SECTION FOUR

THE ENTREPRENEURSHIP MODULE

The Golden Handcuff
How To Increase Your Value In The
Marketplace
Entrepreneurship 101
Understanding Business 101
How To Generate Business Ideas
How To Raise Capital For Your Business
How To Do Business Part-time And Succeed
Why Businesses Fail And The Way Out
How To Start And Run A Business
Foundation Stones: Feasibility Study And
Business Plan
Book Keeping
268 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Marketing 101
Branding 101
Customer Service 101
Staffing Your Business
Franchising 101
Dangers Of Idleness
Business Ideas Catalogue
 CHAPTER NINETEEN

“The price you refuse to pay today will be

paid tomorrow with interest”

Salary is slavery, and I believe that with the whole of my heart.

That is why I will forever talk people out of salary mentality to
income mentality. I have explained the “salary slavery” earlier
in this book, and given you a difference between salary and
income.

In this section on entrepreneurship, I will be focusing on how

to help you become an entrepreneur and successful business
person. This module will give you the blueprint you need to
build your own business and succeed in it.

I personally believe that no one should work for more than

fifteen years of their working life before having their own
business, or having other streams of income working for them.
Every wise person should have an exit strategy in place from
the first day they start working. If you do that and you develop
a plan on how to create other streams of income, it will help
you stay focused and serious, and help you maximize your life.
After fifteen years of your active working life, you should have
other streams working for you, and if you continue to work
270 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

after then, it won't be for salary or survival, but because you

love what you do and you will be secured and not afraid of
losing your job.

Do you know that even if you work for as long as you can and
get all the titles and perks, you still can't hand over your job or
position to your children because you don't own it?

The quality or beauty of the handcuff is useless as long as it is

tying you up, and a handcuff is a handcuff whether it is golden
or not.

Moving from salary to income; Job seeker to job creator;

Employee to employer etc is a step that everyone must take.
One question and argument that my critics always ask and
bring to the table is “Must everyone be a business man?”,
“What if one is not cut out for business?” and “if everybody is
doing business who will be working for them?”

You have read me state that paid employment is a vehicle for

wealth creation - though with limitations, and you have also
read me state that corporate executive is also a place that
produces wealthy people - also with limitations.

Whether it's paid employment or corporate executive level

with official house, official car, official trip etc., it all ends the
day you stop working, and all falls under earned income status
which is the lowest level to operate from, and I am just trying to
help you see better and more clearly.
 You can't hand it over to your children
 After you retire, you will want to start something on your
own. So why wait to be retired and too tired physically,
The Golden Handcuff 271

mentally, emotionally etc., to start something when you

can do it earlier?

I don't believe everybody must be a business man or start their

own business - definitely not, but I believe EVERYBODY
MUST BE AN INVESTOR AND HAVE MULTIPLE STREAMS
WORKING FOR THEM.

WHY YOU SHOULD MOVE FROM EMPLOYEE TO

EMPLOYER
1. It is not your employer's job to make you rich; it is your
responsibility. So in order to be rich, you should have a
plan to move from being an employee to being an
employer.
2. Being an employee pegs your financial and material
progress because someone else determines your salary
and your increase.
3. Being an employee is not secured, because it leaves you at
the mercy of your employer's favours.
4. Being an employee makes you get only enough money as
your employer decides which is mostly below your real
worth and value. It only takes you wanting to leave to
sometimes make them value you.
5. Being an employee keeps you under constant fear of
losing your job, offending your boss, losing your salary
etc.
6. Being an employee makes you exchange the most
valuable years of your life for “salary”.
7. Being an employee makes you become a leverage for your
employers to create wealth. They convert your Time,
Talent, Virtue, Knowledge, Skill, Energy, Influence,
272 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Sweat, and Networks etc. to personal and corporate

wealth.
8. Being an employee makes your personal vision and
dream stay buried and subjected to the corporate vision
and mission.
9. Being an employee means someone else determines when
you wake up, when you get home, where you live or how
you live. To resume as expected, you either have to wake
early or relocate close to your office, and your salary
determines the level of life you live.
10. Being an employee keeps you and all your acquisitions
under monitor and suspicion. Every new thing you buy
will be looked at in a funny way as if you have stolen.
11. As an employee, your employer sees you as an overhead,
an item of expenditure and replaceable entity. Your
employers even have structures in place to replace you
after getting all they can from and through you. This is
called SUCCESSION PLANNING.
12. As an employee, you end up with pittance called
“retirement benefit” which hardly covers 20% of your
living expenses at old age.

It's time to wake up and strategize on how to run your own

business and provide for your own house now and forever.

THE BALANCED DIET

It is very important to draw a balance here because of

immature and unwise people who don't know how to rightly
apply truths. Almost everybody will start out as an employee,
The Golden Handcuff 273

and it is a vehicle on its own. Your faithfulness in this level both

to your boss and the establishment determines whether you
will ever get your own business started and successful.

Your time as an employee is not a waste. Use it to gather

experience and skill that prepares you to succeed on your own.
Your employer is not your enemy; so don't sow what you don't
want to reap in future. Remember, when you start your own
business, you will also have staff. WHAT YOU SOW IS WHAT
YOU REAP.

THINGS TO LEARN WHILE WORKING FOR OTHERS

WHICH WILL HELP YOU IN YOUR OWN BUSINESS

While working as an employee, pay attention and give it all it

takes, so that you can get these things into you:
1. LEARN HOW TO SELL YOURSELF, YOUR PRODUCT
AND SERVICES.
2. LEARN COMMUNICATION SKILLS BOTH WRITTEN
AND VERBAL.
3. LEARN HOW TO MANAGE PEOPLE.
4. LEARN HOW TO MANAGE MONEY AND CASH
FLOW.
5. LEARN HOW TO MANAGE TIME.
6. LEARN HOW TO MANAGE YOUR SELF AND YOUR
LIFE / HOME.
7. LEARN HOW TO MANAGE PROJECTS.

Starting and owning your own business is considered one of

the most powerful if not the most powerful vehicles of wealth
274 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

creation, and it ranks in the top five on my list next to real

estate, intellectual property and the capital market. Any rich or
wealthy individual you know sure has their own business,
because over 90% of the wealthy people do.
 It is one of the fastest routes to wealth.
 It has limitless possibilities and profits within the shortest
time.
 You can make in one deal or one month what takes others
years.
 You have freedom and control of your life and things.
 You spend first and pay tax on the rest, while others pay
tax first and spend the rest.
 It's a powerful vehicle that beats inflation any day, any
time.
 It validates your financial intelligence.
 You can hand it over to your children.

You become a business owner and entrepreneur by

developing skills, capabilities, capacity, competence etc. So as
you work, make sure you spend the time learning structures,
management strategies, and skills that will help you when you
finally enter your own.

Some people plan to start their own businesses when they

retire but fail to use their working years to gather the skills and
abilities required. That is why many retire, start businesses
and lose it all.

WHY DO YOU WORK?

I strongly believe you work to LEARN and not to EARN. If

The Golden Handcuff 275

earning is your reason for working, you will stay in the rat race
with golden handcuffs because you can't risk your earning by
stepping out into business, and leaving the known for the
unknown. But if learning is the reason you work, you long for
your exit from that rat race and graduation into the world of
entrepreneurship, LOVE YOUR JOB…but…

LOVE YOUR JOB BUT NEVER FALL IN LOVE WITH

YOUR GOLDEN HANDCUFF.

An interesting speech delivered by a CEO of a premier IT

company in India during an employee session with another IT
company in India. He is incidentally one of the top 50
influential people in Asia according to the latest Asia week
publication. He is also the new IT advisor to the Thai Prime
Minister.

Extract of Mr. Narayan Murthy's Speech during Mentor

Session:

LOVE YOUR JOB, BUT NEVER FALL IN LOVE WITH YOUR

COMPANY BECAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN
COMPANY STOPS LOVING YOU

- Narayan Murthy

I know people who work 12 hours a day, six days a week, or

more. Some people do so because of a work emergency where
the long hours are only temporary. Other people I know have
put in these hours for years. I don't know if they are working all
these hours, but I do know they are in the office this long.

Others put in long office hours because they are addicted to the
276 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

workplace. Whatever the reason for putting in overtime,

working long hours over the long term is harmful to the person
and to the organization.

There are things managers can do to change this for everyone's

benefit. Being in the office long hours, over long period of
times, makes way for potential errors. My colleagues who are
in the office long hours frequently make mistakes caused by
fatigue. Correcting these mistakes requires their time as well
as the time and energy of others. I have seen people work
Tuesday through Friday to correct mistakes made after 5PM
on Monday.

Another problem is that people who are in the office for long
hours are not pleasant company. They often complain about
other people (who aren't working as hard); they are irritable, or
cranky or even angry. Other people avoid them. Such behavior
poses problems where work goes much better when people
work together instead of avoiding one another.

As Managers, there are things we can do to help people leave

the office.

First and foremost is to set the example and go home ourselves.

I work with a manager who chides people for working long
hours. His words quickly lose their meaning when he sends
these chiding group emails with a time-stamp of 2am Sunday.

Second is to encourage people to put some balance in their

lives. For instance, here is a guideline I find helpful
1. Wake up, eat a good breakfast and go to work.
2. Work hard and smart for eight or nine hours.
The Golden Handcuff 277

3. Go home.
4. Read the books/comics, watch a funny movie, dig in the
dirt, play with your kids, etc.
5. Eat well and sleep well.

This is called re-creating. Doing Steps 1, 3, 4 and 5 enables 2.

Working regular hours and recreating daily are simple
concepts. They are hard for some of us because that requires
'personal change'. They are possible since we all have the
power to choose to do them. In considering the issue of
overtime, I am reminded of my oldest son.

When he was a toddler, if people were visiting the apartment,

he would not fall asleep no matter how long the visit, and no
matter what time of day it was.

He would fight off sleep until the visitors left, It was as if he

was afraid that he would miss something. Once our visitor's
left, he would go to sleep.

By this time, however, he was over tired and would scream

half the night with nightmares. He, my wife and I, all paid the
price for his fear of missing out.

Perhaps, some people put in such long hours because they

don't want to miss anything when they leave the office. The
trouble with this is that events will never stop happening. That
is life. Things happen 24 hours a day.

Allowing for little rest is not ultimately practical. So, take a

nap. Things will happen while you're asleep, but you will have
the energy to catch up when you are awake.
278 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Hence, “LOVE YOUR JOB BUT NEVER FALL IN LOVE WITH

YOUR COMPANY”.
 CHAPTER TWENTY

“A wise person works to learn and not to earn

but average people work to earn and not to
learn”

There is no security in job security in today's world because

with what is happening all over the world, you can't be sure
that the company or organization you work for will still be in
existence next month or next year.
 People come to work sometimes to discover there is no
work because the gates are closed or the company is
bankrupt.
 People come to work sometimes only to discover their
company has been bought over (ACQUISITION) or
merged with another (MERGERS) and they have been
downsized as the victim of mergers and acquisitions.

The world has become a global village and the internet is the
village square. So the world and the marketplace have become
more competitive because people can now apply for your job
from all over the world.

The global crisis has even made things worse, and when you
go for interview like I have seen when I interview people, it is
280 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

not strange to see people with foreign degrees and certificates

coming for the same job interview.

They are young, energetic, vibrant, exposed and qualified, yet

looking for job instead of creating one and they are the ones
you have to contend with at your “old age” by reason of
spending more years than necessary in school due to incessant
strikes and man-made delays in our country, especially.

In today's world, being 30-35years is the new old, and having

at least a masters degree is the new first degree because settling
for just B.SC is an error and a limitation. With these new
realities, it is vital for anyone who is willing to make a
difference and be impactful and valuable to do so by
increasing their value in the marketplace.

There are five major factors to increasing your value in the

marketplace, and you need to have all in place concurrently to
really, really, really be very valuable in today's marketplace.

1. CHARACTER

To be valuable and continue to increase your value in today's

marketplace, you need character and integrity. The revelations
of the years have shown that people of character and integrity
are very scarce even at the highest level of corporate
governance.

From corporate executives, to political leaders, to sports icon,

to spiritual leaders etc., the list is endless of men and women
who have been disgraced out of their positions of honour or
forced to resign due to character flaws and integrity problem.
How To Increase Your Value In The Market Place 281

If it is not moral integrity issue, it will be financial integrity

issue, ethical issues or otherwise. Genuine people with upright
character and flawless integrity are very scarce in today's
world. So being a person of character and integrity is a great
asset and leverage in today's marketplace and today's world in
general, and I can tell you that from experience. Few years ago,
my life hit a rock and I experienced the highest level of betrayal
you can ever imagine, yet I received a mandate to keep quiet
and not spread it or defend myself and for years till date, I have
watched my name and reputation dragged into the mud and I
see, hear, and read all manner of stuff being said about me in
the conventional and new media as people give comments and
opinion about what they know nothing about.

I have been severally advised and sometimes tempted myself

to speak out, spread things and release evidence to show
people the true picture, but I have always been constrained
never to fight back dirty because of my offsprings.

If you are a virgin and everyone believes you are a slut, do you
expose your nakedness to prove them wrong? Of course not!

In the last few years, one thing has become more clear and real
to me and that is the power of integrity, as I have seen time
revealing and exposing truth to people. Integrity has kept me
and I look around to see what I have lost with all the
mudslinging and character assassination and I found none,
because integrity has kept things going and growing all
around me and I am so grateful I kept quiet.

Build your character. Build your integrity and keep living

above board because it will spread and increase your value
282 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

over time. Who you are when no one is looking is more

important than who you are when everyone is looking because
your secret sins and the skeletons in your cupboard will be
exposed for all to see with time if you don't deal with them.

Build your character and not your reputation, because if you

have character and integrity no matter the damage people do
to your reputation. Your character will give you victory.

“SINS AND CHARACTER FLAWS WILL TAKE YOU

FARTHER THAN YOU WANT TO GO, KEEP YOU LONGER
THAN YOU ARE WILLING TO STAY AND COST YOU
MORE THAN YOU ARE WILLING TO PAY.”

Build your character and increase your value.

2. COMPETENCE

Character without competence is incomplete because it will

limit how far you go in the marketplace. Even though
character is needed in the marketplace, you must remember
it's a “MARKETPLACE” and not a charity or religion, so
results matter a lot too, and that is why competence is a key
factor to increasing your value.

“Commit things to faithful men who will now be able to teach

and raise others.”

Faithfulness and character comes before ability and

competence but is still incomplete and inadequate without it.
Competent people are dwindling fast in today's world due to
emerging trends and current realities some of which we have
already examined. People want something for nothing, they
How To Increase Your Value In The Market Place 283

want the easy way out, the get rich quick schemes, short cuts,
fast tracks, drive through and microwave mentality results.

Competence takes hard work, and the lazy man's approach to

life of today's majority makes competence valuable.

Have you noticed how incompetent and unemployable

today's graduates are, and how you have to spend loads of
money training and retraining them in finishing schools and
competence training?
 They can't speak good English.
 They can't write letters without mistake.
 They can't take or use initiative.
 They can't manage things on their own.
 They have to be told what to do and shown how to do it.
 They have to be micromanaged.
 They have high and big dreams, but small minds.
 They want big salaries with little or no inputs.
 They can't meet targets and produce results.
 They are too unserious in major aspects of life.
 They major on minor and minor on major.
 They have short attention span and less fruitful hours.

The list of woes is endless, and any employer will do anything

to keep and encourage competent staff when they find one.

Is it not amazing that head hunting has become a norm in

today's corporate world? And while some are submitting CVs
from place to place, those already in good positions and not
looking for jobs find themselves being invited and offered
284 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

other jobs because their competence and track records of

producing results is speaking for them.

You increase your competence when you give personal

development and skill development a premium position in
your life, and you subscribe to continuous learning.

If you do all you can without caring who gets the credit, you
will be busy doing all kinds of things that needs to be done and
increasing your competence over different areas instead of
playing corporate politics, before long you will be noticed and
get the credit you deserve.

Remember, “If you do more than you are being paid to do, it's
only a matter of time before you start being paid more than you
worked for.

3. CAPACITY

The size of your tank determines the water you can contain.
Your capacity determines how far you can go.
Character
Competence
Capacity?

If you have character and competence but you don't have

capacity, it is not enough.

Capacity is the ability to have multiple competences in many

valuable areas. So, you can multitask and be promoted to
become a leader and manager of others.

Today's world is a world of multitasking, multiple skills and

How To Increase Your Value In The Market Place 285

enlarged capacity to joggle many things together successfully.

Before now, when you were in senior management position,

you would have had all manner of aids working for you;
 A driver
 A personal assistant
 A secretary or administrator etc.

But in today's corporate world, that is no more the norm. It's in

politics that you can still find such expired, outdated and
wasteful practice with politicians still having advisers, special
advisers and adviser to advisers etc. all on tax payers' money.

As an executive today, you drive yourself; assist yourself with

typing, emails etc., instead of having four staff doing one thing
each. You now have one person doing four things because of
capacity.
 Keep growing
 Keep innovating
 Keep evolving
 Keep performing

Keep enlarging your capacity. A lot of people have found

themselves stagnant and not being promoted in their career
due to low capacity. Imagine a 10KVA generator carrying a
20KVA load, it will breakdown because it does not have the
required capacity for the load.
* You can dream all you want
* You can desire all you want

But if you don't have the capacity to carry the weight of the
286 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

dream it will crush you.

There is a weight of glory and for every level of authority you

desire to be promoted to, there are responsibilities tied to it.
For years I have taught leaders a major principle.

“Never delegate responsibilities without authority and never

give authority without responsibilities.”

Increase your character, competence, and capacity and see

your value soar in the marketplace.

4. COURAGE

The corporate world is a tough world and it's an ocean of

sharks. To be valuable and increase your value in the
marketplace, you must have courage and know how to
survive among sharks.
 Conquer tasks
 Execute projects
 Face challenges
 Outrun competitors
 Survive changing economic climate
 Swim on despite diverse government policies that limits
etc.

Courage is not the absence of fear, but it is:

>> Moving on despite your fears
>> Being the only one that knows you are afraid

Courage is part of the entrepreneurial spirit you need to step

out and run your own business, and you need to develop it
How To Increase Your Value In The Market Place 287

while you are still working. If you don't step out of the boat,
you will not walk on water, but you need a boat to step from.

Employers in today's world are no more looking for staffs to

hire; they are looking for entrepreneurs to hire and teammates
to bring on board. So you must be a person of great courage to
be valuable in today's marketplace. If you have character,
competence, capacity but lack the courage to use them or
exhibit them, then of what use will they be?
 A man of character needs courage to stay true to their
principle.
 A man of competence needs courage to go on despite
mockery.
 A man of capacity needs courage to take on all
responsibilities.
 A man of courage needs courage to do all the previous
three.

These things go hand in hand and you can't leave one for
another. Knowledge and understanding, experience and
exposure, character, competence and capacity all help build
courage. The snail and tortoise only makes progress when they
stick their necks out. Keep pressing on and stay courageous to
increase your value in the marketplace.

5. CULTURE

Call it brand. Call it ethics. Call it protocols. Call it experience.

It does not matter what you call it, just have it and be it!

Every organization and sector has their own unique culture,

ethics, protocol or brand and if you work within that sector or
288 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

organization, wisdom demands that you become cultural by

fitting into the culture to be valuable.

You can't find favour and goodwill if you fight or operate

contrary to the prevailing culture of where you work. You
can't be a subculture or a counterculture or else there will be
trouble.

Can you imagine enrolling in a school where they wear

uniforms, or working in an organization where members of
staff are expected to wear uniforms and then you refuse to
wear a uniform but still want to work there? It's not possible.
It's either you quit or choose to wear the uniform because the
only other option is for the whole organization to change their
uniform wearing policy because of you, but I doubt that.

To increase your value in the marketplace, you must be

cultured and that requires that you become versatile about
different sectors in the corporate and business world, and gain
deep knowledge of corporate culture and marketplace ethics
and protocol.

Be knowledgeable, flexible, adaptable and relevant in the

sector you operate in and the marketplace in general and you
will be fine. This is the last thing you need to develop but it's in
no way the least.

Your major goal should be to make an impact, make a

difference and be valuable in the marketplace.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE
A teacher in New York decided to honor each of her
seniors in High School by telling them the difference each of
How To Increase Your Value In The Market Place 289

them had made.

