Would You Rather Be an Entrepreneur 2

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WOULD YOU RATHER BE AN ENTREPRENEUR

“Entrepreneurs are the Driving Force of any country’s economy.

They represent the Wealth of a nation and its potential to create

employment.”

INTRODUCTION

The events of the last three decades have been characterized by some

unprecedented uncertainty that has unusual threats as well as opportunities

in the socio-economic, political, technological and competitive environments

of business, which has drastically transformed the frontier and landscape of

the African entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship Retrenchments, Retirements,

Right sizing, Restructure, Recapitalization and Re-engineering are now

common features in management of both public and private enterprises.

The unemployment situation in Africa and globally has gotten to a crisis

level. As the students march-into the campuses to take their place asundergraduates, we should not pretend that all is well. You should be aware

that the labor market is saturated and the only option open to you is to create

your own job by being an entrepreneur. The starting point is NOW. As you

sojourn.



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The fundamental philosophy guiding the education you are about to acquire

centers around “developing the man/woman that will develop his /her

society. The concept is designed to inculcate into you the intelligent and

intellectual consciousness of your environment to enable you maximizes

your existence and potentials. It is an adaptable education that will prepare

you for self-employment. The education you are acquiring now is therefore

predicated on the philosophy of creating jobs, i.e. turning you from being job

seekers to being your own bosses. The solution to unemployment is

Entrepreneurship. But it has to be instilled into you NOW, to reactive,

reinvigorate and re-orientate your individual skills, thereby converting these

skills to entrepreneurial skills and also inculcating entrepreneurial habits and

culture capable of transforming you into a “complete entrepreneur” who can

translate his/her vision into a mission, from dogmatism to dynamism in the

affairs of men/women revolving around entrepreneurialism:

A departure from knowledge to empowerment

A departure from a job seeker to a job provider

A departure from dream to reality

A departure from dependent to independent

The skills and knowledge you acquiring now are built on the philosophical

platform of being mentally resourceful, intellectually independent,

futuristically visionary and responsibility – sensitivity to the changes

demanded for the leadership role and the emerging challenges in the market

place.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Entrepreneurship is the term used broadly in connection with the innovative

and creative modern industrial business leaders. It is being defined by

reference to the functions of an entrepreneur as the man who perceived



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business opportunities and takes advantage of the scarce resources to use

them profitably. It is he/she alone who directs the human and material

resources in his business objective. To be an entrepreneur, one has to

possess some psychological traits which are either latent and could be

aroused through training or manifest which training could be built upon.

Thus to qualify as an entrepreneur, it is not sufficient to be a businessman

just managing an enterprise. The entrepreneur has to be an originator of

profitable business ideas. The entrepreneur must possess the ability to gain

command of and combine resources in a new way that will be profitable. He

must be prepared to risk personal energy and financial resources to achieve

unpredictable results.

The practice of entrepreneurship should, be well rooted in the individual, if

he/she wants to become an entrepreneur. An individual who succeeded in

selling refrigerators to the Eskimos to prevent food from freezing would be

an “innovator” quite as much as if he/she had developed brand -new

processes or invented a new product. To sell to the Eskimos a refrigerator to

keep food cold is finding a new market; to sell a refrigerator to keep food

from getting too cold is actually creating a new product. Technologically,

there is, of course, only the same old product, but economically there is

innovation.

Innovation goes right through all phases of business. It may be innovation

in design, in product, or in marketing techniques. It may be innovation in

managing organizations or in management methods. All these can only be

achieved through entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship instills the enterprise

culture into the individuals. Enterprise here is defined as resourcefulness,

initiative, drive, imagination, enthusiasm, zest, dash, ambition, energy,

vitality, boldness, daring, audacity, courage, get up and go.



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Entrepreneurship, therefore, encompasses all the productive functions that

are not rewarded immediately by regular wages, interest and rent and non-

routine human labour. It is also not investing capital funds alone. It is

actually, the functions of seeking investment, production opportunity,

organizing an enterprise to undertake new production process, raising

capital, hiring labour, allocating resources, and creating new enterprises.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

The entrepreneur is often defined as one who starts his own new and small

business. Entrepreneurs are action oriented, highly motivated individual

who take risks to achieve goals. Meredith, Nelson, and Neck (1991).

