We started on the ground, sleeping in clubs, selling music from the boots of our cars, going to taxi ranks around the country, etc. I wanted to grow and I wanted to be financially independent.
As alluded to in the introduction, research that has been conducted by various organizations over time, has shown that most business start-ups fail within three years of their establishment. It is for this reason that people who wish to start their own businesses need to have a certain frame of mind. It must be people who are open-minded, visionary, resilient, innovative, passionate and most of all, iron-willed or strong-willed. It is, therefore, not surprising that the establishment of new businesses from scratch is something that is still feared by most people, especially those who have tasted the comfort of corporate life. And I can talk from experience on that point, as I tried that after years of earning a guaranteed salary, which I had no role in generating directly. I just knew it would come at the end of the month, without fail. Fortunately, when I ultimately became a one man show, I had worked briefly at a friend's start-up business, where there was an expectation of ensuring that the business generated revenue in order to be able to pay salaries.
In the South African context, I think the education system is partly to blame for not promoting the entrepreneurial spirit. But added to that, is the lack of easily accessible role models and guidance in some of our communities. I put the blame partly on the education system because in my experience, not much emphasis has been placed on self-reliance, which is what entrepreneurship is about. There is so much focus on creating a workforce that seeks employment opportunities, when the focus should be on directing more young people towards vocational skills, coupled with entrepreneurship. This requires a deliberate change in how people view entrepreneurship. In my view, this is especially important for the sectors of the society where the majority always believed, that starting successful businesses was a preserve of people from particular races.
Eric Parker, in his book Run Your Own Business and Make Lots of Money, somewhat shares the same sentiment on the issue of the education system. He says, "...a cursory glance at the typical school syllabus, or some eavesdropping when young South Africans discuss their future, reveals that our society's value system is seriously skewed towards producing job seekers, rather than job creators." Parker goes on to say, "Society seems to view almost with suspicion those individuals who are brave enough to rebel against being forced into the mould of lifelong employees. I find this puzzling because in other countries, notably in Europe and the Far East, entrepreneurs are admired."
I am saying this from experience, but you will also see that when you read about Belinda Francis' story below. When I left my senior management position at MTN, in 2009, to start my own business, some of the people who were close to me seemed very worried. They had seen me change jobs many times and that was okay. It was seen as a positive progression because I still had an employer. I had a job and I was an achiever who was climbing the proverbial corporate ladder. I still remember my farewell function at MTN like it was yesterday. I was happy to finally do something that I had visualized since my university days. However, the small crowd that gathered for my send-off, did not seem convinced that I was doing the right thing, nonetheless they had to take my word for it. I had procured a few golf T-shirts with Mabedlana Group Consulting (my company) embroidered on them, and I also had with me few business cards and small pamphlets that I distributed. I had taken a bold step of becoming a CEO of my own business, a completely new entity. In my speech, I told the crowd about how I had grown up in a village as a poor boy but managed to go to university, despite my family not being able to fund me and having no bursary or scholarship.
After the farewell function, one gentleman asked me if I thought I had made the right decision. He then jokingly said, "Do you think we were fooled by your speech, when you said that your village upbringing will stand you in good stead and help you survive in business?" That guy was not even someone close to me, so I was taken aback by his candid and piercing comment. It stuck with me and when things got tough out there, I remembered his words.
YOU ARE READING
From Small Beginnings To Big Brands
Non-FictionThe stories of the businesses that I am profiling, provide more detail about the founders of these companies, as to how they went about establishing the companies in question, from the beginning until they became what they are today. Some of these p...
