The Hustlers Paradise - Nelson Makubo

Entrepreneur: Nelson Makubo Industry:   Photography

Entrepreneurship to me means

Being an entrepreneur to me means being your own boss and understanding your responsibilities as a person, because they shape your business direction as you are the decision maker. Owning a business is a big deal, taking risks and pushing forward, are the responsibilities you have a an entrepreneur.

Background

Born in Free State, Bethlehem. Nelson has been doing photography since 2005, with a few breaks in between tertiary and work. He studied IT and programming and worked as a Systems analysis for a while until he lost his job and decided to explore his passion for photography. One of his early works included creating a modeling portfolio for his wife and shooting for sun babe, where he met Kyle Daniels who helped him advance his skills in photography by teaching his all about location, lighting and camera settings. He has advanced in his hobby and has made a business out of it and still continues to advance and succeed. He is a self-motivated young and ambitious person. I believe in God and i am a big time prayer. I am an understanding person, well grown and inspired by hard working people that surrounds me

What kind of a person makes a successful entrepreneur?

Rich20Something book gives us a clear mindset into understanding the qualities of an entrepreneur. Highlighting qualities like Discipline, Confidence and being open Minded. One of the qualities I like is passion. Passion is the most important trait of the successful entrepreneur. They genuinely love their work. They are willing to put in those extra hours to make the business succeed because there is a joy their business gives which goes beyond the money. The successful entrepreneur will always be reading and researching ways to make the business better. Nelson states that, you need specific qualities. One of them is called Persistent and Patience. Although these are two words with two different meanings, they are represented as just one word in my vocabulary because one cannot possibly exist without the other. If you are doing something that you love or something you're passionate about and you're patient with the results, you can easily progress. If you want to be successful in any business you have to be patient and persistent.

Successful entrepreneurs want to see what the view is like at the top of the business mountain. Once they see it, they want to go further. They know how to talk to their employees, and their businesses soar as a result (James. A).

Kurt Kohlstedt states that to be an entrepreneur, a strong work ethic is the single most important element. An entrepreneur must be sufficiently self-motivated not only to persist during difficult and stressful times but also in the face of having to set their own goals and meet them. A social personality is not essential but is helpful. Networking is part of building (most kinds of) business, and an entrepreneur should at least know how to communicate - even better if they can sell well, too. The ability to make decisions and act are critical - entrepreneurs cannot get bogged down on planning to the point of analysis paralysis, or simply wasting time that could be spend building (and failing and building again). The ability to see voids and opportunities is important - most entrepreneurs are far less adventurously reckless than they may seem. They carefully study their options, calculate odds and shoot for the best bet.

How can entrepreneurs in S.A improve customer service in their businesses?

Few things can sour a customer experience more quickly than poor customer service. To a customer, your support team is your business. Shauna Geraghty, a clinical psychologist and head of talent at the global customer support innovator Talk Desk revealed on the company’s blog that over 90 percent of customers who are dissatisfied with your customer service experience will — rather than telling you that something is wrong and how you can improve it — just not come back (Lundin, K.).

Communication and self-representation is key, especially when it comes to products. You have to associate your product with yourself, treat it the way you treat yourself. Whether it’s a service or product, whatever you do you must attest to your service delivery by representing it first. So if I were to tell someone about improving customer services in their business I would say, they shouldn’t look at the business as just a money transfer but as a relationship between two people. Whereby after a product or service has been rendered communication is still retained. Be big on quality service delivery. When you associate yourself with those aspects and you know the product represents you and vice versa and the quality you provide represents the services it will mean that you have mastered one essential or benefit of good customer service. After that learn to check on your customers, get feedback on the product or service, this is one of the biggest mistakes we make, we forget our customers after a transaction, I have worked with someone who kept the communication long after a transaction in order to ensure that i as the client was satisfied with the product and service that i received from him, this created a special relationship and trust plus it helps you, the entrepreneur improve. We must remember that what attract customers is what they see, how you treat them, what you say and do, how what RELATIONSHIPS AND TRUST and helps you improve. WHAT ATTRACTS NEW CUSTOMERS IS something that the see out do

How did you determine that you were capable of starting and running a business?

In terms of myself i don’t come from a business background. For me it was doing what I love and taking the risk. The first time i lost my job, I had a conversation with my father who’s a policemen and my mentor who asked me if i wanted a career or to progress on something. I had to sit down and use him as a mentor, that’s one of the things one needs in life. I then realized that when it comes to pursuing a career i don’t need a job but i need skills. A lot of people work to earn and i work to learn. I don’t have any aspects pf working for one particular company because of the bad experiences I’ve had and i never understood the cycle of repeating patterns every single day. I might be capable of doing more than being stuck in the office so i began using part time jobs to continue to learn and grow using information found or discovered in the working environment to teach and grow yourself.

What’s holding entrepreneurs back in South Africa?

A report by Old Mutual reveals the major barriers South Africans believe they encounter when trying to open their own business. According to the OECD’s Economic Survey of South Africa 2017 the South African government has taken steps to ease requirements for starting a business, but red tape remains a burden, while the quality of the education system and lack of work experience contribute to gaps in entrepreneurial skills. The report found that despite low entrepreneurial activity among the working population, there is a strong desire for entrepreneurial pursuits in South Africa, where entrepreneurship is seen as a very desirable career option, and the fear of failure is low, compared to other OECD regions.

Nelson states that finance that may be one of the biggest cause that is holding South Africans from starting their own businesses. Finance is the major issue. We are looking to be financed by third parties. We focus on getting money elsewhere as opposed to growing our skill selves. I mean if you’re an individual with impeccable management skills then deuced to start your own HR firm... the minute you hit rock bottom when your company requires financing that you don’t have. Then you start doubting your abilities then you go look for employment elsewhere and you find that they offer you a fixed salary, then you thinks that’s better than owning your own business. Another thing is low self-esteem. We lack the will to hustle because of these low self-esteems. We look at ourselves as small timers and compare ourselves with other people who have already made it. When the perspective should be to want to learn from those people.

References:

James, A. Canon Cartridges (2018)

https://www.quora.com/What-kind-of-person-makes-a-successful-entrepreneur