Dear
aspiring entrepreneur,
As
I stand on this rostrum and address you, I would like our initial interaction
to be as truthful as possible as I walk you down the journey of a Kenyan
entrepreneur.
They
said just do it, really? Just do it- what does that even mean? Like a fool I
took their advice and did it, followed my heart and plunged into the Kenyan
startup scene; armed with a great idea or so I thought, very little advice and
a tonne of optimism I became the latest founder cum CEO in the Kenya.
With
reflection now I have some advice for you future entrepreneurs… Do you know
what running a startup means? And what it is like to be a business owner? Let
me break it down for you.
It
is baptism of fire, I equate running a startup to being a mother; like a
helpless baby, new business constantly need all your attention so do your customers,
employees, product, bills and in some instances the kanjo. So like a good
mother before you startup, nurture your “motherly” instincts, toughen yourself
up and resolve to soldier on. After all you cannot throw out the “baby” with
the bath water.
Running
a startup means you also have to become an acrobat. The art of bending over
backwards for the sake of your customers and business is an art you will need
to master fast. You will be on call 24 hours, after all you promised that “unlike
the bigger agencies, we are a small outfit who will be on call all day every
day”. While delivering for your customers eventually pays off, getting called
off a family function because the clients CEO tweeted something that you need
to clean up kinda sucks.
Besides
being an acrobatic parent, the title founder and CEO comes with many hats
attached; as the boss you are also accountant, messenger, delivery guy,
cleaner, designer, marketer, sales rep and occasionally taxi, so feel free to
add corporate juggler to your resume.
My
esteemed CEO, gutless you will have to grow a strong spine, business needs strong
and confident leaders, you must reach inside you and pull out the hero in you
whilst remembering to staying focused and professional.
Appreciating
that there is someone else who knows more and or better than you is your first survival
lesson. Secondly don’t ever work alone, to grow you and your businesses need a
symbiotic ecosystem for support and encouragement. Indeed if you forget
everything else, remember these two.
Dear
friends, some of you are armed with degrees and certificates but your biggest
floor is to let our schooling to interfere with your learning. Business is not
for the book smart but for the street smart. As CEO learning is a continuous affair,
your lessons will be everywhere; your opportunities lie in people’s
frustrations and your success ultimately in easing these frustrations. Money
can never be the reason you get into business, you must have a bigger purpose.
While
starting up, avoid the startup curse of
building something wonderful that people don’t need; research, talk to people,
share your idea the feedback you get will help you better design and position
your offering. Trust me you can never do it alone.
Walk with us through this journey and share your
stories and experiences with us.
Yours faithfully
Founder, CEO, Juggler, Acrobat, Mother and Taxi
Driver
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