Small Business Development Strategy

It is the obligation of every good citizen to assist the nation in its growth by owning and operating his or her own business and am glad a few Liberians have realize this. Each business that provides some kind of useful product or service adds to the total significant output of the nation as a whole. Therefore, if Liberia is to rise and be developed to the level of a productive nation, it would take each and every one of us concerted efforts to get Liberia there and am glad that Liberia is getting there. For as it is said, small incremental step, with consistency will take you there and of course will take Liberia there also.

So for those who have the desire to make a sincere contribution to the nation’s economy, I encourage you to take a step forward to start and develop your own business. Friend, it is very important to understand that we live in a time where people are so busy and very impatient and of course this is a very positive factor for the person who has made the decision and has an action plan.

There are off course many ideas and/strategies for developing a small business, but the decision to work whatever type of business that you decide to own and operate is up to you. The only thing that you need is the desire and then an action plan. Your action plan, coupled with your creativity and imagination, you can go to worlds far beyond what you can currently see. It does not require large sum of money to own and operate a business. No.

The big corporation as the key to the economic development of a nation as it is believed by most people is a myth. The reality is that all major economies depend greatly on the small businesses as the backbone of the economy. All of the small businesses combined provide more activity for the economy in the form of jobs, production, and financial returns than any single corporation.

Your educational level does not really matter and this has been a belief held by many in Liberia that in order to start a business one must have a good education. But I say to you it doesn’t matter. The only thing that matter is that you have a strong desire to become a business owner to accumulate wealth. Money is only attracted to the person who desires it and makes a proper plan to get it. Therefore, if you are not into business, it is because you have not desired it, but you can change that and make the decision to start today.

The traditional operating style for most small businesses in Liberia is to work from a shop. The problem is that shops require rent, electricity, and location. These factors can be costly to the person with no money. Secondly even if you work from a shop you will only earn a small income because it will be necessary to share the earnings from your business with the shop owner.

But the person who is wise and innovative can develop a very significant business in Liberia with very little amount that will grow and blossom. You only have to be creative and use your imagination. Imagination is key to starting and developing a business of any sort. Friend, you can also adopt an attitude and strategy to build a client base-people you can go towards and provide services that others are providing for them. While the customers go to them for service you can go at the customers’ location and at their convenience and provide the same service. And I tell you what; these people will pay you extra to have good services performed for them at their location and convenience. Customers whom you have worked for will be willing to pay more for your service at their own location and at their convenience, and still give you a tip after all because he or she appreciates the benefit of you providing them with your personal care and attention.

Friend, to become successful you must abandon your traditional ways of thinking. There is no such thing as perfection for we can always be changed for the better. You must not let tradition bog you down but be ready to revolutionize your thoughts. Do not get restrained by tradition, else you will find yourself unable to change and become stagnant. This will cause you to remain static as there will be no growth. But with new ideas and thoughts, you must be willing to make changes and this is important for you. Be willing also to accept new ideas in your heart and mind and you must always have the courage to start something new. Always put on a positive and/or progressive way of thinking. It is only those who develop and improve themselves with a positive and/or progressive way of thinking can stay ahead of others. Having a negative mental attitude will lead you nowhere.

Even though the presentation here might seem simple, to have a  proper business you would have to plan properly so that your effort do not turn out to being nothing more than another dead end job. Although you wouldn’t need money before you get started but starting a small business require work, and for those who have no money to start with, your most precious asset is your human labor.

Just begin to think about businesses you can be involved with especially the service business. It’s a great place to start even without money. Again, I started my first business in 2010 in this country without money. I was only creative and in the process was able to raise over US$5,000. This is true. A serious person with strong desire and imagination will have endless work and can earn even more than the white-collar worker. Only be creative and I promise you the sky will be your limit.

Meanwhile, should you need training or advice on being creative or on starting a small business you can contact me on any of the below numbers or through my email. We can help you become successful and can also help you develop a client base and a business strategy. In short you can contact me if you need personal consulting on helping you start and develop your small business.

(Chealy Brown Dennis is a marketing and business development consultant. He is also a much sought after motivational speaker and offers training in leadership and organizational development, creative sales and marketing, strategic planning, wealth creation and team building and offers on-location and train-the-trainer formats. He can be contacted through email at: dennisbc2011@yahoo.com or on phone at: 0886-264-611 or 0776-545-394)