“Can you have this on my desk by three?” “Sorry but that time you asked for off…DENIED.” “…Can I see you in my office, you are one minute late.”
Many are tired of hearing these nagging sentiments from our boss.
So why not get up and do something about it?
Controlling your own destiny is a thought that many people fathom only in their dreams.
Crossing your fingers and taking that big leap of faith hoping, wishing, and praying that everything goes as it should, but the lack of knowing ones self is a big deterrent for taking the plunge into entrepreneurship.
One of many questions that comes to mind when contemplating entering the field of business is, is it really necessary to get a degree in business to be successful? With such a complex question, there are so many possible answers.
According to a survey done by the Kauffman Center of Entrepreneurial Leadership about “making a job,” the survey found that the students surveyed felt they lacked the “know-how.”
FAMU’s own Dr. Kenneth R. Gray, author of “Corporate Scandals: The many faces of greed,” and the chair professor of International Management at the School of Business and Industry said, “You can definitely be successful in business without a degree; however, it is encouraged in western society because, the chances of getting a loan from a bank are a lot better when you have an added since of collateral.”
According to the Certified Public Accountants and Advisors of McGuire & Company, with business, there must be a purpose or motive for entering the field other than for monetary benefits.
Dr. Gray owned several businesses in Africa in an attempt to contribute to the national economic development of the country of Kenya and to give the people a sense of empowerment.
“At the heart of it all, business is about people trying to meet the societal needs of the community, being profitable, and being able to conserve in a world of limited resources,” Gray said.
Although some enter business for passionate reasons such as Dr. Gray, there are some like business student Patrick Carter III, who have no other choice.
Carter, a 22-year-old senior and Memphis, Tenn. native said, “Both my parents are entrepreneurs and the fundamentals that you need for starting a business: energy, enthusiasm, dedication, persistence and tenacity were all values that were instilled in me as a kid.”
Carter is co-founder and co-owner of a promotional company called the “DreamTeam.”
They promote club events, plan forums for college students, and have a clothing line in the works.
“Having no personal connection with a small business owner-role model- makes ittough for even the most motivated entrepreneur to know where to start.”
According to www.YOUNGMONEY.com here are some helpful tips on making a job for yourself and others:
Start small
Before rushing into something that might make you the most money, there’s a lot to consider.
Remember, this is a major life decision. So make sure that your business venture is business savvy because you might just be diving into the deep end.
Ahaddi Long the owner of Dog Tags in Governor Square Mall said, “I got my creative initiative from my brother Reggie but knowing to start small was something that I knew from the get go, to open a business in this type of fickle market you have to know your clients…since this city is a town that has seasonal residents, college students, I had to know that venturing out too big too fast would have been a catastrophic downfall for my business.”
Act like you mean business
Research! Research! Research! As a new business owner you must make sure that you know all the ends and outs of your products and every aspect of the financial side of running a business.
Take a business class; FAMU has a multitude of business courses that are not only limited to business students.
Dr. Roscoe Hightower, a professor in the School of Business and Industry who teaches a course in marketing says that more students should use the University’s resources to learn moreabout business.
“Every FAMU student should take advantage of the courses offered in SBI…marketing especially, in order to be able to market ones self and if they are trying to promote a product these courses are a vital tool in doing so,” Hightower said.
Know thy Customer
Finding a target market is a vital aspect of starting your business.
If you have not found that target market, you need to.
Without that key element you could end up marketing to no one and that could prove to be a bad decision for your business.
Survey your potential client and find out what they want. What they need. And what they aren’t being offered.
This is all to ensure your success in future endeavors.
Trust your gut
You remember taking that dreaded math test and you have ruled out choice “a”, “c”, and you know that “b” and “d” are both possible choices so you go with your gut and later you go back and erase it. The teacher then stands up and asks that all tests be passed to the front.
After you have turned your test in you realize that you should have stuck with your gut, the first answer. So stick with your gut on this one.
Ahaddi Long later stated that “at the end of the day when it’s all said and done you have to make all the decisions on your product and on what you are going to do with it…so stick with it till the wheels fall off.”
Surround yourself with experts
Administration…every great president has a great administration, so you have to know to surround yourself with experts that will benefit your company.
This is one of the largest challenges for any company, because distinguishing between friend and expert is one of the hardest things to do for many.
Being a friend does not mean letting them in on the company just because, you have to surround yourself with people that are experts in every aspect of the word.
Before rushing out to secure finances, choosing a business form and so on, it’s important that those pursuing business investigate whether or not the business is really worth starting and consider the time, commitment, and financial risk(s) implicated. Some books that may be helpful in this process are Dr. Gray’s “Corporate Scandals: The many faces of greed” and “Entrepreneurship in Micro-Enterprise,” which are available in the campus bookstore as well as online.
So remember when starting your own business you have to take into consideration success and that success is setting a precedence of value.
Value is hard to define but when you find the value that your customer is looking for you have hit the jackpot.
Contact Khia Johnson & Yewande Addie at famuanlifestyles@hotmail.com