering world. Art is an expression of how one sees life, an edified soul is secure.

Autos/Transportation- If we dont make cars why do we need roads? How do we reach our loved ones when they are far? How do we fly to the moon and improve communication if we don't industrialise?!

Beauty/Personal Care- We have really bad self care, our women are wearing fake hair and copying fashion, we dont promote the african look both for men and women. you may say its easy but in hindsight is it achieving the greater communal good?

Business Services. the business service sector is struggling because our educational sector is based on content developed to orientate us on foreign interests. A for apple can be A for akpu. Our kids dont know how to read or write properly which affects the art of communication and analytics of data found.

Apart from the fact that to actually yield returns in this sector we have to change the structure of how we do business. Most of us are traders, and that is just one sided. We need to improve the tax and its collection polices! There is a difference between a sugarcane seller and sugar producer. Business consultants are complex based, sales consultants however are transaction based. We have little respect for consult because we think we know it all. If we all realise that a consultant is a counsellor you will allow them to inform you. the knowledge of Pro and cons is only extracted during discuss, it isnt an actual science. A coach will hold your hand while achieving your goals towards full potential.

Children's Businesses- we are doing ok in this area but thats because women have taken it up. how ever the vastness of this area is huge and indirectly linked with several other industries. Ask your self who dosnt have kids? Who wants to raise them safe and sound?

Computers- as i explained earlier the fact that we have no nepa stops us from industrialising, our kids cant do programming, so software that solve african problems cant be developed.

Education/ & Instruction- forget about this if we have lecturers who never practised are teaching and sleep with students to give them marks. I resigned from a job at 22 because the employer who had a business in teaching computer literacy advertised and never intended in giving the kids what he said he would. I don't do witch hunting but if adults are ripping knowledge out of kids what safety would they have for their pensions not to be rubbed in return.

Family values have disintegrated to supporting kids and adults in the name of survival to steal and cheat. Your kids buys you a car while not having a stable job and you say it is fine? Lawyers have now been labeled as 419.

Entertainment & Events - we like to dance but do we know that the Olympics is an event and must be entertaining? Do we support grass root games? Do we value our cultural heritage? Entertainment is an expression of art.

Financial- what do we produce to have what to regulate or manage? Financial industry isnt responsible for long term loans they are traders of paper. If our businesses are only trade based then we have the banks we have. Finance industry is a bank that supports savings of effort in paper. They are not meant for credit but they can offer it when the business has a well defined revenue generating path.

Food- do we diversify our dishes? We have mamaputs all over, do we belive in chefs? Most of our women cook, thats fine but the agricultural sector has been neglected. We have kids who go to study architecture yet have never seen a farm or planted a garden seed. Food is a way of bringing people together.

Health Care/Medical - we go to babalawos, self medicate ourselves, drink ogogoro and then we face dealing with heartdeseas, liver failure and we dont have equipments to save lives. Our students dont care for life why should they care for a patient?

Home Products/ Services- we dont decorate our homes, it isnt an expression of style, we put things but they dont represent who lives in it. Personally i would prefer to live in a Mod house and it has character than what we see today. The Interior designers are suffering to make business cos we dont like to express our individuality through our homes. Our women are still cutting onions with their hands, where are our old day stone grinders, they sure help making better tasting dishes.

Import/Export - what african products do we produce to lure foreigners to buy our products? We have no standards which is why we loose ground to exportation. This industry represents quality. If we are wearing Gucci cant we influence the foreign fashion industry with our african prints? we havnt understood what pallet means "A TASTE of a continent"

Maintenance - do we have a maintenance culture or are we consumers? Anything produced, built, developed needs maintaining, this sector is the highest employer abroad.

Manufacturing- they produce practical tools, the manufacturing sector depends on what other sectors and people need to enhance lives and businesses. In one word they are the hardware to the rest industries which one can call software. They are the Matter to the minds design.

Media/Publishing & Movies- Do we read? Do we as people express? Freedom of speech the channels of communication is who they are. We are all each others guardians. If i may use a religious way to describe them they are the "hopi ghosts" of the business and social world.

Online Businesses - this is just logistics in virtual form. You dont need an office any more, thats if the market can deal with not seeing someone for reassurance of delivery. They reduced the rate at which trees are cut. Post office has lost its value because they invented email. They are the products of the telecom and tech world.

Pet Businesses - which animal do we respect in africa? If we still think cats are witches, forgeting that kids who have no siblings can learn to communicate and care for another through handling animals. This industry was developed by explorers of the physical world and its habitants. We all love discovery channel and ofen times animals teach us better humanity. isn't the film industry supported through the natural world?

