The Entrepreneur's Journey to Fruitfulness

"Boy, boy, boy, wag?mong?bilisan?kasinagmamadali?tayo!(Don’t go too fast because we’re in a hurry!)" Manuel L. Quezon instructed his driver as they rushed to an appointment. I thought the late president?was contradicting?himself when someone told me this anecdote. But when I assessed his instructions in the context of their situation, I realized he made a lot of sense. Rushing would increase their chances of making a wrong turn or, worse, getting into an accident.?

Many young adults push themselves so hard to achieve financial success by?age?30. Believing that entrepreneurship is the fastest way to fulfill this goal, they would take business management or entrepreneurship courses in college?so they can?start their own business right after graduating. I did not know what is so special about the number 30 until recently. Some millennials told me they want to follow in the footsteps of Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, who became a billionaire before he was even 30.?

As this generation rushes to beat their self-imposed deadlines, they tend to make wrong business decisions that affect their mental health.?According to Bloomberg,?eight out of ten?business start-ups fail in their first 18 months of operation, which puts?one out of three?entrepreneurs in depression. Additionally, suicide is?listed?in the top three leading causes of death among those aged 15 to 44, a bracket where millennials sit right in the middle. Suicide rates around the world, according to the World Health Organization, have increased by 60% in the last 45 years. While there are many reasons for this increase, the WHO study says that most suicide cases occur during periods of socioeconomic, family, and personal crises. The desire to become rich by 30 has dramatically contributed to this statistic.?

Though we may not have the study to back it up, I believe we are experiencing the same problem in the Philippines. A close friend,?who is?a businessman and minister in the church, told me that one member of his discipleship group was experiencing burnout at the age of 25. Probing the young man's situation, my friend found that he?has been sleeping?for only?four hours a day. He felt pressured because he only had five years?left?to accomplish his goals. When this member asked what he should do to?de-stress?his life, my friend's advice was simple and straightforward: " Stop worrying about getting rich by 30, and sleep longer." He came to my friend after a week to thank him for his no-nonsense advice. It was his first?time?to sleep for eight?hours after many years of working his butt off trying to meet a target the world?had?forced upon him.??

?I wrote this book at the urging of my daughter, Denise. She thought someone should address the concerns of people her age to show them a better alternative to perceiving and pursuing entrepreneurship.?

Denise is an artist and a successful businessperson. As an artist, she paints on ostrich eggs and?upcycles?waste materials. Her crafts include turning discarded PET?(polyethylene terephthalate)soda bottles into specialty earrings and other fashion accessories. As a businesswoman, she is successful because she was able to accomplish what many millennials have just dreamed of. At the age of 24, she was able to save her first million.?

?Her journey to entrepreneurship is unique. She did not learn her art skills and business abilities from a university because I did not send her to college. Instead, she developed her painting techniques by watching YouTube videos. She learned her business skills through experience and by attending seminars we give in?Semilya?Sa?Kinabuhi.??

Both my children, Denise and Daniel, were home-schooled.?WhenDenise finished high school, I suggested she skip college and allow me to train her in business. I made this suggestion because I felt it would not be easy to find good employment opportunities in Bukidnon. I wanted to teach her to be an entrepreneur so she could create opportunities wherever she decides to stay in the future. Since we live in the province, her future husband might decide to bring her somewhere else to settle down. Should this happen, I want her to become the excellent woman described in Proverbs 31:10 to 31, who would support her husband by having her own business. Therefore, a college degree would limit her options.?

Furthermore, I wanted to avoid sending her to study business in college since I realized that most of the teachers in these universities do not even have businesses of their own. Except for very few professors, they can only teach her theories they?themselves?need to learn how to apply.?Having designed the business training of?Semilya?sa?Kinabuhi?which has already helped many people, I offered to train her myself.?This did not sit well with her!?She was terrified of the idea of her father mentoring her. She also felt I was depriving her of the opportunity to pursue her dreams and experience attending regular school.?

