David vs Goliath

The 13th Kingsmead Book Fair was hosted  over the weekend in Johannesburg, bringing fiction and non-fiction readers together, sharing stories and experiences,

I attended the “David and Goliath in business: Being afraid but doing it anyway” a powerful session, featuring TJ Strydom, author of Capitec: Stalking Giants and Raymond Ledwaba author of The First-Generation Founder: How to Build a Start-up Mindset and Thrive, facilitated by Amy Heydenrych

Five learnings for entrepreneurs from these highly experienced authors

1.  𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞

TY Strydom believes the driving force for entrepreneurs is to be financially free but often those that have already achieved a level of stability, can actually pursue it.

2. 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠

TJ Strydom suggests that if you are employed at a corporate, use the time to learn and thereafter apply those learnings, when starting your own business.

Raymond Ledwaba shared how he started Diski Nine9, a NPO that uses soccer to educate the youth, while holding down his full-time job at a leading financial institution.

3. 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞

TJ Strydom highlights there is a lot of consumer power in SA and if you can make it work more efficiently, it will create more value for everyone

Raymond Ledwaba
drew attention that we don’t have a culture where people understand the value of share options in a startup, that can be worth several times over the long term.

4. 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞

TJ Strydom lamented the red tape involved in getting access to funding. He says if we can take some of the rules away, “people will find each other”.

5. 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠

TJ Strydom says everyone needs a mentor, sometimes they are the first one to invest in your business.

Raymond Ledwaba
discussed the difference between unsecured and secured credit. He unpacked the meaning of “inheritance” to include not just wealth, but also knowledge and networks.