—
When I was growing up, African parents were of two perceptions when it comes to endorsing careers for their children. It was either you attend college to become gainfully employed or you informally learn a trade.
I hail from the Eastern part of the region, which is considered to be the most industrious region in the country, businesswise. As a kid, I longed to be an entrepreneur who was not only informally educated but also had a college degree.
Most parents believed that there was little or no need spending money training a child through college all for him/her to end up venturing into business. They would rather send the child to become an apprentice to a well-known businessman and be settled by the master after serving the agreed number of years. My parents were college graduates and getting them to buy my teenage ideas was a battle.
Having parents who knew little or nothing about business didn’t help in my quest of discovering the entrepreneur within. I had to look for a physical mentor, aside from the business books and articles I read online. As fate would have it, I gained admission into the college and moved down to the East to stay with an uncle who was a successful businessman. That was one encounter with a businessman that changed my perceptions towards business.
My uncle has been in business since he was a teenager—he was the black sheep of the family. His father—my grandfather, being a primary school headmaster—was rather disappointed when his son told him he didn’t wish to further his education after high school.
My uncle had a passion for business and decided to become an apprentice to a very successful business tycoon for seven years. Things for him didn’t go as expected after serving his master. His settlement was postponed twice, which made it nine years he spent serving his master, only for his master to end up settling him with an amount not close to what he expected.
There are many  Here are the most significant lessons I learnt from my uncle:
Nothing good comes easy.
Through my uncle, I learned that in business there’s nothing like the platter of a gold platform. His story was a touching one that attracted pity but he wasn’t cut out for pity. After the matter of him not being rightly settled was discussed by the kindred (his master was a relation and matters between relations were settled by kinsmen), it didn’t yield much because he was falsely accused of theft by his master.
Once theft was involved, you are left at the mercy of your master who might decide not to even settle you. But in my uncle’s case, he was settled with a little amount of money despite the nine years he served.
He didn’t sit and sulk as was expected. Instead, he turned his disappointment into a positive energy and took it that in life nothing good comes easy—hurdles are to make us and not the opposite. The master might have taken away his settlement—capital for starting his own business—but, he could never take away the experiences he has gathered.
I stopped waiting for that huge capital before I kicked off my business. Started with what I had and today I am happy I took that bold step as an entrepreneur.
How you treat your employees determines how far you would go.
My uncle wasn’t the first apprentice his master accused of stealing. This was the trick employed by the master when it was time to settle his apprentices. The master saw them less than humans— his money-making machines.
These boys (his apprentices) knew nitty-gritty about his businesses but they were never regarded. They were his business’ powerhouse, which lacked maintenance. My uncle said that nothing they did was ever praiseworthy if you make millions of sales in one day the master would still see something you didn’t do right.
These apprentices were malnourished and looked unkempt despite the fact that they were seeing and counting millions daily. Like most impatient humans would do, they rebelled and plotted against the master.
My perception on how to treat my workers changed when I witnessed how well my uncle treated his apprentices and workers. He praised when necessary and also rebuked when necessary. They saw him more as a mentor than a master.
Preparing early for change pays.
Everyone prepares for change but what matters is how early and well you prepared. I have come to understand that some businesses crumble not as a result of lack of capital and resources but, as a result of not preparing early for change.
My uncle was a big dealer of electronics, which we all know is a changing industry. My uncle was no college graduate but he understood the power of enquiry. When his mates were busy importing without studying the changing trend in the market, he was busy finding out the next trend of electronics from his Chinese partners.
He was one of the first Eastern importers who noticed that Android would take over sooner than expected and he channeled his resources towards it, and today the rest is history.
Foreseeing and bracing up for change in your industry might be what differentiates you from your competitors. I learnt the practical way of preparing for change by watching my uncle do it.
—
What’s your take on what you just read? Comment below or write a response and submit to us your own point of view or reaction here at the red box, below, which links to our submissions portal.
◊♦◊
Sign up for our Writing Prompts email to receive writing inspiration in your inbox twice per week.
If you believe in the work we are doing here at The Good Men Project, please join us as a Premium Member, today.
All Premium Members get to view The Good Men Project with NO ADS.
Need more info? A complete list of benefits is here.
—
Photo credit: Getty Images