Entrepreneurs have been described as people who have the ability to see and

evaluate business opportunities, gather the necessary resources to take

advantage of them and initiate appropriate action to ensure success. He/She

is that man/woman who sees and dreams things that never were and says

“why not?” An entrepreneur is that person who is able to actualize his/her

innate potentials and develop a character that is not dependent but

independent. He/She is that person who undertakes the voyage of creating

value by pulling together a unique package of resources to exploit an

opportunity. He/She has the capacity and capability to build something from

practically nothing initiating, daring, doing, achieving, and building an

enterprise. They genuinely believe that they have something new to offer,

either a product or a service. To them, life will remain a fantasy unless their

dreams are actualized. Entrepreneurs can instill highly contagious

enthusiasms in an enterprise. They convey a sense of purpose and

determination and by so doing, convince others they are where the action is.

Whatever it is – seductiveness, competitiveness, or charisma – entrepreneurs



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knew how to lead an enterprise and give it momentum. The entrepreneur

demonstrates a unique combination of energy, originality, and shrewdness.

He/She is the main driving force in the enterprise, a master of motivation,

and knows how to get the best out of people. Manfred (1997). Most

importantly, entrepreneurs are the driving force of any nation; they are

value- adders and represent the wealth of a nation and its potentials to

generate employment.

The Entrepreneur therefore includes any person who establishes and

manages a business enterprise. This is the man or woman who owns a

restaurant, fashion centre, boutique, bakery, tailoring outfit, beauty centre,

barbering saloon, bookshop, home catering, business centre, shoemaker, car

washing centre. Others are photographing, dry cleaning, video centre,

telecentre, wholesale trade, coffee and teashop, hotel, producers of yortgurt,

fruit juice, bottled and table water, nails, cellophane papers, etc are all

entrepreneurs in the contents of this paper. They are all businesses and each

has a unique contribution to make in the development of the economy.

THE CHARACTERISTICS AND TRAITS OF ENTREPRENEURS

The following list of characteristics and traits provided a working profile of

entrepreneurs.

CHARACTER TRAITS

i. Self -confidence confidence, independent individually, optimism

ii. Task-result oriented need for achievement, profit-oriented,

persistence, perseverance, determination, hard-

working, drive, energy initiative

iii Risk-taker Risk-taking ability, likes challenge



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iv Leadership Leadership behaviour, gets along well with

responsive to suggestions and criticisms

v Originality Innovative, creative, flexible (Openness of

mind)resourceful, versatile, knowledgeablevi Future-oriented Foresight, perceptive.

(This list was prepared at a workshop on Entrepreneur conducted at the East-

West Centre, Honolulu, U.S.A. in 1997.

GOAL SETTING

The decision is very important but the implementation is very critical. It is

not the destination, but the steps toward the destination. “Where do I begin

with goal setting? Goal setting is the most important foundation, a successful

entrepreneur should lay. The goals will in-turn provides the required force

to power success. A man is a product of his goal. Your goals should be

simple, measurable, achievable, realistic and time bound. A goal is a dream

with deadline.

THE PROCESS OF FORMULATING GOALS

1) DREAMS/ VISION: Dreams are mental imagination of what has happened

or will happen. As it relates to goal setting business, it means what

you want to see happen. Dream is a function of the mind. If you have a

pure mind, you are likely to develop the right attitude and have the

right dream. People who dream good dreams are people who set

quality goals. Such people seem to attract money and fame. Do not limit



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yourself by your dreams, if you dream little but if dream big you will

set good and quality goals and achieve great things.

2) VALUES: Values here refer to ideas and belief. Wrong values produce

wrong or conflicting goals and action while right values produces right goals

and maximum action. Wrong values can be changed through positive living

and constant producing, attention and affirmation. Since values are products of

the mind, and the mind is the source of dreams and dreams lead to goals, then

you must have the right values. If you have set of right values, reaching your

goals should produce excitement and a sense of accomplishment. But if you

have wrong values, even if you managed to reach you goals and become

successful business wise, you cannot escape from the feeling of emptiness and

frustration in your sober moments. However, you do not need to sacrifice

achievement for values. So cultivate the right kind of value.

