The start-up scene in South Africa... 24 Points.

So I’ve had a couple of people asking me questions on social media regarding accessing funding from funding agencies because of an idea they might have that they want to pursue. I’ve given plenty advice regarding this but figured I’d write up an article to try answer all questions to those who want to know and especially to those who are sometimes are afraid of asking for help. 

So before we get into it I want to say to people out there that if you want to get a startup going, it’s gonna take everything from you. The startup scene in South Africa is like playing the entrepreneur game on hard mode and like every other game out there, all it requires you to do is to get better and for you to not wish that it were easier. People love to complain and complain and this is what keeps them negative. Negativity and poverty are mutually inclusive concepts remember that. 

So anyway ima break it down in a few points, I don’t know how many they’ll be as I tend to wing this shit and go wherever my brain takes me so  ya… Also understand that this might be offensive to a lot of people and I can’t help that. This knowledge isn’t taught in schools. All I plan to do is tell the truth regardless of emotions. So be open minded but understand that this is not for everyone.

1.       If you want to be an Entrepreneur, be a real Entrepreneur and stop being a Pussy!

What I’ve seen now is that everyone uses the word entrepreneur too loosely and throw it around like a common denominator. Everyone uses it to somehow boost their social appeal to other people. Everyone is trying so hard to impress people that don’t give a fuck about them and I guess it has to do with everyone being obsessed with what everyone is doing. The truth is that a lot of people are “wantapreneurs” and not entrepreneurs. An entrepreneur is French for “someone who has ideas, and does them” end of story. People just think that once they’ve registered a company, have some fancy business card, a website and a Facebook page, they are entrepreneurs na! 

Look too many people are pussies nowadays, too many people want to get there too quickly and so as a result the reason they want to do it is to be cool and act rich. You’re going to be hopelessly broke for a while, you’re going to lose people and you’re going to have to knock on doors like your life depended on it. If you can’t do that and make some serious sacrifices, this game is not for you, walk away. The life of wealth and abundance is not for pussies. I’m harsh I know but I feel that everyone wants to make the journey some khumbaya, cute and cuddly story where everyone will make it. Hello, 85% of startups fail in the first year and that should really solidify all I’ve said here. It’s much easier to be some bullshit celebrity than it is to be a real entrepreneur generating million dollar revenues annually. So stop thinking that it should be easy, stop expecting every email you send to be responded to and stop laying down after you get a few nos. If you can’t go through 99 nos in order to get one yes this game is not for you. Be ready to quit and sacrifice everything for what you want and break down doors. If you can’t do that, stop reading this, close it and walk away, this game is not for you end of story.

2.       Forget about funding, just create value. 

Everyone just has an idea and expects funding from the government somehow to pursue their ideas and when they realize that it’s not that easy they quit. Here’s a very real truth: NOBODY FUNDS IDEAS!! INVESTORS DON’T CARE ABOUT IDEAS! There aren’t a lot of seed funds or grants out there so in the beginning you’re going to have to bootstrap (fund your idea) yourself till it’s something tangible. So in the beginning forget about the nice things of life, the dates and the parties if you’re really serious. Your first investors are going to be FFF (Friends, family and fools). All you need to focus on is creating more and more value and building your idea as hard as it will be. It took me long to raise over 500K for my idea and it took everything from me but I was committed. Great ideas always secure funding, and if you’ve built your idea up and nobody is helping you, maybe your idea is shit and that’s ok. It’s all a learning experience anyway. People will laugh at you but so what?!

3.       Stop trying to copy corporate.

I’ve seen a lot of people will start companies and start emulating what they think is supposed to be the way to do things and copy the corporate structure. I don’t understand why this is the case because you have an opportunity to create a new way of doing things. There are no rules in the startup game. I’m not saying that you should emulate Google, but the journey should be fun and you need all the creative energy you need because you’re doing new things. Your corporate friends will tell you shit about minutes, MOI’s and all that jazz but only take advice from people you’d trade places with and just work on your vision. Forget about the rules and the boring, soulless, uncomfortable and lame dress codes unless your business forces you to sell perception using dress codes. If that is the case however, it means you have competitors and that in itself is a whole different ball game which brings me to the next point…

4.       Innovation is a super advantage!!

I don’t want to discredit anyone’s businesses but I’m just starting to feel that it’s also possible to conform in the startup scene. A lot of people have businesses nowadays that help companies with registration, websites and whatever fluff they may need. Now as a business you’re going to have to be sustainable, growing and profitable. Entering a competitive and saturated market is dangerous unless you have the killer instinct to take clients and compete with other people. When approaching funding agencies for funding, they are going to ask you for a market and competitor analysis, and if you don’t display your ability to compete and eventually dominate, you won’t receive funding to grow and the company will spiral down into an abyss. People underestimate the power of innovation, but innovation means you dominate already and nobody plays in your space. The product or service doesn’t have to be innovative, how you deliver it in a way that makes money for all parties is also a way of innovation. You have to do what competitors aren’t doing. Not everyone will come up with original ideas but people can come up with unique ways of service delivery especially if they are serious and passionate about it. 

