Don’t take the children growing in the ghettos lightly. They are potential future presidents. They are the real rags to riches stories. Few rich people become really exceptional. May be they lack the attitude to persist, to want to succeed so badly. Upper class children are always out of touch with the reality and tend to disconnect with the common man. They grow in an easy life – no fetching water. The maid handles everything. No real exposure to the vagaries of the street life as they are always safely tucked in cars as they ply to school. They have…
Why Indians succeed easily in Africa, part 2
Involve family in their business Once I was at one of the top Indian owned company here in Uganda. I had been invited to make a presentation to the board on the topic “the role of the Board in strategy execution and risk management.” One of the attendees caught my eye. It was a 12 year old young man, who was seated among the board members. During break I enquired what the young man was doing among the top honchos of one of the biggest local fast moving consumer goods. They told me he was one of the grandsons of…
Why Indians succeed easily in Africa, part 1
I come from Munteme village in Hoima. Some of the iconic buildings in our village, we were told, were built by the Indians. When I was a very small boy in primary in the late 1990’s, the first special building with two underground floors which fascinated me a lot, had been built by Indians. Unfortunately, the ultimatum that was given to the Indians by the then Ugandan president, Idd Amin Ddada, led to the closure of this factory. But that is a story for another day. 30 years later, I am here in Kampala. I interact with many Indian brothers…
Why would it be hard to be fired?
Knowing your value on the job is critical personal career success secret. What special skills do you bring on the table? It is integrity? Are you a trusted person that even if you are a not so good performer, you are so handy that top executives trust you even for their personal errands? Ask yourself why would it be hard for you to be fired? That is your bargaining chip. Remember, it takes time for you to discover your value to the business. No executive wants any one put them at a ransom. But every executives wants to deal with…
Who are you?
Your biggest obstacle to growth is poor mindset. This morning, a top executive came to my office and said “Mustapha I looked at your proposal, and I thought maybe we find a better way of doing this assignment. I like your value offering and methodology, but your fee is a lot. I am suggesting, we have an internal staff to work with you so that they will do all your field work under your guidance. This will help us work with you within our budget that is 60% less what you proposed. What do you think?” This executive is brilliant.…
Your business is like a baby
Running a business is like a baby. It has got stages. At first the baby cannot crawl. They need a lot of care. Then, the baby starts by crawling. Then they walk, and finally they can look after themselves. The process takes over 10 years for the baby to be fully on their own. Why do you expect your SME to jump key stages? In the early stages of your business, it needs close supervision and monitoring. Look after it carefully. Give the business milk – invest in the business your personal time, ideas and energy. Get dirty and do…