3) STRATEGIES: Strategies refer to the body of knowledge and tools you

will use to propel yourself towards your goal. Strategies require full

information. Sometimes, some strategies will require you to be trained in a new

skill or be retrained in an already acquired skill.

4) PLANNING AND CONTROL: Goals can be attained, where there are

effective planning and control. Every action and in action are rewarded. To

plan and to be in control is to choose to change a particular situation by creating

a dynamic strategy to take you to your expected and given minimum resources

with maximum satisfaction. Do not leave your goals out of control. The

differences between those who accomplish their dreams and those who only

dream of accomplishing them is planning and control.



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5) DOCUMENTATION: Goals should be stated in writing. It should be

written. The art of putting down a goal on paper is a great step towards

achieving them. The only way to keep track of a flying thought, aspirations,

and inspiration-goals is by writing them down immediately. The moment an

idea is written down, it becomes a plan of action. You can always refer back to

it; see whether you are on course or off course.

VENTURE IDENTIFICATION

Anyone who wants to become an entrepreneur, it is important to have

An understanding of the kind of needs he wants to meet and the resources

available to him. You have to Generate Venture Ideas and convert these ideas

into a real venture for implementation to realize your goals. The first step,

therefore, towards being an entrepreneur is venture identification or generation.

I have identified a lot of Ventures that you might undertake which require little

or no start up capital. See Okpara (2000) Entrepreneurship text and cases pp

373-378. The list is however not exhaustive. I sincere appeal to you and your

inner-self to start thinking now and let’s get started, no matter how small the

venture to bring out the entrepreneurial ability in you.

PREPARING A BUSINESS PLAN

The take-off in becoming an entrepreneur is the discovery of viable venture

ideas and subsequently committing the idea into ventures. However, many

ventures fail because they were launched on a very weak foundation devoid of a

business plan. To minimize venture mortality rate, it is absolutely necessary for

potential entrepreneurs to prepare a detailed business plan to assess the

feasibility, desirability and viability of the venture. The business plan,



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therefore, aids in taking a decision. Deciding whether to accept or modify or

reject the project in the light of its evaluated merits and demerits. A business

plan is a written document prepared by the entrepreneur, describing the goals

and objectives of the venture along with the steps necessary to achieve those

goals. The plan must be flexible, as forecasts and objectives change as new bits

of information and better experience emerge.

The main content of a business plan are summarized thus:

a. Management

b. Manpower requirement

c. Product or service

d. Market and marketing

e. Operational details

f. Production process

g. Financial analysis

h. Profitability analysis

i. Evaluation of the venture.

The plan should be as brief and concise as possible giving all the necessary

information without boring a potential investor. Figures and data must not be

confusing.

SOURCES OF FINANCE



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In the course of my job, I have asked a lot of people this question – why haven’t

you started a venture of your own? Their immediate answer is: I have no

CAPITAL. That is to say, he/she has no money to fiancé his or her venture.

But I tell you, what people actually lack is the venture idea, i.e. what to do with

the available finance. If you give some people fifty thousand naira to start a

venture of their choice now, a lot of them may loose their sleep for the next one

month, rolling from one side of the bed to the other, making unnecessary

consultations, thinking of what to do with the money. Therefore, a well-

conceived venture is halfway financed. I advise you get to know what viable

venture you will start and behold, the money is just waiting for you. We

strongly believe that the problem most times is not lack of capital but lack of

ideas. To finance a venture idea, the first principle of investment should be

applied. That is never to borrow money to start a business. If you don’t

borrow, you will take charge of your business from the start. Never mind to

start small, and thereafter, seek opportunities for a growth and expansion. Our

advise is “ Think Big, Start Small.” To borrow at the onset is to negate God’s

plan for your life not to be a borrower. We borrow at times because we want

the easy way out. We don’t want to start from nothing to something. Dare to

start on your capital and watch your business grow to millions of Naira.

My friends, all you need is the idea and belief in yourself that you can make it

and you will make it. The following are some specific ways you can generate

part or all the finance you need to start your business.