An example of this is Scooters and Andiccio’s Pizza. Scooters added the scooter element and Andiccio’s has the 24 hour service. Innovation is a super advantage!

5.       Part time effort equals part time revenues

If you have a company on the side to supplement your income it’s not entirely a bad thing, I’m all for multiple income streams. In the beginning if you have a day job, it maybe is necessary and if that’s what you’re going to do then that’s also fine. But when you approach people for funding to grow your company, nobody is going to invest in you if you aren’t fully invested yourself because why must someone take a risk when you don’t have the balls to do so. If you kinda want it, you’ll only kinda get it. This is a simple fact, you reap what you sow so you have to know what you want and stay real to that.

6.       Money makes you stupid

 

People tend to think that the more money one has, the more they can do and the more they’ll succeed. As much as this may be true, it’s only part of the story. Money makes you make big decisions without creativity and so people will pay big marketing companies like Ogilvy absurd amounts of money for shit value. I mean have you seen some of these ads nowadays. In the age of information and social media, with a little creativity you can do what big companies aren’t thinking about and make people take notice. Big companies fail all the time because of all their rigid systems and lack of creativity. Too many people are afraid to lose their jobs and as a result are afraid to make quick decisions. Money makes you stupid because it stifles creativity. In this day and age it’s all about who can stand out and not who can spend. Money is not the be all and end all; learn to use cheap ways to make big impact.  

7.       Degrees fly out the door, window and fall of the walls

Look here’s the truth. In business, all degrees fly out the door. Your skill, your ability to close and your ability to find a way is all that matters. You don’t need business school or anything to get into the game; just an idea, a vision, a team and an unshakable desire to win. No school on the planet can teach you how to have desire, you either have it or you don’t. When shit hits the fan, your degree is not gonna keep you warm and make things happen for you. That’s why I deleted my CV ages ago because I saw that this shit came down to how much I wanted it. As much as most funding agencies ask you for qualifications, once again 85% of startups fail in the first year. Forget about your degrees unless you want a job. But in this game, especially in South Africa, you gotta have Tyrannosaurus balls, deadly desire and a committed team. 

8.       People will hate. Fuck em!

I’ve seen that people will always hate on people for doing things that supersede their own reality. People want you to do well but not better than them and this holds very true in the black community where there are none if not very few examples of massive and early success. So when you decide to break out the middle class people will talk shit. People talk shit because it makes them feel better about the shit they know they aren’t doing. But if people are talking about you, understand that it means you are taking the right amount of action and you’ve broken away from the noise. Criticism isn’t only a part of success but also a sign of SERIOUS levels of it. So understand that these people are reducing your marketing budget. You just keep going and don’t fuck around. This is your life and your reality and everyone is a guest. So fuck em, people are too afraid to do their shit and so they’ll discredit your work for some euphoria.

I don’t have the usual rags to riches story. My parents have always been able to provide for me and so people will hate on that and I understand why. But the truth is that in as much as I didn’t come from nothing, I started with nothing and that’s something nobody will be able to take away from me. I didn’t want my parents to help me when I began because I wanted to do it for myself. Doesn’t matter what situation one might have, you have to start from where you are and that will always be with nothing but you and what you want to do. Wealth is created when we use existing resources in new ways. Since such creativity is virtually limitless, wealth is too. 

People will hate but I still work harder than anyone I know and work for those who hate and appreciate me the same. I still create value for everyone other than myself; it’s as simple as that. 

9.       Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Pride kills. 

It’s simple; nobody can succeed in isolation no matter how amazing you think you are. Never be that arrogant. When the dream is big, the team is important. Ask for help!!