She called each student to the front of the class, one at a
time. First, she told each of them how they had made a
difference to her, and the class.
Then she presented each of them with a blue ribbon
imprinted with gold letters, which read, “Who I Am Makes a
Difference.”
Afterwards, the teacher decided to do a class project, to
see what kind of impact recognition would have on a
community.
She gave each student three more blue ribbons, and
instructed them to go out and spread this acknowledgement
ceremony. Then they were to follow up on the results, see who
honored whom, and report to the class in about a week.
One of the boys in the class went to a junior executive in a
nearby company, and honored him for helping him with his
career planning. He gave him a blue ribbon, and put it on his
shirt.
Then he gave him two extra ribbons and said, “We're
doing a class project on recognition, and we'd like for you to go
out, find someone to honor, and give them a blue ribbon.
Later that day, the junior executive went in to see his boss,
who had a reputation of being kind of a grouchy fellow. He
told him that he deeply admired him for being a creative
genius.
The boss seemed very surprised. The junior executive
asked him if he would accept the gift of the blue ribbon, and
give him permission to put it on him.
His boss said, “Well, sure.” The junior executive took one
of the blue ribbons and placed it right on his boss's jacket,
above his heart.
290 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

And then he asked, offering him the last ribbon, “Would

you take this extra ribbon, and pass it on by honoring
somebody else? The teenager who gave me these is doing a
school project, and we want to keep this ribbon ceremony
going and see how it affects people.”That night, the boss came
home and sat down with his 14-year-old son. He said, “The
most incredible thing happened to me today.”
“I was in my office, and one of my employees came in and
told me he admired me, and gave me a blue ribbon for being a
creative genius. Imagine! He thinks I am a creative genius!
Then he puts a blue ribbon on me that says, 'WHO I AM
MAKES A DIFFERENCE'.”
“He gave me an extra ribbon and asked me to find
somebody else to honor. As I was driving home tonight, I
started thinking about who I would honor with this ribbon,
and I thought about you. I want to honor you.”
“My days are hectic and when I come home, I don't pay a
lot of attention to you. I yell at you for not getting good grades
and for your messy bedroom. Somehow, tonight, I just wanted
to sit here and, well, just let you know that you do make a
difference to me.”
“Besides your mother, you are the most important person
in my life. You're a great kid, and I love you!”
The startled boy started to sob and sob, and he couldn't
stop crying. His whole body shook. He looked up at his father
and said through tears, “Dad, earlier tonight I sat in my room
and wrote a letter to you and Mom, explaining why I had took
my life, and I asked you to forgive me. I was going to commit
suicide tonight after you were asleep. I just didn't think that
you cared at all. The letter is upstairs. I don't think I'll need it
after all.”
How To Increase Your Value In The Market Place 291

His father walked upstairs and found a heartfelt letter full

of anguish and pain.
The boss went back to work a changed man. He was no
longer a grouch, but made sure to let all of his employees know
that they made a difference.
The junior executive helped many other young people
with career planning, one being the boss' son, and never forgot
to let them know that they made a difference in his life.
In addition, the young man and his classmates learned a
valuable lesson: “Who you are DOES make a difference”
292 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

“If you want to have uncommon result then

you must be ready to do the uncommon
things”

The word 'entrepreneur' was first coined by a French

economist known as Jean-Baptist Say and is defined in many
ways.

Entrepreneurship is the art of being an entrepreneur and it is

defined severally as:

 One who undertakes innovations, finance and business

acumen in an effort to transform innovation in economic
goods.

 A owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes

money through risk and initiative

 A person who is willing to help launch a new venture or

enterprise and accepts full responsibility for the outcome.

 One who undertakes an enterprise, especially a

contractor acting as an intermediary between capital and
labour.

 A person who starts or organises a business company,

especially one that involves risks.
294 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Simply put, entrepreneurship is the art of stepping into and

operating in the business world as a value creator, offering
goods and services and solving people's problems.

I believe strongly in entrepreneurship as the key to:

 Poverty eradication
 Job creation
 Corruption eradication etc.

People steal money because they don't know how to create

wealth, and many people are jobless today because only few
people are starting businesses and creating jobs.
Are you an entrepreneur?
Do you have what it takes?
Do you have the entrepreneurial spirit?
Do you have the entrepreneurial mind? etc.

These are all questions you need to ask yourself, because I see
and hear a lot of people calling themselves entrepreneur and
being far from the definition of one. Entrepreneurship is a
serious matter that should not be trivialized or entered into
unprepared or else you will be frustrated out.

This chapter will help you develop the entrepreneural mind,

spirit and skills.

WHY DO YOU WANT TO BE AN ENTREPRENEUR?

1. If you want to become an entrepreneur just to make
money, then don't, because you will be frustrated out
while the business is being built to break even.
2. If you want to become an entrepreneur just because you
Entrepreneurship 101 295

don't want to take orders from people, don't, because you

will still take orders from your customers when you
become a business owner.
3. If you want to be an entrepreneur just because you think it
will be fun, then don't, because it's not fun my friend. It
takes a lot of hard work, smart work, risk taking and
uncertainties, all of which can take fun out of life.
4. If you want to be an entrepreneur just because your
family is pestering you, then don't, because pressure can
take you in but can't make you succeed and keep you in.
5. If you want to be an entrepreneur, just because you think
you have a powerful idea, then don't, because starting
and succeeding in business is more than just having a
good idea.
6. If you want to be an entrepreneur just because you are
bored of working for others, don't. Rest, holiday and
change can help you cure your boredom but not the
burden of entrepreneurship.
7. If you want to be an entrepreneur just because you want
to escape the insecurity and risk of salaried job, then
don't, because business itself is spelt RISK.
8. If you want to be an entrepreneur just because you are
interested in business, please don't. Business success
requires more than just interest, it takes more than that.
9. If you don't have the capacity for business, don't do it.
10. If you can't deal with confusion and lack of structure you
will encounter with people you deal with, don't.

Like we have seen earlier, there are skills you need to develop
as an employee before you become an employer and they are
296 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

very key. Apart from developing those seven skills, there are
some questions you also need to answer.

20 QUESTIONS TO ANSWER BEFORE GOING INTO

BUSINESS
1. How organized are you?
* To succeed as an entrepreneur, you need to be really
organized in your life and acts
2. Do you have a competitive spirit?
* To succeed as an entrepreneur, you need to know how to
compete with others in your market.
3. Are you a risk taker or a risk dodger?
* To succeed as an entrepreneur you need to know how to take
informed and calculated risks.
4. What experiences or skills have you gained that will help
you in business?
* To succeed as an entrepreneur, you need to hone your skills
and use it as a leverage.
5. Are you in good health?
* Health is wealth and you can't build and succeed as an
entrepreneur if you are sick.
6. Can you lead and manage people?
* It's all about people as an entrepreneur, and your people skill
must be top notch.
7. Do you have a high energy level or get tired easily after 2-
3hrs?
* You may be in meeting for hours on end, and to be an
entrepreneur requires that.
8. Are you self-confident? Can you go on when things go
Entrepreneurship 101 297

wrong?
* Things will not always go your way and people will not
always act in your favour, but as an entrepreneur, you have to
believe in yourself and keep moving.
9. Are you ready to make short-term sacrifices for long-term
benefits?
* Today is the womb that births tomorrow and as an
entrepreneur, you have to be ready to pay a great price today to
birth your tomorrow.
10. Can you delay gratification and postpone pleasure?
* You can either enjoy pleasure today and pressure tomorrow,
or pressure today and pleasure tomorrow, and that is one choice
an entrepreneur has to make.
11. Is your spouse supportive of your business dream?
* To go out and battle competitors and still come home to battle
is not what anyone should enroll for. So getting spousal support
is vital for any entrepreneur.
12. Can you make others see the benefit of what you do?
* Selling and marketing skills are key to becoming a successful
entrepreneur.
13. Do you have a natural flair for business?
* Is dong business a passion or a struggle for you? You need to
settle it.
14. Do you enjoy mixing with people?
* Business is all about people and if you have poor people skill,
you need to work on it.
15. Have you conceived or developed a winning business
idea, product or service?
298 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

* You need a plan to make it as an entrepreneur instead of

guesswork.
16. Are you enthusiastic about your dream?
* You need to be passionate about your dream more than any
other person.
17. Do you have the resources (spiritual, mental, physical,
financial, human etc) to make it?
* To succeed as an entrepreneur you need to harness all
resources at your disposal and leverage on them.
18. Do you have investment mentality?
* You can't win financially without investment mentality.
19. Do you have financial intelligence?
* Doing business without financial intelligence is a recipe for
failure.
20. Do you have a plan and a goal in place?
* You need a goal to aim for. That keeps you motivated and
inspired.

Someone once made a statement in one of my weekend

seminars on wealth creation where I spoke on
entrepreneurship: “You are motivating us to step out into the
world of entrepreneurship yet somehow discouraging us with
all these questions we need to answer.”

To which I replied “It is called balance and due diligence.” I

believe in balance because balance is the key of life, and any
form of extreme should be avoided. Yes, doing things on your
own is good but you need to do your due diligence and be sure
you are cut out for business and even if you are, you need to
plan ahead and launch out at the right time because timing is
key.
Entrepreneurship 101 299

If you are not sure, please keep working and settle for
investments for other streams of income like real estate.

I am not trying to discourage anyone but it is vital I help you

realize what it takes and looks like before you leap.

Many are trapped in the rat race with golden handcuff because
they don't have the courage to step out. The “illusion” of job
security and regular salary keeps them trapped even though
they have all it takes.

TEN EXCUSES PEOPLE GIVE FOR NOT BECOMING

ENTREPRENEURS

1. I DON'T HAVE MONEY

Ask your boss how much they spent to start the business you
are presently working for or have ever worked for, and you
will realize that starting your own business is not all about
having money. People have started business with little or no
money all over the world and have made success of it. You can
start from where you are with what you have and make a
success of it.

2. I CAN'T QUIT MY JOB BECAUSE I HAVE A FAMILY TO

CATER FOR
What if the job quits you?
What if you are sacked or laid off next week?
What if the company declares bankruptcy in five months? Etc.

No one is even saying you should quit your job to go and start a
business. You can actually start the business part-time first,
and sample the water to see how things go. If you start it by the
side and grow it gradually, it will help create a soft landing for
you when you finally quit your job. I will share with you how
300 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

to do business part-time and succeed in a later chapter in this

module.

3. I DON'T HAVE ANY CONTACT/CONNECTIONS

Do you have contact or connections with the person whose

product and services you have used and paid for, for years?

You buy clothes, shoes, food, groceries, pay for transport, and
buy fuel, go for shopping etc., and spend your money, yet you
don't have contact or connection with them than to spend your
money. Why do you think you need to have contacts or
connection for people to buy your products or patronize your
services? Stop focusing on what you don't have, and focus on
using what you have to achieve your dream. You already have
all you need and will meet whatever else you need on the way
when you move.

4. I AM NOT SMART ENOUGH

I don't want to believe that you think that of yourself, “not

smart enough.” How do you define smart and what makes you
think so low of yourself?
Are you alive? - Then you are smart.
Can you see? - Then you are smart.
Can you hear? - Then you are smart.
Can you smell? - Then you are smart.
Can you talk? - Then you are smart.
Can you walk? - Then you are smart.
Can you write? - Then you are smart.
Can you read? - Then you are smart.

If you are reading this book you are definitely smart enough to
Entrepreneurship 101 301

make it happen.

5. I DON'T HAVE TIME, I AM TOO BUSY

- Busy doing what if I may ask?
- Busy running the rat race.
- Busy climbing the corporate ladder.
- Busy chasing shadows.
- Busy collecting salary.
- Busy growing old yet poor.
- Busy pursuing pension.

Busy using the most active part of your life for what?

You will never have time for what you don't create time for. So
if financial freedom is a priority for you, you will create time.
And come to think of it, how much time do you really need to
create wealth? If you have financial intelligence, two to five
hours per week on some good vehicles will sort you out.

6. I CAN'T FIND ANYONE WHO WANTS TO HELP ME

Excuses. Excuses. Excuses. Why do you think you need help

from people to start out on your own? Nobody will support
you at nothing. You must have something doing that will now
attract their support. Instead of waiting for somebody's help
before you act, think of what you can do on your own and by
yourself and start from there. Excuses have been universally
acknowledged as the trademark of failures, and I don't want
you to attract such label to yourself. Do what you can do on
your own first and see if it will not attract the support of others.

7. IT TAKES TOO LONG TO BUILD A BUSINESS

Which is better; to spend thirty years in the labour market and

302 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

end up with a meager pension or spend ten years building

your own business and be financially free for life?

The choice is yours, because I don't know of any meaningful or

enduring project or venture that does not take time to be built.
You took nine months in your mother's womb being built
before you came into the world; you spent years in school
being built before you joined the labour market. You are
spending time in that job, building your career; why not also
spend time to build a business and a legacy?

8. BUILDING A BUSINESS IS TOO RISKY FOR ME

Life itself is a risk and we take risks on a daily basis.

 Going to bed is a risk because you may never wake up.
 Going out is a risk because you can be involved in an
accident.
 Eating is a risk because you may choke on it.
 Going to work is a risk because you may be sacked.
 Collecting salary or making money is a risk because it can
be lost or stolen.

We take foolish risks on a daily basis, but don't realize it's a risk
but when it comes to doing business our risk phobia antenna is
activated.

RISK-KEY; risk is a key to success in life and the level of risk

you take determines how far you go. Building a business is
risky, just as working for salary is risky but it is better to take
calculated and informed risk than blind risks.
Entrepreneurship 101 303

9. I DON'T LIKE DEALING WITH EMPLOYEES

Whether you start your own business or not, you are already
dealing with employees who are your colleagues at work apart
from having to deal with your employer-the boss.

It's so amazing to realize that when people give excuses, they

seem not to be thinking. I guess that's why it is called lame
excuses. Which is better; to deal with employees as colleagues
or to deal with them as their boss? Because dealing with
employees is a settled case and you can't run away from it.

10. I AM TOO OLD

Kentucky Fried Chicken popularly known as KFC was started

by colonel Sanders after he had retired from active duty. He
was over seventy years old when he started with his mother's
secret recipe. He never gave the excuse of being too old to start
and today KFC is a global chain and a global brand.

After the Madoff scam was uncovered, many people lost their
life savings and loads of retired elders had to go back to work.
CNN did a piece on a 92-year old Madoff's victim who has now
gone back to work in a flower shop and there are many like
him.

Don't wait for a life threatening experience to make you see

your “I am too old” as an excuse. The wisdom and experience
of your age can be developed into a product or service that can
still make a difference.

No matter your excuse, if you look around there will be people

who are in the same situation but a different result because
they choose not to give excuses. The ball is in your court.
304 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

“Until you give attention to your intention

the world will not give you attention, and
your world will stand at attention.”

Business, also known as enterprise or firm, is an organization

engaged in the trade of goods, services or both to consumers.
Simply put, anything you venture into or embark upon for the
purpose of offering product or services to people and making
profit is a business.
- Business is not a leisure.
- Business is not a game.
- Business is not a sport.
- Business is not an experiment.
- Business is not wrong.

Business involves products or services, people and profit. So if

it is not making profit, it's not fulfilling the purpose of a
business. There is a difference between business and charity.
Charity is a non-profit making venture, but business is for
profit making.

In all labour, there should be profiting either financially or

306 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

otherwise. So to be in business and not be making a profit over

a period of time is an unprofitable labour.

CLASSES OF BUSINESS

There are three different classes of business under which all

businesses fall.

1. NEGATIVE BUSINESSES

These are businesses that destroy people's lives and destroy

the society at large. Any product or service that is produced,
manufactured, distributed and sold that has negative effects
on people and places is a negative business, and one should
avoid such businesses. Armed robbers, assassins, drug
dealers, prostitutes, 419 etc., all claim to be in business but it's a
negative one.

2. POSITIVE BUSINESSES

These are the kinds of businesses we are talking about in this

context. These are business ventures that involve products and
services to meet people's needs and offer value to customers,
while also helping develop the world. There are countless
dimensions of positive businesses to go into, that negative
business should never be an option for anyone. All the skills
and effort used for negative business can be re-channeled for
positive purpose.

3. CHARITY OR KINGDOM BUSINESSES

These are also positive businesses or ventures, but they are

non-profit like churches, NGOs, foundations etc. They may
Understanding Business 101 307

also offer products or services but are not profit-making

ventures. No matter the type of business one does, it will fall
into one of these three categories, but like I said, our focus is
positive profit making businesses.

TYPES OF BUSINESSES

We have earlier examined fifteen channels of businesses and

the seven doorways into each channel, but let us look at the
types of businesses.

1. TRADING: This is a business that involves buying and

selling as a focus. You buy things and sell things; that
makes you a trader. You buy low and sell high with a
profit margin.

2. PRODUCTION BUSINESS: This is a business that

involves production and manufacturing of things for the
market. You produce and others distribute or sell for you
and the chain moves on.

3. VOCATIONAL BUSINESS: This is a business that is tied to

your vocation or career path like lawyers, doctors,
accountants etc. Like I said earlier in the book, there is a
difference between:
- Medical profession and medical business
- Law profession and law business
- Accounting profession and accounting business

One goes for salary while the other goes for income.
308 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

4. SERVICE BUSINESS: These are businesses that involve

offering services and not physical product. Here you use
your skills and ideas in exchange for money, e.g.
hairdressers, transporters, electricians, utility companies
etc.

5. SEASONAL BUSINESSES: This can be any of the above

but tied to a particular season and the success is
determined by the patronage during the season e.g.
Valentine, Christmas or Easter is a season.
Marriage, burial, childbirth etc is a season.
Winter, summer, rain, dry etc is a season.
Hosting of the World Cup, Olympics, or other big events
is a season.

There are general principles and strategies that guide and

determine the success of businesses in general and there are
also unique principles and strategies that guide specifically
each type of business.

We will examine them when we focus on how to build a

business later on in this module.
 CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

“The world has become a global village and

the internet is the village square.”

An old man lived alone in Idaho. He wanted to spade his

potato garden, but it was very hard work. His only son, Bubba,
who used to help him, was in prison. The old man wrote a
letter to his son and described his predicament.

Dear Bubba,

I am feeling pretty bad because it looks like I won't be able to

plant my potato garden this year. I'm just getting too old to be
digging up a garden plot. If you were here, all my troubles
would be over. I know you would dig the plot for me.
Love, Dad.
A few days later he received a letter from his son.
Dear Dad,
For heaven's sake, dad, don't dig up that garden, that's where I
buried the BODIES.
Love Bubba
At 4A.M. the next morning, F.B.I. agents and local police
310 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

showed up and dug up the entire area without finding any

bodies. They apologized to the old man and left. That same day
the old man received another letter from his son.
Dear Dad,
Go ahead and plant the potatoes now. That's the best I could do
under the circumstances.
Love Bubba.

Funny, but insightful, the young man did not find it very
difficult at all to generate an idea to solve his father's problem
even though it was a deceptive idea. As human being, we have
the unique potential of being able to generate ideas.

Ideas rule the world and if you look all around you, you will
realize that everything around you that makes life meaningful
and comfortable was all born out of ideas. Even you as a
person was once an idea in the creator's mind, then an idea in
your parents' minds, and now a reality in the world.

There are things that exist today but were impossibility

yesterday, and there are things that look impossible today but
will be a reality tomorrow.
- Yesterday's idea is today's reality.
- Today's idea is tomorrow's reality.

Ideas are so powerful but only those who take them serious
enough to act on them get the benefit. You may just be one idea
away from your breakthrough.

People have money sometimes but don't know what to do

because they lack ideas. There are four sets of people when it
How To Generate Business Ideas 311

comes to ideas and money;

- Those who have ideas without money
- Those who have money without ideas
- Those who have ideas and have money
- Those who have no money and no idea.

Which category do you belong to? In this chapter, as a follow-

up to the last one, I want to show you how to generate business
ideas.

1. TAKE AN EXISTING PRODUCT, ADD VALUE OR

ADDITIONAL BENEFIT TO IT AND OFFER IT AT THE
OLD PRICE OR CHEAPER

This is a very good way to generate a business idea because

even though it is an existing product, you have added value
and benefit to change the dynamics and selling it at the same
old price or cheaper gives you a strong market penetration.
This was the principle at the heart of the Japanese takeover of
the global car market, stylish automobile with electronic
gadgets but cheap.

