Recently I finally met up with a work buddy at an event makeover launch. (Let's call him Mr X)
It has been some time back since we did this event launch and naturally there will be lots of catching up to do whenever we have the available time to chat.
So then we touched on the topic of setting up a business after I told him I just started a page on facebook selling decor knick knacks.
Read Story here:
Knick Knack Decors
There were many project 'business ideas' throughout on and off but there will always be hiccups occurring, ending the collaboration pre-maturely. And also, many times I heard of others who had partnerships initially and turning sour in the end.
VERY Nasty.....
So I concluded that it is always better to start something, especially one of a small scale, ALONE.
Firstly, it is faster to execute plans and organize stuff.
Secondly, you are your own most reliable source, instead of being sabotaged by others.
And of course, the downside of it is, you cant grow it as fast as a business development should go.
But as I said, it
IS small scale and who says you can't start growing eventually?
So I gave my second conclusion; that sometimes, making it big is kinda accidental.
Mr X semi disagreed on my first conclusion and totally snubbed my second conclusion.
WHY?
Firstly he started on how SLOW it would be to do ANY form of business alone and that 95% (if I remember correctly or some numbers scarily high) will fail.
WHAT??!!! Is there no hope for us
One-ners?
''Who said that partnership types of business will not fail?'' was what went through my head...
I couldn't contain it anymore, so I interrupted and blurted out what was going through my head and asked how does that even make sense and what exactly is he trying to mean?
SOOOOOooooooo what Mr X is trying to say is that, in his opinion, it's always best to
NOT handle a business yourself if you want it to grow, but rather look for investors instead and eventually sell it away.
You'll make a good profit out of it.
Right agreed ! BUT easier said than done.
I asked him how? Which brings us back to my second conclusion:
Those who made it big are kinda accidental - which Mr X snubbed this statement totally.
I think he got me wrong.
What I'm trying to say is that, people who made it did not actually plan their success meticulously where every single point got checked, just like climbing a ladder. OR like reciting the alphabets where you eventually get to Z???!!!!!!
(We are
not talking about the corporate ladder here. BUT TRUE BLUE Entrepreneurs)
I once saw on tv where they interviewed the bread talk owner and now extremely successful entrepreneur.
He said he was in the food industry for 20+ years before he founded 'Bread Talk'
Come on! 20 years?!!! I'm sure he did not plan for 20 years to become where he is today and least of all setting up bread talk.
Nowadays, the trends change faster than you can change your underwear. I am very sure he could never have been sure that bread talk would be that successful. He must have taken a gamble.
When I said accidental, it does not mean he made it without an ounce of hard work.
In the 20 years of his experience, he must have built enough relationships, honed his skills to a T and did whatever he could have prepared himself to be ready for the boom of Bread Talk.
Ultimately I'm trying to convey to Mr X is that it
takes time. Be it 5, 10 or 20 yearrs
(Maybe Mr X considers himself relatively successful in his business and he is trying to be helpful by giving me insights on how to make mine grow...)
Sometimes I wonder if I'm really running a sort of business? I seriously don't label my work as a business and probably that's why I call myself an artist rather than a business person instead.
Firstly, I enjoy doing it and I cannot imagine growing it and then totally washing my hands off it and shake my legs at home.... I think I would be brain dead and it's just not me. I suspect I got a mild form of CSS Syndrome (CANNOT SIT STILL)
I'm the world's lousiest planner and finding a/a few good and reliable working partner(s) also not easy. :(
So well, Im only trying my best to be good at what I'm doing now and hopefully with time, things will fall more nicely in place, as much as I would love to bring my work up to the next higher level.
And that's where Mr X is trying very hard to explain that I CANNOT do this alone and to adopt the westernised way of doing business and I'm also trying hard to tell him that it takes time! ARGHHHhhhhh
So, when I asked him, "Then what should I do now???" and he said he does not know how to explain it to me and I was like how do you expect me to understand then???????
Anyways the debate or pep talk (as I thought it felt like) went on for quite awhile and I was getting exhausted trying to digest and to type out the full conversation we had now.
All I remembered was I went home feeling upset and confused and I kept questioning myself if there was anything I did wrong or something I didn't do?
This was making me very uncomfortable as instinctively I did not agree to what Mr X is trying to convey to me. So I discussed it with my partner and a friend and I realised; ultimately, you must be happy and comfortable doing it and things will fall in place naturally.
I don't think I could plan so far ahead way before I'm ready to, just because someone told me to. I just know that at this point, in this very moment I am happy working it my style and I'm constantly opening up to ideas, feedbacks and inspirations.
I'm treating Mr X's advice as a feedback, selectively filtered and stored into my tiny brain and the rest?
I throw them away!!
Because I've tried doing something I don't like, but proven to make you lots of money if you follow what has been done before. I was unhappy and the vibe coming out from me, least to say is 'repelling'.
So I shall end this rant with my favourite quote:
"Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it" - Maya Angelou
Going by this quote, I would say I'm pretty successful! What about you? ;)
