THE STRAWBERRY STARTUP by MOSES LIM

Hello people.

Sometime around 2007, there was a major shakeup in the Nigerian banking industry, which saw some founders like Ernest Akingbola [Intercontinental bank] and Cecilia Ibru [Oceanic bank] having to leave the banks they founded.

I often wondered at the time what it would feel like to be forced out of a company one founded; I mean, it is one thing to voluntarily vacate the position of CEO of your company, but it is another thing altogether to be forced to resign and, if care is not taken, be left with nothing.

Not surprisingly, a lot of entrepreneurs both famous and relatively unknown have been forced to leave their company, years after building it, for reasons ranging from the mundane to the utterly ridiculous.

So how is an entrepreneur to protect himself/herself after building a company? That, amongst other things, is one question this week’s book, The Strawberry Startup, seeks to answer.

The Strawberry Startup, written by Moses Lim, is a book for entrepreneurs interested in starting their own business. In the opening chapter of the book, the author dishes out standard advice:  Turn your passion into profit but make sure it can be monetised. He also explains how to find co-founders who will be a good fit for the company.

One point Lim makes, which I’m not sure many African entrepreneurs will agree with, is that start-ups should have an exit strategy right from the start. In other words, entrepreneurs must plan what to do in case the business fails [Did I hear you say ‘God forbid’?]. The average African tends to be optimistic and refuses to see failure as an option, but failure, according to Lim, is not an impossibility, and it is a wise business owner who takes that into consideration when planning the business.

Lim also asserts that it is imperative for business founders to take care of themselves when planning the future of the business as the tide could turn against them in future. He buttresses his point by giving case studies of founders being pushed out by investors or left with nothing years after founding the business.

Other salient tips given by Lim include:

·       Get social proof for your company either before or after launching it.

·       Do not choose a successor similar to yourself.

·      Hire passion and talent, not experience [some people are bristling right now. Go read the book to understand his point].

·       Learn from the blunders of other companies similar to yours.

·       Do not grow too attached to your business plan.

I enjoyed reading the book and I recommend it to all individuals looking to start their own business. The book can be gotten on Amazon and other major bookstores.

REVELATIONS INCORPORATED: WORKPLACE WISDOM FOR THE 21ST CENTURY by BRIAN RAY

Hello people.

Almost every organization has two kinds of employees: The Disgruntled Employee [the employee who is unhappy with some of the company's practices] and The Devil’s Advocate [the employee who speaks on behalf of the company].

A typical conversation between the two usually goes something like this:

Disgruntled Employee [in angry tone]: This company makes a lot of profit from its clients and yet they choose to pay us a pittance. I’m leaving them as soon as I get a job with a better offer!

Devil’s Advocate[in pacifying tone]:Before you complain, remember that the company has a lot of other things to pay for such as electricity bills, bank debts, building maintenance, etc. They are not making as much profit as you think they are.

Disgruntled Employee: Please spare me the rhetoric!  Do you know how much profit they make per client? The profit per x number of clients is enough to cover capital expenses if only the management will handle the money in an ethical, disciplined manner.

And on and on the conversation rages, with other employees choosing to take sides and none the wiser at the end of the day, except that the question remains: Do companies truly rip their employees off?

Well, Brian Ray seems to think so. 

In the foreword to Revelations Incorporated: Workplace Wisdom for the 21st Century; Brian claims that his book is about the truth of the corporate world and the mentality of many individuals within workplace culture.

He makes the assertion in Chapter 1: Understanding and Accepting the Reality, that many people think businesses and corporations are caring entities which make profit through ethical means. The reality, according to Brian, is that many companies will do all they can to make maximum profit, including cheating employees out of their rightful earnings.

As if that claim was not inflammatory enough, Brian states in Chapter 2: Working Through It All, that the employee who sees his job as his life is merely living in a fool’s paradise. According to Brian, the reality is that a job is simply a means to an end and that companies will send even their best employees packing when they deem fit, notwithstanding the employee’s past contributions to the business.