The sachet water business in Nigeria also came out of this basic
principle, we used to buy water in cups from buckets, and now
the packaging and health protection became the added value
but still at the same price, and it boomed and became a money-
making industry.

2. TAKE AN ORDINARY PRODUCT, STRIP IT TO ITS

BASICS AND OFFER THE SUBSTANCE OF IT AT A
BASIC OR CHEAPER PRICE
312 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Have you ever bought an expensive item and you kept

unwrapping it only to discover the real product is so small
compared to the packaging that you still have to throw away;
how did you feel? If they had offered you the product cheaper
without the packaging, you will probably have preferred it.
How many times have you entered a flight without eating on
the flight or watching movies? Many airlines now sell cheap
tickets and you buy food if you want.

3. ADD OR REMOVE PACKAGING FROM A PRODUCT

OR SERVICE

Phil Knight, founder and chairman of Nike shoes took a simple

pair of old fashioned running shoes and added flash to it.
Shoes with inflammable pumps named after top basketball
stars etc and it exploded in sales. Steven Nichols on the other
hand, focused on “sensible shoes” for K Swiss. No
inflammable running shoes, no liquid filled basketball
sneakers or shoes that glow in the night, no hype, no tech. Just
plain old sensible shoes and the revenue soared. Whichever
way, this idea generation strategy works.

4. PACKAGE A “SOMETHING MADE EASY”

Before now, having a pounded yam meal was a major issue

because of the stress of preparing it. You have to peel and cut
the yam, you boil the yam, then you start pounding and it takes
an average of 90minutes to go through the process and eat a
pounded yam. Then came pounded yam made easy by
Poundo Yam Flour and 90minutes has been reduced to
20minutes by one product. To have a cup of tea, you need the
tea, then sugar, then milk, but now we have many tea made
How To Generate Business Ideas 313

easy in “3-in-1” sachets and products that contained

everything you need. Just add water and it's ready. Think of
what you too can make easy.

5. ADD SPEED OF DELIVERY TO A BASIC PRODUCT OR

SERVICE

Can you still remember the days of old generation banks in this
country, when going to bank was a whole day job due to the
manual and analog way they operated? The queues are long;
you take tally number and wait for hours before being
attended to. Sometimes you go early to take your tally number,
go and do other things, then come back later on. Then came the
new generation banks with speed by technology and
innovation, and they cornered the market. Instead of
complaining about things being slow, think of how to speed it
up. The drive-through strategies of many fast food restaurants
are built on this principle. Offering fast food instead of a-la-
ca'ta, the Mac brothers had an idea of cheap food and fast
service for those in a hurry, so was born MacDonald's. Rally
Inc caught onto the idea and segmented the idea for those in
greater hurry, so, they serve cheap burgers exclusively to
motorist through drive-through windows.

6. USE DESIGN AND PACKAGING TO ENHANCE A

BASIC APPLIANCE OR PRODUCT

Shoes are shoes but when you see some shoes you see how
design and packaging has been used to enhance shoes and
create attraction and market pull.
* Shoes with lights.
* Shoes with sounds.
314 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

* Shoes with sparkling colours etc.

Ordinary face caps and t-shirts become special when designs

and packaging are used to enhance them, and all of a sudden it
becomes a vogue, a trend and a brand.

7. USE DESIGN TO REDUCE STRESS FROM LIFE

Wrist watches stopped being alarm clocks with the

introduction of Swatch. It was simply wearable art. For the
first time, man was able to poke fun at time and love every
minute of it. Swatch was marketed as a fashion accessory, not a
functional timepiece. Almost every year or few months, a new
Swatch collection is launched.

Today, there are beds that give you feelings of 8hours sleep just
after 30minutes. There are vitamins that you take that replace
having to eat three times a day. There are all manner of
mattresses and pillows all designed to relieve stress.

8. GENERALIZE A HOARDED TECHNOLOGY OR IDEA

Apple computer Inc. hoarded its “windows” technology and

would not license it to clone makers. The windows technology
makes it easy to switch between one computer application and
another and makes computing easy with its scroll down
menus. Then enters Bill Gates; he designed a windows based
application for IBM compatible computers and mass licensed
it to other computer makers. His company, Microsoft, became
a dominant force in the market and Bill became one of the
richest men in the world. Apple had to have a rethink after
that. Teach people what you know for a fee and sell the ideas
and knowledge you have as product e.g.
How To Generate Business Ideas 315

* Learn soap making

* Learn candle making
* Learn French language etc.

Generalize it and it becomes a product or service for you.

9. OFFER BETTER VALUE BY COMBINING ATTRIBUTES

Packard Bell Electronics Inc. years ago brought out a line of

computers packed with cable ready TV, answering machine,
fax, stereo radio etc at an unbelievable bargain price.

Seiko message watch will give you the stock market index,
sports scores and weather report.

Apple product especially the iPad is a combination of many

things in one. Same with many of today's mobile handsets;
they have clocks, diaries, calendars, calculators, organizers,
cameras, address books, music players, videos etc., all in one
product. And come to think of it, Coca Cola is basically
carbonated water combined with sugar, citric acid, flavouring
etc and imaginative marketing.

10. LOOK FOR A NEED AND FILL IT

If you need something and you can't find it or somebody is not

doing it well, fill the gap by meeting the need. The marketplace
today is filled with all kinds of products that came as a result of
people seeing needs and deciding to meet those needs. My
training/seminar company, my media company and even the
publishing company are all built on this basic principle of
meeting needs e.g. I realized that even though many people
organise all kinds of seminars, it was not affordable to the
316 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

majority and many of the audio products on success, finance,

personal development, and wealth creation in the country
were from foreign speakers. I decided to package free
seminars for the untapped market and began to produce audio
and video product into the market, it caught on like wild fire
and today many have copied the idea.

11. SOLVE PROBLEMS FOR PEOPLE

The world is filled with over seven billion people who all have
problems, some general, and some specific. There are different
problems on ground that need attention and solution, and
ideas can be generated along that line. Losing weight and
staying in shape is a problem for millions of people all over the
world and an entire industry has been built around solving
that problem. Learning other languages is a problem for
millions. Another industry has emerged to solve that problem.
Stress was a problem and many needed to relax and laugh,
then came comedy to help with stress and boredom, and
another industry is born. Money hides in problems and
anywhere you see problems, solving it is always a good idea.

12. BRING OUT INSPIRATIONAL PRODUCTS

The difficult times we are in have made mess of economic

theories and many financial “experts” are confused. Man is
today looking beyond himself for hope, comfort and
encouragement. Nations are in dire straits and the days are
perilous. Necessity they say, is the mother of invention, but I
say the creator is the source and origin of all inventions and
inspiration flows from him. Any product that stands for well
proven and time honoured values will strike a chord in man.
How To Generate Business Ideas 317

Inspirations are downloaded on a consistent basis from the

creator and those who are sensitive will capture it, act on it and
produce inspirational products and services.

PICKING THE IDEA THAT FITS YOU

There are all kinds of ideas that floats in the air and in your
head, picking the one that fits you is therefore very vital
because you cannot do everything or pursue every idea.

Let this guide you.

1. Check Your Background, Experience And Acquired

Skills.

Do a SWOT analysis on yourself to discover your

strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Have a
time, thinking for insight by hindsight for foresight. And
remember you cannot succeed in what you are not gifted,
talented, anointed or trained for.

2. Choose What You Enjoy Doing

What you call your pet idea or hobby is a pointer to where

your real passion is and you should choose ideas that fit
into that flow because then you will be making money
doing what you love and pursuing your passion, and that
is an amazing way to live your life instead of spending
years or decades doing what you don't love.

3. Choose A Need That People Can't Do Without

Operating within the basic need of man sectors is a

wining idea any day, anytime, anywhere.
318 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Food- people will always eat no matter what.

Clothing- people will always need to cloth themselves in

life.

Shelter- people will always need a shelter over their

heads.

Security- people will always need security for life and

property etc.

I have given you 15 channels and 7 doorways into each

channel earlier. 15 X 7 = 105. Your options are now wider.

4. Pick Ideas Relevant To Buoyant Sector Of The Economy

And Avoid Distressed Sector

Can you imagine a man importing a container load of

Olympia typewriter or going into fax machine business in
today's world. Of course failure is inevitable. So also is
anyone who goes into distressed sector of the economy. It
will be like joining a bus when it is arriving at its final
destination.

5. Consider Import And Export

Importation of things into the country is a viable idea

option any day while exportation is the same. All you
need is to do your research, market survey and business
plan very well before you embark on either.

Lets' move on and deal with a very vital aspect of

entrepreneurship-Raising Capital.
 CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

“A tree does not make a forest but every forest

begins with a tree.”

Capital! Capital! Capital! “How do I raise capital for my

business idea or how do I raise more capital?” Are regular
questions in my seminars all over the world. People tend to
think that money is the capital they need and so they keep
looking for “money” when they most often already have what
they need.

WHAT IS CAPITAL?

Anything required of you to start, expand, diversify or

consolidate your business venture is called a capital in my
dictionary, and it does not necessarily have to be money. The
creator created the whole world without money, so he must
have possessed some other forms of capital. There are different
types of capital I have identified that one needs, and they are
all very important.
Idea Capital - Money without idea is still incomplete.
Integrity Capital - Money without integrity is still incomplete.
Experience Capital - Money without experience is still incomplete.
320 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Spiritual Capital - Money without spiritual power is still

incomplete.
Emotional Capital - Money without emotional strength is still
incomplete.
Material Capital - Money without right material is still incomplete.
Human Capital - Money without right personnel is still
incomplete.
Relational Capital - Money without good will and networks is still
incomplete.
Physical Capital - Money without sound health is still incomplete.
Financial Capital - Money, which is also important but not
exclusive.

Even though money is important, millions of people have

started business with little or no money at all, some started
with the idea, some leveraged on their integrity, experience, or
relationship. You don't need money to start a business, every
time you think you need money, your mind closes to other
possibilities. Remember things we have shared earlier about
what money really is and the principles “ALL YOU NEED IS
WHAT YOU NEED.”

You can start from where you are with what you have, and
grow to the highest height because the destiny of your
business is not determined by the size of capital you start with.
I have seen people start with lots of money and they still went
under, and I have seen people start with next to nothing and
they succeeded in their venture.
How To Raise Capital For Your Business 321

WHY DO YOU NEED CAPITAL?

Another question you need answers to after knowing what

you mean by capital and the kinds of capital you need is why
you need the capital. Knowing why you need the capital
matters a lot because it affects your approach and the response
you get. There are four major reasons why you may need
capital in business.

1. Startup Capital

You may need capital to start a business and that is called

a Startup Capital. This is sometimes challenging because
you have no track record yet, and you are taking a risky
plunge.

2. Expansion Capital

When you have started your business and you need to

expand to meet the needs of the growing customers or
buy machines and equipment to increase your output,
then the capital you need is called Expansion Capital.

3. Consolidation Capital

When your business has expanded and you want to bring

everything together and consolidate on all your different
aspects or areas of operation. Like building an
headquarters or factory to house all you do, then the
capital you need is called Consolidation Capital.

4. Diversification Capital

When your business begins to go national or global, and

322 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

you need to diversify into other markets or regions, when

you want to start other subsidiaries of your business
either for backward or forward integration, then the
capital you need is called Diversification Capital.

You may think this is grammar and all you need is money, but
that will be a myopic view because what a man that is
expanding can do and afford, a startup should never try.
Having laid this foundation, I want to now go into how to raise
financial capital for your business. If you have identified
financial capital as what you need and not other forms of
capital as earlier started, then there are few options to explore.

You can use either one or a combination of options to achieve

your goal, and you can use them for any dimension or type of
capital you are looking for.

TWENTY CAPITAL SOURCES

1. PERSONAL SAVING

You cannot go wrong with savings. If you have developed a

savings culture and practice the 30:70 principle, you will be
able to save towards starting your own business. Even if the
money you have saved is not enough, it would be easier for
you to get the support of others because you have shown
seriousness and commitment through your personal savings.

No one can believe in your dreams more than you, and if you
are not willing to invest in your dreams, why should others
do? When you approach people for financial help, they will
always ask you how much of the amount you need you
already have and when you say “Nothing”, they don't take
How To Raise Capital For Your Business 323

you serious enough to deserve help.

2. FAMILY AND FRIENDS

When you need money and your personal savings cannot do

the job, then your next option will be to turn to family and
friends. If you already have some of the money, it will really
help to gain their support. Look around you and come up with
names of the people in your family or among your friends that
you can meet for assistance towards your business dream.

Assuming you need a million, look for people in the following

categories:
10 people that can give you 100 thousand each = A million
20 people that can give you 50 thousand each = A million
40 people that can give you 25 thousand each = A million
Or the other way around
5 people that can you give 200 thousand each = A million
2 people that can give you 500 thousand each = A million
1 person that can give you the 1 million

If you don't have any family or friend that can assist you at all,
then you have a greater problem called relationship poverty.

3. MENTORS AND ANGEL INVESTORS

There are mentors and angel investors that are available to

invest in business as venture capitalists, high net worth
executives and corporate organizations are high on this list,
because they see potentials and opportunities and buy into it at
the onset. There are also some individuals who believe in
324 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

helping people achieve their dreams and they are willing and
able to become investors and venture capitalists for young
businesses or startups. Do you have mentors in your life that
believe in you enough to invest in your dreams? Are you
connected or know people that are connected to high net
worth executives or venture capitalists that you can approach?

Prepare a good business plan, arrange a meeting or fix an

appointment with them to share your business idea and seek
for their support, you never know what you can achieve until
you try, so try it first and you will be amazed at the
opportunities out there.

4. SELLING YOUR LIABILITIES/ ASSETS

We all have assets and liabilities in our homes that we can

exchange for money no matter how small. If you need capital,
then look inwards and find out the following:
Are there things you have that you can do without? make a
list.
Are there things you have that you can exchange for money? -
Make a list.
Are there things you have that are valuables? Make a list.
Are there things you have that you can sacrifice to start your
business? Make a list.
When you make a list of all these things, find out the market
value and if they can help your dream, which I believe will be
the case, then, sell them to invest in your dream business, and
when your business stabilizes you can always replace those
things.
How To Raise Capital For Your Business 325

5. PARTNERSHIP

Partnership with like-minded people to do business can be a

very powerful advantage if you get the right person to partner
with. Like I said earlier, there are four sets of people when it
comes to money and ideas, and one of them is those who have
IDEA WITHOUT MONEY. If you have idea without money,
you can partner with those who have the money. You bring
your idea, they bring the money.

A lot of people have money but don't have the time to go into
business on their own but they will be willing to partner with
genuine people. High net worth executives, retirees, Venture
Capitalist etc all fall into the category of people you can partner
with. Please do note that if you ever decide to go into
partnership, you must do the following:
 Have a legal contract in place;
 Have exit clauses in place;
 Be sure you flow, blend, get along or connect with the
person;
 Do your due diligence and spell out responsibilities,
authorities and expectations.

Though a lot of people run from partnerships, but if they do get

it right, it works.

6. GRANTS

I was speaking at a conference in Botswana some years back,

and one of the delegates saw me after the session to share her
challenge. She was qualified for a government grant that was
set up to help young people start up a business but she did not
326 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

know what kind of business to do.

I helped her out but could not help but wonder how ironic life
can be. Here is someone who has access to grant but did not
know what to do, and there are grants both locally and
internationally that you can access for start-up capital or
otherwise.

Different governments have different provisions, some other

humanitarian organizations also have grants in place. Some
are only for women, some for youth, some for specific
businesses or sectors etc. Go online and do a research on the
grant opportunities in your country and beyond.

7. COOPERATIVE AND THRIFT

One very old yet relevant way of raising capital is the

cooperative and thrift strategy. Our predecessors have used
this to leverage their financial journey in life. Joining a
cooperative society is very good because:
 It gives you access to network with others.
 It gives you access to opportunities and education.
 It gives you the discipline to save.
 It gives you access to loans at cheaper rate with less
stringent conditions.
 It gives you access to cooperative effort to wealth creation
and assets acquisition.
 It gives you access to grants, venture capital and angel
investor, which is only accessible in few cooperatives.

Getting a team together to join you in a monthly thrift

How To Raise Capital For Your Business 327

contribution is also a powerful yet easier way to access funds.

8. GRATUITY AND SEASONAL BENEFIT

We all have different seasons in our life when some benefits

come to us both in cash and kind, and if we are wise and
strategic about it, we can leverage them for capital.
 Christmas season
 Birthday season
 Anniversary season
 End of year bonus
 Profit sharing bonus
 Target/performance bonus etc.

These can all be annual opportunities to save money towards

your dream and at worst you use your gratuity to do that, but I
don't expect you to wait that long when other avenues can be
utilized. The unfortunate thing is that when people get special
bonuses, they don't see it as something to channel towards
savings, investments and wealth creation, but they use it to
acquire liabilities or waste it.

9. TRADE BY BARTER

It's amazing how easy it is for people to forget or discard

things. Do you know trade by barter still operates in today's
world? And you can use what you have to get what you want?
 I know of people who have gotten free office space in
exchange for their professional services.
 I know of people who have gotten cars, generators etc for
the same.
328 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

 I even know of a man who used a land to exchange for a

business.

Be creative, think outside the box, and you will be amazed at

what you can still do with trade by barter in today's world.

10. BANK FACILITIES:

There are a lot of facilities and products in the bank that you
can access for capital both for short-term and long-term
purposes.
 Overdraft
 Lease Finance
 Micro Finance
 Loans etc.

Many do not qualify for bank facilities due to their inability to

meet up with the five C's of credit that banks use to determine
who qualifies:
 Collateral, i.e. what you have as security against default.
 Climate, i.e. economic climate in your environment.
 Capacity to repay, i.e. your ability to pay back.
 Character, i.e. their fico score/credit score.
 Capital Injection from you, i.e. how much you are
investing yourself.

These are five factors used to rate you, but many don't even
know that. I have spoken about good debt and bad debt, but
NO DEBT is still better than GOOD DEBT, however, if you
choose to take a loan be sure you have done your accounting
very well.
How To Raise Capital For Your Business 329

I will advice that if you are just about to start a business, avoid
starting with loans because it may be too much load to bear
and may kill your business at infancy, however, for expansion
or consolidation, it's okay since you already know the strength
of the business.

11. INSURANCE PAY OFFS

There are lots of insurance products today that have

investment dimensions to them and they give returns
periodically to policy holders, some even pay you commission
for referrals. Whether it's annual payoffs or periodic like every
2 years or every 5 years, it can still help to raise funds. God
forbid, but sometimes crises can lead to insurance payoff that
will be a great leverage. But since one has no control over that,
it is only a probability.

I remember a minister friend in Atlanta whose church

basement pipe burst into the place they use for worship and
destroyed many things, by the time they got the insurance
money, he was surprised because it was even enough for them
to move to a bigger and better place. Like I said, that is just a
probability, wisdom demands that you live your life by
principles but give room for exceptions, and not the other way
round.

12. NGOS/NON PROFITS

There are Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and Non

Profit Organizations that are set up for the purpose of training
and empowering young aspiring entrepreneurs. They train
you and they give you financial assistance to start your
business if you have a good business plan. The internet is there
330 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

to help you do your research and fish out such opportunities

because they exist, trust me they do exist.

Are you aware of the “JGI” formula? J.G.I is an acronym for

“Just Google It”. The world has become a global village; the
internet is the village square; and Google is one of the read
maps. Whatever you need to know, Just Google It and it will
open up to you.

13. MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS

Do you know you can acquire a whole company for next to

nothing to save it from going under? Do you know you can
merge with another company to get all you need to expand
and consolidate without having to spend money? Do you
know that for every business you want to start, there are
people in that business already that are looking for an escape
route?

If you do your homework, you can get someone who is already

in your intended business but wants to quit, and you can take
over the business and still pay him from the proceed of the
business over time without bringing in any money at all. I have
consulted for people and seen this done over and over again;
don't close your mind to possibilities because the possibilities
out there are many.

14. SELL THE IDEA

 People sell songs.
 People sell scripts.
 People sell manuscripts.
 People sell designs and patterns.
How To Raise Capital For Your Business 331

 People sell information.