1. Personal Savings

2. Selling shares to friends

3. Selling off equity holding in companies



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4. Doing odd jobs

Odd jobs often provide a humble start. In order words, you may have to do

some jobs, for which you are not trained or which may be beneath your status.

If you can raise minimum capital from this kind of job, then you can move into

your desired business. I tell you, God will not despite the days of your small

beginning. Try it, it is more honorable than borrowing or beggaring from

friends or relatives. It is dignifying. These are people who through odd jobs,

have met rich people who because of their diligence at such odd jobs, rendered

assistance to them.

5. Suppliers’ credit

6. Equipment leasing

7. Family support

8. Friends support

9. Government financial assistance

10. Borrowing.

Borrowing should be the last option, we do not believe in borrowing as a good

way of starting business. However, we recognize that is one of the means of

raising capital to finance business.-start ups. Be warned. Make sure that you

understand carefully the terms of borrowing to be contracted. Ensure that as

much as possible, the terms are favourable to you. Many ventures collapse at

the point of borrowing the fund. Consider the terms of borrowing carefully

before you go-ahead to borrow. Sources of borrowing include relatives,

friends, fiancé companies, banks, etc.



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ENTREPRENEURIAL PHILOSOPHY

“The biggest asset to sustaining entrepreneurial ability is a positive attitude. In

addition, determination, experience, persistence, and just plain handwork are

essential to being a successful entrepreneur” (Meredith, Nelson and Neck,

1991).

Success or failure as an entrepreneur depends on your willingness to accept

responsibility for your own work. You must learn a great deal about yourself if

you intend to pursue goals which are compatible with what you most want in

life. Your power comes from your own actions rather than the actions of

others. Even though the risk of failure is always present, entrepreneurs take risk

by assuming responsibility for their actions. Failure must be accepted as a

learning process- as a stepping-stone and not a stumbling stone. Some

entrepreneurs succeed only after experiencing many failures. Learning from

experiences will help to channel your action to obtain more positive results and

success will result from persistent efforts.

Drucker (1978) maintains, “The better a man is, the more mistakes he will make

for the more new things he will learn. I would never promote a man into a top

level job who has not made mistakes and big ones at that. Otherwise, he is sure

to be mediocre. Worse still, not having made mistakes, he will not have learned

how to spot them early and how to correct them.”

Remember Abraham Lincoln, one of the greatest Presidents that ever ruled the

United States of America. Take a look at his number of failures, yet he

emerged as a shining star at the end. Chief Obafemi Awolowo, reminded us

that the making of a great man is not in his not falling, but in raising each time

he falls. We should however not plan for our failure.



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Pursue goals related to your skills and abilities- Accept yourself as you are and

try to emphasis your strengths and play down your weaknesses. If you pursue

these goals honestly and aggressively, you are likely to achieve positive results.

Being goal oriented will bring out your best qualities. Engage in activities,

which are important to you and which you do best and find joy in doing.

Most people do not recognize the broad scope they have for determining their

actions. Achieving perfection is an ideal in attaining a goal but it is a realistic

objective for most entrepreneurs. Acceptable results are more important than

perfect results. Trying to achieving perfect result for one’s goal over too long a

time will only prevent your personal development.

There must be an air castle before the ground (real) castle. It must be noted

that men who have a wide grasp of intellect and firmness of decision are always

positive. They know what they want and never waiver. They decide upon a

course of action and then pursue it without hesitation.

Entrepreneurs are great men who accomplish great things. These greataccomplishments do not come by unusual straining of an exhausting output of

mental and physical energy. Such minds as these are self-contained self relent,

and self-confident. They do not seek out every friend or acquaintance they

choose to meet and ask his opinion or advice in regard to their plans. They

simply look over the matter and study it carefully, as a skilful General studies

his plan of the battle around before he leads his army to action and then they

conquer.”

In an address in Washington, Theodore Roosevelt said

I wish to see in the average (Nigeria) American citizen the

determination not to shrink back when temporarily beaten in life, as



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each will be now and then, but to come up again and wrest triumph

from defeat. This is the secret of all brave and noble life that ever

lived.

