Head to this and Read the Full Story Entry
Most times, the best way to learn is on the job. It will always be stressful and sometimes, heartbreaking, however, when we learn from our experiences, good or bad, it sticks and would become a better way to teach others.
Everyone wants to be successful but not everyone wants to pay the price for success. Where we shrink or shy away from labour, the resulting success most of the times would be short-lived. Labour in this case may not be "hard", rather a commitment that may be smart, engagement and probably consistency brought to bare.
Growing up and trying to start up life was never easy, especially in a country like Nigeria where a great proportion of the populace are looking to the "corrupt" government for everything. You become an abnormal person when you attempt to do something different and build yourself as an entrepreneur.
@Achim03 and @Project.hope engineers this writing contest that reminds me of the mistakes I made as an emerging entrepreneur Six Years ago. It wasn't a fun experiance, but, I have grown over it and it became a great lessons I love to share each time I coach Startups.
On a Friday, 28th February, 2014, a friend told me of a Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) Business that was going to payback as much as 105% of my investment as interest in Six months. The business needed a minimum investment of $1750 (as at 2014). Meanwhile, I was in my incubating days of my Research Consultancy Business. The ROI of the MLM sounded so real and I could imagine having that much invested to my business in six months time. I went for a hard loan ($2000 then) with 30% Interest rate per annum from a friend and invested into the MLM. The terms of the business was to buy a product worth my investment sum and give to the merchant who will sell the product and give me my profit. I had virtually nothing to contribute to the work. Just to go sleep while my money worked for me. Continue reading here and remember to engage the entry.
My Fails
Counting the cost before any business engagement is a crucial step to take in the planning stage of an investment. Where this is lacking, one may not even stay alive to reap the fruits of the investment especially when the unexpected happens in the negative. This is what happened to me. I was lost in the euphoria of having a 105% payback alongside my investment capital in six months. I didn't mind risking anything to the point of having to buy money for the investment.
We have similar situations when it comes to crypto investments. Like what happened last week. many people were buying bitcoin by impulse of the Halvening news and precedence out of panic. They never waited for the dip like @Rollandthomas would always say. Also, when the price went down, many sold out of panic. This happens when the following lacks on the part of the investor:
- No feasibility study on the business as per sustainability;
- No financial Risk Assessment;
- No opportunity Cost of choosing an alternative over another.
Lessons
- Always do your research and count the cost before making an investment.
- Never be impulsive about investment.
- Investment success is much more than financial gains.