How To Start Anything From Scratch When You Have Nothing

I have been in placed in a few positions where I had to start from scratch.

When I came back from England, when I started my advertising agency, when I moved to Botswana, when I started my comedy career, when we took over Cotton Country Inn. God started to show me something really amazing in my life and I hope to share the same information with you on the way I have managed to start from scratch.

1. Forget what happened to bring you here

We love to dwell on the past which is the number one reason why we never move forward. Take one day to think about why you got to ground zero, cry about it, write all your feelings down somewhere. At the end of it all merely write at the end of all this…but after all this I promise to move forward…watch this space. Put it away and continue with the rest of your life.

2. Use your skills in exchange for stuff you need
Barter trade has afforded me some of the most amazing experiences in life. Companies have always been willing to barter trade. Barter trade allows you to see the value of what you already know or have. Its a celebration at times of God’d gifts that he has given you. The more you start with your skills in exchange for product or services, the more you grow great relationships and move your business forward.

3. Keep your costs very low…invest don’t spend
The temptation is to spend while you are coming out of a hole. I will tell you now I am in debt and slowing paying my way through despite the need to also have nice things in my life. I invest everything I make in getting out of a hole I am in and slowly but surely my negative balance will become a positive one.

4. Help others when you have nothing
My grandmother always had a pot on her stove with hot water because the stove couldn’t switch off, but being a generous woman she would cook sadza for many people who would conveniently drop by during meal times in Mabvuku. My mother does the same and will host and feed many people and both of them will tell you the same thing “you are blessed when you bless others with the little you have” I don’t ever remember my mother running out of anything because of that. It’s a principle I have in my business, I help many people and somehow without asking I get blessed as well.

5. Use this time to get really good
When you are broke you have less friends and more haters. This is great time to get good at what you do. Noone is expecting anything from you but failure so you have nothing to lose by succeeding. Get good, get good, I cannot emphasise enough that you need to get good! Because once you get good you will get seen and once you get seen then you are definitely going to get paid!

6. Everything is marketing
People miss the opportunity to market themselves because they are so busy talking about the status quo, the issues, the problems, the complaints. Take the time to share your vision with people, tell them what you believe you can achieve, tell them who you are and what you do. Try something today, listen to people’s conversations and notice how little people speak about what they do. All talk no marketing…shame!

7. Use advice as research not change
Don’t listen to people who give you advice and change stuff you are doing. Advice is like research, listen, record, analyse, do more research then formulate solutions. Quite often people just like to feel they added an idea to what you are doing once your business is running, remember you were on your own when you started from scratch, you are the expert because you listen and analyse but ultimately you make up your OWN DAMN MIND.

8. Don’t import other’s inefficiencies
Your business needs systems, opening times, payment processes, pricing structures. Do not make your clients inefficient by allowing people to meet with you without appointments, people seeing you after hours, clients choosing when they want to pay you or even suggesting what they want you to deliver. Its your system, respect it and your clients will respect your business.

9. Celebrate the little things
Share with people your little successes. Did you pay your first salary, did you paint a door thanks to business you made? Share it from the mountain top. God loves a person who constantly shows off the little things He does in your life. Celebrate dreams you have for your future.

10. Write your ideas down

I normally have this to say about how I tweet “I don’t just tweet what has happened or is happening now, I tweet what HASNT happened YET those are the tweets God reads more”

The more you write down your future plans, the more likely they are to happen, don’t hide it, flaunt it!!!

This is a synopsis of a motivational book by Carl Joshua Ncube, currently being written.

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