Write it in your heart that there is no success worth the name outside

of what a man achieves through his own effort. To vary the language,

the three great essentials to success is mental and physical, labour and

practice, patience and perseverance, but the greatest of these is

perseverance.

We look at life from the wrong end of the telescope and everything looks

narrow and small to us. Most people seem to think that life is a great grab-bag

into which they should thrust their hands and take out as much as possible

without putting in anything. There could not be a greater mistake, for we shall

find that we get out of life just what we put into it.

“Do it now” is the motto of every successful man.

WHY YOU SHOULD WORK FOR YOURSELF

“The greatest barrier to success is the fear of failure.”- Eriksson.

Being your own boss is the path to prosperity and job security in life. However,

it is important to work for others, first to gain experience, where this is possible

and available, and secondly to save some funds to take-off. However, the idea

of working for others too long usually slow down the pace of personal

development and prosperity, Recall, that some of the poorest people in the

world are the poorly paid workers. The take home pay hardly takes them home.

The hardworking entrepreneurs most times live in abundance of profit and

affluence. Employers do not adjust salaries in the same proportion as the



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increase in profit. Salary increase are not tied to the inflation rate. The

workers bear the burden.

Absolute job security is only enjoyed by those running/managing their own

ventures. There is no fear of being sacked. They can therefore, plan effectively

on their income and their time.

You are completely independent and have liberated yourself from slavery.

There is no one to tell you what to do, how to do it, when, where, or for whom.

Come let’s celebrate your freedom before your success.

Being an entrepreneur reduces your suffering and eventually eliminates your

poverty. Everyone needs the necessities or comfort of life such as good cars,

good accommodation, good food, and healthy living. Nobody can do all these

for you but yourself. Having a business of your own will provide opportunity

for profit, which can be used to meet these needs.

What about income security after retirement? A good pension plan will

automatically guarantee your income after retirement. See how pensioners and

retirees are being treated. Your value and dignity will be held in great esteem.

You will be bequeathing a great legacy to your children and family members,

where their future and the future challenges would be accomplished - a great

family business that will act as training ground for your children and behold

they are now ready to take-over as great managers of men and materials.

You will also enjoy enhanced status in the society as an employer of labour,

you will be respected everywhere as a value adder. You will be seen as

contributing to the upliftment of humanity. And your good work will not go

un-rewarded by men and by God.



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The above factors are not exhaustive but provide sufficient information to

Encourage you to take the decision of having your own business as early as

possible, ie being an entrepreneur.

THE SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES DEVELOPMENT

AGENCY OF NIGERIAN (SMEDAN)

In its continued search for a solution towards a vibrant and virile micro, small,

and medium enterprises sub-sector, and to entrench the-sector into the main

stream of the Nigerian economy, the administration of Chief Olusegun

Obasanjo established the small and medium Enterprises Development Agency

of Nigeria (SMEDAN) in 2003. The Agency however started operations in

2005. The Agency is a “one stop shop” for nursing and nurturing micro, small,

and medium enterprises in Nigeria. Consequently, the Small and Medium

Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has since inception been in the

forefront of promoting and developing Micro, small and medium enterprises

and entrepreneurs. The enterprises and entrepreneurs have continued to manageand grow their businesses. Through mind-blowing innovative concepts, they

continue to stretch the frontiers and landscapes of their individual’s enterprises,

and accordingly, they are capturing a bigger slice of their target markets and

establishing themselves as points of reference in this sub sector. SMEDAN is

now the voice of the MSMEs in Nigeria.

THE ROLE OF SMEDAN-OUR INTERVENTION AND STRATEGY

Conscious of our mandate and the strategic position we occupy in fostering a

viable and vibrant MSMEs in Nigeria. The Agency is prepared and ready to

collaborate with other government agencies, states and chambers of commerce,



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Universities and other institutions in the realization of their goals and

objectives.

Our intervention strategy centre on the following areas:

I. Source, Process and Disseminate Business Information

We create and regularly update databank on MSMEs, raw materials,

markets, available local technologies/machinery, and prototypes.

II. Policy Development

Formulate and ensure due approval and implementation of an MSMEs

policy for Nigeria, conduct impact assessment studies and use same to

recommend improvements in policy intervention and conduct regular

stakeholders’ fora.