 People sell business plan etc.

What is the idea you have that you want to build into a
business? Consider selling the idea to raise funds to execute
other ideas or even the same idea in a different market, sector,
or format. I am an author and I have been privileged to write
well over forty books with over thirty of them already
published both locally and internationally. I have had offers to
sell some of the manuscripts and could have done that for
some regions and still retain the right to publish it in other
regions. Don't fall in love with an idea too much to let it go if
need be: You can always receive and pursue other ideas when
the money comes.

15. START WITH THE IDEA

Ideas rule the world, and does not need money to do that,
because it can attract money and become money when
executed. Not all ideas require money to start, some just need
you to take action and then money flows. I have numerous
testimonials of people who have started with their idea
without money and they have made it. You don't need money
to start out in many fields; you just need talent, knowledge,
skill, idea, energy etc.

16. MARKETING FOR COMMISSION

Commission based sales and marketing is another way to raise

funds for your business. Today there are all kinds of internet
marketing opportunity you can explore in your spare time and
from the comfort of your home. Many companies also have
332 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

their warehouses filled with loads and they will gladly

welcome marketers and sales people who can help them
offload it on a commission basis. We have commissioned sales
agents in our organization that make money on a consistent
basis. Last year alone we had eleven people who became
millionaires through the commission we paid them. If you
know what to do, you can have opportunities like that no
matter where you reside.

17. SELLING SHARES

All over the world this has been the major way that big
corporations use to create wealth and raise capital. They can
do this via:
 Private placement: - selling your company shares to a
select group of investors to raise funds.
 Public offer: - Selling your company shares to the general
public to raise funds.
If you want to expand your thriving business
- selling shares will work.
If you want to consolidate your thriving business
- selling shares will work.
If you want to diversify your thriving business
- selling shares will work.

It can also work if you want to start, and you have a good
business plan with great potential to succeed, but you will
have to settle for a private placement at this stage.
How To Raise Capital For Your Business 333

18. CREATIVE FINANCE

I believe very strongly in thinking outside the box, and before

you ever discard an idea as impossible or unrealistic, at least
try it, and explore it first. There is no harm in trying and you
never know what you can achieve until you try. More so, it is
better to fail doing something than to succeed doing nothing.

Using other people's money is creative finance, and it only

requires you to be a person of integrity and credibility. People
can pay you upfront for a product or service and you use their
money to provide them what they need. You just need to be
creative and credible.

I have used creative finance in our real estate company for

years, and we have been able to move from estate one to estate
five as at this writing without using any of our own money. It is
doable.

19. SEEK COUNSEL/CONSULTANCY

Money is not the paper currency or cards you have in your

pocket or purse, at least you know that much now. So when
you need capital, one way to get it is by seeking counsel or
engaging a consultant who specializes in helping raise funds
or capital so they can help put you in the right direction.
 They can help you define what you really need.
 They can help you locate and enjoy unique opportunities.
 They can help you achieve your plan and goals.

Many look but only few people see, and counselors and
consultants can help you see.
334 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

20. POSITION YOURSELF FOR A MIRACLE

You should know by now that I believe in the supernatural,

and I consider it a miseducation not to inform you of this
possibility. I have employed supernatural supply and
provisions in different aspects of my life, and we have
testimonies of financial miracles in our group. I believe in
tithing (giving at least 10% of my income to the
creator/Charity).

I believe in sacrificial giving and sowing seeds of faith. Your

future is in your seed, and if what you have is not enough to
take care of your need, you sometimes need to just sow it as a
seed and position yourself for a miracle. I believe in miracle
and you should too.

The twenty ways to raise capital we have explored is definitely

not exhaustive, and you need to do more study and research
on each of them to better explore. Don't also forget that the
kind of capital you need will determine which of the channels
you explore.

I have seen this information help numerous people, our CD on

this topic is one of the bestsellers we have, and many have
come back with results.
 CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

“Life is like riding a bicycle, to keep your

balance, you must keep moving.”

A lot of people desire to go into business but feel they don't

have the time, so they keep procrastinating and sometimes
settle to only start after they retire. Whatever business you
plan to go into can be done on a part-time basis and still be
successful, you only need to know how to do it.

I have seen part-time businesses become mega businesses just

because those involved knew what to do and how to manage
it. Wisdom demands that before you quit your paid
employment and launch out into business fully, you should
start out part-time and test the water before you plunge in
fully. Many out of zeal without knowledge and the delusion of
grandeur have left well paying jobs to launch businesses they
were not fully prepared for.

To be on the same page, let's clarify what a part-time business

really means in this context. Any business that takes more than
60% of your time and energy is not qualified to be called part
time but is already full time.
336 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

A PART-TIME BUSINESS IS ANY VENTURE THAT TAKES

ONLY 10-20% OF YOUR TIME AND ENERGY PER DAY,
WEEK OR MONTH.

A PART TIME BUSINESS IS ANY VENTURE THAT IS NOT

WHAT YOU DO OR FOCUS ON PRIMARILY, BUT ONLY
DOES BY THE SIDE AS A SECONDARY THING.

Doing business part time does not mean it will not succeed,
because I have seen part-time businesses that do well more
than some so called full time businesses.

TEN SUCCESS STRATEGIES

1. Draw Up A Realistic Plan Ahead

Before you go into any business, whether full time or part-

time, you need to have a realistic plan in place. Do your
research, market survey, feasibility study and business
plan. If you fail to plan, you have already planned to fail,
and it is proper preparation that prevents poor
performance, with a good, realistic plan in place, you can
now launch out.

2. Be Ready To Give The Business Quality Mind

Attention

You don't have to be physically present in the business

but the business has to be given quality mind attention -
MIND YOUR BUSINESS. Putting your mind where your
passion is helps things move smoothly. Hard work is not
enough without smart work. What you put your mind to
will do better than what you ignore; so you need to have
some specific time you give to thinking and strategizing
How To Do Business Part-Time And Succeed 337

about your business.

3. Sometimes It Is Best To Do It As A Part-time Or Joint

Venture

Depending on the nature of the business and the

peculiarity of your own schedule and other
responsibilities, you may want to do your part-time
business in partnership with someone that will manage
things on a full-time basis. The Joint Venture arrangement
may suit you best because the manager also has a stake in
the business and this will make him/her committed to
making it work. Don't forget some of the tips we shared
on partnership in the last chapter, they will also come in
handy if you do decide to do a Joint Venture.

4. Allow Your Staff To Have Stakes In The Business

Everybody is selfish to a certain degree, because the law

of self-preservation makes every human being to be
conscious of themselves and do everything they can to
preserve themselves. This is what activates the survival
instincts in many when needed. When the people that
work for you see themselves in the future because of the
picture and provision you make, they will be committed.
Why do you think people give 20-40 years of their life to a
company or organization? They see pension, gratuity and
benefit in the future.
* Equity Ownership
* Profit sharing
* Performance bonus
* Freedom of expression
338 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

This will go a long way in keeping the staff loyal, faithful

and committed.

5. Put Quality Control Measures In Place

Everyone has the tendency to be out of control when you

don't put control measures in place and set boundaries.
Don't just trust blindly or delegate blindly, set control
measures in place to control time, work and resources.
Time - Timesheets, movement register or charts etc.
Work - Job sheet, target charts, reports etc.
Resources - Cash flow audit, stocks monitoring, asset
files and monitors, internal control measures etc.
Have a staff handbook or ethics, protocol and policy
documents, etc, to guide the workforce. Even though you
are doing it part-time, you must not lose control.

6. Get Current Information About Your Field/industry

We live in a changing world and you have to stay current

to be current. If you try to use yesterday's information to
tackle today's challenge, you may hit a brick wall. Read
books, attend seminars, go for training, subscribe to
journals, manuals and magazines particular to your
industry.

My wife runs an event planning company and has

subscribed to some magazines about the industry both
locally and internationally, and you will be amazed at
how much information and tips that flow in every month
How To Do Business Part-Time And Succeed 339

and they keep her current in the field. If you are not
updated, you will become outdated.

7. Create Seasons Of Full-time Attention

Even though it is a part-time business, you need to create

some seasons and time that you give full-time attention to
the business. Not just mind attention this time but
physical attention. Depending on the kind of work you do
primarily and the kind of business you run part- time,
you can do some of the following:
- Evening:
Going to your own business after closing from work.
- Weekends:
Using your weekends to focus on your business.
- Public Holidays or off days:
dedicating these times to your business.
- Annual Leave:
When on leave from work, you can focus on your business.

Think and do what works best for you. Just make sure you
make time for full time attention.

8. Delegate And Outsource Some Roles

If there are vital areas of the business you cannot find staff
to handle or don't have any clue about, then you can
outsource them to other companies.
You can outsource your Accounting and Book keeping.
You can outsource your Stocktaking and inventory
control.
340 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

You can outsource your storage, transportation, security

etc.
You can outsource your marketing, sales, publishing and
P.R.
You can outsource your tax and legal matters etc.

The list is endless but no matter what you need done,

there are companies out there you can outsource it to, you
just need to find them.

9. Don't Starve Or Overstuff The Business With Money

You need to apply wisdom and balance when it comes to

funding the business. In being too careful, you may end
up starving the business of money because you don't
want to be defrauded, and sometimes because you want
to see the business succeed you may also end up stuffing
it with too much money, loads, or inventory, and that
itself is also a problem. Make sure you balance things.

No matter the level of your part-time business, give

accounting and bookkeeping a priority and also do a
periodic or annual audit to be sure all is well and going
according to your plan. The books help you see the state
of things before they go wrong or out of hand.

10. Network Powerfully

To succeed in part-time business, make sure you network

powerfully with people in your field of business, other
entrepreneurs etc., and if you can, you should join some
associations and business groups' e.g.
How To Do Business Part-Time And Succeed 341

>> Chamber of Commerce

>> Professional Bodies
>> Sector association etc.

You need to network accurately, powerfully, and

effectively, because it will greatly enhance your chance of
success. Remember your NETWORTH IS DETERMINED
BY YOUR NETWORK.

No matter your kind of business or the sector you operate in,

the ten strategies above will help you succeed, and I have
shared this with thousands of people in my seminars for years,
and we have success stories.

HOW TO TURN SEASONAL BUSINESS TO ALL YEAR

ROUND BUSINESS

A special season is a period when something extraordinary or

unique happens. There are annual seasons, periodic seasons
and unique seasons etc.
 Winter season
 Summer season
 Rainy season
 Dry season
 Easter season
 Muslim season
 Christmas season
 Independence season
 Valentine season etc.
342 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

If your business is tied to seasons, you need to know how to

manage things and be creative to stay in business. There are
some businesses that can only function for few months in a
year due to unique circumstances but for others, you can use
innovation to keep things moving in season and out of season.

1. Create Different Seasons Out Of The Year

You can create different seasons out of the year by being

creative and innovative with your products or service.
Out of the box thinking is needed to make it in any
business in today's world.

2. Offer Incentives For Off Season Purchases

You can do sales or offer discounts for purchases made at

off peak or off season periods to keep the customers
coming. Offering incentives will motivate some people to
patronize you and keep you in business.

3. Target Seasons In The Life Of Individuals

You can target seasons in the life of individuals to keep

your business moving. Birthdays, weddings,
anniversaries, burials, house warming, baby dedication
etc, are all seasons in people's lives that happen on a daily
basis all through the year.

4. Turn Landmarks Of Corporate Bodies Into Seasons

Corporate organizations like individuals also have

special seasons and landmark days or event; you can also
capitalize on that to keep your own business moving:
How To Do Business Part-Time And Succeed 343

>> Corporate Events

>> Product launch
>> Company anniversary etc.

The opportunities are there, you only need to explore them.

5. Create Different Products For Different Seasons

If your product or service is seasonal, you can come up

with other product for other seasons and customize them
for that period. Instead of having one product or service,
you end up with other products and different customized
services.

You can win always, so get to work!

344 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

“Don't settle for less; those ahead of you

didn't settle and that's why they are ahead;
and those behind you need not settle for less
and that's why you should motivate them.”

Bankruptcy or failure is never the dream, hope or expectation

of any business person, but many, unfortunately end up there.
Over 80% of businesses fail in the first five years, and another
80% of the remaining 20% also fail in the next five years. So to
see a business that has survived ten years make it a unique
business with stories to tell and lessons to teach.

I have had my own share of failure in business, and I can tell

you from experience that it is not something anyone should
have to experience. When you hear of business success stories
or read reports and study charts of businesses, no one tells you
of challenges that can bring the business down; neither will the
charts show the bumps on the way:
 When sales go down;
 When trusted and reliable staff leave;
 When production is stopped due to a faulty machine;
 When there are national or local strikes that shut you
down;
346 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

 When the government policy or economic climate affects

you etc.

In this chapter, I am going to be dealing with:

 Why businesses fail.
 How to avoid bankruptcy.
 Warning signals to note.
 Tips for surviving the valleys and storms.
 How to come out successfully etc.

There is no business that fails overnight; it always takes time

and go through a process, but if you are adequately informed,
you will be well equipped not to fail. There are many reasons
why businesses fail, but due to space constraint; I want to deal
with twenty of them in this chapter.

TWENTY REASONS FOR FAILURE

1. Lack Of A Strong Vision, Purpose Or Passion

Why are you in business? Do you have a strong vision,

purpose or passion for being in business? This will go a
long way to affect how far you go because a lot of people
just go into business for many wrong reasons like we have
examined previously in this module. It takes a strong
vision to keep strategizing and moving on; it takes a
strong purpose to stay focused and avoid distraction; it
takes strong passion to pay the price and make the
sacrifices necessary for business success. If your reason
for being in business is not tenable but fickle and flimsy,
you will not be able to handle the responsibilities and face
the challenges.
Why Businesses Fail And The Way Out 347

2. Failure To Organize Little Details

Detail determines destiny, and big doors swings on small

hinges, there are little things that people take for granted
that can make a business fail. These little foxes can spoil
the whole vine, just like a hole in the ship can sink the
heavy ship if not blocked; little details can make a lot of
difference. Remember that years are made of seconds-
because it was seconds that became minutes that became
hours that became days that became weeks that became
months that became years. e.g., forgetting to lock the door
to the lion's cage, the lion got out, killed six people and led
to the closure of a multimillion dollar zoo. Little things
matter.

3. Lack of Loyalty

A disloyal employer or employee can kill a business.

Many businesses fail because an employee or groups of
employees are not loyal to the business, hence they
sabotage the business, defraud the company, divert
business and treat customers poorly. Many businesses
have gone belly up for this reason alone and that is why
great care must be taken during the hiring process for
staff and control measures should be put in place, to curb
excuses and avoid damage to the business.

I know a man whose business went under because he was

defrauded by his store keeper, they took stocks of cartons
in the warehouse without double checking the contents,
and the storekeeper went on leave and took off from there
only for them to discover later that the cartons in the
348 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

warehouse were empty cartons.

4. Misplacement

A lot of businesses fail because people are misplaced in

business, due to lack of proper research, due diligence
and preparation, people sometimes go into business that
does not fit their personality and skill set, or they employ
people to fill sensitive positions that they are not wired
for, and then things go wrong. If you are misplaced you
will be displaced, and like we have said few times earlier,
you cannot succeed in what you are not gifted, talented,
anointed or trained for. Don't put round pegs in square
hole when staffing your business and don't also put
yourself in a business or a sector where you don't fit into
or else you will attract failure and your business will go
under. Round peg must be in round hole and square peg
in square hole for business to go smoothly.

5. Lack of Personal Development

A lot of businesses fail because the business owners lack

self development. The world has become a global village
and information and continual education is key to
staying relevant. You must continually invest in your
personal development and the training of your team and
workforce. You have to be committed to continual
learning or else you will be evicted from business success.
>> Develop yourself.
>> Develop your team.
>> Develop your workforce.
>> Develop your business itself.
Why Businesses Fail And The Way Out 349

Learn new things, get current information and apply them

continually.

6. Lack Of Service, Connection, And Contacts

Who did you serve or learn from before going into that
business?
Who mentored you or who is mentoring you in business?
Who do you know (contacts) and who are you connected
to?

To succeed in business, you need mentors in your field

that you can learn and continue to learn from. You need to
join the right networks and associations in your sector to
get connected, stay connected and make contacts. I
remember the story of a lawyer that complained about
not getting assistance from senior lawyers in a bar
association meeting. An elderly, more experienced
lawyer, gave him his card and asked him to visit him the
next day. When he got there, the man held his hands and
they walked down the road to have lunch. This was
repeated everyday for one week and the young lawyer
was wondering what help the daily walk and lunch will
do for him because he was expecting referrals, but by the
next week his phone started ringing and clients started
calling. His association with the elderly lawyer has
brought him credibility and changed things for him.
Imagine what would have been if he had served with the
elderly lawyer before going solo.
350 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

7. Competition

Competition is good for business but has led to the

closure of many businesses because they have been
forced out of the market by competition.
>> Competition brings out the best in you
>> Competition attracts attention to your industry
>> Competition should be expected in business
Don't be afraid of competition. Don't say the market is too
crowded, and don't take competitions for granted,
because they can edge you out. Be creative and
innovative to win over competition.
 You can take over a segment of the market largely ignored
by others
 You can approach the same market with a different
strategy

No matter what, just realize that competition in business

is real, and they can make you fail. You cannot succeed in
business without spiritual power, so you must be ahead
of your competitors by drawing from the Creator's divine
power.

8. Lack Of Order
Where there is no order, there will be disorder and chaos.
As a business, there are rules of engagement and laws to
abide by. To ignore, disobey or flout those laws will lead
to failure.
 Statutory obligations like taxes, annual returns etc must
be in order so as not to run foul of the law and risk failure.
Why Businesses Fail And The Way Out 351

 Moral laws of integrity, equity, justice etc must be in

order, or else you face challenges that will bring you
down.
 Spiritual law of sowing and reaping, cause and effect, etc
must also be put in order.
 Staff obligation and obligation to customer must also be in
order.

When you do all you need to do in an orderly manner, you

will be okay, but if not, it can lead to failure.

9. Lack of Experience

Serving others before stepping out on your own is vital.

Submitting to mentoring in your area of business is vital.

Getting training and experience in whatever you want to

do is vital.

A lot of people fail in business because they have no

experience of how to do business, or are ignorant of the
trade secrets in the business they go into. Every business
has trade secrets and industry secrets that are not known
to just anyone, and you don't discover these secrets as a
surface operator. That is why mentors, serving others,
market research etc is not negotiable if you want to make
it in business.
Do you have a good experience of the business?
Do you know the trade secrets?

There are things people do in secret that makes them

352 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

shine in the open, and you need to know what they know
to shine the way they shine.

10. Poor Location

In real estate business, one thing we take serious is

location, location, location, location, but that is not
limited to real estate alone, because, if your business is
wrongly located, it can lead to failure.

In business, depending on your product or service,

customers should be able to easily locate you or else they
look for alternatives. In today's world if you don't have a
website, you are poorly located. You need a website
address to be relevant in today's world as the internet will
be the market of the 21st century.

Before going into business, find out who your target

customers are, find out where they are, and find out
where to locate yourself to reach them. A poor location
can kill your business faster than you think.

11. Unexpected Growth

How can unexpected growth kill a business? Because it is

UNEXPECTED. Unexpected growth is unprepared for
and so brings a business down if they cannot adjust fast to
catch up with the growth. Your rate of learning must be
greater than the rate of change in your world for you to
stay relevant, so also the level of preparation, capacity
and resources must be greater than the level of growth for
you to stay afloat.

If your space and production can only handle say 500

Why Businesses Fail And The Way Out 353

customers a week and you get 500 customers per day. The
number of disappointed customers will keep increasing
while those who come back will keep reducing, before
you know it, the business is closed because the news is
out that you cannot handle customers. Building
momentum in business is very vital, and to lose
momentum is terrible.

12. Insufficient Capital

Like unexpected growth, insufficient capital limits you
and incapacitates your business.
You need money to buy equipment but don't have - bad
You need money to rent equipment but don't have - bad
You need money to get raw materials to produce but don't
have - bad
You need money to advertise your product but don't have
- bad
You need money to pay suppliers but don't have - bad
You need money to build inventory but don't have - bad
You need money to pay salaries but don't have - bad
You need money to handle overheads but don't have -
bad

Business needs cash flow to stay afloat, and once funds

are not sufficient and it persists, it paralyses and kills the
business.

