So You think Entrepreneurship is Cool? Think Again!
Up until a few months ago, I dreamt of an enterprise of my own that I could run. I saw myself taking a seat, sighing at the end of a productive day and rest knowing that I had sweat it all out in building an empire.
The past few months have been full of mixed experiences, a huge chunk of bad choices and occasional small wins that have kept me going.
It all began as I ran through a couple of tentative ideas that seemed valid enough to follow through, bearing in mind I had lots of avenues that I felt I needed to keep my toes into and venture out.
It didn’t take too long to realize that it all sounded better in my head and getting it out was the actual task.
After much soul-searching, talking to a lot of friends, entrepreneurs and a few business challenged individuals, I finally settled upon an idea that I naively thought would be booming in no time.
More determined than ever about getting set up, I went ahead and registered a company, approached my then bank hoping that since I had faithfully trusted them to handle my little monies for two years, we had something going on, and there I stumbled upon my first lesson,
First lesson: Your credit score is worth protecting.
The shock on me. My time with them was not in doubt but my credit score was off. On further scrutiny, I could not access their facilities especially since I was not on any one’s payroll.
Being as it were, I got categorized among the would be too much of a risk that they were not ready to venture into. There’s is a language of numbers.
I hovered around many such institutions and not only did I pose much of a threat, but I also had to deposit with them money that I didn’t have for a few months to be able to be evaluated for any form financial facility.
Second Lesson: Be ready for the unexpected and listen up
During such a time I met with an old acquaintance, we connected, chatted for a few only to realize that he was in the same kind of business that I had aspirations for. Hallelujah.
Meeting him altered the course that I had taken and obediently took a few pointers and my approach towards establishing my said empire seemed to revive my otherwise dimming idea.
I got critical pieces of advice that allowed me to propel my hustles by bounds bringing a broader aspect of what I was then looking into.
Taking a different perspective in approach against my then well laid out plans, I adopted a whole lot of other ways of tackling matters and this paid out not the way I expected but did set me up at a better spot than I would have been left to my vices.
Times got hard and accessing finances kept proving a challenge and furthermore business gets quite confusing as expenses keep piling and you have no idea how and when your venture could get to see daylight.
Third lesson: Take the plunge
On many occasions, opportunities arose and I ended up spending time thinking about it and at the very end taking the very same options that I would have in the first place resulting to so much time lost thus delaying chances of falling fast.
Getting it right the first time is what I craved for at least most people do, don’t forget to leave room for the understanding that there are a few mistakes bound to straighten up your trade.
The ones I did afford were painful and expensive, the best part about it though, I learned how to gain yards while taking lessers strides.
Lesson Four: It doesn’t matter how hard you get hit, Get back up.
It’s not been that long yet it feels like decades already due to the vast challenges that have been unveiled.
With countless missteps taken, having fallen many times and beyond all this, it has not been easy I can assure you, neither has it been a bed of roses either but through much support and prayers I have kept on going and the fulfillment with some pinches of-course grants satisfaction.
The determination to see to it through as long as I humanly can has played a big role in getting this far. I think I can comfortably say that more often you get hit when you least expect it.
What counts at the moment is I did start, now I am onto the next huddle that’s presented. learning never stops, so I heard.
