Unleashing Entrepreneurial Potential: Navigating Challenges and Seizing Opportunities

This is a very practical topic I talked about with graduating students of the Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering of my Alma mater; Obafemi Awolowo University.

This presentation explores my understanding of entrepreneurship today having built a ventured backed business in Africa and more so having started my entrepreneurship journey while in school.

Transcript

1. Unleashing Entrepreneurial Potential: Navigating Challenges and Seizing Opportunities
2. Goodness Kayode Co-founder/CEO at Sendchamp Title @goodnesskayode
3. This is a very practical topic so I will spend more time answering questions than talking. My understanding of entrepreneurship today is what I am going to be speaking based on, it can change tomorrow.
4. What does it mean to be Entrepreneurial?
5. To be entrepreneurial means to be in a position of creating impact. Not just for yourself but for the society. To be entrepreneurial means to create value. To be entrepreneurial means to be opportunistic i.e. finding well-timed financial opportunities. To be entrepreneurial means to be an innovator that cares more about the impact that their products and services have on society. What does it mean to be Entrepreneurial?
6. Is Entrepreneurship For Me?
7. Entrepreneurship is a hard job but can be rewarding. However, not everyone should be an entrepreneur, or better still not everyone can be an entrepreneur. You will ask why and the simple reason is entrepreneurship is a decision. Whether you are building a small business, scalable startup, large company, or NGO, you have to make the decision of building or creating value. Is Entrepreneurship For Me?
8. Why are Entrepreneurs Important?
9. 1. Reduce unemployment & eliminate poverty: the more entrepreneurs we have, the more roles are available for people to make their living. 2. Social Impact: When entrepreneurs build valuable companies and they impact society through CSR programs or projects. 3. Economic Growth: A producing country is a country with people that are bold enough to create value. E.g SMBs in the US contribute about 44% of the country's GDP. Foreign exchange earnings help economic growth. Why are Entrepreneurs Important?
10. 4. Innovations: Innovation is a step-by-step process. If you have not solved the current issue, you cannot innovate. Entrepreneurs increase the speed of innovation. 5. Economic Independence: This is for your employees and for the entrepreneur too. None of these categories of people don’t have to always rely on anyone to live. Why are Entrepreneurs Important? [Cont’d]
11. Does being an Entrepreneur come with challenges?
12. Being an entrepreneur teaches you persistence, patience, and independence but most importantly the fact that delayed gratification is real. In entrepreneurship, there is usually no overnight success. The people who succeed are the ones that keep showing up.
13. 1. Understanding Data: Access to data and making meaning of data is one of the challenges entrepreneurs face. In Africa today, it is even more difficult to access data. However, the hardest part is making sense of the data. 2. Planning: With data comes the task of planning which can be challenging. For example, you have data on your runway and you fail to plan your hiring or expenses based on them. 3. Money: It is harder to execute well without money. Hiring or handling expenses or executing growth plans that come with the business will be a problem. 4. Hiring: Bringing the right person to your team can be a hard process. It is usually a challenge for entrepreneurs. However, it is important to understand the challenges that come with entrepreneurship:
14. What is the right way to entrepreneurship?
15. 1. Have Money 2. Make Money 3. Don’t be afraid to fail 4. Tell yourself the truth every single day. 5. Community However, it is important to understand the challenges that come with entrepreneurship:
16. Thank You !
17. *All images used in this presentation are gotten from google.