We?could?not come to a full agreement, so I suggested that she?take?a gap year, a concept I learned from Australia. Denise welcomed the idea,?thinking she would be on a yearlong vacation. Little did she know, I had already talked with two of the best entrepreneurs I know in Manila who were also my close friends. I asked them to take Denise as their apprentice?and have her work?as an ordinary employee. She worked as a waitress?at Cajun Red Rock, which is?a restaurant?owned by Anthony?Elepano. Then, she became a clerk for?Airspeed International Corporation,?one of the largest logistics companies in the Philippines, which is owned by Rosemarie Rafael.?

While Anthony?Elepano?offered to make Denise a supervisor in his restaurant and Rosemarie Rafael offered to make her a management assistant, I asked them to put her in positions where she?could?grow her abilities and develop her character. This meant the bottom positions in their businesses. Why did I choose these for Denise? I did this for two reasons. First, Denise did not yet have the credibility to lead others since she had no work experience. Besides, she was?just?coming out of high school. Second, starting from the bottom would be the best way for a would-be entrepreneur to gain a better perspective on business.?She?would?be able to see the concerns that?would?need to be addressed when she finally has a business of her own.??

After almost a year?of apprenticeship, Denise finally came home. She had so many observations that she would never have learned in school. She also had many questions?about managing a business, but because she experienced those issues personally, it was easier for her to understand and appreciate my answers.??

As her venture continued growing, Denise became very interested in her art's business aspect. She would bombard me with questions regarding the different parts of entrepreneurship. Whenever I answered her questions, she would tell me that my answers were different from?what she had read, and that my insights were different from those of?the millennial entrepreneurs she follows on YouTube and Facebook. She also said that mine made more sense and were more practical. When she asked how I was able to develop my principles, I said it was because I had a chance to work as an ordinary employee, had the privilege to become a corporate executive, and then had the opportunity to be an entrepreneur farmer. Farming, for me,?is the most challenging profession because you must learn many skills and manage countless factors you cannot control. But apart from all of these, I told Denise that the Bible showed me the best way to do business. I have found that God?keeps?His promise in Isaiah if we consult Him and honor Him in business.??

"Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, 'I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you in the way you should go"?(Isaiah 48:17).

For some time, Denise had been telling me that I should write a book on entrepreneurship to help others like her. She further said?that?more Filipinos should know about the principles I teach so they may experience the same breakthroughs God is allowing her to experience.?

However, this book is not for millennials or entrepreneurs only. It is for everyone who would like to go into business, whether you are an employee working for a business owner, retired, or an overseas Filipino worker.??

For those who are employed, I want to?prove?that employment is the best way to make money when you do not have the money to start your own business. It is also the best way to train for entrepreneurship because, as an employee, you can learn from a practicing entrepreneur. Furthermore, I want to show how employees can maximize the return on their salaries and use what they learn from their jobs to prepare themselves for their future ventures.?

For those who are retired or are Overseas Filipino Workers, I always feel sorry when I hear about retirees and OFWs?losing their hard-earned money on entrepreneurial ventures because they failed to manage them properly. I want to help them understand how to make their money grow so that they can experience abundance for the rest of their lives.?

Being an entrepreneur has become the ultimate dream for almost everyone, not just the millennials. There is an ongoing trend of using?preneur?as?a suffix for other professions—inventing titles such as?engi-preneur,?archi-preneur,?agri-preneur, etc. Many believe entrepreneurship is the best way to gain financial freedom and take control of their lives. I wrote this book so I could help them accomplish their dreams. I know that if they succeed, we will?be able to?build a safer world for the future generations.?

The business concept I will be sharing uses the plant as a model to explain how a business should grow and become profitable. Furthermore, I use the Bible as my business reference. I believe that the Lord is the Owner of the earth and is in complete control over everything,?and so consulting with the One who knows it all makes perfect sense to me. Suppose you don't share the same belief; still, I encourage those who want to experience the favor we have been receiving to read on. In this book, I hope you find better ways of doing business and being an entrepreneur.?

As you learn from?this?and succeed, may you remember the Lord because Deuteronomy 8:18?(NIV)?says only He can give us the power to make the wealth we desire.??

"But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today."

May God bless you and make you fruitful!?

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Get your copy of The Entrepreneur’s Journey to Fruitfulness today—contact Ryan Cagadas at 0917 703 3500! ??