How did he finance his first business venture? “I started with $6,000 load and slowly grew it from there. I created a track record from day one, which meant doing everything above board and officially, which allowed me to access debt once I built a few years of good track record. Always think long term and never be short sighted when creating a business…short-term pain are long-term gains,” says Ashish.

It has not been an all jolly-ride for the entrepreneur. From his experience, we learn that entrepreneurs should quit being afraid of failing. Failure is part of the growth process. Drawing from his experience of making a bad business decision, Ashish said, “I was too desperate for business and trusted the wrong clients. This meant losing cash flow as some debtors turned out to be fake. This was a huge blow for me as I was playing with very little cash flow and this made it even tighter. But instead of dwelling over this, I got up and learnt from the mistake. Never be too eager, you end up not thinking through things and you never end up looking at the worst-case scenario, which is critical.”

Read the full interview here: I’m Just Getting Started- Ashish Thakkar, Founder Of The Mara Group

The post Tips For Entrepreneurs: Funding Your Business & Learning From Failure appeared first on Ventures Africa | .

Things are not always going to work the way you want them to. People are going to let you down as well. But you have stay focus on your vision and be your own chief encouraging officer (CEO)!

Be optimistic

but be practical

and not just idealistic.

It may take longer and be more painful than planned, but if you stick at it, keep learning and improving, you’ll soon experience the miracle of fulfilled dreams.

I say to myself and others, “it can only get better!”

Charles Akpom, an MBA grad from the University of Bedfordshire, founder of Afroterminal.com

The post How To Be Your Own Chief Encouraging Officer (CEO) appeared first on Ventures Africa | .

*Kirubi owns over 40 commercial and residential properties in Kenyan capital valued at $200m and other assets worth $100m, he also occupies 31st place on the maiden Forbes’ list of Africa’s 40 richest people.

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Africa’s profitability is one of the best kept secrets in today’s world economy.’
– Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary-General.

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If Africa is to be the next economic frontier as all predictions indicate, it is up to us to ensure that we play a pivotal role in the economic future of our own continent…What is required is that we do things that go beyond the ordinary. It cannot be business as usual on the African continent,” Zuma said in notes prepared for delivery at the SA-Mozambique Business Forum, during his visit to the country. Click here to read more.

Read more about President here.

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