"Awakening the entrepreneur within you" [Writer's contest 2]

I belong to the school of thought that validates the conception that not everyone was born to be an entrepreneur. Some would make renowned intrapreneurs (entrepreneur working for a company that is not his/her) if only they could find themselves in the right organisations driven by innovation, creativity and originality and not basically experience. However, it is a known fact that the economy of Nigeria has so much changed the career plan of so many people making those who never set out to be entrepreneurs become one and those who never wanted to be salary earners monthly queue up for their take home (salaries) that can hardly take them to the nearest bus stop after failing severally to succeed as business owners.

After going for several seminars to learn how to generate business ideas to run with, I still could not get a single idea. Why? You will get to know before you finish reading this article that is if you are not a lazy reader. After trying consistently without success, I decided to change plan and try out the house of God. In 2009, I attended a Pentecostal Church Youth Convention not to only have an encounter with God but to also STEAL a business idea off whoever was going to speak on the subject matter as a guest speaker. It was like heaven on earth when the name of the speaker was announced, a renowned oil and gas mogul who claimed to have started from nothing and how God has so much enlarged him which was obvious for all to see (I am not disclosing his identity). He grabbed the mic and lo and behold I was in another realm, though not the spiritual realm but the realm of “Entrepreneurship”. My attention meter during that period could not be measured as the only thing I could hear was the speaker’s voice, I gave 150% attention. Unfortunately, I got no idea from the entire long and this time very boring speech. All hope was lost? Not yet. I was extremely elated when a brother amongst the brethren possibly in the same boat of scouting for business ideas requested for the mic and asked the million dollar question.

Brother: Sir, thank you for all you have said, we have gained a lot (I have gained nothing, I thought within myself), please share with us some businesses we could go into ranging from small to medium scale.

I was so excited that God has used someone to make a way for me to get the ideas I have longed for but I got the shocker of my life with the speaker’s response.

Speaker: Business ideas? What a nice question. There are several industries that need to be explored, several businesses to be invested in. To get business ideas, LOOK AROUND YOU.

, I was like “Sir, I have been looking around for a while but I guess my business mind seems blind and needs just a push/direction to get activated, please mention one business, please just one.” Too bad the speaker left without dropping any business ideas I needed to steal and elope with.

Now, that is the downside of most of the business seminars we have gone for, we get lectured on the theories but left hanging on how, when, where, and what to execute. This is what I aim to achieve with this article. However it may be too much to read for a lazy reader or anyone whose drive for entrepreneurship is not as high as Mount Everest.

HOW DO I GET A BUSINESS IDEA I CAN BE PASSIONATE ABOUT?

The first question to answer is “why do I want to be an entrepreneur?”

If your answer is just to make money, then the probability of you making it big is less than 0.5 as you will give up at your first major loss. Though Entrepreneurs are not gamblers but calculated risk takers (not just any risks).

The second question is “what am I passionate about?”

Nothing pays more than passion. You get rewarded in cash, kind and happiness when you enjoy what you do.

HOW TO IDENTIFY WHAT YOU ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT.

This is the formula I use and it has always worked and I hope it works for you too.

The formula

When you meet people for the first time, what is it that you look out for in them?

My answer

I look out for the cloth the person is putting on (colour combination), the shoes (I love shoes) and also the hair style (regardless of gender).  If I do not like what I see, it is a major turn off. You will have to try hard to get my attention and the only people who have been able to get my attention without impressive outlook are those with high Intelligent Quotient (IQ) and excellent communication skill. If your IQ is low, you better complement it with a good appearance if you need my attention.

The business Idea I extracted from my passion – Wardrobe management & Photography

Fortunately for me, this is what I have always done unconsciously, I always wanted to be part of those that would choose what grooms wear for their weddings, advise people on what to wear for their interview, how people upgrade their wardrobes and I have also dressed up some friends for their weddings earning almost nothing because I simply enjoy the bragging right of saying “see that groom, I dressed him up”.

How my passion translated into Cool Cash

Need I tell you that I gave up looking for business ideas after trying and failing at some businesses which included importing and selling some women beauty kits (human hair). I gave up on becoming an entrepreneur and instead closely hugged my 8:00am to 5:00pm (did I just typed 5:00pm? Meant 7:00pm or even 8:00pm banking job as a Project Associate/Strategist).

Within me, I knew I needed another source of income but I need to count the cost before jumping off the bridge into another ocean of business so I would not end up counting my loss as I have always done in the past.

