The Sunday Mail
Focusing on A to E
There are certain aspects that define entrepreneurship and as such, I have come up with the A-Z of entrepreneurship. This touches on critical entrepreneurship mainstays. In this article, I am addressing the first four A to E (Action Oriented, Business Mindset, Champion, Design and Execution). I will proceed up to Z in the coming weeks.
Action Oriented
Practical entrepreneurship is not a domain for theorists. It’s a practical area that ushers real and relevant solutions to humanity. Entrepreneurs go beyond pen and paper (planning) into actioning and actualising their ideas and plans.
You don’t become an entrepreneur by giving out a brilliant idea in your Master of Philosophy or Doctor of Philosophy thesis, even by writing articles on entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurs are made in the field. They are known for their conversion efficiency. They convert ideas into products and services for the market.
A bumper harvest doesn’t come from talking farming on TV, radio or seminar; it comes from mixing mud, seeds and water in the field on gumboots. The same goes with entrepreneurship. It’s a less talk more action concept.
People don’t feed on stories, sessions and seminars; they need food in their stomachs which comes from working hard. That’s the reason why we don’t send these stimulants every hour or three times a day as pain killers. We give you all the time to experiment in your various areas of endeavour and I am not spared. I am one person who exudes what he is full of and practising.
You will find out that entrepreneurship is 100 percent action. It’s all about actioning ideas, concepts, methodologies and philosophies in a unique and fulfilling manner. Your actions should be directed towards solving social economic challenges in an uncommon way, filling in a gap that you would have identified in the marketplace.
So, the A-Z of entrepreneurship starts with this strong reminder that Entrepreneurship is not a movie, Nollywood or Bollywood. It is a noble cause that calls for sweating out in your field of endeavour coining and unpacking relevant solutions to humanity.
Business Mindset
Entrepreneurship is all about business. The success of which is hinged upon the mental capacities of its lieutenants. In order to successfully master the entrepreneurship trajectory, one needs to have a business mindset.
Entrepreneurship entails risking resources in the form of a unique investment in a business venture or endeavour in anticipation of profit. It follows therefore that entrepreneurship is a form of some higher order business and as such one needs a business mindset in order to fully execute duties as an entrepreneur.
A business mindset is a mind that is alert to opportunities, a mind that is exposed to the realities and intricacies of business. You will agree with me that there are other people whose minds are foreign in business. Give them the smallest project to do; they don’t even know where to start from. So, an entrepreneur needs to have a business mindset.
An entrepreneur’s mind is always far ahead in thinking and strategising. It is unique in its approach to ideas and strategies. Value addition is central to their thinking. Entrepreneurs think about social economic contribution and transformation. They solve current and emergent challenges at a fee.
The entrepreneur’s mind looks for the business aspect in every situation and exploits it. In order for you to succeed in your entrepreneurship endeavour, you need to have a BUSINESS MINDSET
Champion
In business and entrepreneurship, a champion is a person who is responsible for creating, developing and supporting a brand, product, project or service inside and outside the business.
Champions in entrepreneurship are those who take risks to exploit opportunities even when everyone else is back sliding. They are driven by well-orchestrated plans, vision and desire to contribute uniquely to humanity. These are a kind that dominate spaces. Others will follow as they lead.
Entrepreneurship champions are original in their approach to business. Adam Grant, an American psychologist once said, “Originals are nonconformists, people who not only have new ideas but take action to champion them. They are people who stand out and speak up. Originals drive creativity and change in the world. They’re the people you want to bet on.”
Entrepreneurs do not usually conform to the status quo. They are champions in adding value, champions in bringing new products to new or existing markets. Champions are transformational in nature. They are always outstanding.
Success and impact in entrepreneurship calls for calibrated effort and dedication as proposed by Patty Berg in his statement, “What does it take to be a champion? Desire, dedication, determination, concentration and the will to win.”
