fire. Because your greatest asset is the wisdom, resilience, and clarity forged in the ruins. Failure is not a disqualification. It’ s not the opposite of success; it is part of the curriculum. What you survive becomes what you teach. And what you teach becomes your next platform. This time, stronger. This time, deeper. This time, cleverer and unshakable.
I was never a speaker. My background is in Social Statistics. I learnt leadership and strategy on the job as a researcher at the Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, years before I ventured into business. Today, when I look back, what seemed like a failure in business was actually what opened a whole new world to me. Left to me, I would have continued in the semiacademic world of research. However, my failure was so colossal, and as I began to rebuild, people started asking me to share my story to encourage others. That’ s how the speaking began. And before I realised what was happening, speaking had actually become an integral part of my business.
Patience is an integral ingredient for the entrepreneur who wants to last. In fact, the Bible says,“ We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised”- Hebrews 6:12( NIV).
There was a time I wanted to shift the focus of my business from strategy to culture. I noticed that while many organizations were developing brilliant strategies, their existing cultures could not sustain those strategies. I believed this was a gap worth filling. So, I hosted a breakfast meeting to pitch this idea to the HR fraternity. I was expecting 50 people. That morning, 427 people showed up at the Hilton Nairobi, each plate costing Kshs 4,000. It was the most expensive breakfast I had ever hosted. But I consoled myself that surely, the following week, people would start signing up for our culture program.
Friends, for a whole year, not a single registration came in. Not in the second year. Not in the third year either. But just as we were approaching the fourth year, someone who wasn’ t even at that breakfast reached out to ask if we still offered culture transformation programs. I said we did. He flew into the country the following week, and we signed a deal to run a full culture program. Here’ s the irony: he was not at the breakfast, he was not Kenyan, and the business wasn’ t even in Kenya. We ended up executing the contract through one of our foreign partners.
By the end of that fourth year, we had delivered several programs and generated over a million dollars in culture-related business. Only after that did Kenyan companies begin to reach out to us because now all of a sudden, we had credibility.
In entrepreneurship, if you’ re not ready to think long-term, just forget the idea of being an entrepreneur. Also, never depend on just one product or project. Don’ t be a one-hit wonder. While waiting for your big idea to take off, ensure you have a few small, sustainable income streams that keep you in business and buy you the time needed to mature your vision.
Some Key Lessons!
So what are some of my key lessons and things that I wish someone had told me:
The right idea at the wrong time can feel like the wrong idea: Just because the market doesn’ t respond immediately doesn’ t mean you got it wrong. Sometimes you’ re not out of alignment; you’ re just ahead of your time. And when that happens, it’ s easy to doubt the idea, doubt yourself, and feel tempted to abandon ship. But patience doesn’ t just protect your emotions- it protects your idea from premature burial. Great visions often arrive before their time; your job is to keep nurturing them until the world catches up. Entrepreneurship will test your timeline. Endure.
Visibility doesn’ t guarantee conversion: You can have a packed room and still walk away with nothing to show for it. Noise is not proof of traction. Attention is not the same as action. Entrepreneurs must learn not to be seduced by the spotlight. The real work is in the follow-up. The fortunes are in the faithful consistency after the clapping stops. Don’ t mistake applause for agreement. Don’ t mistake eyes on you for hands supporting you. The game is in the grind, not the glamour.
Your biggest doors may open through people you’ ve never met: That one deal that changed everything for me didn’ t come from the 427 people who showed up to my big event. It came from someone who wasn ' t even there. A stranger. A divine connection. Which means this: do your part and trust that the ripple will find its way to the right shore. You don’ t get to decide who God uses to reward your diligence. Stay faithful, stay visible, and let divine timing surprise you.
The market believes you after someone else takes the risk: People rarely trust what they haven’ t seen work. You can preach the gospel of your idea all day long, but many will still wait to see who else believes it first. When an outsider took a chance on my culture model, suddenly the local market gained faith in what they had previously ignored. That’ s not betrayal; it’ s just business psychology. Don’ t take it personally. Take it as confirmation. Sometimes credibility comes from across borders before it comes from across the street.
Survival is a strategy: While others were waiting for the big break, we were staying alive through small, consistent wins. These small wins were our lifeline. The small clients, the workshops, the minor contracts were the things that bought us time, preserved our name, and they gave our vision room to mature. Never despise small streams. They may not look like rivers, but they keep the lights on while the well of destiny is still forming underground. Staying alive is not a sign of struggle. It is proof of strategy.
Finally, entrepreneurship isn’ t about speed. It’ s about depth. It’ s not a sprint to get applause but a slow, stubborn dance with a purpose bigger than yourself. The ones who make it aren’ t the geniuses or the best-funded. They’ re the ones who learn to breathe when the room’ s empty. To keep walking when no one’ s clapping. To build like maniacs while the rest of the world is still sleeping or waiting for something to happen. The market doesn’ t care about your viral tweets or social media posts. It rewards the ones who keep their fire lit long after the spotlight dies.
So if you’ re in the trenches right now and you are building something nobody sees yet, keep building. If you’ re waiting for your moment, wait like a sniper, not a spectator. And if you’ ve failed? Stand up straighter. Because failure isn’ t the end of your story but rather the gym where your grit gets stronger.
Years from now, no one will remember the noise. They’ ll remember you. The one who stayed. The one who outlasted the doubt, the dark nights, the“ Why bother?” moments. So ask yourself: Will your flame outlive the storm?
Stay in the arena. Stay stubborn. Stay building.
Dr. Wale Akinyemi is the CEO of The Street Hub – an Organizational Culture and Transformation Consulting Firm. He is also the Founder of African Legends – A publishing House dedicated to telling African Leadership and Entrepreneurial Stories. You can commune with him on this or related matters via email at: Wale @ thestreethub. biz.