The ‘bad news’ continues in further chapters as Brian tackles sensitive workplace issues such as bad management, unfriendly clients and customers, as well as bullies in the workplace, citing case studies to back up his claims.

The good news, however, is that at the end of each chapter, Brian gives helpful tips for avoiding the potential landmines in the office.

I must confess that when I started reading the book, I felt the opening chapter was inflammatory and controversial. As I continued reading, however, one thing was clear. While CEOs will definitely not like the book, many employees will be able to relate with some of the scenarios painted.

For instance, he mentions that to a large extent, a lot of staff meetings are simply a waste of time and provide an opportunity for management to spout off aphorisms which promote their agenda. That is one statement the average employee will easily identify with. 

Another point Brian makes is that it is an illusion to think that doing a spectacular job every day will earn a worker raises, promotions and the admiration of management and fellow workers. According to him, the reality is that the worker in question will be held to unrealistic standards compared to other workers, and he or she may even become a dumping ground for extra work beyond their scope/job description.

The book is not all serious, however. There are bits of humour sprinkled across it especially in the chapter dealing with workplace bullies; some of whom Brian identifies with names such as The Boss's Little Pet, The Credit Stealer, The Clueless Twit, The Vampire Boss, etc.

 I recommend this book to the emotionally mature who can handle the sensitive issues contained therein without being weighed down by them, choosing rather to focus on the solutions provided.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Brian Ray is a Business and Management consultant who has worked with companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Delphi and General Motors. He is the proprietor of his own consulting company as well as a speaker and corporate trainer specializing in promoting positive changes in businesses and people. Revelations Incorporated: Workplace Wisdom for the 21st Century is his first book and can be gotten on Amazon and other major bookstores. 

BOOK OF THE WEEK: GET SMARTER MARKETING by JILL BRENNAN

Hello people.

Years ago, I was at an event where a speaker was scheduled to give a motivational speech to young, budding entrepreneurs. As many such speakers are wont to, she started by trying to convince the audience that she struggled before becoming successful. She also kept emphasizing that success is possible and easily attained no matter what a person’s background may look like. 

Her speech resonated with the audience until she began narrating the story of how she got aid for her business by dressing neatly, wearing stiletto heels and going to the headquarters of one of the popular banks in Lagos to demand audience with the bank’s CEO. As the security men made to drive her away, the CEO ‘miraculously’ saw her, gave her audience and voila! funds were given to her for her business.

At that point, my partner and I burst into cynic laughter. This was clearly a case of a fabulous story, which, in local parlance, means a story that is too good to be true. Where in Nigeria will you be given funds simply because you walked up to the security men of a company and demanded to see the CEO? My best part of that event ended up being the food rather than the speech.

Fortunately, Jill Brennan delivers the real thing and not a fabulous story in her book, Get Smarter Marketing: The Small Business Owner’s Guide to Building a Savvy Business. Whereas some marketing books which claim to be targeted at small businesses end up teaching ideas that are clearly not for small businesses, Jill’s book lives up to its promise.

The opening statement of the book: Getting noticed in a world that has gone brand crazy is hard; is one that any small business owner can relate to. She goes on to list the advertising budget of big brands such as Coke [$3.3 billion in 2013] and Nike [$3 billion in 2014]. Of course, by the time one is done reading the statistics, the small business owner already knows that he or she definitely cannot compete with such brands.

Fortunately, Jill puts us out of our misery by stating that it is possible for small business owners to grow their business even without big budgets - but this is only possible when one has a sound marketing plan.

Although there are different components of a marketing plan, according to Jill, the salient ones for growing businesses include:

1. Doing a situational analysis to know where one's business is headed to. She points out that one mistake small businesses make is to jump into marketing without doing enough work upfront. 

Other components she teaches in her book are: 

2. Knowing the target market

3. Marketing Collateral[my favourite chapter]

4. Reaching the target audience

5.Measuring the effectiveness of your marketing strategies, etc.  

One great thing about books, especially non-fiction books, is that the reader learns in hours what it took the author several years to learn, and this is beautifully illustrated with this book. As one reads the book, it is clear that Jill has had experience with small businesses and is talking from the standpoint of experience rather than a theoretical or academic standpoint.

