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All it takes to begin is the first step

Olympic Swimming Pool Fast Lane Category:Outdo...
Olympic Swimming Pool Fast Lane Category:Outdoor_swimming_pools (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The sun was shining in the late afternoon with the grey white clouds moving across the deep blue sky. A big palm tree swayed and the green leaves from the other trees shook against the blue canopy in the wind. Water splashed as children jumped into the pool and the sound of swimmers doing lengths of crawl echoed under the roof of the big half Olympic-size swimming pool in Linden, Johannesburg.

From the pool, leaning against the wall in the shallow end, I took in the view after doing a few lengths of crawl and breaststroke. A relaxed calm ran through my body as I gave my muscles a chance to relax. I was thinking that there’s no exercise like swimming that makes me feel so good. Continue reading “All it takes to begin is the first step”

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How to choose your best idea

Startup ideas
Startup ideas (Photo credit: ivanpw)

Is your new business idea good enough to succeed? No matter how deeply you’ve fallen in love with your brilliant business idea, you’ve got to see if it can jump through some common-sense hoops.

Ignore this evaluation and assessment step at your peril.

A business opportunity from your idea for a product or service should have the potential to at least double your present income within two to three years. Continue reading “How to choose your best idea”

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An overlooked characteristic of successful start-up innovators

Vision | ArtPrize 2010
Vision | ArtPrize 2010 (Photo credit: Fellowship of the Rich)

When we admire successful small businesses we often think about the innovation or new idea that led to the business being started. But what really lies behind the success?

Consider how well some small businesses are doing that began with basic ideas. There is Midas, the car accessories and spare parts business with branches now all over South Africa. Cash Converters, founded in Australia 34 years ago, has 62 outlets in South Africa and plans to open more. The Sandwich Baron has tasted success in the country begun on an idea that almost anyone could have come up with.

Continue reading “An overlooked characteristic of successful start-up innovators”

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How to market test your product at low-cost

George opens in Johannesburg
George opens in Johannesburg

My daughter wanted a shoulder bag to take with her on an upcoming holiday and we went to the new George clothing store in the Cresta Shopping Centre, Northcliffe, Johannesburg.

We weren’t in the shop for more than five minutes when my daughter found exactly what she was looking for and better quality than she would have found in similar priced local clothing stores.

What interested me is the temporary format of this clothing store to test the local market. George, which is owned by Asda, a subsidiary of Walmart in the UK, has been brought out to South Africa by Massmart (owned now by Walmart). Continue reading “How to market test your product at low-cost”

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Do you make these mistakes when generating business ideas?

Visualization of simulated airflow over an engine
Visualization of simulated airflow over an engine (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I was part of a new product development team at a food manufacturer in Randfontein, Gauteng, when one of our products faced the threat of international competition. There was no way that we could sit back and do nothing. For two years prior to the competitor’s entry into the local market we worked flat out.

The threat of a new entrant into a product category dominated by local food manufacturers gave us a clear purpose. We had to do everything that was commercially viable to prevent the international competitor from gobbling up our share of shelf space in the retail chains, wholesalers and general trade. Continue reading “Do you make these mistakes when generating business ideas?”

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You’ve got ideas. What to do with them?

ideas
ideas (Photo credit: Sean MacEntee)

Not all ideas are equal. You’ve come up with an idea that you think is brilliant. You may have several ideas bubbling in your head or staring at you in your notebook. You might have used idea-generation tools and solo brainstormed perhaps 100 ideas.

To make eventual money from your new business ideas for products and services you need to have some process to select the best ones and experiment with them. Continue reading “You’ve got ideas. What to do with them?”

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Only a fool would gamble their hard-earned cash

Horse racing event
Horse racing event (Photo credit: tpower1978)

At about 8:30 in the morning I walked past a man talking loudly on his cellphone. I was in the Boulders Shopping centre in Midrand, Johannesburg, coming out of Game department store where I had just bought an umbrella because the rainy season has started year on the Highveld.

The man was in his early fifties in a blue T-shirt, denim shorts and slip slops. He was standing with his cellphone glued to his ear. He looked across the giant boulders with tall aloes showing their candle-like red flowers growing in a rockery below, the centrepiece of the shopping centre. Continue reading “Only a fool would gamble their hard-earned cash”

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Have you figured out your life’s purpose?

Creativity
Creativity (Photo credit: Mediocre2010)

A few years ago I had reached a point where I was deeply unhappy where I was going in life. We all know that we are not here for long and I decided once and for all to figure out exactly what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.

I started a 12-module creativity programme to explore my past experiences, what was important to me and what I wanted to do. For one of the first times in my life I carried out every suggestion or prompt in the course, missing out nothing. Continue reading “Have you figured out your life’s purpose?”

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How to imitate (legally) a successful product or idea

Stainless steel sculpture Begynnelse (Beginnin...
Stainless steel sculpture Begynnelse (Beginning) in Eslöv, Sweden, by Alexius Huber (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Imitation is stigmatised, derided and virtually blasphemous in society and business. But why are more businesses doing it rather than pioneering or innovating completely new products and services?

Simple really. Imitators can come into the market with less research and development spend, avoid the pitfalls of the innovator, produce at a lower cost, reduce risk and quickly capture market share in the wake of the trailblazer who can’t cover all bases. Continue reading “How to imitate (legally) a successful product or idea”