Desperation
–
countless
entrepreneurs overwhelmed by
challenges and problems like lack
of capital have found themselves in
open water with blood seeping
from their hearts, calling the
resilient predator to come and
have supper. When entrepreneurs
are desperate we have an open
wound in our hearts. Desperation
is a clear sign of disappointment,
frustration and worse still, a lack
of key virtues required in building
a successful and lasting business.
Sharks welcome desperate people
with open arms. I remember when
our business was ‘desperately’
looking for finance we found
ourselves meeting more sharks
than genuine investors. One time
we had an investor who wanted us
to undervalue the whole business
below the value of one product.
He knew one thing, that we
needed money to support the idea
and so he was making an offer to
very desperate souls.
Greed – when an entrepreneur
sees the open waters of
opportunity they too tend to
become too greedy. In a foolish bid
to make money fast, entrepreneurs
over commit, over promise and
ultimately sell themselves short to
their larger more voracious
competitor. Whenever the pursuit
of the all elusive mother of all deals
overwhelms clear and rational
business sense an entrepreneur
must realise that he/she is bait
(probably self-made).
60
In the late early stages of our
business we met up with what
seemed the ultimate strategic
alliance. He was promising the
world and he had the offices to
prove it. We were thinking to
ourselves that we had hit the big
time yet it was going to become
apparent to us, that all that
glittered wasn’t genuine gold (we
were just being greedy).
Over the years by mistake or
genuine learning it is becoming
clear that in business there are
sharks of varying degrees and sizes
whose express intent is to have
entrepreneurs for breakfast, lunch
and supper. Their sole instinct is
to smell blood and feast on the
flesh of their prey. Yet, these
sharks aren’t as infallible and
ferocious as we by first impression
think. It all depends on how we
get into the water.
It is thus appropriate to introduce
the concept of the Japanese
fisherman who hunts shark in
open waters. In business this
character is the entrepreneur who
is well equipped to seize
opportunity and create significant
value. He/she is not necessarily a
shark matching bite power for bite
power. He/she is not in blind
pursuit of market share. But as
stated in one of my earlier articles
he/she is an entrepreneur looking
for market space.
Unlike the entrepreneurs who are
trapped or lured by open waters
unprepared for eventualities, the
Japanese fisherman is well prepared,
well informed and very clear of their
intentions.
The Japanese fisherman is the
entrepreneur who sets aside time
planning and learning. He or she is
in direct contrast to the earlier
stated entrepreneur. Given the
opportunity to encounter a shark
they are well armed and equipped to
expose and do away with the
predatory instincts of the shark.
The entrepreneur who is better
equipped has vision and therefore is
restrained in the pursuit of dead end
opportunities.
Vision creates the platform and
vehicle
which
allows
the
entrepreneur to develop and weigh
his/her strategic objectives and
what it will take to achieve them.
A clear reality of the cost will ensure
that
the
entrepreneur
can
adequately communicate what they
are looking for. Thus when such an
entrepreneur enters the vast ocean
of opportunity their efforts are more
focused and they are better armed to
deal with sharks.
With time we will discover the
profound meaning of this metaphor
in business.