Entrepreneurship in T&T: All Talk and No Action?
I have been working with upcoming entrepreneurs for the past three years and I have interviewed many successful entrepreneurs, and one common understanding among them is that entrepreneurship is a journey into the unknown. There isn’t any entrepreneur I know who wrote a business plan and everything in their plan came to fruition. Most of it doesn’t. The journey towards entrepreneurial success has many challenges, obstacles and unknowns.
But if we know the journey is unpredictable, why do we blame others for our challenges and complain about not getting support? When unpredictable things occur, we should focus our energies on overcoming them and not complaining. For example, if I am driving from Port-of-Spain to Mayaro but I have never driven that route before, nor do I have a map or GPS, should I get upset and complain if I get lost or cannot get directions? If the entrepreneurial journey is filled with obstacles and challenged, why do some entrepreneurs complain about lack of support from banks, institutions or the Government? Back to the Mayaro example, it’s like not having a map and expecting the journey to be smooth, where every stop you make you would be provided with gas, food and directions. I see too many upcoming entrepreneurs expect institutions to fund them and support their ideas and if it does not happen, they complain and blame these institutions for their rough journey and lack of funding.
This upsets me. What upsets me more are the talkers. Those people who move from person to person, bank to bank, and government agency to agency talking about their idea, how much money they need, and complaining about not getting support. All they do is talk and complain, and there is no action from them towards building their business and solving their problems. We call them the Talking Dead.
Mind you, this term is not only for entrepreneurs. This also occurs in corporations and government agencies where there is a lot of talk from management and executives about innovation and entrepreneurial development, and these people have never started a business or ever selflessly tried to help an entrepreneur grow their business. They too talk a good game about driving to Mayaro but have never gotten behind a wheel. We also call them the Talking Dead.
I feel that our country is filled with people who talk about their ideas and problems, but do nothing about them. This is clearly seen on radio shows where listeners call in to complain and criticise, but do nothing to create solutions.
But unlike the Walking Dead TV show, there is a cure for the Talking Dead. The cure is action. Yes, action is the cure for not getting funding or support for your business. How does one act on business obstacles? By focusing one’s energy on what can be done with the limited resources you have.
For those who need the cure, thankfully, there are growing numbers of entrepreneurs who are acting on their ideas and challenges. You can find them in entrepreneurial communities like Launch RockIt and at events like Startup Weekend. They are the ones who need $100,000 to start a business but figure out how to start with $10,000. They are the ones who pitch their ideas to get feedback before they ask for investment. They are the ones who start their business before writing a business plan. They are the ones who take calculated risk and are prepared to find a solution for every challenge they meet on their journey to success. They are the ones who do not look for government handouts, but look for guidance and direction. They are the ones who believe in themselves and their ideas. I am not saying that Government and banks are perfect. Yes, they need to fix their processes and programmes to better help entrepreneurs, but true entrepreneurs do not wait on banks and the Government. True entrepreneurs act. Some of us are moving towards creating our dreams and acting on our challenges no matter how big or small. So stop talking, start acting, and join our community of those who believe in No Talk and All Action.
