When I was young, I was dreaming of becoming a teacher, a lawyer, a doctor, an accountant but I have never thought of becoming an entrepreneur even though my family is doing business. My dad used to take me to his company’s meeting when I was about 12 years old and asked me to contribute my ideas and fill up questionnaires. To my surprise, he said he liked my ideas because it is very matured and comparable to what his other employees had written. During a school holiday, when I was about 15 years old, I helped him with account for one of his companies. I had never even learnt account at that time. So I went practical before I even learnt the theories.
However, my life didn’t sail smoothly. When I was in college, I couldn't even decide what major I should take. I have tried various subjects like Interpersonal Communication, Psychology, Multimedia, Advertising and even Politics. I could do all the subjects well but I didn't have any special interest in any of the subjects that made it hard for me to specialize. At last, I ended up taking Accounting as my major and Marketing as my sub major and 4 other electives.
It seemed that I have broad interest and knowledge. So I guess being an entrepreneur would be a good choice for me because I would get to learn everything practically from how to form a company, how to manage a company, how to market our product or service, how to survive during recession and how to expand my business. Well, I have learnt all the theories, read many business books and get my Bachelor of Business.
The question is what business I should start? Where can I get other sources of finance for my business if my saving is not sufficient? How do I get customers to buy my product or service? How do I compete with my competitors? Where should I locate my business? How do I conduct market research? The list goes on and on.
Well, it is really not easy to be an entrepreneur. It takes huge courage, risk taking ability, frugality and perseverance. And of course, knowledge, information and money would be essential in running the business as well.
I can understand the predicament especially when young graduates takes the plunge in business. However well prepared you are, the manner in which a business is to be run is very much experimental. One has to go into a trial and error situation. But if this lesson can be well learnt, i am sure you will be a much better person as you go along. But this process has to be learnt fast as we cannot always go into a trial and error process, as it will eat up our business profits and even our motivation. You can wait until you are too old to succeed.
ReplyDeleteNonetheless, the story of starting late is something that we must always give opportunity to. The story of how a lady found this success story at a later age, should make all entrepreneurs proud. The recipe has always been there only waiting to tapped and brought into the market. This is the story of how a lady started a homemade cake she proudly call "Mummy's Moist Chocolate Cake". This is a story rhat we should be hearing more. From her home in putatan township, the cake is now available in Lahad Datu, Sandakan, Keningau and Ranau. For keen distributors this is also a business opportunity to make margins. Let us have your comments and views on the subject of entrepreneurship and especially on the Moist chocolate cake.
Have a good day, guys.
Thanks for the comment :)
ReplyDeleteIndeed, there is no 100% success guarantee business system.
One has to find out what works for them, sometimes through the hard way of trial and error or learn from others' mistake which is quicker and less stressful.
I read about the Mummy's Moist Chocolate Cake selling for MYR 25 if I am not mistaken and ready for resell at any price. It is really a good way to help others especially mothers and housewives to earn some pocket money. Or if they are serious enough, they can even start their own bakery.
I find the bakeries in Kota Kinabalu, particularly, lack of choices and variations. Most of the bakeries sell almost the same type of buns, breads and cakes.
In Indonesia, esp my hometown, we find many pancakes stalls at night selling variation of pancakes with cheese, chocolate, raisins, etc. The fierce competition make them more creative in coming up with new tastes, new variations so there would be more choices for customers.
A group of Indonesian youths also set up a franchise selling fried cassava named "Tela Tela". It is time to prove that in the business, age is not the factor of being successful, determination is. :)