“You, the Boss”

Aug 01, 2008 Features / Columnists

Peter R. Ramsaroop, MBA

INTRODUCTION:

My focus today shifts from macro/micro-economic policies to some basic elements of starting a business or entrepreneurship.

I receive at least five phone calls a week from young entrepreneurs asking for me to meet with them on a great idea they have and if I can help with capital.

My answer now has become a cookbook in what they need to do, while not discouraging the innovative spirit of our young minds.
DO YOUR RESEARCH:
I received one such call where a young gentleman said he wanted to build a sports store because there was none in Guyana.

I immediately realised that he had not done his homework. He saw a need based on one particular item he was looking for and couldn’t find and thought the sporting arena was not well served.

I went on to ask him if he visited Courts, the West Indian Sports Complex and other stores that sell sporting equipment to evaluate the need including the supply and demand for the piece of equipment he was interested in. He had not done that, but he felt that he needed money to open a store.
THE ITCH:
Being an entrepreneur, you must be able to have what I call “crazy tenacity” but must get down to basic key ingredients to drive success.

Develop your business plans that must include the basic elements of a SWOT, Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities and Threats, of the idea you have.

What is the competition doing? Is there a great need for the sports store because he couldn’t find that one item?

Over the years I have had great ideas, but sometimes could not get them to reality, but one must wake up the next day, get over the no answer, get past the disappointment and start again.

Disappointment has no meaning in business. What matters is follow up and persistence. One saying goes, “patience is a virtue, but persistence to the point of success is a blessing”
THE REALITY:

Back to my example: I then asked the young entrepreneur how much capital he wanted and what would I get in return.

His answer was, “What do you want?” Wrong. Apart from the SWOT, the concept of operations to the basic use of capital dollars must be answered.

How and when the first dollar would be made, where would the supplies come by, what is the purchasing time, what inventory one needs to have to get started. Many of those answers come from the market research.

The plan must be written down, not in your head. I asked him whether he had a business plan put together. He said no.

I have had my share of setbacks as an entrepreneur in Guyana. I had done the market research, I had done the plan, and I had the money, but failed to realize the impact of what the politicians can do to your business.

I paid the price and am still having to regroup and work on new things that may not be the idea I originally had. Failure is not an option.

Entrepreneurs have to be adrenaline junkies; they must love the highs of making the deals, to building their business to success and creating new ones.

My advice to the young entrepreneur is not to give up, go back and do the homework. Look at the funding streams, build your plan and continue to approach agencies such as IPED for funding.
GROW MORE FOOD CAMPAIGN:

This concept is great as was first instituted in the 1970s by President Burnham and now adapted by the current Government.

Just giving them seeds alone will not accomplish significant improvements in food security for our nation and the region.

We need to have micro-loans for them to buy fertilizers, tools, spray cans and the ability to get technical help.

I visited a few of these new farmers who were spraying all kinds of pesticide that will be harmful to our health on cash crops. We need to ensure we help these new entrepreneurs be successful.

Let us do this program right; it can make a great difference in our nation. RoopGroup Investments has recently provided micro-loans to new young farmers to ensure their success.
CONCLUSION:

One author puts entrepreneurship and success in this light. You must have patience, persistence and perseverance.

“Patience is discovering that you don’t have the key to your house, and so you wait for your wife to arrive. Persistence is circling the house, and checking all the doors and windows to see if you can get through one of them.

Perseverance is removing the hinges from the door; that’s the bulldog mentality.” He continues, “The entrepreneur has to have all three of those qualities.” Know when to use them.

I believe follow-up is supreme. The people who succeed in business are the ones who follow up, follow up, and follow up.

Whether it’s knocking on financial doors, redoing your research, talking to key individuals, or a new idea, follow up and document.

The best entrepreneurs never give up. They just keep charging along, full speed ahead. Damn the torpedoes, the impossible odds, the sudden crisis, the skeptics. Keep the high energy, drive and focus.
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