Design
Entrepreneurship is a process that finds its place out of great and deeper thinking about value addition and uniqueness. These thoughts are given life through planning and designing. Let us focus on the D of the A-Z of entrepreneurship which is DESIGN.
Alina Wheeler, a renowned author once wrote “Design is intelligence made visible.”
Alina brings out an important issue of intelligence to the fore. To be able to come up with a design, one needs to have some form of intelligence. It is evident in the statement that entrepreneurship entails some higher order thinking and disposition for it to manifest.
I like the Merriam Webster definition of design, which is “to create, fashion or execute.” The second definition in the same dictionary states “to conceive and plan out in mind.” All these definitions are alluding to the fact that designing starts in the mind. It entails coming up with a creation that is unique and capable of being visibly constructed or developed further.
Entrepreneurship needs a design. We all know the 3D designs that architects come up with, the same applies in entrepreneurship. You need to come up with a 3D design of your idea, concept and business before it actualises. Your design needs to be unique, aimed at filling a visible gap in the marketplace.
During this Covid-19 lockdown, I saw on ZBC TV these guys who came up with a whole-body sanitising machine. The work didn’t start there. It all started as a design which was tested several times in the mind and paper before committing resources to it. So, design is as powerful and essential on the entrepreneurship journey as other activities.
I like Steve Job’s statement on design, “Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.” Design is more than what you see. It is the functionality of the design that gives it value. You can’t be celebrated for a design that did not benefit anyone. A business that didn’t see the light of day is worthless.
Entrepreneurship is one area I enjoy the most that is why I have opted to assist entrepreneurs shine in the marketplace. Entrepreneurship is fulfilling on both ends, the entrepreneur and the market. It’s all about creating unique business designs and executing them.
A design according to Mariana Lopez is a formal response to a strategic question.
Like I said earlier on, entrepreneurs come up with business designs to solve socio economic challenges. They don’t design for fun. They respond to some strategic questions.
What have you designed? Are you an entrepreneur? I know as I share the A-Z of entrepreneurship, we are now beginning to understand that entrepreneurship is more than what you thought it is.
A design is an integral part of entrepreneurship without which it is difficult to establish a unique business.
Execution
Entrepreneurship is a continuous thread of productive EXECUTION of unique business ideas, concepts and plans. Execution is the conversion of plans, ideas and concepts into products or services for the benefit of societies. Without execution, there is no entrepreneurship to talk about.
I have been coaching entrepreneurship and business for some time now and I am happy with the feedback I am getting from my coachees. Most of them have or are implementing the concepts and ideas; converting them into formidable businesses.
Felix Dennis was quoted saying “Ideas don’t make you rich. The correct execution of ideas does.” This is a fact of life. Only those with the tenacity to and grit to put some of the entrepreneurship sermons into action have set themselves apart. You can attend the same session but only those that go ahead and execute are the ones who make that difference.
You can envision a successful business. That is good and in order but you need to shift the gear higher into planning, strategising and most importantly implementing (executing) that vision. Thomas Alva Edison had it clearly when he said “Having a vision for what you want is not enough. Vision without execution is hallucination.”
Nhai imi, had it not been the works (idea execution) of the 19-year-old French physicist, A.E. Becquerel, Charles Fritz and others, we couldn’t be having the cheap solar energy we are enjoying today. We also need to recognise the works of Thales and others around electricity, we could have been in darkness. The major point is, great entrepreneurship exploits lies in execution than in ideas.
Don’t be part of the statistics that will enrich the graves with business plans, strategies and innovation that didn’t see the light of day. Execute your business idea.
My concluding statement is, Entrepreneurship entails the wisdom to transition vision, ideas, concepts, plans and designs into visible and beneficial products and service through EXECUTION.
The writer, Dr Kudzanai Vere is an international voice in the areas of entrepreneurship & business, personal and organisation development. Have trained executives, directors, line managers and operatives in practical business management and growth. He can be contacted on +263 719 592 232 or email [email protected]. You can visit his website www.kudzanaivere.com.
