by Melody Okwuazu

What I would like to say to you all is that the principles of successful entrepreneurship are the same. Basically, they are ‘commonsensical’.

First, Looking at the list of professionals in my field, it is obvious that I am the least qualified to write on this issue or on my life experience. But I believe the purpose of my pen on this, is to prove that young people do have ideas to share as well. So, I humbly accept the honor to share my limited experience and hope that for all it’s worth, it will be meaningful.

As an entrepreneur, I started actively in 2010, when I established The Incredible Production (TIP), which is an entertainment and media business specializing in harnessing youth talent and energy in music, dance, performing arts and entertainment generally. The company is also involved in media and event marketing, product branding, artistes’ promotion and the positive projection of Nigeria culture nationally and internationally. Though the company is relatively young in business, we have built a respectable reputation and a credible clientele base. We have engaged and are still engaging in a number of projects that are defining our position in the entertainment business in Nigeria. Most of these projects are ideas generated via collaboration with colleagues and others.

For instance, we have “The Urban Talent Show”, which is a talent hunt competition began in July 2010 with the aim of promoting and showcasing young talent in music, dance, comedy and other areas of performing arts. Such outstanding young talents as Chukwuma Onye (Maltina Danceall Family Winner), Plenty Mouth (Comedian), Nessy Andre (Music Producer) and so on were on hand from the very beginning to support the show and encourage the winners and participants. Our company helps participants and winners with formal training, mentorship and financial support to pursue their dream. There is also the “Dance According to Rhythm” project, which showcases and promotes gospel dancers through dance workshops, seminars, house shows, and gospel music concerts. We are also getting into television now through the show, “The future with Solomon Patrick” which will be viewed nationally and internationally via TIPTV, a visual media brand of TIP. We are looking at this as part of our social responsibility to help direct young people into being good models for others, no matter their professional calling.

Apart from corporate company projects, there are others I am personally involved in. For instance, I was Producer/Director/Anchor of the K Boy Album Listening Party. During 2010 World Cup, MTN Nigeria commissioned me as the MC of its MTN Viewing Center. I was a Dance Instructor and Dancer in Andrea Haenggi’s (USA) first ever Nigeria Dance video alongside celebrity dancers such as Ijodee, Chukwuma Onye, Ice Nweke, etc.

Now, I can stay here all night listing the things we are doing as an organization or what I am personally doing as a professional in pursuit of my dream in the entertainment industry. But I suspect it is far better to discuss the motivation, philosophy and governing themes of entrepreneurship, because at the end of this writing, not all of you will be looking to professionally delve into the entertainment sector. Some are probably looking to go into politics, others manufacturing, others trading, media and so on. What I would like to say to you all is that the principles of successful entrepreneurship are the same. Basically, they are ‘commonsensical’.

The first is to identify what you are good at. You want to enjoy anything you dedicate your life to doing, but first you need to be good at it to enjoy it. In this regard, it boils down to interest. Interest will motivate you and keep you focused on your dream and how to achieve it. Obviously, you must have your own ideas about how to showcase your talent. You are not likely to identify any new business idea, because someone would already have been practicing it and making money from it. However, if you have interest in the area, it will motivate you to research and think deeply enough about it to get a niche for yourself – something within the same industry that can be associated with you and from which you can make a name for yourself.

The second thing you will have to concentrate on is a plan. Identifying an interest is one thing, but if you do not put together a plan to actualize this, it will remain a mere wish. It is your plan that will indicate your objective and identify what you want to achieve. As an entrepreneur my objective is to create and work in a media and entertainment business with serious ambition to massively and positively influence popular culture in Nigeria, and the world at large. To achieve that, I put a plan in place and TIP is just an aspect of that plan. So, you need to really plan, know what the business entails, the market of that business, your target audience, and what people want that you can provide.

Planning involves thinking of the structure of the business, the type of personnel you need and the finance to get started. Everyone dreams, but the difference between those who actualize their dreams and the others is that the former actually put out a plan to actualize the dream. Yes, luck does play a role sometimes and some do get opportunities thrown at them; but without a plan, you wouldn’t even be able to manage luck or opportunities properly. Everyone has the same opportunity to become great, rich, famous, and get every good thing life can offer, but you’ve got to plan for your opportunity to actualize it. Planning is not transferable. It is something the budding entrepreneur must do for himself or herself, because if I plan for you, I won’t be the one to execute it for you as well and the likelihood that you will succeed executing someone else’s plan is remote. Planning gives value and direction to your business life. You don’t know the value of that business idea, until you commit to it through a plan. As the popular saying goes, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. It’s that simple.

The most crucial elements in planning are thought and reason. You must be clear-headed. In business, reason and logic are primary raw materials. You have to be empirical. It starts with your choice of career. While we know that parents do influence the choice of career for young people, it is crucial to point out that they are not the ones going to undergo the course or pursue the career thereafter. So the place to begin to apply your reasoning is before you make a choice of course to read. Your Dad or Mum may want you to read Law, but if you know this isn’t something that interests you and that it isn’t something you are likely to excel in, be bold enough to engage your parents in a honest discussion about what you think you would like to do. Your parents only want the best for you, but you need to make the case for what is best for you if their suggestion isn’t your cup of tea. That saves time and a lot of heartaches in the future. Just getting the certificate is not the idea; it’s what you do with knowledge acquired that matters.

Finally, you will have to begin to implement your plan. You have to choose the time and place to begin to do this. Obviously, with good planning, it is expected that you would have prepared yourself for this. However, the core things you need in implementation are discipline and knowledge of resource management. These help you prioritize. They help you weed out unnecessary emotions and keep you focused on the big picture. For someone trying to make a living through taking risks on their own and committing resources behind these risks, they have to be calculated. You must always have a Plan B, in case Plan A fails, because the option is not giving up, even if it means you have to return to the drawing board a few times. As young people, the temptation will always be there to squander resources on pleasurable things, but if you have a vision and wish to build a legacy, then you must always conquer those temptations and deploy the resources to actualize the dream.

My fellow youth, I am no repository of wisdom, because failure and success walk with me at all times. If anyone thinks entrepreneurship is a bed of roses, they’ve got another think coming. The best attitude one must develop is tenacity. Never give up, no matter the challenge! Just hold on to that dream, no matter how many times you are beaten back. All you want to do is to keep trying and trying until you master the ropes your own way. Success will surely come. That is why at the beginning of this writing, I recommended the above Michael Jordan quote to you all. For every success out there, there are carcasses of failures littered all over! Just keep striving and your success will ultimately overshadow your failures, but don’t be afraid of the latter, because that is why you’ll succeed!

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Melody Okwuazu is a nominee for The Future Awards Africa, Business category.

 

Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.