13. Over-Investment in Fixed Asset

I have seen people make this mistake over and over again
354 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

in their businesses; they invest all their cash on fixed

assets, and end up with nothing to produce their product
or run the business. They rent office space, furnish it, buy
generator etc and have an excellent office but now no
money to produce. What is the benefit of a factory with all
the state of the art equipment but no money to buy raw
material for production, or no money to do marketing
and publicity.

Cash flow is the lifeblood of any business, and like I said

earlier in this book, I have come to learn that lesson in
business. Our real estate business is an asset but millions
are tied down in the estates because the land is not liquid,
and if we don't have other businesses that produce cash
flow it can cause problem. You must be very wise in the
way you use your cash and manage your cash flow
because over-investment in fixed assets that cannot be
turned to cash easily or produce cash flow can sink you.

14. Personal Use of Business Fund

Are you in business for survival to have what to eat, or are

you in business to build something that will outlive you?
Lack of financial discipline and integrity on the part of the
business owner can spell doom for the business. To be a
good business person, you must separate yourself from
your business.

Your personal account must be separated from your

business account, and you should not use the business
funds for personal use to the detriment of your business. I
always advise business people to always reinvest their
business profit into the business until the business
Why Businesses Fail And The Way Out 355

stabilizes, so as to create a strong base for the business to

survive any challenge.

Don't eat up your future today due to immaturity and

wasteful spending. Delay gratification, separate yourself
from the business and watch the way you spend the
business funds. As big as Enron was, it could not survive
the fund mismanagement and so was Oceanic,
Intercontinental and many other Nigerian banks.

15. Low Sales And Lack Of Customers

Every business is in existence to make sales and make

money, and to do that, you need customers. If the
business therefore has low sales or lack customers, the
end is definitely near. You need customers, more
customers, repeat customers, regular customers, paying
customers, increased sales, profitable sales etc to break
even and stay in business.

When you hear the saying that “customer is king” or

“customer is always right” that is what they mean
because they matter to your survival in business, and
should therefore be treated right, and marketing and
sales should be a vital part of your business.

16. Lack of Publicity and Awareness

Good Product + Bad publicity = Bad sales
Bad Product + Good Publicity = Some Sales
Good Product + Good Publicity = Great Sales

No matter how good your product or service, if people are

not aware you exist, you will die in secret and never see
356 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

the light of day. Publicity is very vital to create the

awareness needed to attract customers and generate
sales. Any money you spend to create awareness and
publicize your product is not a waste.

Many businesses have gone under because they think

that just having a good product or service is all they need
and they learn too late after going under.

17. Poor Credit Management

To owe money and be unable to pay is trouble
To be owed money and be unable to retrieve it is trouble
To sell on credit without getting your money back is
trouble
To buy on credit without being able to pay is trouble
Poor credit management is major

If you owe, you must manage your cash flow well and
have your books in order so as to pay back promptly to
avoid being swallowed up by debt or interest payment. If
customer owes you, you must have a good debt recovery
system to avoid having a delinquent debtor list that will
end up as bad debt. Some companies are only rich on
paper, and when the chips are down, they sink because of
the amount of their funds tied down in bad debt.

18. Government Policy

Every business operates within a government controlled

environment, and whether it is Local, State or Federal
government, they do have effect and influence over any
business that operates within their territory. Government
Why Businesses Fail And The Way Out 357

policy can either limit a business or enable a business

depending on the way the pendulum swings. Whether it
is a privatization policy, or deregulation policy, or
importation policy, or taxation policy, etc., they all affect
your business.

Take the cashless society banking policy presently being

pushed by the Nigerian government. It affects every
business because we all are in business to make money
and this policy affects cash. The ban on importation killed
many businesses, and today they no longer exist, the
power policy that makes generator a necessity has also
killed many factories and industries because lack of
power has increased their production cost, and many
could not stay in business. One government policy can
cause premature death for any affected businesses. Ask
farmers in Zimbabwe.

19. Economic Climate

Economic climate is another reason why businesses fail. If

you operate a business in an environment of war, you will
definitely be affected. From Liberia to Somalia, Iraq to
Afghanistan, Syria to Libya, businesses suffer during
war, and if prolonged, businesses die. The global
economic climate, and the recession of the last few years
have also seen many businesses go belly up.

In the last few years we have seen many companies that

have existed for decades fail due to the global economic
climate. Today even entire nations in Europe are going
bankrupt due to the global economic climate. Ireland,
358 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Greece etc have all now failed and seeking a bailout to

rescue their economies. Many companies today only exist
because they were bailed out by the government; but how
many businesses can be bailed out?

20. Death of The Founder

This is one reason many businesses fail all over the world,
and that is why we don't hear of many businesses after the
death of the founder. Most businesses don't survive the
death of the founders due to structural and succession
planning issues. When a business is built around a
personality, instead of system and structures being built
around the vision and the mission, there is trouble.

If you die today, can your business survive without you?

If you are not sure it will, then make necessary
adjustment, so you can be sure it will.
 Are you the only decision maker in your business?
 Are you the only one that knows the business you do?
 Are you the only one that can give approvals for funds?
 Are you the only one that knows the company policy?

The questions are endless but the truth is clear, the days of one
man businesses, lone ranger operations are over. You need to
surround yourself with the right team, empower them, and
put systems and structures in place for the business to operate
with or without you. That is the way to build a business that
will last. Succession planning is also something you need to
think of early in your business so that you can have a short and
long-term plan towards it.
Why Businesses Fail And The Way Out 359

Businesses come and businesses go, and these are twenty of

some of the reasons why they fail. As you observe them well
and guide against them, you will be guiding against
bankruptcy.

WARNING SIGNALS

When my children were younger and in elementary school,

they used to sing a nursery rhyme thus:
“Traffic light traffic light
You must obey the traffic light
RED
Red says “STOP” YELLOW
Yellow says “READY” and GREEN

Green says “GO”

Like the traffic light, life is full of warning signals, and if you
ignore a warning signal, you become a casualty of your
ignorance.

Businesses don't just fail overnight without giving signals, and

you have to be sensitive to the signals, because they may look
normal and still cause great damage. Having low sales is
normal for a while, but if it persists and continues to dwindle, it
can kill a business.

1. Acute Cash Shortages To Meet Short-Term Obligation

When you start having cash flow problems, and having

money to handle the daily running of the business is a
problem, then beware and proffer solution fast, or you
may be at risk of going belly up.
360 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

2. When You Start Using Overdraft Or Loans To Pay

Salaries

Salaries and wages are fixed cost for your business every
week or every month and when you start owing staff
salaries or borrowing money to pay salaries, “there is fire
on the mountain” and you need to act fast or go under.

3. Huge Delinquent Debtor List/ Bad Debt

When you have more money on paper than for real, and
all your debtors are not paying but becoming bad debt, it
is a warning signal and a cause for concern because you
cannot lose money and still stay profitable.

4. If After 4 - 5 Years You Have Not Become Profitable or

Broken Even

Over 80% of businesses fail in the first five years, and one
reason is because they did not break even and become
profitable but kept struggling until they died. If you do
things right and re-invest your profit to build your
business, all things being equal, you should break even
and be stabilized in 4-5 years, but if not, you may go
under because how long can one's business struggle for?
Definitely not forever.

5. When Trends And Policies Threaten The Future Of

Your Business

Technology has killed many businesses because they

became obsolete as new technologies emerged.
 Emails and telecommunication have made snail mail a
marginal operation.
Why Businesses Fail And The Way Out 361

 E-books and online resources are threatening book

publishing and sales.
 Digital cameras and digital photography have killed
conventional photography and cameras.
Kodak's inability to change fast with the digital trends pushed
it off the top of the market into a struggling global brand. Be
sensitive to know how trends and policies will affect the future
of your business.

DO NOT FAIL AND IF YOU DO, “FAIL FORWARD”

Failure gives you the opportunity to start again more

intelligently, and that seems to be the only good thing that can
come out of failure. The experience you have is always an
asset, and failure gives a certificate on “how not to do
business” the next time.

You are not really a failure until you give up and stop trying
because what we call failure is sometimes a part of the process
to success, but to give up and refuse to move on is a real failure
and a tragedy. Do not fail, and if you do, fail forward, get up,
try again, and keep moving on, because if you give up you
have a lot to lose:
1. The customers you already have.
2. The success potential of your business.
3. The respect and trust people have for you.
4. Self-worth and confidence in your ability.
5. The greatness that is already packaged in your
destiny etc.
362 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

TIPS AGAINST BANKRUPTCY

1. Find where things went wrong and make changes.
2. Gather new strength.
3. Pursue your dream vigorously (success is 10% inspiration
and 90% perspiration).
4. Identify what you are doing wrong and change.
5. Seek help and advice.
6. Build a network of positive people around you.
7. Constantly recharge your battery to avoid burnout.
8. Don't give up. Never!
If you cannot fly, run, if you cannot run, walk, if you
cannot walk, crawl; no matter what, just make sure you
are making progress.

HOW TO AVOID FAILING IN BUSINESS

1. Start with a strong capital base (start small, start
prepared, start good, start informed and start free of
loans).
2. Avoid financial waste and mismanagement.
3. Avoid credit sales as much as possible.
4. Innovate constantly.
5. Build a solid foundation of good, quality, product and
service.
6. Avoid deceit and sharp practices.
7. Don't over delegate to employees.
8. Make the Creator your chairman.
NB: - Avoid all the reasons why businesses fail and you
will be fine.
 CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

“If you aim at nothing, you will hit it all the time”

Starting and running your own business need not be like

rocket science. This book is aimed at giving you the blueprint
to become a successful entrepreneur, and that is why every
possible area of business and wealth creation is being covered.
The secret to starting a business without stress is very simple.
− Start small
− Start prepared
− Start good
− Start informed
− Start free of loans

Let's look at a more comprehensive list.

30 TIPS FOR BUSINESS START UP

1. Evaluate yourself with the questions on entrepreneurship
we have earlier examined in this module to ascertain
what you are good at, and not necessarily what you
studied in school. Follow your passion because you
cannot succeed in what you are not gifted, talented,
anointed or trained for.
364 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

2. Choose the right kind of business, because like we said

there are different classes and types of business. Negative
business is never an option, and it is not all types of
business that fit you.
3. Choose the business you understand very well, because
like we have said over and over again, you need to have
what it takes to succeed.
4. Make sure you understand the market or sector you go
into very well, because every industry has its own secrets
and only those who know the secret of the trade wins.
5. Have a clear picture of what you really want to achieve;
and having a good business plan in place will help you do
that.
6. Carry out a feasibility study to identify challenges and
competition in advance.
7. Proffer solution in advance for all possible challenges.
8. Submit yourself to a process of mentoring and gathering
of experience.
9. Choose a good and suitable location.
10. Choose and hire professionals to manage things for you.
11. Have a strong financial and administrative control.
12. Avoid waste and leakages.
13. Ensure close supervision of the business.
14. Constantly research the market to ensure you stay
relevant in products and pricing.
15. Learn from your past and other people's past by reading
biographies, autobiographies, success stories and failure
stories.
How To Start And Run A Business 365

16. Avoid over-investment in fixed assets and spending

money on office space, furnishings and liabilities instead
of your core business.
17. Continually update, upgrade and inspire yourself.
18. Constantly review your business plan and strategy.
19. Be positive and solution oriented.
20. Avoid debt in your business because no debt is better than
good debt.
21. Keep proper and complete records of all transactions.
22. Keep your dream alive, stay focused and stay legal.
23. Be patient, persistent and never give up.
24. Develop the right relationships, associations and
networks.
25. Make sure you have job description for all positions, and
staff the business accordingly.
26. Set performance milestone and standards you can use to
measure progress.
27. Set realistic goals for the business and work to achieve
them.
28. Manage your time very well and ensure your team does
the same.
29. Don't joke with your health or that of your team because
only those alive can run a business.
30. Give the Creator proper place in your business.

I am not spending time to explain or expatiate on these 30

points for two reasons

 Space constraints; this book still has many more grounds

366 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

to cover and I have a limit to how big the book should be.

 Almost all the 30 points have been or will be explained

further in this book.

Your business is an entity on its own, and so are you as a

person. It is therefore important for you to know you have
great responsibilities to birth the business and nurture it to
stability. Everything rises and falls on leadership and as the
leader in your new business you have to make it work.

YOUR MAJOR JOB AS A BUSINESS LEADER

1. Clearly Define The Goal, Vision And Mission Of The

Business

You are the pioneer and visioneer of the business and the
only one that have the clear picture of what you really
want to achieve, so it is your primary responsibility to
clearly define and explain that goal, vision or mission to
your team and your market. No one but you can do that
and that is your first major job.

2. Put Together A Winning Team

Your second major job as a business leader is to find the

best hands and forge them into a team. You are as strong
as your team, because in business you cannot do
everything alone. A wise leader surrounds
himself/herself with good and wise people who can do
what they cannot do. It is your job to find, recruit, train
and keep the right people on your team.
How To Start And Run A Business 367

3. Make The Company Strong On The Inside

The quality of your products and services, the

management of your cash flow and resources, the policies
and control measures in place, the systems and structures
within the company etc all make the company strong on
the inside, and it is your responsibility as a business
leader to ensure these things are all in place and that the
company is strengthened on the inside to avoid a collapse
when challenges comes.

4. Grow The Company On The Outside

If your company stays small or grows big and expands, it

is your job. You have a responsibility as a business leader
to make sure you do what it takes to expand the business,
increase the market share, and area of operation. You may
start small but should never remain small. Publicity, sales
and marketing, competitive advantage, constant
innovation, market penetration and growth are all areas
to focus on as a business leader to bring external growth
and expansion to your business.

5. Improving On The Business Profit

The bottom line of any business is offering value and

making profit. If your business is not making profit, it is
failing and that should not be allowed by a good business
leader. It is one of your major job and responsibility to see
that your business is growing and making profit per time.
Your production cost, pricing, running cost and
overheads must all be well looked into and constantly
revisited to ensure you stay profitable as a business and
368 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

risk failure.

6. Quality Control / Research And Development

(QC/RND)

As a business leader, it is your responsibility to control the

quality of products and services that come out of your
company, and it is also your responsibility to invest in
research and development to ensure you stay current and
relevant in your operational field. Those who solve
tomorrow's problems today become the leaders of
tomorrow, and as a good business leader you should have
foresight and see the big picture for your business.

When quality is not controlled, it decreases and the

market will know.

When research and development is ignored, things slow

down and limitation comes.

7. INVESTING IN THE FUTURE

It is your responsibility to invest in tangible assets and

secure the future of the company.
>> Invest in building your company into a brand.
>> Invest in backward and forward integration to
consolidate your business.
>> Invest in owning your own corporate
headquarter and offices at the appointed time.
>> Invest in having all necessary machineries,
equipments and tools for your business.
Today's decisions are tomorrow's realities.
How To Start And Run A Business 369

Today's Investments are tomorrow's security.

Invest in tangible assets and secure your business's future it is
your job.

8. Be A Good Corporate Citizen

If you are evading tax, you are not a good corporate
citizen.
If you are polluting the atmosphere, you are not a good
corporate citizen.
If you are endangering lives and properties, you are not a
good corporate. citizen
If you are ignoring your corporate social responsibilities,
you are not a good corporate citizen.
If you are offering substandard products and services,
you are not a good corporate citizen
If you are not living up to your statutory responsibility,
you are not a good cooperate citizen.
If you are involved in any form of illegality, you are not a
good corporate citizen.

It is your job and your responsibility as a business leader to

ensure you are a good corporate citizen. The ball is now in your
court, take over and score the goal.
370 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

“We first earn to take care of our needs and

reasonable wants, but we keep earning to give
back”

For anyone who wants to start, build and run a business

successfully, two foundation stones that have to be in place are
the feasibility study, and the business plan, and I decided to
handle them together in this chapter because they are twins
and go hand in hand.

A Feasibility Study is an investigation and research to

determine whether a particular venture, business, project or
system is desirable, practicable, achievable, and cost effective.
The main goal of a feasibility study is to assess the economic
viability of the proposed business. It needs to answer the
question “Does the idea make economic sense?” which is most
commonly known as the cost/benefit analysis. The procedure
is to determine the benefit/income that are expected from a
business and compare them with costs.

If the result of the study is positive, then you can proceed to

develop a BUSINESS PLAN. There is no point embarking on
an unviable business because you will fail before you start.
372 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

You want to equate what you see written with what is in

the real world.
 Inner dreams vs external realities must be looked at.
 You must do a market research before you launch out.
 You want to get expert advise, and feedback from the
market before you plug in.
 You want to get answers to the WHAT, WHERE, HOW,
WHO and WHEN of your business.

You need to do your feasibility study in order to develop your

business plan. These are the contents of the twin stones.

THE CONTENT
 COVER SHEET
 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
 TABLE OF CONTENT
= Products and service
= Technology
= Market

environment/Competition/Industry/Location
= Business model
= Marketing and sales strategy
= Production/Operating Requirement
= Management/Personal Requirement
= Regulations/Environmental issues
= Critical risk factors
The Foundation Stones: Feasibility Study And Business Plan 373

 FINANCIAL PROJECTIONS
= Balance sheet projections
= Income statement projections
= Cash flow projections
= Break-even analysis
= Capital requirement and strategy
= Recommendation and conclusion

Before starting a new business or expanding an existing one,

you should develop a business plan.

A Business Plan is a formal statement of a set of business goals,

the reasons why they are believed to be attainable, and the plan
for reaching those goals. A business plan will often build and
refine the key concepts developed within the feasibility study
you conducted to formally justify the business concept prior to
committing the resources needed to develop a formal business
plan.

Writing a business plan should help you think through most of

the issues you will face in starting a business; it will help you
communicate a business plan to partners (investors, financial
institutions, major customers or suppliers, and key
employees). The business plan should serve as a useful tool
along with your personal contact for convincing such partners
to sign on to your vision. It will also help you set performance
target because if you don't have a goal, how will you know
when you score? And if you don't know your destination, how
will you know when you get there and how far you have gone?
374 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

KEY SECTIONS/CONTENTS

Executive Summary:- This section is written last but presented

first. This is the most critical component of the report because
stakeholders will only review it, and will not proceed unless
they are engaged.
Product Oriented:- This section identifies the market niche
that best supports consumer demand and looks at the shape
and size of the market.
Financial and Operational:- This section demonstrates the
fiscal viability of the business venture. It identifies the
operating capital requirements, and communicates any
financial assumptions that have been made.
Exit Strategy:- This section communicates how and when the
entrepreneur will exit the business. It may also discuss the
return on investments.

Differences Between Feasibility Study (FS) and Business Plan

(BP)
1. When feasibility study reveals positive result, some but
not all of the information developed in the FS will be
incorporated into the BP
2. FS evaluates different scenarios while the BP builds on
and elaborates the scenario shown by the FS to be most
promising.
3. While the FS is only applicable for the developmental
stage of a project, businesses continue to use, and revise
their BP after the project has been implemented.
4. Since the FS presents an independent review of the
The Foundation Stones: Feasibility Study And Business Plan 375

project, persons from outside the group normally

complete it. In contrast, the group typically develops their
BP internally.
5. To summarize, a BP shows the groups intended response
to critical issues revealed in the FS. As the FS refines the
group initial ideas, the BP uses information from the
study to further prepare the project for operations.

Go online and view samples of feasibility study and business

plan to give you a practical example because due to space
constraint, I cannot add that to this chapter.

Let us move on now to look into bookkeeping which is another

vital part of a business.
376 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

“When opportunities come knocking, if

you have the cash, you can open the
door.”

Book keeping and proper accounting is a must for any

business that wants to succeed. Imagine having a business,
and keeping everything that relates to the business in your
mind without having files and record books in place?

Keeping good records can be cumbersome and seem

frustrating when you don't know what to keep or how to
organize it. However, not keeping good records can cost you
lots of money and waste lots of time when you require
information about specific transactions done in the past. This
is where bookkeeping and proper documentation comes in as
a valuable, non negotiable necessity.

THE DEFINITION

Book keeping is the recording of your company's income and

expenditure, assets and liabilities into a set of account books
known as ledgers. The basis of a good book keeping practice is
the “double entry system”. Double entry simply means to
enter each piece of data and transaction twice into your ledger,
378 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

e.g. if you received a payment of any amount for a sale, you

would debit the cash or bank account and credit the sales
account.