Plants/Agriculture - it is about our eco system, survival of which we cant do without. Creams are made of plants, herbs are used in pharmaceuticals, etc

Real Estate - what is the point of owning a land if we build houses face me i face you, fence to fence, no parks for kids to play and kids are arrested infront of the tv? What architecture is there? I personally dont buy a house if my kids need to be driven to the streets.

Recreation - Oambe and burials, thats all we attend. We have made a private family pain into social celebrations. It is changing and this isnt culture it needs to fade out. We dont know the content of our lands hence we trade it for peanuts, fighting for which is pointless later cos the truth is finders is always keepers.

Retail Businesses - we sell what others invent. this we are masters of. What else? we are depending on foreign trends, so if there isn't anything new on the market or a product ceases to exist then there is a hole in the pocket.

Security- Why security? This is handled by churches. Now terrorists have a better job to do barking at the flock to gather. What is security if not a philosophy/ideology in reverse?

Sports - this builds strategic minds, builds psychologically healthy individuals. It is a form of relaxation. Health is among the first needs that existed along side Arts and Agriculture which made it possible for the rest industries to develop. It also affects the sex drive of men in the positive sense.

Technology - our todays tools are only a modification of what was then. Facebook is a communication technology.

Travel - the only way you can see a vantage point to a situation is to travel, if you have no comparison you cant see the loopholes. Travel shows opportunities and this as Nigerians we do well but if we believe that it isnt possible to do at home what man has already done given the fact that the bright man lives in a harsher environment we have no excuse that we cant adopt and modify to our needs. South Africa wouldnt be what it is today if they didnt have the influence. We drove the colonialists but we didnt build from there. Creativity is bread through travel.

I could go on but a readable page will not be enough to draw a blue print so enjoy exploring your mind for possible opportunities. Every industry has its value but when we place value on money we cease to have a price. White man has no respect for money but they will demand quality and relax at doing the best in their own area. When someone comes to sell something to us we want it free or show no appreciation for effort. When money is stored it looses its value.

To have a good employment rate we need to have all this industries developed, we have to start and we should realise that during the starting phase there is little technology to leave many out of employment. If given a report what industry do we know in Nigeria is succeeding or leading?
Employment is about putting minds and matter to good use. If one feels used one will never invest. We have loads of work to do but no one wants to be employed or maybe our politicians are not developers?

This is just a crude way of putting it out. i dont copy others theories but present what i have experienced.

Three pieces of advice!

I was asked: "What three pieces of advice would you give to college students who want to become entrepreneurs"?

Dreams are acheavable. Know thyself, put yourself through everything so that events don’t scare you, ondue expectations create the problems because you have developed preconseived ideas about the business and the world of people. If you venture into things see it for what it is and don’t cloud yourself with emotions. 

As a youth you have a lot of energy, spend it, have no pity on yourself or you will remain a boring old hag and nag about how life isnt good enough. Collaborate with your peers and those older and younger than you while in university and outside of it because those are your future partners, staff, suppliers, future political leaders. Get yourself known, but for the right reasons, no one likes fake ie those who project what they aren't prepared to handle. 

Start a project before you leave school so that when an employer asks about you you will have something to say other than you wasted your time, as that would reflect on how seriously you took your life. Don’t forget that your hobbies also develop skills that will give you additional pay, such as having a voice would mean you can record a company sountrack, dancing makes you a good team leader / HR speaker, sports give you skills in strategic thinking and develops discipline " a focused mind towards achieving a goal". All these are transferable skills helpful to the business environment. If you are a good support to your employer you will be able to attract same type of people as staff, suppliers, partners and investors because people first connect to like minds before they can collectively solve problems. Learn the skills of communication first. Know all forms of communication and find their appropriate tools.

Your philosophy of life translates to the actions you use in managing a business and working with people.

Ignite your dreams.

Resource Pull!

At the beginning of development a business requires suppliers to provide raw materials as inputs, workers to process these raw materials, clients to buy the resulting outputs, investors & partners to collaborate with. 

Most business owners complain about one thing, no time for yourself. This is because at start you spoon-feed literary every function of the business and without you you think it will collapse. Let's assume you are an entrepreneur, you have been doing things alone and the job is getting too much, you need to share it.