III. Establish Business Support Centres and Business Information

Services(BSCs and BISs)

The centres provide the following services:

--- Model business-planning skills

--- Mentoring Professional services such as Accounting, Financing, and

Book-keeping

--- Industrial Dynamics and Technology Assessment

---Legal and taxation advisory services

--- Demonstration models to private sector service providers

--- General business consultation



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IV. Capacity Building and Promotional Services

--- Vertical linkage of MSMEs with large enterprises

--- Organisation of MSMEs into clusters and co-operatives to enhance

their productivity and have easier access to factors of production,

--- Arrangement/facilitation of trade and technology exposition

--- Provision of market support information system

--- Encouragement and facilitation of new investments in designated

priority areas in each state of the federation

V. Establishment of Industrial Parks

SMEDAN, through public-private sector partnership, is facilitating the

establishment of Industrial Parks and Regional MSMEs Development

Centres. Each park comes with industrial buildings, and offers MSMEs

the following facilities on a cost-sharing basis- security, electricity,water, buying centres, service providers, petrol station, and capital-

intensive technologies.

VI. Enhance MSMEs Access to Finance

Liaise with financial institutions to harness and pool resources for

utilization by MSMEs. Assisting in sharpening their business plans for

possible financial assistance from Micro-finance banks and development

banks. Constantly liaise with other institutions for the establishment and

operation of MSMEs Credit Guarantee Scheme.



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Presently, the Agency has signed MoU with over 15 MFBs that cut

across the country. Just last week we also signed an MoU with

NERFUND for the disbursement of the N2 billion facility to MSMEs.

VII. Networking

We are collaborating with Trade Groups, NGOs, Government Ministries

and Agencies, Research and Technological Institutions and

Multilateral/Donor Agencies etc to create a dynamic network of

stakeholders in the development of MSMEs sub-sector of the economy.

VIII. The National Policy on Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises

We have recently emerged with a policy geared towards the development

of MSMEs in Nigeria in a structured and efficient manner. The

implementation is being awaited.

IX. Entrepreneurship Development Programmes

We have trained many Entrepreneurs in our various programmes tailored

towards the required needs of the beneficiaries.

--- Faith base initiatives

--- Women Entrepreneurship Development Programme

--- Youth Entrepreneurship Development Programme

--- General Entrepreneurship Development Programme

--- Corpers Entrepreneurship Development Programme

--- Public Service Entrepreneurship Development Programme



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--- Cluster Entrepreneurship Development Programme

XX. Seminars, Conferences and Workshops

We have over the years organized seminars, conferences, and workshops

to sensitize the public towards being their own bosses as well as

inculcating the spirit and culture of entrepreneurialism among the

students, youths, and women.

XXI. Trade Fairs and Trade Exhibitions

We have since inception organized various MSMEs trade fairs and

exhibitions to create markets.

CONCLUSION

It is time for change. Time to realize that Governments on their own cannot

provide us with permanent secure jobs and growing standard of living. Time to

accept that the solutions to our problems lie in our hands. We need to foster the

spirit of self-reliance and determination to take charge of our future. Intelligent,

Imagination, and Knowledge are essential skills, but only effectiveness converts

them into results. By themselves, they only set limits to what can be attained.

There are many areas in our nation today screaming for attention. In my mind l

see a new nation with a lot of opportunities, but you have to dream, plan, and

work to turn it into reality. Only those who make moves make waves.

Now is the right time to ponder to this amazing discovery-the discovery that the

critical success factors for building a successful business venture are

astonishingly simple. It is not a matter of complicated manoeuving and does

not involve huge sums of capital. It is the will and not the wallet that matters

most. All you need to do is to rediscover yourself and know thyself. Plan the



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work and work the plan; if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Decide now on

your goals. Take a bold step and start a venture today. Being an entrepreneur

requires total self-submission to ones will.

You have to take pride in whatever you do and give it everything you have.