Another thing I love about the book is its easy flow and the fact that it is easy to understand without being too simplistic in its approach to the subject matter.

 Again, I find the conversational manner of the book to be quite refreshing. As one reads, it’s almost like Jill is seated opposite the reader talking him/her through each marketing step. 

It is also clear that buying the book is a fantastic bargain as the reader ends up receiving advice from a marketing expert at a price far below what would have paid if Jill had been invited to consult for one’s business.

I recommend this book to all business owners who are looking to grow their business. It’s a great resource tool worth having and reading again and again.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jill Brennan, a marketing consultant, mentor and founder of Harbren marketing, has over 20 years experience in the small business trenches. Her articles on marketing have been published in the Sydney Morning Herald, amongst others. Find out more about her at harbren.com.

THE BEAUTY of LOOKING AWAY by CHIMBUSONMA OBIAGWU

The Beauty of Looking Away, a book by Chimbusonma Obiagwu, is a supernatural thriller that deals with such themes as strength, courage, good and evil.

In the opening chapter of the book, readers are introduced to Ugonna Aku, a reserved, introspective teenager with relatively well-to-do parents and a bubbly best friend named Faith.

Ugonna’s life seems to be like that of any normal teenager until the day she overhears a heated conversation between her parents and her life is changed forever. 

As events unfold, it becomes clear that something is dreadfully wrong and only as Ugonna begins to have nightmares and dead bodies start piling up does she realise that the survival of everyone dear to her depends on her strength and courage. The question is: does she have what it takes to survive and succeed?

MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THE BOOK

Hmm…

The Beauty of Looking Away is suspenseful, intriguing and enthralling. I like the way Chimbusonma keeps readers in suspense right up to the middle of the book and even past the middle. The book also has an eye-catching cover that compels the reader to look at it again and again.

It however has some issues, chief of which is its editing.

As one reads the book, one gets the feeling that perhaps Chimbusonma was so excited about publishing her first book that she neglected to do proper editing; if not, how else can one explain the fact that a name in the book is started with a small letter instead of capital letter, or the fact that  LARGE CHUNKS OF SENTENCES ARE SOMETIMES WRITTEN IN CAPITAL LETTERS or bold letters for no apparent reason, or that certain words which need apostrophe lack it, or that….and the list goes on and on.

I also think that the ending was a bit rushed, especially the last three chapters. Information seems to have been lost between chapter thirteen and fourteen and readers are kept in the dark as to how a certain dead body was disposed of.

Finally, I find the title of the book to be a bit puzzling, especially after reading the book. One is hard-pressed to understand the relationship between the title and the content of the book after reading.

After all is said and done, however, kudos must be given to young Chimbusonma for embarking on the journey of writing; and because this is her first book, she can be forgiven for the errors made. While adults may not be particularly attracted to the book, it is one book that African teenagers might find to be to their taste.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chimbusonma Obiagwu, a transfer student from Lagoon secondary school,Lekki, Lagos State, graduated in 2017 from Trinity International College, Ofada, Osun state. The Beauty of Looking Away is her first book.

BOOK OF THE WEEK: DINNER with KING SOLOMON by MATSHONA DHLIWAYO

Hello people.

Dinner with King Solomon is a book written by Matshona Dhliwayo and published by Wise Words From a Foolish Son Inc.

In the opening chapter of the book, readers are introduced to Kevin, a forty five year old man who hits rock bottom financially when he is swindled by his business partner. In one fell swoop, he loses everything; his house, wife and kids.

Poor, helpless and full of despair, Kevin attempts suicide twice, albeit unsuccessfully. On his second attempt, he hallucinates and dreams that the Biblical King Solomon pays him a visit and gives him a bag of gold coins.

Kevin wakes up and to his surprise, he finds a bag of gold coins in his hands. What follows next is a discourse and a mind- boggling ending that will leave readers' minds reeling.

MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THE BOOK

Hmm….