10.   Don’t pursue it to get an escape from your job.

The middle class is dying, most people are living hand to mouth, barely making and living off credit to impress people that don’t give a shit about them. They hate their jobs and so as a result they try to start companies to flex to people and to escape the terror of their realities. Look, your “why” is the most powerful thing that WILL either make you or break you. If your “why” is tied to negativity, you will fail. Start for the right reasons, because you love something and really want to do it. Not because of hate or to escape. All you’ll do is create a worse reality for yourself trying to keep face.

11.   Do things nobody is willing to pay you to learn.

Napoleon Hill has a theory called the theory of going the extra mile. You gotta get over the pussy phase of doing things people must pay you for and doing things when you feel like doing them. Create value in all ways and start going further that what’s required of you. Pay your dues, draw up proposals to people for free and appeal to their self interest without expecting anything in return. He that does more than he’s paid to do will eventually be paid for the more that he does. I did a lot of speaking gigs for free and now that is over and I’m also giving my first TED talk in November but I had to pay my dues. Mediocrity doesn’t pay anymore especially in South Africa where there’s too much of it. South Africa has a fuck load of money for those that want it and are willing to go after it and don’t make excuses. 

12.   It’s NOT easy!! Jy sal huil!

I used to be invited to a lot of these networking events and media things regarding entrepreneurship, and I heard a lot of people complaining about almost everything from the government to education. Look I’ve been through almost every funding agency in this country, got so many nos that I almost packed up and left the country many times. The truth is that how much you want something will be tested; you gotta get over that complaining mentality and just keep doing the fucking work regardless of how painful it is. It’s not easy. Max out your credit cards and don’t be afraid to accumulate debt when nobody funds you. How can you be epic if you can’t take up risk??! Come on… 

13.   Imparting vision

Whether you go to NYDA, GEP, IDC etc. You’re going to meet people who I feel like really don’t want to do their jobs because of all the many applications they receive on a daily basis. I can imagine it being draining. Your ability to not only impart and infect people with your vision becomes imperative. When you walk out of the building, whoever you’re speaking to must feel like “If I help this guy, it could be beneficial in future, so let me do all I can.” This once again comes down to really wanting something and letting your passion do the talking. 

14.   Read!!

Another thing in South Africa that I’ve seen is that people don’t read. Like after they graduate, they never pick up a book and would rather spend their money of drinking and chasing girls. Nobody will go to exclusive books or download e-books online, more than that, they won’t read the books. Look, you don’t choose your future, you choose your habits and your habits choose your future. What you read when you don’t have to, will determine who you will be, when you can’t help it… BOOOOM!

15.   Think global, act local. Playing small and average is a losing formula.

A lot of investors are beginning to take notice of Africa now and they care about ROI and scalability. Playing small doesn’t apply anymore. Think big, think so big that it scares you. Once again, if you want to do it, be serious about it. People will trash talk you for thinking big and it might not happen quickly but it’s a prerequisite to think big, and to think global while making sure that you remain original and stop trying to copy what other countries are doing.

16.   It feels impossible but it isn’t.

I’ve had so many opportunities to quit because there were times what I wanted to do felt so impossible it left me in tears, questioning my existence. But the truth is that it comes down once again to your “Why”, when I realized I really wanted to do this and I wasn’t fucking around, I kept going and now here we are weeks away from launching our world first product. It does feel impossible, but it isn’t. Doesn’t matter what cards you start with, I know old people, people with kids and what not that are getting what they want. There ARE NO EXCUSES!! Don’t sell yourself short, you deserve the life that you want, and your life or what happened in it doesn’t define you.

17.   Open network. 

I learnt the other day that it’s not about who you know, it’s about who can cc you in a mail. Had a minister send an email for me and cc me in it and well in South Africa that makes shit happen. Stop fucking with basic people that can’t take you anywhere. What you seek is seeking you and it is usually in the form of a person or people. It is imperative that you leave closed networks (people that know each other) and enter open networks (people that can take you higher and open doors for you). If people you know are corporate and middle class, your opportunities won’t come from those people because if they had open networks, they wouldn’t be there in the first place. 

18.   Consistency is a habit!! 

Eventually, everything changes with you. What you talk about, what you think, what you do and who you are. The only measure I have of someone’s authenticity is their consistency. People that don’t have much to say or do will always say and do what everyone else does. The opposite of courage in our society isn’t fear but conformity. To know whether what you’re doing is authentic or not, just look at what you do and say. Look at your social media, or someone else’s, if you can’t isolate consistent ideas then that person is a wave being hit by the any wave. Be persistent. Be clear. Be concise. Be committed. And be consistent! That’s what will get you through, once again, your “why” is crucial. 

