NaijaTalkTalk- Where is my Business Start-up Capital?

Goz Republic

Starting a business has been a crucial issue in the business world over time due to the intimidating factor of generating capital for a business idea. 

Hence many scavenge for capital. It is at this point many give up their dream simply because they think there is no capital to finance their dream or project when their skimming seems not to yield positive result. 

If you ask some people how they intend spending proposed money for business, they begin to babble by saying I will do that, I will do this even without having mapped out print of the vision they propose to execute. Vision is the key for provision, any worthwhile vision you have will surely be provided for.

 

Before striking on the path for business, you ought to have done feasibility studies or planning on the kind of business you want to venture in. 

This planning includes your short term and long term business plan, identifying a problem which your idea is capable of solving, your market research, target audience, location you intend starting your business and the like. It is when all these are in order before you now begin to look for capital to finance the dream. 

But most of the business idea many profess to have does not need capital to kick start. What you just need in such situation is turning your intention to action by starting with what you have.

Here is shocking news for you, the first capital you need as an entrepreneur is not money. You can go on and argue this, but you will still discover that it is truth I have painted. This I discovered some few years ago. I realized that money many clamour for is just a means to an end not an end to a means. 

Have you ever seen anyone being buried with money in the coffin? Or have anyone who is sick carried money to the sick bed that this is my money that will cure my ailment? Then wouldn’t it sink to your consciousness that money is just an exchange.

 I recalled telling my clients in every of my training sessions in my school of Business “Wealthbrook School of Business" which I serves as a facilitator that money is an exchange for services rendered. What gives value to money is the product you purchased with it, in essence money is as useless as a rough paper until you have found value in a product or services that needs to be paid for. This is the principle that guides many multi-billionaire and multi-national entrepreneurs.

What then is the first capital? The first capital that is readily available at the disposal of every startup and emerged entrepreneur is TIME CAPITAL. A wise man once observed that “God does not give us money but He gives us time and we use it to make money.” What a profound statement! You will agree with me that one that have money but have no time to spend it is more miserable that one that has got time but no money. Why? It is with time that you make and spend money. 

So you’ve got the capital of time to brainstorm or think on idea that should produce income for you. If your business must experience positive turnaround, you’ve got to utilize first the manner you spend your precious time. If you can’t effectively mange the free resources (which is time) you have, you can’t effectively manage other resources that comes your way. 

Your first generating tool for capital is mindset and attitudinal change as regards the way you spend your time because its supply and flow is limited.

The second capital is IDEA. After having much supply of time to yourself, you effectively utilize it to identify a problem. 

When identifying a problem, you must give room for analyzing it. The process of analyzing a problem is when you draw up a logical thought known as “idea”. It is this substance that will aid in solving the problem you have at first identified. Business never succeed without an idea, it is idea couple with action that rules the world of business. So the money you expect will never get into your hand if you’ve got no idea to run the money with. IDEA IS A MESSENGER YOU SEND ON ERRAND. Stop looking for capital if you have not properly plan and done business logistics.

Another capital you need after idea is NETWORKING, this I called the “People’s capital”. There are some thing you don’t need spend money on some ideas at the initial start inasmuch you have some network of people around you. Some people exist in our network just to help us in solving few problems we might encountered. Such network of people I often referred to them as Social Entrepreneur. 

They just exist in our network as a philanthropists who delight in carrying out Business advisory services for us (should there be any help you need as regards your business, I can help in rendering business advisory services for you).

Here is another principle: don’t for once stop telling people the services your business brand offers. Be the first advertiser of your business brand with choice word to promote it. So you need networking in your business profile.

 We all exist as a support for each others. The spirit of ‘I need you, you need me’ is the mindset that must flow in us. No man is an island of himself. For the fact that you need networking does not means that you just flock with any individuals whose vision does not support or deviate from yours. Business associates that have no vision to add to your business will make it crawl. Be careful as you choose you business network, it is not what you rush into but with time you can get one you leverage on for networking.

And now the fourth capital which is the LAW OF START NOW. Your business is your capital. This is powerful as it states that you can start any business immediately with what you have and where you are. You will never realize the height you can attain until you take bold step to start that business idea. How hard or anyhow it might look just start because you never know the number of people carrying the same idea with yours. If you don’t start someone may start and you might not have access to it again unless you redefined it through creativity.

Despise not the days of little beginning, for in it is the big shot. The little progress you see in your business counts much as it culminates to bigger heights. Don’t forget in a hurry that it is the sum total of first, second and third term secondary school result that culminate for the position of the session. So the little success you have formed the basis for the success you see when the business has grown. 

Don’t procrastinate as this is a termite that has eaten deep many businesses that fails to start. As a start up entrepreneur, your start by first rendering free services to your clients. This free service is what you can afford that would not cost you loss.

The capital of laying-off all your liabilities. There are many stuff in our possessions that we don’t need, we just accumulate them as ‘want’ not ‘need’. This principle states that you get rid of those ‘wants’ by selling them. If you have any stuff in your possession and you have not make use of it for the past 6, 9months or 1 year dispose them through selling. Of what need will it be that all you have in your hand are not what you need for your daily living? Stop buying wants; rather invest into buying your needs.

The last time you wear that shoe was in 2010 for a social function, I advised that you sell it immediately and plunge the money into that dreamed business or idea. You’ve complained for so long that no money to run that business and in your custody are many properties that you don’t need, why the waste and complain when you can lay them off through selling.

 How do you sell those properties? Simply let people know that you want to dispose some properties through selling to those interested or those who can help you in advertising to others through words in their mouth. Another way you can sell those properties which I have also employed in the past till date is advertising through social media channels.

Here, you can do your business advertising at your convenience and guess what? At no cost, no one will ask you to start paying for advert service charge. 

You may think there is no need for this, but you wouldn’t know those who still need those properties who may want to purchase it from you. Ford Car Company made sales worth billions of dollars of a 2011 car model through their facebook page advert, according to them this was a great sale deal compared to those times when they had to spend lot on advertizing to media channel and yet no high market rate was conceived as relating to the facebook advert.