Ready, steady, go? How a seasoned entrepreneur got my race started

Sitting at a coffee shop with a very close friend of mine, Colleen, we discussed my next career move after having gone through a very difficult time with my employers. I had inevitably found myself going through a legal process, which while it worked in my favour, it nonetheless was a very dark period in my life. Colleen does marvellous work in the career development space was helping me with my CV, for when you are an academic, you may not be in touch with how CVs should be presented for the 'real' world. So it was at one of our sessions, that she asked me the question, 'Why don't you start your own business?' It should not have sounded as if this was a light bulb moment. But, there I was, a person who had studied entrepreneurship up to doctoral level, had taught entrepreneurship to nearly 3000 students over the years, had helped people with their business plans and yet I sat there with the greatest amount of self-doubt.

My first thought was, ok, here you are, highly educated and the so called entrepreneurship research, says that the more educated you are, the more likely you are to succeed. So armed with that comforting thought, I gained some courage. I started thinking of company names, was consumed with grandiose ideas about the empire I was going to build and I slept at night. But I soon realised that my education was all I had and after registering my company, now what? And so began the 'real' entrepreneurship lessons of what I had in the past taught my students. This time, I was the student and my teacher was Colleen, the entrepreneur. There was no chalk and board or powerpoint presentation, just strong coffee (they even know her order at the coffee shop we meet at) for Colleen and a berry freeze drink for me but good, stimulating and real conversation. And it is upon reflection from these conversations that I can share just some of my lessons (there have been so many that actually, they deserve a book!).

The first lesson Colleen taught me was that to be an entrepreneur, you need to have self-belief. Colleen spent a lot of time giving me the reassurance that I so needed. She would tell me how she began her journey, how the journey had pit stops and detours, but that because she so believed in what she was doing, she was able to continue her journey. Colleen built up my confidence and encouraged me to pursue my dream and most importantly, was and continues to be my sounding board for my business.

The second lesson was about the importance of making use of your networks and after one of our coffee sessions, she suggested me that I write up a list of all the people that I know. You see, sitting now and reflecting on this, I realize that while I knew this, had taught it and even advised others on it but when it came to myself, I think that I was so afraid of failure that I momentarily forgot all that I knew. So, I wrote a list of all the people I knew and in some cases, told them that I had now started my own consulting company and gave them an overview of what I would be focusing on. Some of the networks gave me work, but you would never believe that my first consulting job actually came from the very same company that I'd had had to resort to a legal process. That experience really showed me that it is important to always give your best in any work situation as even when you have to move on, it is your work that is remembered and may actually get you much needed work when you are in your own business.

The third lesson that I am only implementing now that Colleen spoke to me about quite early on when I started my race was about the power of the Internet. Early on she told me to start a blog, write a book that can be published online, set up a website, but I never followed through on that. Why? I think it is because, I was overwhelmed by what an online presence represented; it meant that I would out there for people to comment, agree, disagree with my thoughts and I was not emotionally ready for that. So although I never did it then, I am doing it now and I feel strong enough about what I do, who I am that I can now write and share my thoughts. The lesson that I learnt from Colleen that I now implement when I am working with other entrepreneurs is that at times when you suggest something that you know is good for the entrepreneur but they don't implement it; it's okay. I've learnt that at times you need to stand back and let the entrepreneur work through and process their own entrepreneurial intentions.

The final lesson that I have learned from Colleen is the importance of consistency in how you interact with people, how you project who you are and how you represent yourself and how you want to be remembered. Colleen does not shift the goal post, what you see is what you get and experience. For example, when you go into the career centre that she has started and runs at a local university, it screams 'Colleen'! It is not what you expect, it's unconventional, yet inviting and importantly, it's a space for one to grow within a wonderful safety net of staff and genuine desire for people to succeed. In my case, she always gives her all without expecting anything in return because I believe that she so genuinely believes in me. She also imparts a healthy dose of realism about the race that I am running - when I've thought that my race should come to an end, Colleen reminds me about running at a pace that's right for me.

So what I know now for sure is that when I am helping other entrepreneurs develop; I know that they must run their own race. My role is to be their running partner but at times run ahead, while at other times run behind but most importantly, run with them at their own pace. To Colleen, my friend, mentor and running partner, I say my race has now begun and the pace is a healthy one.

Can enterprising skills be taught at a younger age?

So my first experience with the world of enterprise was in my final year of junior school at the age of 12. I distinctly remember that we played what was called the 'Game of Life' and it really was that. Our teacher was essentially the Mayor and we, as the citizens of the town first had to build our town. So endless hours were spent on building our town using paper mache and once we had done that, we each had to select an enterprise that we would run for the duration of the game. The currency was not real but was recogniszed as a means of trading among citizens of the town. I owned a bank (the last time that I most probably had so much money!!!) and once in a while I dabbled in selling slices of cake and anything to make extra money. With this money as well as bank charges and loans my bank made, I went about purchasing assets such as a house, a car etc from fellow classmates.

But I'll never forget that in the entire class only one of us came up with a different enterpise, only one. It was a girl whose father owned businesses and thus the culture of enterprise and thinking out of the box seemed to part of her life. I often wonder, if after school, she went and asked her father what she could do and I imagine her father navigating her through the process of finding something unique. Anyway, if my memory serves me well, I think she came up with a post of being the Mayor's assistant - essentially, the Chief Operating Officer. Needless to say, she earned the most money.

The lessons that I have gained from this memory are many, but I will share a few. Firstly, we know the amount of time and resources being spent in other parts of the world to incorporate enterprise skills and/or entrepreneurship into curriculum but the question is can it be taught? I, for one am of the opinion that such games or curriculum can ignite the spirit of enterprise but it is how one experiences that game or curriculum that may have a greater impact on the decision to pursue entrepreneurship. Secondly, we should not expect for these skills to be taught in the schools alone. How many of us can remember when we wanted to do something that did not fit into our parents or guardians perceptions of good education would get no encouragement to pursue this? For some, times have changed - there is a lot of encouragement, for others, the struggle continues. So what I am basically saying is that, there are many opportunities for us to be socialized into enteprise/entrepreneurial skills but family, peers and society plays a crucial role. Thirdly, I think it's important to emphasize that not all of us with see small business ownership as our destination in terms of career choices. Rather, we need to extract and apply the values and skills that enterprise and entrepreneurship provide in our day-to-day life. Labelling who is and who is not an entrepreneur does not add value in my opinion but rather, it limits one's dreams.

If I had simply decided that because I had chosen a safe enterprise of running a bank when I played the 'Game of Life', I might have limited my career options. In fact, it is quite funny, to date, I have actually never worked in a corporate setting. I started as an academic, teaching management, financial management and entrepreneurship, moved to managing a degree programme to being a self-employed research consultant. I know that for my parents, they have stepped back, allowing me to do what I want to do and while not always knowing what I am doing, they give the necessary encouragement.

So what do we need to do to encourage the spirit of enterprise? Do we need to include it in the curriculum? Perhaps. But what do we need to include? Enterprise Life Skills, problem solving skills, creativity and critical thinking skills, analytical skills, team work skills? Perhaps. When should it be taught? Earlier than later? Perhaps. Is it relevant for our country? Perhaps.

So while there are many questions and not clear answers, I believe that there is a place for enterprise and entrepreneurship skills within the curriculum, from early childhood development curriculum to Doctorate level and everything in between! Let us work together and start to make a contribution.