Keep that Dream Alive!

Issue 2: 21.07.09



Dreams are the substance of every great endeavour. Dreams, like babies are conceived. Once conceived, the next step is to use all our senses to gather information about how our dreams can be developed into reality.



Just like a foetus, every dream requires a period of incubation where it must be nurtured in a warm and protective environment (aka a womb). According to Dr Michael LeBoef , this period of incubation is necessary to allow our subconscious mind to process the idea in the light of the information we have gathered. Suddenly, illumination will come to you. This is called the "Eureka!" moment where everything suddenly falls into place, completing the puzzle.

Before you begin to run with your dream, it is important to test and verify your ideas. Take a step back. Be objective. Evaluate your design. Put your idea to the test. Try out the market. Get feedback. Refine your idea. Don't be in a hurry. Though Isaac Newton received his law of gravitation in flash of illumination, he spent years refining and verifying his idea. His work has outlived him by almost 300 years.

Like a baby, our dreams are fragile and must be protected through the early stages of conception, preparation, incubation and illumination. Subjecting your dream-foetus to the "a hundred reasons why it will not work" argument is not a great way to becoming a creative entrepreneur. Like many people, I have been guilty of aborting my dreams before they have any chance of surviving to see the light of day. But hopefully I am now the wiser.

Have you killed off any dream? What is your favourite method of "dispatching" them to the land of no-return: suffocation, starvation, over exposure, e.t.c. How do you keep your dreams alive?

As fellow dreamers, I'm sure that we learn from each other's experiences. Please post a comment. I look forward to hearing from you.

Have a great week!

Yemi Akinwande

Simple and Effective Coaching

A member of the Simple and Beautiful Group of Companies

Because the Best Things in Life are Simple

http://www.simpleandbeautiful.net/

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Creative Entrepreneurship

Issue 1: 13.07.09

Dear Fellow-Entrepreneur,

It was good meeting you at the Financial Empowerment Seminar last weekend. I believe that by now you are beginning to revisit your old dreams and merge them with some brand new ones. Write them down, nurture them and process them into fruition. Develop a network of associates that believe in you and your dream: maybe a mentor, coach, counsellor and few fellow dreamers would help..

Checklist for the Creative Entrepreneur
1. What is your dream? What were your aspirations as a younger person? If there were no constraints in life what would you aspire to be? What would give you a deep sense of satisfaction and accomplishment? What unforgettable contribution could you make the community, the nation, the world? Remember, it’s not all about you…

2. What is your passion? What fills you with power, and joy? What makes you angry, or sad? What do you daydream about? What are your favorite themes in fiction and non-fiction? What do you spend hours chatting about with your buddies? Technology? Education? The School Curriculum? Social Justice? Youth Crime? Inequality towards women, men, ethnic minorities, or the elderly in the society? Public Speaking? Health Concerns? Nutrition? The list goes on and on.

3. What are your play-interests; what are your hobbies? How do you unwind when on holiday from work? If you were not so “bogged down” with work, what would you like to do, just for fun? Whether it be reading or writing, knitting or driving, painting or home-repairs, cake-baking or story-telling, stamp-collecting or community work, if you could turn your hobby into a source of living you are likely to become a very satisfied person and an instant success.


4. Have you ever come up with a creative solution to a serious personal problem: be it childcare, job-search, conflict-resolution, raising teenagers? Could other people benefit from your innovative solution? Could you package your solution into a new product or service?

Jean Nidetch is one woman who turned her problem into a very successful entrepreneurship. She was a 214 lb size 44 housewife woman who had tried many a diet without much success. Almost by accident she discovered an unprecedented way for her and her overweight friends to lose weight and stay slim: it was by combining the concept group support with dieting. Weight-Watchers was born, and by 1978 the company had grown to $28 million.

Could you provide a creative solution to the problems of a company, community or country? These problems are wide-ranging: from cost reduction to waste reduction, from recycling to redundancies, from software to systems, from teenage violence to under-achieving youths, from managing debt to bargain-hunting.

5. No other person on this planet has the same exact combination of skills, experience or information as you have. What is it that makes you peculiar or unique? What have you got to offer the world? What are your areas of expertise? Don’t focus on what you do not have, but rather trade with the assets that you have got.




The Burj Dubai


At 800 metres tall the Burj Dubai is the tallest skyscraper structure ever built. One look at this structure will convince you that the sky is no longer the limit to human endevours.


The point that I am making is this: find the right intersection of your dreams, passion, perculiar gifts, play interests and a general problem and build up your business from that same spot. Like the Burj Dubai, build creatively, build strong, and build tall. You will find that the sky will make way for you.




I look forward to reading about your progress on the road to Creative Entrepreneurship. Please keep the blog alive by feeding it with your comments!

Yemi Akinwande
Simple and Effective Coaching
A member of the Simple and Beautiful Group of Companies

Because the Best Things in Life are Simple

http://www.simpleandbeautiful.net/