How I finally launched out

Sometimes, we get notified ahead of the topic of the sermon my Pastor would be sharing via sms and other social media platforms especially if we are running a series. I got the notification that the next topic would be “WINTER IS COMING”. Winter is coming? I asked myself, I was anxious and at the same time confused but concluded, no big deal, pastor would be talking about RAPTURE which is one of my favourite topics (I do not want to miss heaven oh, not even for business ideas or the oil wells in Nigeria, Angola and Saudi Arabia combined, it will be a double tragedy for a Nigerian not to make heaven #MyOpinion).

Unfortunately or fortunately, the series did not start on the day it was scheduled to commence as Pastor Bee was not in church (maybe due to fuel scarcity who knows, it can’t be, my Pastor can never run out of fuel. I guess it must have been something else. Only God knows how he gets his fuel, he hardly go short of PMS even during fuel scarcity)

Finally, this is the day the Lord has made, Pastor Bee as we fondly call Pastor Biodun Famojuro mounted the pulpit and with his baritone voice led our confession and started defining what the winter is. The sermon was so powerful and terrifying that all I could write was the topic. The summary of the sermon was what are you doing with your life, how prepared are you for the days, years and seasons to come? My mind kept interrogating me as if I kidnapped someone.

My mind: Are you ready if your winter should appear NOW? If you get fired today, what happens? What next?My brains could not process any reasonable answers.

The sermon pushed me to launch out and cash in on my passion. I started my fashion outlet with a Capital of 24,000NGN (twenty four thousand naira) and within 60days had a cash inflow (not profit) of over 500,000NGN (five hundred thousand naira) with just making people look good for their wedding, interview etc. with over 90% of the customers gotten via the internet. Now imagine if I decide to market my colleagues and the members of my church aggressively, it will certainly and positively influence the cash inflow and the more the cash inflow, the more profit.

NOW TO YOU –WHAT ARE YOU CRITICAL ABOUT?

If it is how people dress – then join the fashion industry e.g making or sell clothes, shoes, bags but critically examine your target market before you decide on what section of the fashion industry to launch in. The fashion industry is so large that you need to define your target market and develop the appropriate strategy; hence you would be lost in the crowd.

If you love taking Selfies/ pictures – You may want to join the photography industry (I do photography and family documentary too J )

If you detest dirty appearance – You may want to kick off a dry cleaning outlet.

If you dislike seeing zero eyebrows, wrong use of foundation/make-up kit – You may want to give make-up business a trial. You need no business plan but assuredly need capital. You do not have capital? Be a middle man between the customer and a professional make-up artist and charge a commission.

If you are part of those that write “PLEASE WASH ME” on cars – You may need to start washing cars (Target the high class areas providing them home service, you may make it big. Get people to sign up for a month or more with attractive discount for those that can sign up for several months at once. You can have a plan where you wash their cars at their residents thrice or less in a week. You can get customers in your Church). You need little or no capital or business plan to start but you may need to offer atleast two (2) weeks free service to proof that you can really be a good cash washer.

Are you critical about dirty homes? – Start thinking of how to help people especially the busy or lazy ones clean their homes. You may adopt the strategy stated for Car washing above. You need little or no capital or business plan to start.

Are you a shopaholic? – Sign up people who hate shopping. Help them shop for anything and everything and charge them for them for the service (service charge). You may need to develop the catalogue of what you can chop for. You need no capital or business plan to start. You can build trust and loyalty by offering free services for a while e.g three (3) orders.

Are you always glue to the internet? Get entrepreneurs to sign up with you and help them build their presence on the social media and get paid in return. You may serve as their 24/7 virtual/online customer service manager. You may need to offer free service for 1 – 3 months as a trial period to enable them access your ability to help them grow their businesses. Sometimes I chat with customers all through the night, who am I to tell a prospective customer I want to sleep?  That could be the only time the customer has to place his/her order. Businesses need online managers, you could be one.

“Social networking sites would either fizzle out with time or continue to grow extensively and customers are customers regardless of where and how they are won” – © Ayobami Akinade July 2011

Other Suggested business ideas

There is no dirty job but dirty branding. Packaging is the real deal

BUSINESS PLAN?

Some business never started because the supposed entrepreneur could not get past the business plan development stage. Do not let your business be one of them, get up and run with your ideas, all you need to get up is to identify your target market, what you want to offer, what to charge, how to communicate and brand your products or services.

NAME: Ayobami Akinade