Trusting yourself first is paramount, shifting into areas that you are strongest or vital to the business and leave the rest to the rest. You have to let go, pretend you are on a vacation and you have to leave certain things in care for someone, besides it will be nice to have someone you can irritate and let steam off lol. If you can't trust people then it will be difficult. Whats the point in having a business and you cant get busy, all you need to put are checkpoints.

You can ether take staff or best take in partners at first but they still need to be managed (everyone needs to know what and where. As the business grows you require information to alert you on what's going on and you can't be running from post to post asking what's going on.

As you go on growing do realise that each department has its own "objectives" (This is like managing a family), you need to understand the processes and set workflows so that you can track what's going on or how to fix things if they go wrong. Your workflows "policies and procedures" will determine the type of information to demand. Create a chart; this will help you and your staff orientation on the business chain of command. Let's assume you are starting a restaurant! In order to manage the business you need reports. Reports show you 2 things: problems and opportunities. As a business owner you will  manage risking change "transitions".

Within a business you have 3 sub categories of management. Promoting "MARKETING", Controlling "ADMIN", and Implementing "OPERATIONS". In all of these areas there are 2 divisions. Front End & Back End. The operations are the most important doors to your business, next following Controlling (admin), and then PROMOTING (Marketing), for various businesses it’s different.

Put customer experience first! Let’s assume you are in the food business.

A customer comes in, what happens? They are asked where they would like to sit, or offer them where is best based on their preferences. They have a sit and the menu is given, some may ask what's on your specials, or what can be recommended. One has to remember that if you are serving just dinner, then your customers come for leisure, if you are serving lunch or breakfast they are coming to eat quick and head back to work. So the best customer experience should be streamlined considering their time factor but the best is to always serve quick. And give customers 20min to get in and out. This is why you find out that most clients are unhappy if their first 5min is spent on just waiting to get started. Everything has to do with getting customers happy. Your workflow, processes, policies are based on customer experience. If you don't do this then don't be surprised when everything is upside down.

The reports you need are client complaints. The opportunities bracket is based on suggestions clients make, every waiter for instance has to record all info they get from the client, how they made their order, what dishes they went through before they choose the one they ordered etc. This will help you at the end of the day to reorganize your staff on what the needs are and how to meet them better.

Meetings are the best way to manage staff in the food business. No need to shout at your staff as most clients don't always know what they want and they confuse your staff as well. Wouldn't it be nice to have a client that knows it all? that is rare, so teach them how to help the client to make the quick and best choices.

Support

CHANGE MANAGEMENT: (Tweaking & Shaping) during transitions or growth and expansion. Business wants to be the preferred supplier, they want to be seen as an industry leader and they want prestige.

STARTING UP: when it comes to creativity, what matters is if they BUYIN to your Idea. If they see your perspective they will BUYIN, if they need your perspective they will BUY. The difference in BUYING and BUYIN is in the goal you are pursuing. Investors, Partners, Staff need to BUYIN to your Idea to be a part of it; Customers need to BUY. The Convincing power of your pitch is what persuades each party.

Example...

Do we need clothes? Not really especially us in Africa :). The shame of nakedness drives us to cover ourselves. We might as well wear fig leaves. The need to attract others is what drives the fashion industry. You might as well wear a rag. Loll Nice PR statement, a perspective to make people laugh.

Does man really need to go to the Moon? No!!! But NASA is sponsored by Telecom corporations as an overhead position provides a large covering for communication. Understand what values are, then see how you can create to support the values of or for the world.

GROWING THE BUSINESS: A TREND is another word for opportunities. Personal, Careers, Social Values Change and it affects the business and career personality & capabilities within an environment. Look out for value changes; these are the trends to look out for. With every Tech the business environment changes. Pampers was invented to help mothers as well as pads!!!

From your personal experiences you can presume what a person may want or needs. Don't go too far, your grandparents, spouse, friends, clubs; COMPLAINTS are indicators of a needling change. You might just be the next It THING.

BUY OR SELL A BUSINESS: Not everyone can start a business from scratch, not everyone can carry a business to the end. Sometimes the best way to get value from your investment is to sell and start a new one. You may not be capable to raise it to its potential, merge in.

Imagine what a tribal mark is!

Brand management starts with understanding what 'brand' really means. 

Imagine what a tribal mark is, its for life, some see it as a scar, and some see it as an identity.

A brand begins with the leaders of the company who define the brand and controls its management. Now a brand means a culture; nature of a business and nurture of its market.

Brands culture a nature within the market or customer . When you look around you what do you see? How can you make it better? How can you make someone’s life better!?