I don't want this to be a boring academic account chapter, but

you still need to understand the basics.
1. For every debit entry there must be a corresponding
credit entry.
2. Every book you keep for accounting and record purposes
are all referred to as ledgers.
3. You have different books to keep that constitutes a ledger:
>> Income and expenditure book
>> Assets and liability book
>> Inventory book
>> Sales and purchase book etc.

Ledgers are mostly divided into three groups

>> Sales ledger
>> Purchase ledger
>> General ledger, which has five divisions namely;
Assets, Liabilities, Income, Expense and
Equity/Capital.

Note this table as a guide. I expect you to have someone that

will handle your book keeping and accounting either as a staff
in your company, or as a consultant through outsourcing.
However, you still need to have a general idea of things
yourself to interpret reports, statements and detect fraud.
Book Keeping 379

ACCOUNTS TO RECORD ENTRY IN THE

ACCOUNT

An Increase Debit
ASSETS
A Decrease Credit

An Increase Credit
LIABILITIES
A Decrease Debit

An Increase Credit
CAPITAL
A Decrease Debit

An Increase Credit
INCOME
A Decrease Debit

An Increase Debit
EXPENSES
A Decrease Credit

When your books and accounting information are in proper

order, it helps you and your business greatly.

USERS OF ACCOUNTING INFORMATION

1. You the Owner:-
This helps you to know the profitability and financial
resources of the business.
2. The Bank:-
This will help them know if you are viable to repay a loan,
if you need one from them, remember the 5CS of credits.
3. The Government:-
They need this to calculate the various tax payable, and
see if the company has been a good corporate citizen.
380 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

4. Investors:
Whether for a publicly quoted company or a privately
held firm, a potential investor will want to know the
profitability, stability and health of a company before
they decide to buy into such company.

FINANCIAL REPORTING
1. The Balance Sheet
This reports as of a certain point in time, the resources of a
company (Assets), the company's obligation (Liabilities), and
the equity of the owners.
2. The Income Statement
The income statement reports, for a specified interval, the net
assets generated through business operations (revenues), the
net asset consumed (the expenses), and the net income.
3. The Statement Of Cash Flow
This reports for a specified period of time, the amount of cash
generated and consumed through operating, financing and
investing activities.

IN SUMMARY:
 The income statement tells whether your company is
making profit or loss
 The balance sheet tells you how efficiently a company is
utilizing its assets and managing its liabilities in pursuit
of profit.

The cash flow statement tells you how cash has been increased
or decreased through operations, the acquisition or sale of
Book Keeping 381

assets, and financing activities.

S/NO. PROFIT – MAKING FIRM NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION

1. Trading, Profit and Loss Account Income and Expenditure Account

2. Net Profit Surplus of Income over Expenditure

3. Net Loss Excess of Expenditure over Income

4. Capital Accumulated funds

ELEMENTS OF FINANCIAL REPORTING

Assets
Liabilities
Equity or Capital
Revenues
Expenses
Gains
Losses

PRACTICALISING BOOK KEEPING

 The best way to get book keeping sorted is to use a
spreadsheet like excel or an accounting software.
 Apart from storing your information on the computer,
you must maintain a detailed and separate filing for
 Sales or income
 Expenses
 Fixed Assets
 Bank Accounts etc.
382 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

 Maintain daily records. This is one of the most basic rules

because if you don't keep accurate records, you don't
have an accurate way to track the financial condition of
your business.

 You must attach supporting documents to every

transaction before you file them. e.g. sales/income
(invoice/receipt, copy of cheque, details of customer)

 Open a separate bank account for your businesses and

ensure that you reconcile it with your books on a regular
basis.

I hope it is simple enough for you to grasp. One of the first staff
you need to have should be someone to help with your
accounts and book keeping because it is vital.

TIPS ON CHOOSING A BANK

Every wise and serious-minded business man must open a

separate account for their business, and the kind of account
you open, the bank where you open the account, all matter a
lot. Let these tips guide you:
1. What banks do your colleagues in the same business and
sector usually use? Let this guide you because they may
have special products that benefit your business.
2. Is the bank healthy? Check their audited account and
financial reports for the last few years to guide you.
Beware of banks without verifiable audited accounts.
3. Is the bank close to your location? You don't want to have
to travel to do bank runs.
Book Keeping 383

4. Do they have a wide network of branches to help your

customers transact business with you?
5. How long does it take to execute transactions in the bank?
6. Is the management or board of the bank stable and
dependable?
7. What is the general staff attitude in the bank? Are they
courteous or do they treat you like a pest or demand tips
to do their job?
8. Do they have any existing product tailor-made to take
care of your kind of business.
9. Is their tariff structure fair? Are their charges excessive
and exploitative? Your bank should be the one to be
supporting and not exploiting you.

Do they match with your brand and image? Some banks just
don't help your brand or image while some enhance it.
384 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER THIRTY

“The snail and tortoise will always progress

as long as they stick their heads out of the
shell”

The world today is loaded with all kinds of goods and services
that are existing in the market place, however, many good
products and services have not received good patronage from
the market due to poor marketing. The market is the external
collection of customers and buyers which is the ultimate
source of the business income, and without which there is no
business. Every business that wants to succeed must therefore
make sure they have a good marketing strategy in place.
 Publicity is not marketing but just a part of it.
 Advertising is not marketing but just a part of it.
 Sales is not marketing but just a part of it.

While publicity and advertising have to do more with making

something known to the public or creating awareness about
the existence of a product or service in order to encourage
purchase or patronage, selling is the act of making a sale, and
marketing is a combination of all.

Marketing is the act of presenting, advertising and sales of

386 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

product or service to the market.

>> Publicity creates awareness but that does not
necessarily translates into sales.
>> Advertising creates awareness but that does not
necessarily translate into sales.

People may be aware of the existence of a product or service

and still not patronise it because they can't see it available or
afford it. So it is necessary to go beyond creating awareness, to
making actual sales which is the real reason for being in
business.
>> Publicity and Advertisements cost the company lots
of money and are expenses
>> Sales make money for the company and are an
income.

Marketing is the combination of everything from publicity and

advertising, to making sales, and that means until sales is
made and revenue is generated, marketing is not complete. A
good marketing will not only create awareness of the existence
of a product, but will make the product or service affordable,
available and accessible in the market place so that people can
buy or patronize it and revenues can be generated.

WHY PROBLEM IN MARKETING?

1. Lack Of Effective Advertisement And Publicity

You may advertise and publicize but do it ineffectively. This

can happen if you do it using the wrong mediums; or reaching
the wrong target audience. No matter the advert you do in a
boys' hostel about sanitary pad, it is useless and ineffective
Marketing 101 387

because you are advertising to the wrong targets; men don't

use sanitary pads. No matter the advert you do in the
newspaper about your product, it will be ineffective, if the
people you want to reach are illiterates who cannot read.

Spending loads of money is useless if the advert is done in the

wrong platform or focused at the wrong target because it will
be ineffective and will not generate sales. Many businesses
have been frustrated due to ineffective advertising.

2. Lack Of Product Research To Find Out The Buyers' View

Before Production

Doing a market survey is very vital for any business that wants
to succeed, you cannot force me to buy what I don't need or
want no matter the noise you make. Every product or service
has a target audience, and they should be involved in the
process before you come out with the product. That is one of
the reasons for doing a feasibility study to know whether there
is a market for your intended product or service, and to find
out where the market is, how strong the market is, whether it is
a growing market, and what price the market can pay. Many
businesses put the cart before the horse by coming out with a
product or service before finding out if it will sell. Don't just
assume people will buy, verify first if they need it because
assumption is the lowest level of knowledge.

3. Wrong Pricing Of The Product

Pricing is one very vital aspect of the marketing mix, and no

matter the product or service, if the pricing is wrong, it will not
sell. You need to consider a lot of factors to determine the price
388 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

of your product or service, e.g.

− The cost of production
− Other cost associated with the product, e.g. storage,
transportation, advert etc.
− The industry standard or market forces
− The financial level of your target audience
− Your profit and mark up etc.

All these things matter a lot because if you overprice, you may
price yourself out of the reach of the market, and if you
underprice, you may price yourself out of the market. Balance
is very key here.

4. Wrong Packaging

Market appeal is all a function of proper packaging, and to

have a wrong or poor packaging will go a long way in affecting
the way the market will treat the products.

GOOD PRODUCT + POOR PACKAGING = POOR SALES

BAD PRODUCT + GOOD PACKAGING = SOME SALES
GOOD PRODUCT + GOOD PACKAGING = GREAT SALES

No matter how good your product or service, your

presentation and packaging matters a lot because it will affect
the reception you get. People don't know the quality of your
product or service until they buy it and taste it, and poor
packaging can hinder that.

5. Benefits, Benefits, Benefits

The only thing customers think of is benefit, benefit, benefit,

Marketing 101 389

they like what will meet their need and be affordable to them,
because, that is how they determine value.
 If it is not meeting their need, they don't value it or
consider it valuable to them.
 If they cannot afford it, they don't value it or consider it
valuable to them but exploitative.

Businesses exist mainly to satisfy the need of the customers

and this focus should not be lost or else the business fails. In all
you do, always have the customers in mind and let them see
that you are not just after their money but their satisfaction.

MARKETING MIX

The term “marketing mix” was coined in 1958 by Neil Borden

in his American Marketing Association presidential address.
However, this was actually a reformulation of an earlier idea
by his associate, James Cullition, who in 1948 described the
role of the marketing manager as a “mixer of ingredients”,
who sometimes:
 Follows the recipe of others;
 Prepare his own recipe as he goes along;
 Adapts recipe from the immediately available
ingredients; or
 Invents new ingredients and recipe no one has tried.

Marketing mix is a business tool in marketing products. The

marketing mix is often synonymous with the four P’s
 Product
 Price
390 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

 Promotion
 Place

However in recent times, an extension has been made to make

it seven P’s with the addition of:
 Process
 Physical evidence
 People

We will limit ourselves to the four P’s in this book because this
is not meant to be an academic study.

THE FOUR P’s

1. PRODUCT:

A product is seen as an item that satisfies what a customer

needs. It can be tangible or intangible.

Tangible = goods, e.g. books, foods etc.

Intangible = service, e.g. tours, banking.

2. PRICE: -

This is the amount a customer pays for a product and it is

very important because it determines the market
reception and your company profit.

3. PROMOTION:-

This represents all the methods of communication that a

marketer may use to provide information to different
parties about the product. It comprises of elements such
Marketing 101 391

as advertising, public relation, personal selling and sales

promotion.

4. PLACE:

This refers to providing the product at a place which is

convenient for consumers to access. Place is synonymous
with distribution.

These four Ps view things from the selling perspectives but

becomes fours Cs when viewed from the buyers' perspectives.
Customers need and want (Equivalent of product)
Cost(Equivalent of Price)
Convenience (Equivalent of Place)
Communication (Equivalent of promotion)

With the four P’s in mind, we can now give marketing another
definition:

“PUTTING THE RIGHT PRODUCT IN THE RIGHT PLACE,

AT THE RIGHT PRICE, AT THE RIGHT TIME”

PLACE
PL
E A
R IC CE
P
PRODUCT

MARKETING PRICE
PR
O
MIX T
CT

M
U

O
D

TI
O

O
PR

N PROMOTION

“T” Target Market

392 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

And practically applying it in your business is by knowing the

question you need to ask to determine your market mix.

PRODUCT/SERVICE
 What does the customer want from the product/service?
 What needs does it satisfy in the customer?
 What features does it have to meet these needs?
 Are there any features you have missed out?
 Are you including costly features that the customer won't
actually use?
 How and where will the customers use it? / What does it
look like? / How will the customer experience it?
 What size(s), Colour(s) and so on, should it be?
 How is it branded?
 How is it differentiated versus your competition?
 What is the most it can cost to provide, and still be sold
profitably?

PLACE
 Where do buyers look for your product or service?
 If they look in a store, what kind? (A specialist boutique or
in a supermarket or both? Or online? Or direct, via a
catalogue?)
 How can you access the right distribution channels?
 Do you need to use a sales force? Or attend trade fairs? Or
make online submissions? Or send samples to catalogue
companies?
 What do your competitors do, and how can you learn
from that and/or differentiate?
Marketing 101 393

PRICE
 What is the value of the product or service to the buyer?
 Are there established price points for products or services
in this area?
 Is the customer price-sensitive? Will a small decrease in
price gain you extra market share or will a small increase
be indiscernible, and so gain you extra profit margin?
 What discounts should be offered to trade customers, or
to other specific segment of your market?
 How will your price be compared with your
competitors'?

PROMOTION
 Where and when can you get across your marketing
messages to your target market?
 Will you reach your audience by advertising in the press,
or on television, or radio, or on billboards? By using direct
marketing mailshot? Through PR? On the internet?
 When is the best time to promote?
 Is there seasonality in the market?
 Are there other environmental issues that suggest or
dictate the timing of your market launch, or the timing of
subsequent promotion?
 How do your competitors do their promotion? And how
does that influence your choice of promotional activity?

These questions will help you greatly because marketing is a

serious matter.
394 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

HOW TO GET CUSTOMERS TO TRY YOUR PRODUCT

1. Free Sample Offer: - Offer them free samples so they can
taste and experience the product. When they get and use a
free sample, it creates an emotional and psychological
bond that has great propensity to propel purchase.
2. Free Demonstration: Like free offer, when customers get
a free demonstration and see the potential of a product, it
ignites in them the desire to buy. Why do you think car
dealers allow you to test drive a car? After you experience
it, you want it.
3. Appeal for references from existing Customers: Those
who have patronized you can be your greatest sales
people if you can get them to refer others to you from their
networks and circle of influence. You can even offer them
benefits like commission, discounts on future purchase or
free products for every referral.
4. Money Back Guarantee: If you are really sure of the
quality and value of what you are offering the market,
then this will be a good strategy to generate sales because
people are more willing to patronize you because of the
provision for refund if they are not satisfied. I have used
this over and over again and it works.
5. Progressive Discount Offer: When customers see
benefits, they go for it any day, anytime. Offering people
progressive discounts will make them buy more or come
back often. If buying six items instead of one, or a dozen
instead of six will give greater discounts and reduce the
unit cost, it will attract customers.
6. Instant Reward offer: People like rewards and freebies
Marketing 101 395

all over the world, and you can use it to draw customers
and make sales.
>> Buy one get one free.
>> Buy one get the second for half price.
>> Buy now and get a free gift etc.

These are some ways you can use to draw customers.

7. Special Promo: You can come up with special promos at

different seasons to boost sales, and get more customers
to buy your product. You can attach raffle draw to the
special promo to sustain the momentum and create a
wave.

HOW TO SELL WHEN NO ONE SELLS

1. You must offer the customers value they cannot reject.
2. You must not wait for the customers to come but you go
out to meet them.
3. You must refuse to give up on your prospects until they
become customers.
4. You must be ready with new ideas and innovations at all
times.
5. You must determine never to cut corners but offer quality
value with integrity.

STEPS TO CLOSING A SALE

1. Introduce yourself and your product to the prospect in a
way that will attract their attention. Be simple, courteous
and bold.
2. Demonstrate the product convincingly and point out the
396 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

benefits and attributes to be derived by the customers.

3. Allow for feedback and questions to seal your deal.
4. Make an obvious statement and mention the price being
demanded.
5. Appreciate your buyer physically and verbally.
6. The customers of today are your connection to the
customers of tomorrow, so stay in touch and seek
referrals.

CHANNELS OF AWARENESS
Print Media - Newspaper, Magazines etc.
Electronic Media - Radio, Television etc.
New Media - Internet, Facebook etc.
Outdoor Media - Billboards, Flairs And Handbills etc.
Word Of Mouth - Network Marketing, Referrals etc.

WORD OF MOUTH NETWORK MARKETING

The cheapest and most effective way to market is through

word of mouth, all the millions spent on publicity and
advertising is all geared towards becoming “top in mind”, and
creating a word of mouth effect. When you succeed in creating
a momentum that turns people into your sales force of their
own accord, it works like magic.

Network marketing is like traditional fishing.

− You go to the river you are familiar with.
− You let down your net with a good bait.
− You bring out your net.
Marketing 101 397

− You design the best way to get the best quicker and
constantly.

To create a customer base when you start out and don't have all
the money to spend on advertising, start with known and
familiar territory. Zero in on the people you already know.
 Family members
 Neighbours
Friends
Colleagues or school mates
Old schoolmates or old colleagues
Club or association members
Church members
Fellow passengers on a bus, train, plane etc.
Fellow towns men or ethnicity.
Those in your catchment area etc.

When this yields result, you can now use the initial customers
as bait to get others via referrals, questionnaires, and
recommendations etc.

For a successful network marketing, you must be ready to

a. Satisfy the customers by knowing their needs,
catering for their needs, and not taking them for
granted.
b. Know that a customer can build you or ruin you
c. Cultivate their friendship.
398 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

DEMAND AND SUPPLY

Life is all about demand and supply and there are 7 laws to
note
1. Never supply what is not in demand.
2. Start with what the market demands and supply it rather
than trying to impose your idea on the market.
3. Research to know where and why of your market and
have a USP.
4. Your loyalty should be to your demand side not
supplying.
5. Be sure the demand side is large and growing.
6. Consider the duration of the demand side/will they
repeat buys?
7. Consider the depth of demand side/will they buy other
products from you?

Marketing is very key to business success as we have now seen

and I hope what I have shared here will be used to change
things in your business. I await your success story.

SEVEN PILLARS OF VALUE CREATION CONCEPT

Let me add this as a bonus in this chapter

1. Before you engage in any endeavor, look at the three
market leaders in that field.
2. Identify one unique attribute of each, i.e. the most
powerful thing about them that brings customers.
3. Go back to your closet and research on how to marry these
Marketing 101 399

unique attributes of these three market leaders into one

product or service. The new product must, however, have
an additional attribute that addresses major problems
existing in previous products or services.
4. Come up with the product or service and do a test run.
5. Continue to push the product or service in a consistent
manner.
6. Consistently research on adding more variants of the
same product or service using the same concept so that
you can consolidate on the head start you have.
7. A new value has been created, and you can consolidate on
the previous step like a cycle to make sure nobody catches
up with you.
400 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

“The future belongs to those who believe in

the beauty of their dreams.”

Branding is another very important part of your business and

affects how far and how wide your business can go.

A brand is the identity of a specific product, service or business

and it is what differentiates one from others.

A brand can take many forms including name, sign, colour,

symbol, logo, design scheme or a combination.

The word branding began among farmers simply as a way to

tell one person's cattle from another by means of a hot iron
stamp. Branding has continued to evolve to encompass
identity - it affects the personality of a product, company or
service. It is defined by perception, good or bad, that your
customers or prospects have about you. Branding your
business or product can lead to greater sales of not only one
product, but on other products associated with your brand.
Brand is the personality that identifies a product, service or
company and how it relates to the customers, staff, partners,
investors etc.
402 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

A legally protected brand is called a trademark. When you

start your own business, do all you can to start out to build a
brand by carefully choosing your name, colour, logo etc. When
you build a brand and it becomes strong in the market place,
you will become top of mind in the industry.

BRAND ELEMENTS
1. The Name: The word or words to identify your product,
service, concept or company.
2. The Logo: The visual trademark that identify the brand
3. Tagline or Catch Phrase: The phrase that is associated to
or peculiar to your product or business.
4. The Shapes: The distinction shape of your product.
5. Graphics: The distinction graphic used by your business.
6. Colour: The distinction colour peculiar to your business
or product.
7. Sounds: A unique tune or set of notes that is associated to
and peculiar to your product and business.
8. Movement: A particular movement or style that is
associated to your product or business predominantly.
9. Smell: Scents and smells that are distinct to your product.
10. Taste: Special recipe and taste associated or distinct to
your product.

A lot can be said or learnt about branding, but my focus in this

chapter is just to bring it up for you to note and do further
study on it. It is vital that you understand that branding is not
about getting your target market to choose you over the
competition, but it is about getting your prospects to see you as
Branding 101 403

the only one that provides a solution to their problem.

A good brand will want to achieve some good purpose:

Deliver your message clearly.
Confirms your credibility.
Connects your target prospects emotionally.
Motivates the buyers.

