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Crucial Take Home Business Lessons From Successful African Entrepreneurs

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By Arthur Peterson


Attaining enviable business success is by no means a simple thing to do. The primary ingredients for triumph, the commonly assumed ones, are access to capital and a thriving market. However, plenty of other equally important factors form part of the play. The most famous successful African entrepreneurs learnt how to work around these factors to emerge victorious.

The African continent is one that thrives with growth potential, both for existing and aspiring businesspeople. Titans of Industry in the continent, from the Nigerian internet entrepreneur Jason Njoku in the west to the Zimbabwean tech entrepreneur Strive Masiyiwa down south, all have certain traits in common that many people like to overlook when starting their businesses. These are passion, commitment, the ability to learn from mistakes and an eye for detail.

Jason Njoku has a story that has been relayed over and over by the best selling international business magazines. An activity that he used to undertake as a passion turned into the biggest internet streaming service in Africa. Prior to his entry into the scene, the only internet streaming service known to the continent was YouTube.

In one of his interviews with an entrepreneurship magazine, Jason credited his success to a passion for seeing people happy. Building on this passion, he learnt how traditional players operated and leveraged on this knowledge to build his own brand. Today, he is a renowned venture capitalist who helps others with the same ambition get to where he is by sponsoring them.

Commitment, an equally important trait, is exactly what drove Strive Masiyiwa to emerge triumphant. The Zimbabwean launched Econet Wireless, a company whose footprints are felt globally, and now acts as its permanent chairman. As expected of any entrepreneur, an idea that many may have considered inconceivable grew to enviable heights, government resistance notwithstanding. A five year court duel instituted by the government did not dampen his spirit. He spurred on to build a company that is today a haven for any sane investor.

Learning to draw lessons from mistakes and failure is a crucial trait as well. No one knows this better than Gina Din Kariuki, a Kenyan management consultant with countless accolades to her name. Her success took her a whole nineteen years to attain, part of it coupled with failure.

Before forming her company and seeing it to success, she did public relations stints for many companies in her homeland. One mistake she has owned to date is her failure to research on market trends and leadership before quitting her job to start her company. Upon quitting, she realized she did not have the corporate structure and support she used to have as an employee.

Out of the blue, she was the one in charge of everything. With her mistakes behind her, she navigated the murky waters of business ownership and made the Gina Din Group a renowned company in Africa. These success stories, among many unmentioned ones, should inspire you to do more. If you follow in their footsteps, you will undoubtedly find your footing.




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