I’m sure most entrepreneurs want to build a business that can raise millions, pursue an IPO and/or disrupt markets. After all, there are many high-profile entrepreneurs who inspire us with their charisma and passion. As a result, it’s easy to end up having superficial perspectives without adequately appreciating how and how often the founder and the business changed over time.

Figuring out which business is a fit for you is a process. It’s a gradual mindset shift where you are constantly looking for opportunities. Not all opportunities are going to be innovative or disruptive; some may replicate an existing model and some will fail, but there will always be valuable lessons.

Not everyone is a prodigy or has several qualifications and influential networks. The data proves this. South Africa has many more entrepreneurs venturing into retail than tech. This is not unique to South Africa, though, and retail is the largest sector among early-stage entrepreneurs around the globe.

It makes perfect sense. For the majority, the only way is to start in a market that has few to no barriers to entry before beginning to navigate their way upwards.

With this in mind, I would argue that it’s not about the business you choose but about your attitude. It’s about building a strong internal locus of control and combining it with an insatiable appetite for continuous learning, results and action.

Define what success means to you

Ask yourself contextual questions. Start with why you want to start a business. Is it because of an opportunity or because it’s a necessity? Both are equally valid reasons. Global reports suggest that opportunity-driven businesses are more likely to succeed, but whether you succeed or not would really depend on your definition of success.

If you started a business out of necessity and it allows you to put food on the table and perhaps even to employ a few people in your community, your business is an absolute success.

Unsurprisingly, the 2021/2022 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report on South Africa found that the primary motivation for starting a business in South Africa is the desire to earn a living because jobs are scarce. The point is that fully acknowledging your context and being honest with yourself from the start creates a realistic foundation that will help to springboard yourself towards success.

It’s a journey, not an event

As you undertake this journey, you will begin to appreciate how much work it takes to get a decent understanding of an opportunity that may be worth pursuing. It’s like trying to put together a puzzle when the pieces are scattered everywhere and some don’t want to be found.

Putting them together requires continuous research, not by googling, but by talking, listening, observing and networking to gain enough insight on all these aspects of a business:

• current challenges in the market
• existing solutions in the market
• market size
• competitors
• costs
• suppliers
• customer dynamics
• pricing and margins
• trends.

At the same time, don’t allow analysis paralysis to creep in. Gathering and analysing information is pointless if it doesn’t translate into action. At some point you will have to make a call and take a calculated (as much as possible) leap of faith.

Start, no matter how small

Regarding that leap of faith, we all have something we can use to start or grow a business. Sometimes we overcomplicate things and convince ourselves that we need qualifications or technical knowledge.

There are always alternatives. Some entrepreneurs partner with others who have the skills or knowledge they lack. In fact, when people with different skills and talents come together, it has a powerful compounding effect and heightens the probability of success. Don’t ignore your network and social capital. The answer you seek might be right under your nose.

After all, Henry Ford said: ‘You say I started out with practically nothing, but that isn’t correct. We all start with all there is, it’s how we use it that makes things possible.’

And we know what he made possible – the Ford Motor Company.

Learn more about Old Mutual’s funding and support for SMEs here.