Business is learned on the ground, not in class rooms
Farm workers sorting potatoes on a farm in Elburgon, Nakuru County on September 5, 2020.
In the world over, people are chasing an elusive formula to financial freedom and happiness. Unfortunately, they will never find it in books. What they’ll find there are unique stories of individuals who explored a path without any formula, hit a few trial and error bumps until they achieved some sort of perfection or triumph.
When you read such inspiring stories, you quickly notice that everyone creates their own success through “engagement” with the activities that eventually attract a wide pool willing customers.
The business savvy propose business as the medicine. Those savvy on real estate think otherwise...and the list goes on. If you are looking for an off-the-counter solution, I dare say that you will join the long list of those who have despaired.
Most people lack training in skills that create financial freedom through entrepreneurship and investment, because they were programmed during their childhood into job security and associated comfort.
When they left high school, college, or university, they felt fully equipped to work for others, so much so that it scares them to imagine life without this false safety.
Personal resources
To break the jacket of limited personal resources, they move from one job to another job hoping to secure financial freedom in the form of improved packages, which quickly shrinks to the previous level. The salary and benefits growth is temporary and is soon wiped out by their expanding need for more consumption of much the same things. We’ll explore this cycle in a future article.
Warren buffet, a self-educated investor, has always advised people to make investment in self-education before investing a lot of money on any venture be it business, real estate or buying shares in other people’s successful businesses. While these will make you money without a doubt, it works better for those who make intelligent purchases.
These business schools outside classrooms are where entrepreneurs turn ideas into cash flow through experiential learning that offers lasting knowledge, skills and a great attitude. You need to build financial muscles by transforming brilliant ideas into systems that can generate money sustainably. This school does not require high level formal education, but it certainly requires a strong vision, courage, self-confidence, creativity, and self-control to keep afloat.
Translating a business plan into results provides self-education through the process of planning, implementation, and review. Projecting forward helps you to imagine what results to expect, which in turn helps you discern the best cause of action to arrive at your destination.
Corrections required
The actual results at the end of each rest period enables further discernment of how well the actions were executed and corrections required.
Self-review is the best form of education particularly if carried honestly within knowledge of self-limitations. A good, honest repentance opens the mind to learn from past mistakes and to anticipate potential problem areas.
Stop looking for answers in recorded literature for the uncertain future. It is hidden in your daily routine. If you are not engaging in doing things that create something new, the weight of certificates will not matter.
Once again, a reminder from last week’s article; Venture capital funding is available for people making innovations which are ICT enabled, to improve services that target large markets like transport.
Patrick Wameyo is a financial literacy coach at Financial Academy and Technologies, and an entrepreneurship coach at The Entrepreneurship Center EA. Email; [email protected].
