An article by Wyclife Kipruto, An economic Blogger at econke
Majority of people, about 80% leave their homes in the morning to go
look for money. Only 20¬% go out to make money. These wise investors use
their brains to make money follow them instead of vice versa. These are
essentially the ones who end up being wealthy. While it is quite in
order for a young person to start as an employee, it is however unwise
to remain an employee for the rest of your life. A wise person uses the
proceeds of employment to help him/her move towards investment.
The ordinary people save their money in banks whereas the wise people
borrow the same money and embark on major cash flow investment
projects. These people are not afraid of taking risks. If you want to
prosper yet you are afraid of taking risks, you will end up nowhere. The
higher the risk the higher the investment returns. Risk taking is
about stepping out boldly in faith just as it has been said that, ‘you
can never discover new lands unless you are willing to lose sight of the
shoreline’. Hence, you need to graduate from being a saver to an
empowered borrower.
It amounts to stagnation for you to be in the same business venture
five years from now. Current establishments should only be a
stepping-stone. Work towards the next level where you can harness more
from your investment. Investing big is not an intellectual’s domain.
Some of the rich people in the world were never ‘properly’ schooled but
they used their brains to prosper. Successful investors see the end from
the beginning. The battle not being to the strong and the race not
being the swift, time and chance happens to us all. Therefore, the
difference comes in what we do with our chances and opportunities.
Poverty is largely a choice, or at least going by the acronym POOR
(Passing Over Opportunities Repeatedly). The difference between ordinary
people and extra ordinary people is the ‘extra’ I call it the ‘212
degree concept’. The 212-degree concept is a powerful idea. Here is the
idea, ‘at 211 degrees, water is hot, at 212 degrees, it boils. With
boiling water comes steam. Steam can power a locomotive. That one extra
degree makes all the difference. So many times in business and in life,
it is that one extra degree of effort that separates the good from the
great. Therefore, I challenge you to focus on the extra.
As a country, we inherited an education system that prepares the
young for employment rather than to be employers. For the sake of
integrity of the next generation, strive if possible to educate your
children in education systems that will teach them how to create
employment rather than merely to be employed. People must embrace and
even facilitate change or else they will get frustrated. Taking an
example of my hometown for instance, more and more people are venturing
into the Boda Boda business daily. This implies that soon the business
will be saturated and competition will be stiff since the number of
customers cannot be stretched to meet the rapid increase of Motor bikes.
It is important that you pursue your talents and skills more than
your papers. Aim at being excellent in doing what you love the most.
Settling for average will deny you the achievements of future
possibilities. Refuse to settle for mediocrity. Refuse to be confined
within your comfort zones. Refuse to settle for the pond when the ocean
is beckoning. The great God-given potentials within us should be used
during our lifetime instead of merely going to enrich the grave
hereafter. Nature a good character and engage your brains actively by
working smart and living gainfully. To prosper in life as a youth, watch
your company and select your mentors carefully. When successful, be of
substance to the society. Guard yourself against tendencies to waste
your hard-earned wealth through drinking, drug abuse and other wasteful
acts. That is what Kenya needs to flourish, develop and emerge an
Economic giant in the continent.
Wyclife Kipruto is An Economist interested in doing policy oriented research.