It also reaches all the way through the company and especially to the people who interface with customers or who creates the products which customers use.

Many companies employ people for technical needs but what about if they are not feeling the brand?

If your company deals with books best people to employ there are teachers. If dealing with real-estate best people to sell are interior designers or artists.

Brand management performed to its full extent means starting and ending the management day of the  company through the brand, it is simply far too important to leave to the marketing department alone. The CEO should be (and, in fact, always is) the brand leader of the company.

Creating the promise. How can you sell when there is no promise? A promise is what the client wants, That’s like moth to a cloth. Your brand should flirt with the market. She is a lady to the man, she is gorgeous, and graceful and smart, or rugged strong and .........define it as you would like them to feel it. Creating the promise means defining the brand. A good brand promise is memorable and desirable. It cannot be effective if nobody remembers it and is no good either if nobody wants it!

How do you make someone want it? You need to know how your market responds.

A good brand promise evokes feelings, because feelings drives actions. Volvo offers feelings of safety. Mustang offers feelings of excitement. Head, Heart and Hands. Some will buy because it makes sense to them, some because it feels good and some because they can have physical experience.

Ask questions of yourself about the logic of your idea. What is the rationale for your idea? How will it benefit all of the different stakeholder groups involved? How will you implement it? What money is needed? What people, skills and competencies? What other resources? How long will it take?

How logical are you? How can you come across as a rational and intelligent person who has thought the idea through carefully and logically? Would you/have you put your own money into the idea? Seek to create a logical project plan that shows what must be done, by whom, by when, and how long it will take.

Think about the Heart. The heart is about affective function, emotions and feelings.

Think about how you can use emotion to get your idea across. How emotional are they? How open or closed are their emotions? What emotions do they show most? About what subjects do they get emotional? What makes them passionate? What excites them most? What are the emotional aspects of your idea? How does it stimulate emotion? How does it make people feel when they see it? What words are associated with the idea? How can these be made emotional? How emotional are you? How do you show your emotions? Do you get excited when you talk about your idea? What gets you passionate? How do you have fun? What ideas would you die for? What emotional investment are you prepared to put into your idea? Seek to create passionate messages that show your commitment and excitement about the idea, and how you will not take 'no' for an answer.

Think about the Hands. The hands are about practicality, action, physical effect. Think about how you can use action to get your idea across. How practical are they? How action-oriented? Are they stimulated more by actual demonstrations? Do they like to handle things themselves? What involvement would get them bought into your idea? Can you create a demonstration of the idea? Can you make a mock-up? How can you show your idea in action? How can you get the other person involved? How can they contribute physically to the idea? How practical are you? Have you stopped at the idea or have you developed it further? How can you move yourself more into the action domain?

Can you create give-aways for them to take with them? Seek to create demonstrable evidence of how good your idea is, and how you are a person of action as well as an 'ideas person'. Consider the sequence of head, heart and hands. Should you get them doing something first and hope they realise how good the idea is once they try it out? Should you get them buzzed up and excited first? Should you start with a logical argument that starts from their problems and works back to how your idea will solve these? Find an effective sequence of actions. Find the best way of combining head, heart and hands through time to create an effective package of persuasion.

Head, Heart and Hands addresses three main motivational systems that affect people. Some prefer cognitive approaches, some prefer affective and some prefer practical and all three affect all of us to some extent. Forcing thinking about all three gets the innovator out of their preferred mode and thinking about all three, thus potentially tripling the effectiveness of persuasive efforts to get people to accept their idea.

Every organisation is modelled differently!

Every organisation is modelled differently. Every industry has a structure, Hierarchy. Study and clarify your cv, search the internet for various business structures and offer a description of how you fit in and what you will bring to improve or support the company.

The workplace, like anyplace are a bunch of people together; a jungle of many different personalities. The Good, the bad and the ugly.

The good don’t always make it. What sets the workplace apart from many other places is that everyone even the difficult people must cooperate in order to be productive. There are chatterboxes in the work place, they mean no harm but chatting can cause you to fail at delivering your tasks, just say "babes lets go for tea after work i need to focus".

The gossipers seem to know everything about everyone and they want to share it, just say "I don't feel right discussing someone behind their back". You may become the next victim!

There's always one person in a group who can never find anything in what to be happy about, this often affects morale, soon it can become a decease.

You'll find someone who wants to share his work with his colleagues, we're not talking about those who have a legitimate reason. DODGE!!!