To succeed in branding, you must understand the needs and

wants of your customers and prospects. You do this by
integrating your brand strategies through your company at
every point of public contact.

Your brand resides within the hearts and minds of customers,

clients and prospects. It is the sum total of their experiences
and perceptions, some of which you can influence and some
that you cannot.

A strong brand is invaluable as the battle for customers

intensifies day by day. It is important to spend time investing
in researching, defining, and building your brand. After all,
your brand is the source of a promise to your consumer. It is a
foundational piece in your marketing communication and one
you do not want to be without.

Your focus should always be on quality and not just

packaging, because if you attract people with packaging and
your quality is poor, you build a bad reputation and brand.
(Do further studies on your own on branding)
404 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

“We achieve a lot in life if we don't care who

takes the credit.”

Every business is in existence because of customers, and if the

customers don't get good service or treatment, they will stop
coming and your business will die. Putting structures in place
to satisfy your customers and treat them as kings is what
customer service is all about, and any serious-minded
business that wants to succeed must have a specific unit
dedicated to customer service and also have a culture of
customer service in the entire company.

Some irony about customers is that:

 If you please them, they may or may not tell you and they
will tell few people.
 If you don't please them, they may or may not tell you, but
many people will hear through them.

So try and make sure you put structures in place so that, if you
don't please them, they tell you only, but if you please them,
they help tell others.

WHAT IS CUSTOMER SERVICE?

1. It Is Doing Ordinary Things In An Extra-ordinary Way

406 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

EXTRA + ORDINARY = EXTRA ORDINARY

That little extra you add to the ordinary, doing a little better
than the usual makes a lot of difference and that is customer
service.

2. Going Beyond What Is Expected

You should know what is expected of you by the customers,

but when you go beyond the call of duty just to please and
satisfy the customer, it is customer service

3. Adding Value And Integrity To Every Interaction

It is better to under-promise and over-perform, than to over-

promise and underperform, and that added value and
integrity with which you interact with customers is customer
service. Doing what you say at all times and being upright in
all you do is key.

4. Being At Your Best With Every Customer

Everyone who patronizes your product or service is your

customer and deserves your best, treating them well,
respecting them, making them feel good, being warm,
welcoming, and positive in your attitude to them is all vital.
They must have your full attention and help at all times. If they
feel neglected or put off, they will stop being your customers
and you will lose.

5. Surprising Yourself With How Much You Can Do

You know when you have given your best to something or

someone, and you know when you have done otherwise.
Customer service is you surprising yourself with how far you
can go to meet your customers' needs and offer value.
Customer Service 101 407

6. Taking Care Of The Customer Like You Would Take

Care Of Your Mother Or Loved Ones
How do you treat those you love and respect?
How do you treat those you admire and honour?
How do you treat those who are special to you?

Combine it all together and treat your customers so, because

they are the reason you are in business and will determine
whether you continue in business.

CUSTOMER SERVICE MINDSET

1. EMPATHY

This means to be aware and sensitive to the feelings and

thoughts of the customer. Customers need to feel and hear that
we care first, and this is more than just words, but a caring tone
of voice allows the customer to hear your concern. One of the
best customer interactions happens when a customer feels that
he or she has been attended to and understood.

2. ENTHUSIASM

This means showing a high level of energy or interest in a

situation or a project. The level of enthusiasm people exhibit is
a critical component of how the world perceives them as being
able or willing to help.

Enthusiasm influences a person's effectiveness in service

position because people who are truly enthusiastic don't
discriminate between their activities. Enthusiastic people
enjoy being proactive and going the extra mile to help
customers without being asked.
408 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

3. OWNERSHIP

Ownership means partnering with the customers to address

their needs to solve the problem. When we “OWN” the
problem, we are committed to the resolution of the problem.
We should not see it as “THEIR PROBLEM” but “OUR
PROBLEM” and it takes both us and the customers to provide
good customer service. It is not us and them but “WE
TOGETHER.”

4. RESPONSIBILITY

This is the ability to respond well and correctly to your

customers and all.
RESPOND + ABILITY = RESPONSIBILITY
Responsibility is an important internal customer issue. It is
important to be considerate and responsible to our co-workers
as it is to our customers.
5. ADAPTABILITY
This means having the flexibility to deal effectively with
different types of customers and situations.
Adaptability helps you to handle all kinds of customers
positively.
Adaptability helps you to change your approach to suit each
type of customers.
You need to service each customer respectfully and effectively.

6. BALANCE

A secret to achieving balance is knowing you can always

acknowledge the feelings of the customer even if you disagree
Customer Service 101 409

with the facts presented by the customer. One of the greatest

needs of the customers is to feel heard and be treated fairly.
Identifying a balance solution meets the challenge of satisfying
the customer and meeting the needs of the organization.

7. RESILIENCY

This means the ability to bounce back from adversity. Remain

calm throughout adverse situations, recover quickly and don't
show signs of discouragement. Life's setback and
disappointments need to be handled by bouncing back
emotionally and professionally.

Never take it out on the next few innocent customers or co-

workers.

ARE YOU RUDE?

To be rude means:
1. Impolite, bad mannered or discourteous.
2. Roughly made, lacking refinement or polish.
3. Ignorant, uneducated or primitive.
4. Sudden or unpleasant.

These are definitions you need to consider individually and

use it to evaluate yourself and your company.
Do you talk when people are talking?
Do you respond to questions or enquiries in a hasty and
harsh manner?
Do you shun people up when they want to share their
views?
Do you raise your hand to talk when someone is already
410 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

talking?
Do you type with your keyboard when talking on phone?
Do you play with your mobile phone when someone is
talking to you?
Do you pick your calls when discussing with someone
without taking excuse from them?
Do you pick your calls during meetings etc?

If you answer yes to any of these questions, then you are rude.
The amazing thing about rudeness is that it is measured by the
perception of the offended party. If they believe you are rude,
then you are in their eyes.

TYPES OF RUDE BEHAVIOR

1. Accidental Rudeness By Omission

Rudeness by omission is usually caused by something we

didn't do. Of all types of rudeness, this is among the most
innocent. Even accidental rudeness can be serious. People are
social creatures and mistreating them, even accidentally, can
have huge psychological effect.

2. Accidental Rudeness By Commission

Accidental rudeness can easily be prevented; it usually doesn't

take much effort to avoid accidental rudeness. Again,
rudeness is always measured in the eyes of the offended party.

3. Intentional Rudeness By Omission

Intentional rudeness can usually be prevented, it may

sometimes be unpleasant, but honesty is always the best
policy. Not taking responsibility for your action is rude.
Customer Service 101 411

4. Intentional Rudeness by Commission

What is done deliberately and the damage that follows is

difficult to undo. Avoid giving minimum response, especially
in dealing with customers. Avoiding rude behavior improves
customer service and interpersonal relationships.

PEOPLE COME BEFORE PAPER WORK – always give the

caller or customer your complete attention. Remember the
caller or customer always comes before paper work.

TWO FACTS TO NOTE

1. Rude behavior is the enemy of good customer service. It
limits both external and internal customers.
2. Rudeness is always measured in the eyes of the offended
party.

MOVING FROM RUDE TO POLITE

1. Voice: Your voice is the all-important delivery system for

words
Match your speed to that of the other party.
Vary the pitch of your voice to keep it interesting.
Speak distinctly and clearly to express your ideas.
Match your volume with that of the other party.

2. Tone of Your Voice: Your tone of voice tells the other

party whether they are welcome or not.
It is not necessarily what you say, but rather how you
say it.
Put a smile in your voice. The other party will be able to
hear it.
412 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

3. Words Used: The words you use matter a lot to the other
party.
Choose words that explain your thoughts clearly.
Remember that words can have more than one meaning.
Work at making your meaning clear.
Ask the other party to repeat what you have said (if need
be) to be sure your meaning is clear.

4. Listeners' Perception
Be tactful because feelings are easily hurt.
Concentrate on being sensitive to how you come across to
the other party.
Be aware of the listener's perception.

5. Don't Rush Customers

Learn to redirect customers.
Take time to get all the information.
Remember that speed is not success.

6. Be Friendly Before You Know Who It Is

Treat all callers and visitors equally.
Use your personality.
Remember that callers and customers mirror how they
are treated.

7. Don't Be Too Busy To Be Nice

Don't give short, one-word answers e.g. yes, no, okay etc.
Don't rush callers and customers.
Keep your sense of humour.
Customer Service 101 413

It is a conversation and not a monologue.

8. Don't Use Military Language On Civilians

 Use easy and understandable words.
 Explain unfamiliar words and terms.

PRACTICAL CUSTOMER SERVICE

There are three levels of customer service.

1. Passive - dissatisfied
2. Average - satisfied
3. Proactive - excellence, extra ordinary.
>> Passive behaviors means you are “under
delivering” on customer service.
>> Average service means you are operating mediocre
service and disappointing at best.
>> Proactive service means exceeding the customers'
expectations.

WHERE DO YOU AND YOUR COMPANY BELONG?

Tools For Being Proactive

 Be obviously friendly.
 Be confident.
 Build rapport.
 Ask “smiling” questions (soft questions gives super
service).
 Ask intelligent follow-up questions.
 Give the customers a choice.
414 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Use these soft questions to inform the customer of additional

offerings:
“By the way, are you aware of……….”
CRITICAL FUNDAMENTALS OF INTERNAL
CUSTOMER SERVICE

1. Know the mission of your organization and your role

 The whole reason you and your department, unit and co-
workers are part of your team is because you contribute to
the organization's basic purpose for existing.
 Either you directly service your organization's customers
or you service someone who does.
 It is easy to forget the big picture. We need to keep in mind
how our department or unit contributes to the entire
organization.

2. Internal Service Is Everyone's Responsibility

 In order for great service to be projected outside the walls
of your organization, it must start from within.
 Every team member needs to be dedicated to making
great internal service as high a priority as great external
service.
 Don't create a double standard by prioritizing external
service while falling short on delivering internal service.

3. Respect Differences
 Many internal service challenges are the result of basic
differences in people.
 The range and the variety make your organization or
department a stronger and more interesting place to
Customer Service 101 415

work.
 Acknowledge that we work in a diverse world and there
are many differences in how people look, talk, think and
act.
 Focus on the issue at hand.
 Just because someone is or acts differently is no excuse to
practice poor internal service.

4. Work To Resolve Conflicts

 Internal experience can impact how well your
organization operates.
 Use the BIF approach to maintain positive workplace
atmosphere and improve work relationships without
involving a manager. (Behavior Impact Feedback).
 Use a calm delivery to avoid escalating the situation.
 Be aware that the BIF approach may not work in every
case, using the BIF approach will help you know you
handled the situation professionally.

5. Show Appreciation
 When one of your co-workers does a good job that helps
you, it deserves to be recognized. Too many people are
quick to complain and slow to praise.
 Use the BIF approach to acknowledge and show
appreciation for a job well done.
 Offering praise, when it is truly warranted, goes a long
way towards fostering a positive work environment that
is conducive to great internal customer service.
 Great internal service helps lead to great external service.
416 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

FIVE FORBIDDEN PHRASES

1. “I DON'T KNOW.”
Replace with “That's a good question; let me check and
find out.”
2. “WE CANNOT DO THAT.”
Replace with “Here is what we can do. Offer a positive
alternative.”
3. “YOU WILL HAVE TO.”
Replace with “You will need to…..”
4. “JUST A SECOND.”
Replace with: “Are you able to hold?” And wait for a
response.
5. “NO.”
Think before you answer; don't start with a negative

CUSTOMER SERVICE MATHEMATICS

Customer service is the value of your customer to your

organization and it is equal to:
Value from Transactions
X
No of transactions
=
Expected lifetime of the relationship

HOW TO HANDLE CUSTOMER COMPLAINTS

1. Listen.
2. Don't be defensive.
3. Fix it immediately.
Customer Service 101 417

4. Research the problem.

5. Look for lessons in the situation.
6. Reeducate the client where necessary.
7. Check for similar complaints.
8. Give the clients choices of possible solutions.
9. Thank the client for helping you with your business.
10. Follow up with those who complain, to be sure they are
fully okay.

In addition
 Count to ten before reacting to a heated situation.
 Do all you can to resolve the problem.
 Offer more than the usual atonement.
 Keep emotions out of recovery.
 Don't take it personally.
 Don't rehearse the experience.

You will come across all manners of customers, so note these

tips and keep them as principles and cultural practices because
some customers are chronic complainers.
 They always look for someone to blame.
 They never admit to any degree of fault.
 They have strong ideas about what others should do.
 The complain at length.
 They always look for something to complain about.

No matter what, they are still customers, and they have to be

served. I guess that is why it is said that “customers are always
418 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

right”. Somebody said that customers are:

 Confused but right.
 Ignorant but right.
 Difficult but right.
 Troublesome but right.
 Stubborn but right.
 Deceptive but right etc.

KEEPING YOUR CUSTOMERS HAPPY AND

COMMITTED TO YOU
1. Address them by name / personalize them.
2. Know their likes and dislikes.
3. Provide rewards for big spenders.
4. Provide points of interest to engage your customers.
5. Give incentive to your staff to provide the best service.
6. Make it easy for customers to register their complaints.
7. Open a clients enquiry register.
8. Your complaint box should be open by you alone or an
assistant.
9. Replace bad goods with apology.
10. Provide testimony sheet for customers to fill and
comment with suggestions.
11. Provide qualitative products.
12. Don't try to get rid of a customer once you have collected
money from them.

We need to stop here and move on to another vital subject

 CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

“Find something you love doing and do it;

then, you will never have to work another day
in your life.”

The success of every business can be determined by the quality

and ability of the staff because while a good staff team can be
one of the greatest assets of your company, unfaithful and
uncooperative workers can lead to frustration.

You may start out in business on your own, which is what

happens to many people at the beginning when you do
everything yourself to reduce cost and build the business, but
if you really want to succeed and build something substantial,
you cannot do it alone. When your business is beyond what
you can handle, you need a team of faithful workers, and your
relationship with them is very vital.

Quality staff is a great asset that can really make things happen
for your business. I have had my own fair share of the good, the
bad, and the ugly and have also been blessed by the
exceptional, many of which we have been together for almost
two decades, and that is very rare in today's world. When
people ask me how I am able to keep people faithfully working
with me for that long, I do have things to tell them, but the most
420 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

vital secret is God. Only God knows tomorrow, and only God
knows who can best help you achieve your goals and fulfill
your dream. I will be sharing a lot of tips with you in this
chapter but to avoid being guilty of misinformation, I want to
be upright with you and say there is a God dimension option
open to you. Pray for God to send you the right people and
guide you in making the right choice.

25 WISDOM FROM THE ARCHIVES

1. Don't Employ More Workers Than You Need

Some businesses are guilty of over-employment and over-

staffing as if the number of staff they have is what determines
their business success. Don't employ staff you don't need, only
employ staff on a need basis and to fulfill specific purpose.
Over-staffing will make you carry unnecessary salary burden
and will even reduce the output of the staff because of
overlapping functions and laziness. Remember “Everybody
said that anybody would do all the good things that nobody
did”.

2. Don't Sacrifice Character And Competence On The

Altar Of Scarcity Of Labour

Don't just pick anyone because there is a scarcity of labour,

because it is better not to have the staff you need and leave the
position vacant than to have a wrong staff on your team and
payroll. It can step you back far behind and even affect the ones
you already have negatively. Character, competence, capacity,
culture, faithfulness, reliability, etc are all virtues that an
employee must possess to be valuable.
Staffing Your Business 421

3. Conduct Interviews For Prospective Workers

Thoroughly And Comprehensively

Don't be in a hurry to employ people, start your hiring process

early before you need them badly. Think ahead and be
proactive because if you start the process before you need
them badly, you will not be under pressure to speed things up
to the detriment of due diligence.
 Look out for the right skill and intelligence.
 Try to have a feel of the individual's personality.
 Look out for traits of submission to constituted authority,
and faithfulness to discharging their responsibilities.
 Avoid anyone with any trace of pride and arrogance.

4. A Prospective Worker Should Be Given Clear

Understanding Of Job Description

Assumption is the lowest level of knowledge, and when

adequate information and effective communication is not in
place, assumptions becomes the norm and error will always
occur and excesses will prevail
 Agree on wages to pay.
 Agree on time of work.
 Clearly state what the individual should expect if they
work faithfully and produce result.

5. Don't Rely Too Heavily On Certificates

Some certificates are becoming useless in today's world due to

the quality of graduates being churned out of our universities
today, and the laziness and unseriousness of most youths in
our world. Many have fake certificates, lobbied certificates,
422 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

uncertified certificates etc. They have the certificates but not

the capacity and knowledge nor education required to
produce result in the real world.

6. Anyone That Would Handle Money Should Be Tested

And Proved

Apart from putting structures and control measures in place to

prevent fraud and leakages, it is vital that you test those who
will handle money with financial tests to see if they would
pass. Faithfulness and integrity is very scarce in today's world
and you really want to test proof the people that handle your
finances, to avoid bad experience.

7. Let Them Understand Your Business Goals And

Objectives

To give your employees a sense of participation, it is vital you

give them a clear understanding of the goals and objectives of
your business. This will make you work as a team with a
unified goal, and make them feel valued because no one loves
being used like a machine. Taking them through an induction
process and training will help sort this out. They should know
where you are coming from (your history) and where you are
going to (your destiny) so they can know where they fit in.

8. Give Them Clear Direction And Expectation

Misunderstanding occurs when instructions concerning what

to do are not clearly expressed. Give them clear directions at all
times and ensure they get your instructions clearly. Let them
know your expectations from them and how you want things
done. Your personal policies and principles should also be
communicated to them so you can work together amicably.
They must know what you like and don't like.
Staffing Your Business 423

9. Regularly Appreciate Them And Their Importance

Many of us are naturally quick to complain but slow to

appreciate and praise people when they do well. It is very
important that you make it a culture to constantly appreciate
and value your staff and their importance to your business.
 Gifts works wonders, so let it flow from time to time
 Avoid rebuking staff that err before others
 Avoid using abusive words or making negative remarks
about them.

10. Make Them Work As A Team

You need to establish and enable dynamic relationship among

your staff so that they can work as a team. Teamwork works at
all times and helps build your business and create an enabling
environment for growth.
 Avoid undue favoritism.
 Demand unity among them.
 Anyone who sows seeds of strife and discord
should be removed no matter how valuable they
are, or what they do, because their attitude will
cause more damage than the good they do and
spread the virus.

11. Establish “Quality Cycle”

Just like the RND - research and development unit, and QC -

quality control unit, you need to have an inner circle, a think
tank or quality circle that you meet with regularly to:
 Brainstorm
424 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

 Monitor progress
 Proffer solution

Encourage all your staff to be a quality circle member and

suggest new ideas or strategy that can improve the enterprise.

12. Don't Hire A Family Or Friend You Cannot Fire

Many businesses have accommodated weights in their

workforce and kept them on board because they are family or
friends. That is a great error you must avoid. Never hire
someone you cannot fire and if you do hire a family or friend,
let them know the rules of engagements and the lines they
should not cross. If you permit any form of garbage from them
without dealing with it, you will cause trouble for your other
staff. It is better to sack them and keep them on a welfare
allowance than to employ them to cause trouble all in the bid to
help them.

13. Don't Hire A Primacy Leader To Fill A Supporting Role

Or Vice Versa

Putting the right person in the right position is like hand in

gloves and works like magic, but to misplace people is like
round peg in a square hole and it causes friction, tension and
problem for your business.
 A primary leader in a secondary role is like wasting
potential and will cause problems.
 A secondary leader in primary role is like promoting
mediocrity and it will cause problem too.
Right people in the right place in the right time is very key.
Staffing Your Business 425

14. Don't Plan On Changing Someone After You Hire

Them

One very vital truth you need to realize today if you don't
already know is that:

“EVERYBODY IS TRAINABLE BUT NOT EVERYBODY IS

CHANGEABLE”

You are not God; you can train all you can but cannot change
people except they are willing to change. Even God has not
been able to change all those He created, how much more you.
Do all you can to help people, but don't get stuck with dead
weights.

15. Do A Background Check On All Your Staff

Always investigate before you invest and this is true also in

staffing issue. Before you give people access into your life,
business and destiny like a staff, make sure you check them
out:
 Contact their references.
 Verify their home address.
 Verify their certificates and credentials.
 Contact their previous employers etc.