Invest your will and commitment to your course as much as you invest in

yourself. Never be discouraged, be bold, and develop a lion heart (courageous)

until you attain what your heart desires. Dream big, “aim at the sun, and you

may not reach it, but your arrow will fly far higher than if aimed at an object on

a level with yourself.” Entrepreneurs are achievement-oriented ; they possess

high levels of energy and great degrees of perseverance and inauguration,

which combined with a willingness to take calculated risk. They convey a

sense of purpose and determination and by so doing, convince others that they

are in absolute control and on the right course. The entrepreneur demonstrates

a unique combination of energy, originality, and shrewdness. They are highly

creative and innovative and are doggedly determine to succeed. To them

nothing is impossible, they exist to empower themselves to success.I imploreyou to engrave your name in stone where nothing can erase it. Transform

yourself and convert your dreams into reality by being an entrepreneur! As

there is no time to ponder again, it is decision time and let us gets started. We

will continue the discussion in your private jet.



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REFERENCES

Okpara F. O (2000) Entrepreneurship: Text and cases. Enugu-Nigeria:

Precisions publishers Ltd

Okpara F. O. (2002) “Why you should be an Entrepreneur” Being a paper

presented at a sent forth Denies organized by the 1997 set of Graduating

students of the centre for Distance learning and continuing education-

University of Abuja – Nigeria. November, 22. At Royalton Hotel Garki,

Abuja Nigeria.

Okpara F. O (2000) “The Making of an Entrepreneur” being a Paper

presented at the Entrepreneurship forum organized by the Entrepreneurship

club, University of Abuja-Nigeria

Okpara F. O. 2002 “From paid Employee to an Entrepreneur: Making the

Transition Possible.” Being a paper presented at the Civil Service Week.

Organized by the Senior Civil Service Association at the Radio House –

Abuja.

Okpara F. O. (2001) “Building Tomorrow’s Entrepreneurs” Being a Paper

Presented at The Entrepreneurship Club, University of Abuja – Nigeria



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Okpara F. O. (2002) “Developing the Man/Woman that will Develop

His/Her world: The Successful Entrepreneurs” Being a paper presented at

the Management week organized by Nuambs, University of Abuja chapter.

Okpara F. O. (2002) “Entrepreneurship Development: Being an

Entrepreneur” Being a Paper Presented at an Entrepreneurship Lecture,

Organized by the Centre for Entrepreneurship Development and Small

Business Management, Abuja, Nigeria.

Okpara F. O. (2003) “Entrepreneurial skills Development: Starting and

managing your own Business Venture Successfully.” Being a paper

presented at an Entrepreneurship Lecture, Organized by the Centre for

Entrepreneurship Development and small Business Management, Abuja-

Nigeria.

Okpara F. O (2001) “How to Start Your Own Business Successfully” Being

a paper presented at an Economic Forum Organized by IMO State

University, Owerri – Nigeria

Okpara F. O. (2003) “Being your own Boss Great Businesses you can start

with Little or No capital” Being Lecture Delivered at a Lecture series

organized by the federal poly technic Nasarrawa – Nigeria

Okpara F. O (2004) “Traits and characteristics that make a successful

Entrepreneur” Being a lecture developed at a management forum organized

by NUAMBS, University of Abuja – Nigeria.

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24

Okpara F. O. (2005) “Motivation for the Entrepreneur”Being a paper

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effectively deliver Entrepreneurship training and to provide business

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National Directorate of Employment Abuja – Nigeria

Okpara F. O (2005) “Generation of Business ideas /Opportunities.”Being a

paper presented at a workshop to enhance the capacities of the officers to

effectively deliver Entrepreneurship training and to provide business

advisory /supervisory services to NDE beneficiaries. Organized by the

National Directorate of Employment Abuja – Nigeria.

Okpara F. O. (2006) “Why Aren’t you your own boss” Being a lecture

delivered at the Entrepreneurship club, University of Abuja – Nigeria

Okpara F. O (2006) The Practice of Entrepreneurship. Enugu: Precision

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Entrepreneurship. Lagos: University Press

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Educational series Inc.

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SMEDAN (2010) Long-term Strategy Plan



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SMEDAN (2006-2009) Annual Report

Resman Associates Ltd (2008) “A Final Report on a Study of the Informal Sector

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(Establishment) Act”

Adelaja, M.A.(2003-2007) SMEDAN Scorecard

Documents

Would You Rather Be an Entrepreneur 2