The credit grabber does not acknowledge any help she receives from others. She accepts all the praise for a project without mentioning that she didn't do it alone. In all of this situations your temper may run high but don’t, just look at how others are dodging the bullet and choose the best result. Always record yours and others achievements even if its the job of the HR Manager.

How difficult a person is to deal with depends on your self-esteem.
Dealing with difficult people is easier when the person is just generally obnoxious or when the behavior affects more than one person. Dealing with difficult people is much tougher when they are attacking you or undermining your professional contribution. Difficult coworkers compete with you for power, privilege and the spotlight; some go way too far in courting the boss’s positive opinion – to your diminishment.

Situations don’t get better unaddressed, it usually gets worse. When you suppress it it affects your job concentration, if you erupt you will be reprimanded initially, you will go into shock when treated unprofessionally, take some time to understand exactly what is happening to you, you are not alone. Constant complaining can quickly earn you the title of whiner or complainer. Gather signatures of supporters and collectively file a complaint.

Culture is what you are and Tradition is what you believe in!

How easy is it to make one believe in something and long enough it now becomes a personal culture. Someone yesterday wanted me to believe that there is a system in Nigeria, i asked what is it, he couldn't define it and he became a ghost in my eyes. He wanted to create shadows in my mind. We are living today in the Africa that we have been made to believe in and everyday we live it affected by the traditions that have cultivated a negative reaction. You have been made to believe that there is corruption in Africa, so you automatically prepare your pocket rather than prepare to break it. Have you tried to break it? or you have just accepted it and when you make an offer because you see hesitation you automatically stretch your hand to give and then they take what they haven't laboured for. How many people actually possess facts or bold enough to say i did bribe someone. Show the receipt to what they hold to know in their hearts. Africa is corrupt alright but with ignorance and shadow makers who make you believe to hold you from making a step without them being a part of it. hmmm

Commuting: mass communication of words passed through opinions have shaped our lives and we now act it. There will come a time in your life when you will have to ask yourself, where were the facts to what you were made to believe. For all it could be life on earth could have started only 2000 years ago or even 100years ago, how sure are you that you are not living in someone else's dream? If it is and was beautiful we wouldn't fight it, if it was nasty we will be looking for a way out. When in doubt they say do not act, how about when you are not sure find out.

We have been made to believe what we hear, we have been made to believe in what we see but how many really know the taste, how many have touched. It is scary to build your life on opinions of others, it is dangerous to act on gossip. I only believe in what i can and what i have done, not what someone said, although it may motivate to try but often times it stops one from achieving self realisation. I never listen to when someone tells me NO and i ask why to every yes. I want facts not delusions of someones fear, its their truth not mine.

I left home at 18 was told that there are sharks out there, i seem to be fine. I was told that doing business is a risk, today i stand branded with success because i realised not doing something is even worse than risk. If you dont know WHO you are, WHER you are, WHAT you want to do, HOW you want to go about it in the moment, WHEN will be your enemy and that is a fact because time waits for no one. I was told so many things and i acted opposite to what i have been told and today i stand alive and healthy for one simple reason I DISTASTE FEAR and THOSE WHO WANT TO MAKE ME BELIEVE IN IT. When someone tells me something i dont distrust i check, curiosity dosnt not kill the cat, it is a smart animal because it lands on its feet anytime someone tries to land it on its back.

Tell me what you believe in and i will show you who you are. When i hear men who talk evil i think of them evil. When i see men who show me bright ideas, i think of them as light. Out of the abundance of the heart the mind speaketh and feet act. If you dont believe in yourself donot make others distrust themselves.

Why do many workers earn less?

A question was asked “Why do many workers earn less salaries when their employers live a flamboyant life?”

There are a variety of reasons; first they are not capable of taking the decisions the employers made and make. There is no way that one would explain this and not sound arrogant but if you look at it from the perspective of the level of confidence it takes for the employer to set up you will understand why there is such difference.

One is character. Individuality; a fight in the face of where the average man submitted to fit a role type. Employers are rebels, they see a problem in the community or personal life of someone and they say what can I do to help bring a change to this life, they also took a level of risk to change their lives for their loved ones. How many people on a daily basis seek to reach out to another in need? To love your own isn't love try loving a stranger, try risking your livelihood for another. A lot of staff do not know the level of sacrifice it took for their now employers to be able to give.