19.   Forget comforts. 

If you can’t make sacrifices for your happiness, it will never come. Most people follow the rules and try to find happiness in the world. Happiness is an inside and subjective job. You can’t be comfortable when trying to unravel your happiness. Free will is a gift you’ll never know how to use until you have to fight for it. 

Doing what you love is freedom, loving what you do is happiness. Remember that. 

20.   Forget black and white.

South Africa is plagued by such a dark past it breaks my heart at times. So what happens is that people are so quick to be politicians on social media as if politicians are following them on social media in order to feel some sense of remorse. Like a politician is sitting there looking at your complaints thinking “oh shit. I didn’t know I’m sorry let me change.” The truth is that nobody really cares man. When you get to terms with what you are and what you want to do, everything falls away. I know now that what I can do, isn’t about very few black people being able to do, it’s that no human being can do because nobody can be me and nobody can beat me at being me and that it my power.

The racial and politics do nothing but distract people and maybe keep them entertained, I don’t know why this is the case but I’m only being honest. I’m not saying being black doesn’t come with its disadvantages but what I’m saying is that any bad situation can be turned around. I choose to be positive and choose to resonate my energy to a point where the racial lines don’t matter. You gotta be self aware and confident, that’s all that matters.

And as much as race is a big deal everywhere, I’ve seen that as long the outcome is income, people will help. I’ve dealt with a lot of white people and they’ve all helped me. I encountered more lack of help from black people truth be told. The irony! 

21.   Get rid of that entitlement bullshit mentality.

Just because you went to Wits or UCT or wherever, understand that you don’t shit rainbows and dollar bills. Get over that entitlement you may have. When I was unemployed in 2012, thinking my Wits degree would get me places I realized it was all a lie. When you are there trying to find your life on Pnet or career junction, you realize that you were sold a dream. I got over my entitlement issues, saw that there were no jobs, told Wits they keep their fucken degree and did something about my life. Just because my parents are successful, don’t mean ima be successful. Remember happiness is an inside and subjective job, not a derivative. 

22.   1^st world and 3^rd world… 

The only difference between a 1^st world and 3^rd world country isn’t infrastructure, but mentality. That means you can have a 1^st world mentality in a 3^rd world country or vice verse. It comes down who you choose to fuck with. This means that if you want to do big things, it’s all about who you deal with. Energy is contagious, and what I’m saying is that it’s not Africa that’s the problem; it’s the Africa you deal with that is. Just meet and fuck with different people. Don’t let yourself be fooled into thinking you need to leave to start something big. To grow it yes, but you can start it here. South Africa is a party and getting something started is actually easy because regulation isn’t intense. South Africa is number 57 out of 188 countries that are best to start a company. It’s cheap, quick and has little hassles. In Switzerland it costs like $40k/R400k just to register a company. So let go of this bullshit about “red or maroon tape.” Stop complaining. 

23.   Funding

In terms of funding, it’s there. NYDA has a R100k grant scheme going now. SEDA can help with non financial help. SEFA can help with loans provided you have orders. Use your resources and try by all means to get a meeting. But the truth is that nobody funds ideas, and it’s very seldom that someone will fund you if you haven’t shown revenues. It sucks I know but that’s just the truth. Job creation should also be on top of your objectives. But on the real we need to learn to fund each other as young people. We need to stop being so damn selfish and so concerned about ourselves and the bullshit people we try to impress on social media. If you work and someone you know needs money that can be lucrative in future, take a risk… That’s how you’ll do it and they’ll run for you and you never know where a person’s passion can lead them. 

All you have to do is try. Just try, learn to communicate your ideas on paper and fight to meet people. It will take long however in South Africa, but if you really want to do it you will trust… Nobody is gonna come into your house and save you. Make shit happen!! 

24.   Be yourself, the world will adjust. 

Apart from everything, regardless of the past this country has, the consumerism, the hate and the pessimism, forget the noise and the bullshit. Be yourself. Don’t copy anyone, just be you. They will crucify you for it but nothing beats having freedom to be, freedom to create and freedom to live life on your own terms. Help people, go further & create value. I don’t have to write these articles, record podcasts or share this knowledge, but I do because abundance gives forth abundance, and I don’t live in a negative reality. If you want to add zeros to your bank account, start helping and serving people selflessly. Just be real and understand that it was all ever about being you man... If you don’t learn to play the game, watch the game play you…

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