by Ngeow Shang Lin (Singapore)
You know the feeling you get when you walk past a store and you spot something you like , only to realize that when you walk into the shop , it is not only completely out of your price range, but they also tell you it’s the last piece. The singular piece of coveted item is forever out of your reach.
Entrepreneurship, is largely similar. We’ve all been in awe of the hot-start ups today’s vibrant business world and we find ourselves wondering if we ever have the opportunity to own a business or if it’s just a dream that is out of your reach.
However, T&E class have taught me a great deal and now after having started and operated a business of my own, the dream is not as obscure as it use to be and i possess the necessary skills to turn it into a reality.
In shopping, you cannot simply rest on your laurels. The latest fashions and best deals out there waiting to be found – @ spreerepublic.com of course – and if you don’t go out and hunt for them, they will always elude you. Ideas for your businesses cannot simply be developed from sitting at home. You have to be active in your research. Go out and take a look, read , scan and interact and you’ll soon find what are some the business opportunities waiting for you.
We’ve had numerous passionate debates on how to proceed, on how to streamline our business processes and better ideas for communicating our business to our audience, there were definitely times where we were tired but we’ve soldiered on our “hardworking-ness” has paid off. Businesses shouldn’t shy away from these arguments as it is only way to push not just yourself but everyone else in your group to greater heights.
I’ve learnt more than just entrepreneurship skills, but life skills. One of which is knowing how to get people excited about what you have say. Convincing people is a key skill in the process of starting a business. From sharing your enthusiasm to get people on board to work with you, selling your unique selling point to the VCs and lastly , inviting your customers to patronize you, it’s all about human interaction and it’s something i’ll take with me after the entire course.
All in all, it’s been a great experience and i wouldn’t trade it for the world. Now that i’ve learnt how to fulfill my dreams of being an entrepreneur, i need to know how to go about shopping more efficiently .