Lets look at why I push so hard. My kid is Autistic, in the average world where he isn’t considered functional, I have to build a world for him so that I stop blaming God why he gave me him. Although he will be fine in the next 10/20 years, what is the guarantee that I will still be around? None but never the less I have to do something so when death catches me I have a level of joy that I tried. And when StartUpSity establishes a whole load of kids like him can have an opportunity too. I am a mum and there are many mums out there who cant get back into the work environment due to babysitting, and clearly there are self centred men who wouldn’t want their wives to work, how can they get jobs to keep the spirit up? Again I have structured a service line for that. How many students have the opportunity to build experience while they study at the same time and not become drug dealers, thugs and prostitutes given the fact that our universities have failed to give them the practise. All of this problems are solved Virtually, where there is a wall that connects the disabled world to the chauvinistic able world.

We have all pretty much set rules and boxes for everyone and left the rest behind in the crack called survival of the fittest. In the animal world the strong don’t leave the perceived weak behind, they do something and only when there is grieve danger they have no choice but to leave but in the human world I have seen that we make others weak with our hypocritical absolutes. What human is in danger now? Who is attacking us? Who do we need to protect ourselves against? Ourselves from ourselves, we sure are cannibals. It is sickening and scares the living Jesus out of me and many who notice this trait in humans.

I was told by someone that I should keep quiet that my kid has this issue because I may find who will judge me or not marry him because they would know his history. It saddened me but then knowing the hypocrisy of many people I know that if he is rich there will be many who would say it doesn'’t matter. Yeah we are living in this world and it is terrible. Its sad. While my bro was a struggling sports man the gals would say “My daddy told me not to follow a footballer, when he was getting married I saw blogs that were saying “why did he didnot marry from his own, why a white gal?”Oh yeah!!!

How many are selfless? how many would take their kids savings and risk it for a change and how many people would sacrifice their livelihood for others to have a piece of the pie?

Most successful entrepreneurs don’t have a life that the average man considers successful. We loose a spouse, our kids don’t see us most times, most times are broke because we invested hoping that the crop would yield returns. Most times we loose but if we persistent we make a big win. The only thing I see that may be an issue to comprehend in comparison to the employee is the perceived freedom we have but no one sees the cost at which it came and the lives we support directly or indirectly.

Maybe someone would say who begged us to choose that path, well I would say would they have the job that feeds them today and your family if we didn’t make that decision? We employers have to deal with constant attitudes, foundations of which is the employees lack of self-esteem (Social and personal status quo). If an employee feels bad that’s because he instinctively knows he or she hasn’t met their personal standards and job performance.

How many employees try to emulate the boss as an example? If we are being criticised behind our backs that’s because they often cant understand what it is to be us. Even if the employee knew what, would they still take the decision to be us and be the dart board?

How many employees would agree to not take a salary when the company hasn’t made money? How many actually perform ie stay more than 12 hours thinking about strategies while juggling kids and having to stand constant nagging by the spouse that they are not there for them? If you are a spouse of a business person open your own and connect. Complaints wouldn't buy you that nice house you want.

If the average man who works only 8 hrs has problems retaining a family in a unit how much more the employer who does that and at the same time his own family as well as needing to defend his image in the public who has demands constantly on ethics or management and conduct?!

The Devil does wear Prada and rightfully so.

A friend of mine said: “In a competitive business environment, employees are the only UNIQUE asset that companies possess but the employers need to be reminded of that fact, so they treat their employees better. That been said, I have seen employees living flamboyant lifestyle here while their employers are modest, for instance an employee driving a Mercedes and the employer driving a Honda to work lol”

i will add

How many employees show their uniqueness, how many project what they should of the company just like the employer, through the brand or personal conduct? If you are confident in your input and have measured it you will know the price to tag yourself with. If you bring kind you get kind, if you bring cash you get cash, lip service "sucking up" doesn’t pay bills.

There are 6 billion people in the world, how many large corporations are there to cover the ratio? Most employers are small scale businesses who can employ a minimum of 5 to 10 people, ask these employers what they go through when being compared to the big corporations and government salaries. When I was starting off at age 18 most people would put me down based on age, what possible do I know or have to offer, at 25 I had my first staff and today she is a board director with a shareholding of 19%, you will say oh how sweet of me many employers wouldn’t do so. Well she earned it through loyalty and taking home less than she bargained for, gave me time to pay off the outstanding through the months and she is still with me and helped managing staff who came after her just as she did. My confidence is the attitude my staff has shown me, without them I may survive but I wouldn’t be strong. They don’t treat my business like a play ground. How many employees do this? I do consider myself lucky, and I don’t live a flamboyant life style because they have humbled me.