I was blown away by the opening chapter of the book. I love the way Matshona took his time to describe Kevin’s fall from grace. As one reads the book, one can literally see the sprawling mansion, Kevin’s beautiful wife and kids, as well as the horrible car and the gangster neighbourhood that was painted in the book.

I also like the fact that the book is well edited which makes for an enjoyable read, free from the distractions caused by grammatical and typographical errors.

Halfway across the book, however, I was a bit puzzled as to its direction. One moment you're reading about a man who lost all and the next moment you’re reading about the Origins of Life. This leaves the reader wondering, ‘Did I miss something? How did I get here?’

Dinner with King Solomon attempts to answer, albeit in a subtle manner, questions such as Why do bad things happen to good people? The Origin of Life, etc.  

Anyone used to researching such themes will know that they are complex topics that are seldom appropriately covered even in philosophical books written for such purposes, let alone a fiction book. One can only wonder at Matshona’s boldness in attempting to treat such heavy topics in a small book.

Again, while Matshona’s boldness in attempting the subject is admirable, the discourse between Kevin and King Solomon sort of reminded me of certain interviews on television in which the interviewer nods his head in agreement with everything said by the interviewee, such that at the end of the day, viewers cannot help but think, ‘why not just ask the interviewee to give a speech rather than go through the question-and-answer charade?’

I wish Kevin had peppered King Solomon with more hard-hitting questions; for instance, at a point King Solomon says to Kevin that everyone has done bad things at one point or another in their life and so the question, Why do bad things happen to good people? is inherently flawed in itself.

While I may agree with that submission, if I were in Kevin’s place, I may have further asked ‘But what of babies born disfigured? Or toddlers sexually assaulted? What crime did they commit?’ Unfortunately, I am not Kevin and I’m yet to hallucinate about King Solomon so….

After all is said and done, however, Dinner with King Solomon is one book that the philosophically inclined will find interesting and mentally stimulating. It can be gotten on Amazon and any major bookstore.

Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: BOOK REVIEW: THE RULES OF WORK by Richard Templar

One of the most popular posts on the blog, The Rules of Work by Richard Templar is definitely a book worth reading over and over again. Please click on the link below for the book review.

 Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: BOOK REVIEW: THE RULES OF WORK by Richard Templar: The Rules of Work is a book written by Richard Templar in 2003 and published by Pearson Education. In the book, Templar describes ten r...

Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: BOOK REVIEW: DELIVER US FROM EVIL

Hello people.

There is no gainsaying the fact that humanity has made giant strides in science and technology in recent years, what with inventions like robots, artificial hearts, electric cars, digital music, Bluetooth technology, etcetera. 

I find it ironical, however, that whereas technological advancement is supposed to make man feel more secure in his/her environment, the opposite is the case. We are making giant strides in science and technology, but with them have come a greater need for the prayer ‘Deliver Us from Evil.’

In the news yesterday, it was reported that armed gunmen entered a Catholic Church in Anambra State and gunned down quite a number of the worshippers while the early morning mass was being celebrated. So far, the story making the rounds is that there was a misunderstanding between two drug barons based outside of Nigeria; apparently one reneged on a deal and the other decided to retaliate by killing the betrayer’s father who was in the church that morning. Unfortunately, the murderers in their quest for revenge also gunned down some innocent souls worshipping at the church. 

One can only wonder when all this senseless madness will come to an end. Sometime ago, the story of a Vice Principal who raped a twelve year old girl made the news rounds. Not too long afterwards, a group of schoolboys were abducted and held for months by kidnappers without conscience. 

News like this is enough to make one depressed and leave a sour taste in one’s mouth even as one wonders, ‘is it possible for humanity to make giant strides in moral uprightness, in addition to science and technology? It is because of this that I decided to share for the second time, a review of the book ‘Deliver Us from Evil’ by renowned apologist Ravi Zacharias. Please click on the link below for the book review.

Do have a lovely week. 

Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: BOOK REVIEW: DELIVER US FROM EVIL: Deliver Us from Evil is a classic book with a timeless message on the subject of evil. Written by beloved speaker and author Ravi Zach...