Throughout the second part of the interview, I got reminded of a conversation I had with another friend about people who do not write their own proposals. The message was that a predicament comes when you have to answer questions related to your proposal in front of a panel of stakeholders. If you did not write your proposal, you will definitely humiliate yourself.
In case you missed part 1 of the interview, we’re building on the journey to winning the Bacha Project round and the link between education and entrepreneurship.
What was the critical component of your proposal that gave you a winning advantage?
I don’t think it was just the proposal, the crux of the issue is that we were already working. Writing from experience and imagination are galaxies apart in business. The other advantage may have been that I have a skill of writing proposals.
Additionally, I do a lot of presentations. The necessary winning proposal requirements fall under the scope of my skill set, including research. Education indirectly equips us with skills to tackle things like proposals.
There is this other thing that other people do that I do not recommend, they have their proposals done by consultants. The demerit is that such proposals lack authenticity as consultants have a tendency to recycle ideas and concepts.
The attractive thing about writing your proposal is that you give it your own life, you share your unique vision, your original vision. You should draw the line when it comes to financials. This means that the only thing you may let a consultant assist you with are your your financials.
Writing is also among skills that people belittle. You need to know how to write well. Be precise and concise. Be very clear in making your point in a well structured manner. Those are small things that contribute immensely between the life and death of your proposal. Sometimes the difference between winning and losing is whether your proposal is readable. Does it flow? A winning proposal is like a story. A very good story.
Is Spetzo’s Pizza anyhow related to what you did in school?
Qha! Absolutely not! Education offers a wide array of skills I have already mentioned, if you appreciate them. Presentation, writing and research are indirect skills that I used in the formation of Spetzo’s Pizza. Education sharpened my thinking, presenting and writing skills.
Spetzo’s Pizza grew from just being an idea to where we are today because of skills from my education. In securing this location, we had to convince someone, that is communication. It involved a bit of research into the process of making pizza.
I want our readers to appreciate that they do not have to restrict themselves to what they did in school. This draws an important connection between entrepreneurship and education.
The most important lesson you should come out of school with is interacting with sources of knowledge, from books to the internet. Whatever you want to do, read about it, learn about it. It will not take you that long to put the pieces of the puzzle together.
The fundamental task of school is to teach you that you need to learn how to learn. Be it you are in school or not. Qualifications are important. Conversely, in this country, at this time, unemployment has almost rendered them useless.
Final thoughts?
There is a lot I want to say. The core of my message is that people have to fortify themselves. To be healthy, you exercise. Similarly, to gain any desired skill, you get the knowledge from pertinent sources. Communicate with people who know and learn.
It’s amazing that people spend many years in school without developing a reading habit even though the main thing that school drills into our common sense is that books contain knowledge.
The other golden thing is implementation. We assume that reading opens up your mind for you to become creative and think outside the box. You get to have those creative ideas and implement them. Reading is barely useful if you do not act in accordance with the knowledge you acquire. Always do something.
Many a times, things that change a person’s life are not external. You can complain about the government if it makes you feel better. It is not going to change anything. The progress you make with your life should not depend on external factors.
You have to position yourself to keep achieving your goals regardless of external forces. Of course I am generalizing and do acknowledge special cases where you may require outside help.
My point is that you can achieve a relative level of success independently with assistance coming here and there. There are no secrets in life. The major hindrance is that people do not act on the good advice they receive.
The only marked difference is between those who do something and those who do nothing. Discipline. Consistency. Hard work. Do them and you will see results.
After the interview, he explained how they substituted a metallic container with a softer one for the safety of their bike delivery employee. I do not know if there is a better place to eat than a place that takes employee safety seriously. What more could you ask for? I instantly got to trust Spetzo’s Pizza.