From Barbados to YLAI: Top 4 Entrepreneurship lessons
From Barbados to YLAI: Top 4 Entrepreneurship lessons
YLAI was the second-best life decision I’ve ever made, second only to starting my first company. In 2017 I founded a Music Streaming Service for music from Barbados & the Caribbean called ‘Selecta Charts’, available on www.selectacharts.com.
Last October I had the amazing opportunity to represent my country Barbados in the Young Leaders of Americas Initiative (YLAI) Fellowship. It’s an all-expenses paid entrepreneurship program where you travel to several US states and gain mentorship and business training from dozens of successful business persons and entrepreneurs. You can find more details about the program here www.ylai.state.gov.
What you need to know most importantly, is how this program has improved my business mindset in 4 simple ways:
Be Authentic
It’s very important to be confident in your specific business field because it’s equally important that everyone around you is also confident in you too. Try not to over sell or bite off more than you can chew for the sake of a glorified appearance. At the end of the day, business partners and potential investors want to believe in you and your capabilities first as the primary incentive to work with you. YLAI’s training programs and numerous networking sessions with other entrepreneurs emphasised how much I must validate every step of my business model, my execution strategy and be realistic about it.
Make Pitstops
In order to get from Point A to Point B you must, of course, know the route to get there. But how do you actually get there? I went into YLAI with grandiose plans in mind which I soon found out were missing many smaller detours before I could set sail for my destination. Between Point A and Point B lie numerous pitstops that incrementally prepare you for the full journey ahead. Whether it’s starting over, finding new team members, a revamped business strategy or a social media campaign, you should take a moment or two to find the appropriate ‘vehicles’ that will take you to all of the points along the path to your destination.
Know When Your Plate Is Full
At some point you will reach maximum productivity levels and everything beyond that will achieve diminishing results. Somewhere in between there you peaked but like the champion you are you kept going anyway. It’s very admirable in the short term, but in the long term it can be destructive to the body. Falling asleep while on the job, increasing anxiety and built up stress is not fun and definitely not efficient. It’s ok to say ‘No’ sometimes. Trust me, put your ego aside and take care of your mental health. Please.
Make Global Partnerships
Growing up in Barbados is truly a paradise but spending my entire life in one place has given me a limited view of the scope of the world. During YLAI my eyes were opened to the true power of teamwork. During the YLAI fellowship, we were separated into smaller groups and towards the closure of the program we all reunited in Washington DC. This is where the magic blossomed. Not only have a I met dozens of US business persons who gave me tremendous and candid guidance but also I got to know some fellow YLAI fellows at the Closing Summit who I know I can depend on going forward. ‘The world is your oyster’ is a saying that I’ve never used in my life. Today it has a whole new meaning.
Name: Paul Husbands Country: Barbados YLAI Relationship: YLAI Alum 2017