Do your due diligence today to avoid regret tomorrow.

16. Always Put Attitude And Character Above Talent Or

Experience

After over twenty years of doing business and employing

people, I can tell you clearly that:
426 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Talent is not enough.

Experience is not enough.
Certificate is not enough etc.

Charisma without character causes cataract for your business.

Faithful men can always be trained to become able men, but
able men cannot always be trained to be faithful.

17. Pay Good Salaries

“If you pay peanuts, you will hire monkeys” is a popular

saying in the corporate world and it is true. Never pay below
the minimum wage obtainable in your country or sector, and if
you cannot afford it, you may need to avoid employing the
person yet. That is one of the reasons why I started with you
not employing more people than you need. Never employ
people you cannot pay because you will both lose. The entire
salary of your staff including all fixed bonuses like leave
allowance, pension etc must never be more than 30% of your
income, and you need to look into that to determine how much
you can pay and who you can employ.

18. Pay Salaries on Time

Never, never, never delay paying the salaries of your staff,

because they have worked for it and deserve it. Except in
exceptional cases which must be clearly communicated.
Delaying salary payment is a no-go area. I will advise that as a
company you have a fixed day when salaries are paid. We pay
salary on the 28th of the month as a policy in my company and
it is done directly into the staff salary account. One thing my
workers can forever be grateful for is that we don't owe or
delay salaries. Your workers have a family and they also have
bills to pay and responsibilities to carry out. If you mess them
up it becomes a chain reaction and affect their performance
Staffing Your Business 427

and ultimately your business.

19. Incorporate Incentives To Encourage Higher

Productivity

Especially for senior staff, and long-time employees, I advise

that you make provisions for other incentives in addition to
good and prompt salaries.
 Official car
 Official residence
 Commission on sales
 Performance bonus
 Share ownership option
 Profit sharing option
 Annual vacations
 Membership of clubs etc.

People don't care how much you know until they know how
much you care.

20. Respect Their Views And Let Them Share In Decision

Making

No one owns the monopoly of wisdom and we all learn every

day. Don't ignore, look down on, or despise the views of the
people around you. Drawing on their inputs and experience is
a wise thing to do as a leader. If you involve them in decision
making and carry them along, they will feel belong and
appreciate major policy and strategy change.

21. Don't Be Afraid To Trust

When you have done your due diligence, learn to delegate

428 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

tasks to your staff and also learn to trust them. No one can
function effectively in an atmosphere of suspicion, and
corporate politics. If you trust them they will know, and if you
don't trust them they will know.

A relationship without trust is already dead, only awaiting

burial. So, avoid mistrust in your organization, clarify area of
confusion, ask questions to fully understand grey areas or
flash points and trust them. It is better to truly trust and be
betrayed by them than to not trust and lose quality people who
cannot stand your mistrust.

22. Have A Constant Training And Personal Development

Policies In Place

We live in a changing world, and everyone needs to be a

student in the school of continual development. The day you
stop learning you start dying. So put a policy in place for your
workers to be trained regularly and continue to place a
premium on personal development.
 Provide a training budget for every staff.
 Recommend book of the month for all to read and report
on.
 Make time for one-to-one mentoring with them.
 Encourage them to get more qualification and
professional certificates in their fields.

Whatever you invest in developing them will benefit your

business too.

23. Don't Give Responsibility Without Authority Or Vice

Versa

You need to make sure that you delegate responsibilities and

Staffing Your Business 429

authorities side by side in a balanced proportion.

 If you delegate responsibility without authority, people
will feel used
 If you delegate authority without responsibility, people
will abuse it.

As you give people responsibilities, give them authority along

with it and as their responsibility increases so should their
authority. This will encourage them to give their best and also
make their job easy and avoid unnecessary bureaucracy.

24. Don't Be Afraid To Sack People

One thing you will have to do as an employer in the course of

your business is to fire people. It is not an easy or palatable
thing to do, but once it becomes necessary, it has to be done. If
you keep those you should sack, you will lose those you
should keep.
 Give them warnings.
 Assist them to change when necessary, to avoid sack.
 Talk to them to help them see clearly etc.

For every worker you have, there is probably an average of five

people or more that depend on them and so when you sack
them, they don't suffer alone though they mostly don't realize
that when they are messing up. Give them a long rope, do all
you can to help them, but when the big decision has to be
made, don't be afraid to make it.

25. Develop A Csr Policy And Culture In Your Business

CSR - Corporate Social Responsibility is very important for

430 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

any company that wants to be relevant in today's world. As a

company, you must make it a policy and a culture within your
organization to be socially responsible and give back to the
community where you operate and the society at large.

You need the goodwill it generates and the fulfillment you get
as a person, and as a company for doing what is right in your
generation. Look around you, there is always something you
can do to make a difference.

Let me end this chapter with this list just as a bonus, and five
lessons on how to treat people

30 WAYS TO INCREASE YOUR LEADERSHIP

EFFECTIVENESS

Effectiveness and efficiency are both very important in the

workplace. While one means doing things right, the other
means doing the right thing; and as a leader, here are a list of
how you can increase both in your life. Due to space constraint,
I will only list them but will not explain them.

Seven Ways To Attract Followers

1. Make others feel important.
2. Promote your vision.
3. Treat others as you will be treated.
4. Take responsibility for your actions and the actions of
those you lead.
5. Praise in public and criticize in private.
6. See and be seen.
7. Use competition to make a striving game.
Staffing Your Business 431

Seven Ways to take charge in a crisis or high risk situation

8. Establish your objective at once.
9. Communicate what you want done.
10. Act boldly.
11. Be decisive.
12. Dominate the situation.
13. Lead by example.
14. Dump people who can't do the job.

Eight Actions To Develop Your Charisma

15. Show your commitment.
16. Look the part of your vision.
17. Dream big.
18. Keep moving towards your goal.
19. Do your homework.
20. Build a mystique.
21. Use the indirect approach.

Four Ways To Build Leadership Self Confidence

22. Become an uncrowned leader.
23. Be an unselfish teacher and helper of others.
24. Develop your expertise.
25. Use positive imagery.

Five Actions Steps to Motivate Those You Lead

26. Work on the important things first.
27. Treat others with respect.
28. Make the work interesting.
432 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

29. Always give recognition for good work.

30. Give those you lead an opportunity to develop their skills

FIVE (5) LESSONS ABOUT THE WAY WE TREAT PEOPLE

1. First Important Lesson - Cleaning Lady.

During my second month of college, our professor gave us a

pop quiz. I was a conscientious student and had breezed
through the questions until I read. The last one:

“What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?"
Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning
woman several times. She was tall, dark-haired and in her 50's,
but how would I know her name?

I handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank. Just

before class ended, one student asked if the last question
would count toward our quiz grade.

"Absolutely, said the professor. In your careers, you will meet

many people. All are significant...they deserve your attention
and care, even if all you do is smile and say "Hello."

I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned her name was
Dorothy.

2. Second Important Lesson - Pickup In The Rain

One night, at 11:30 p.m., an older African American woman

was standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to
endure a lashing rain storm. Her car had broken down and she
desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag
down the next car.
Staffing Your Business 433

A young white man stopped to help her, generally unheard of

in those conflict-filled 1960's. The man took her to safety,
helped her get assistance and put her into a taxicab.

She seemed to be in a big hurry, but wrote down his address

and thanked him. Seven days went by and a knock came on the
man's door. To his surprise, a giant console color TV was
delivered to his home. A special note was attached.

IT READ:

"Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway the other

night. The rain drenched not only my cloths, but also my spirit.
Then you came along. Because of you, I was able to make it to
my dying husband's bedside just before he passed away... God
bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving others.”

Sincerely, Mrs. Nat King Cole.

3. Third Important Lesson - Always Remember Those

Who Serve.

In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10-
year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table.

A waitress put a glass of water in front of him. "How much is

an ice cream sundae?" he asked. "Fifty cents," replied the
waitress.

The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied the
coins in it. "Well, how much is a plain dish of ice cream?" he
inquired.

By now more people were waiting for a table and the waitress
434 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

was growing impatient.

"Thirty-five cents," she brusquely replied.
The little boy again counted his coins.
"I'll have the plain ice cream," he said.

The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and
walked away. The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier
and left. When the waitress came back, she began to cry as she
wiped down the table. There, placed neatly beside the empty
dish, were two nickels and five pennies.

You see, he couldn't have the sundae, because he had to have

enough left to leave her a tip.

4. Fourth Important Lesson. - The Obstacle In Our Path.

In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on a roadway.

Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would
remove the huge rock. Some of the King's wealthiest
merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around
it... Many loudly blamed the King for not keeping the roads
clear, but none did anything about getting the stone out of the
way.

Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. Upon

approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden
and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much
pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. After the peasant
picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the
road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many
gold coins and a note from the King indicating that the gold
was for the person who removed the boulder from the
Staffing Your Business 435

roadway. The peasant learned what many of us never

understand!

Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our

condition.

5. Fifth Important Lesson - Giving When It Counts.

Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at a hospital, I

got to know a little girl named Liz, who was suffering from a
rare and serious disease. Her only chance of recovery
appeared to be a blood transfusion from her 5-year old brother,
who had miraculously survived the same disease and had
developed the antibodies needed to combat the illness. The
doctor explained the situation to her little brother, and asked
the little boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his
sister.

I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep

breath and saying, "Yes I'll do it if it will save her." As the
transfusion progressed, he lay in bed next to his sister and
smiled, as we all did, seeing the color returning to her cheek.
Then his face grew pale and his smile faded. He looked up at
the doctor and asked with a trembling voice, "Will I start to die
right away".

Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the

doctor; he thought he was going to have to give his
sister ALL of his blood in order to save her but he had
chosen to save her anyway.

Let all these lessons motivate and inspire you to treat people
right, especially those who work for you.
436 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

“I must work the work of him that sent me

while it is day, for the night is coming when
no man can work.”

Another very important thing I need to share in this book is the

issue of franchise because it is an available alternative to
starting your own business from scratch.

Franchise by definition is:

A form of business organization in which a firm which already

has a successful product or service (the Franchisor) enters into
a continuing contractual relationship with other businesses or
individuals (Franchisees) operating under the franchisers
trade name and usually with the franchisers guidance, in
exchange for a fee.

So franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful

business model and system.
 The owner of the business system is called the franchisor.
 The buyer of the business system is called the franchisee.

For the franchisor, the franchise is an alternative for building

“chain stores” to distribute goods, and to avoid the need for
438 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

investments and liability for a chain store. The franchisor's

success also depends on the franchisee, and the franchisee is
said to have a greater incentive than direct company
employees because he or she has a direct stake in the business.

Franchising is a technique for business expansion appropriate

for small, one location firms and nationally active companies
alike. It is often regarded as one of the fastest means of
achieving growth; although it does have many advantages,
franchising requires careful planning to be successful. Both
small and big companies have used franchising to grow their
business, while many entrepreneurs have become one by
buying a franchise.

To start your own business through franchising you need to do

your research of the different franchising options and
packages available because they vary in cost and package
content.
 Do they have a good trademark and trade name?
 Do they have an initial entry fee?
 If they do, is it affordable and profitable?
 Do they charge annual fees or just royalty alone?
 Do they offer start-up assistance like helping you get a
good location and premises?
 Do they offer continual training and advice or just start-
up training?
 Do they buy things in bulk and spread to all to reduce
your own cost, or you do your own purchases?
 Do they do national advert and share cost with you, or do
you do your own advert?
Franchising 101 439

 Do they help with accounting and book keeping?

 Do they help with IT Support?
 Are they flexible in their contract or overly restrictive?
 Do they allow you to be creative and innovative or are
they set in their way?
 Will they be patient with you to grow or burden you with
unrealistic goals and targets?

These and many more questions are what you need answers to
and should form part of your study and research.

I have focused on you starting your own business using the

franchises option which makes you the franchisee; let me now
look into expanding an existing business using the franchising
strategy which makes you a franchisor.

FRANCHISING YOUR BUSINESS

1. Take Stock: -

Define what has made your businesses a success that can make
people want to buy your franchise, and know why you want to
use this strategy to expand.

2. Get Legal Advice: -

Since your trademark or trade name and business model or

system is what you are selling, make sure all legalities have
been covered and you get sound legal advice.

3. Draw Up A Business Plan: -

Putting a business plan in place is very vital to open up your

440 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

business to franchising so you can cover every base in advance

and have a focus and strategy.

4. Define The Franchise Package: -

What will be the content of your own franchise package? If

people buy into it, what are you offering them and how do you
want to operate and make money?

5. Draw Up A Contract: -

Take legal and professional advice to develop a watertight

franchise contract with all vital clauses in place to protect you
and the future of your business.

6. Prepare A Pilot: -

It is very important that you test your franchise concept in one

particular area; this will help you learn lessons from the pilot
that will prove invaluable to the success of your franchising
network.

7. Advertise The Franchise: -

Advertise in the local newspaper of your pilot area or in

specific magazines and journals that will help attract
franchisees. Prepare brochures and use other platforms too.

8. Select A Franchisee: -

Selecting the right franchisee is vital because no matter how

catchy your trade name and how sound your business
concept, the franchisee will be the one responsible for the
success in their own area.
Franchising 101 441

9. Start The Pilot: -

Provide as much support as you can to get the first franchise

off the ground. Give them help when needed and allow them
free hand to operate also.

10. Monitor The Franchise: -

Learn from the results of the franchise pilot and revise the
concept along while also getting feedback and opinion from
the franchisee.

11. Advertise Again: -

You may wish to run other pilots or if the initial one was
successful, you may want to expand as quickly as possible to
attract other franchisees.

12. Review The Franchise Regularly: -

You should never allow your franchise to become static, make

changes to the concept and the package you offer as necessary.
Review each franchisee annually, and decide whether to
renew the person's contract.

ADVANTAGES OF FRANCHISING
1. It provides the franchisor an affordable mean of
accelerating expansion.
2. It spreads the financial risk of expansion.
3. It means that products or goods can be bought in bulk to
cover the whole franchise network, thus increasing
competitiveness and profit margin.
4. It helps the franchisee that starts business with a leverage
442 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

of existing brand and system.

5. It helps the franchisee get training, mentoring and
support cheaply and easy.

DISADVANTAGES OF FRANCHISING
1. The franchisor relinquishes control and profit by
involving an outsider.
2. The franchisor risk conflict with the franchisees and this is
also a disadvantage to the franchisee who also risks
conflict with franchisor.
3. The franchisor sees low returns until the franchise
network has been built up.
4. The franchisee still has to be subjected to being controlled
by the franchisor and hence has no total control like other
entrepreneur?
5. The franchisee's business destiny and dream is subject to
the brand and system of the franchisor which can be
messed up anytime and so affect the franchisee.

I will greatly advise that you do more research on your own

about franchising and go online to examine countless
franchise opportunities all over the globe.
 CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

“Ask not what your country can do for you,

but ask what you can do for your country.”

He that will not work let him not eat that's the way of life.
Idleness is one of the plagues of today's world because a lot of
people seem to want something for nothing, and they lazy
about as busy bodies- busy doing nothing.

We have done a whole module on investing and wealth

creation and now we have done another on entrepreneurship,
so where do you belong. You are either:
 An investor;
 An entrepreneur;
 An employee/worker; or
 An idle person.

It is dangerous to be idle because it will cause harm to you and

others associated with you so find something doing. Years ago
I realized that there are no menial jobs, only menial minds, and
there are no odd jobs only odd mindsets. Whatever your hand
finds to do - do it. Only laborers deserve wages, and life only
rewards you to the degree of your usefulness and the problem
444 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

you solve. Only those who are working or have worked

deserve to rest, and nobody pays you for activity but for
productivity because you are not rewarded for length of time
spent at the office or at work but your dedication and
productivity at it.

There is no subtitle for work and like I have emphasized

previously, you need to work if you want to make it in life or
create wealth. Whether it is hard work or smart work you
need to work.

WORK HAS BENEFITS

1. Working Provides You With A Learning Experience

I have shared with you earlier the five kinds of education you
need, and how you need that to get employed. Employers ask
for experience. Well, working is where you get experience and
get professional education.

2. Working Keeps You Hale And Hearty And Refreshes

You

Just like an unused battery will run down and an uninhabited

house deteriorate, an idle life also diminishes. Working is good
physical, mental and emotional exercise and therapy for your
life.

3. Working Earns You Respect

There is something called the dignity of labour and idle people

don't get it, only workers do. Nobody respects the idle or lazy
man in life, but people respect the hard worker.
Dangers Of Idleness 445

4. Working Earns You Reward

Nobody is rewarded for doing nothing; people only get

rewarded for doing something. When you work either as a
staff, an investor or an entrepreneur, you earn salaries, returns
or profit.

5. Working Increases Your Skills And Competence

You must have heard that practice makes perfect. When you
work, it will help you to develop your skills and other levels of
competences and really mature you. You gain far more from
working than being idle

6. Working Is A Means To An End

Working helps you to provide a means of livelihood, it helps

you to get seed capital for investing, and for going into your
own business. It also helps you get the preparations necessary
for entrepreneurship.

7. Working Helps You Become Significant

When you work, it becomes a platform and opportunity for

you to make your own contribution to our world and become
significant. You cannot make any positive or meaningful
impact with idleness except to be a nuisance to others.
Time is money.
Time is life.
Time is knowledge.
Time is rest.
Time is many things.
446 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Time is a convertible resource, and can become any of the

above. So, time wasted is destiny wasted. Nobody grows
young; everybody grows old.

Avoid any form of idleness.

 Learn to do tomorrow's work yesterday.
 Engage in mental labour.
 Volunteer your services and time instead of being idle.
 Learn new skills, new language or a craft.

Like I quoted earlier in this book,

If you cannot fly, then run.
If you cannot run, then walk.
If you cannot walk, then crawl.

No matter what, just make sure you are on the move and not
idle. Idleness is dangerous, dangerous and dangerous
because:
 It makes you lose time and economy.
 It make you decay installmentally and unconsciously.
 It makes you open to depravity because an idle mind or
hand is the devil’s workshop.
 It makes you delay or suspend your destiny and those of
others.

If you have read this book all through till this stage, you cannot
afford idleness from now. Get something doing.
 CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

“There are no menial jobs, only menial minds.

There are no odd jobs, just odd mindsets.”

To conclude this module, let me give you a list of different

kinds of businesses you can explore in addition to all I have
given previously in this book:
1. Poultry
2. Car Wash Services
3. Printing Business
4. Dry Cleaning Services
5. Pop Corn Business
6. Garbage Collection
7. Photography
8. Exercise book Production
9. Farming
10. Newspaper & Magazine Sales
11. Fruit Shop.
12. Opinion Poll/ Rating Agency
13. Collection Centre for Dry-cleaners
448 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

14. House-to-House Dry-cleaning Services

15. Greeting Card Production
16. Beans flour Production
17. Canned food - fish, baked beans (moin-moin)
18. Children Cookies production
19. Fast Food Business
20. Food Seasoning Production
21. Powder Fruit Drink Production
22. Packing of Special type of Gari in nylon bags
23. Packaged Rice
24. Sealed Groundnut Production
25. Sealed Pepper Production
26. Nursery & primary school
27. Estate Agency
28. Children Cloth & Wears Manufacturing
29. Catering
30. Computer Graphic development
31. Animal Husbandry
32. Improving on an existing product
33. Day Care/ Baby Care
34. Baking & Bread Making
35. Marketing existing products
36. Business registration for companies
37. Fund management
Business Ideas Catalogue 449

38. Filling of annual Report for companies

39. Management Consultancy
40. Barbing Salon
41. Soap Making
42. Toilet roll production
43. Cake production
44. Adoption Agency
45. Bags & Nylon Manufacturing
46. Transport Business
47. Aquarium Production
48. Beverage Manufacture
49. Coffee & tea Shop
50. Mobile Snack Operation
51. Event Planning
52. Biography Publishing / Autobiography
53. Photo Journalism
54. Advertising. Photography
55. Studio Photography
56. Artistic Painting
57. Graphic Artist
58. Outdoor or society Photography
59. Writing
60. Business Training
61. Computer Assembling and Repairs
450 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

62. Computer Consumable Manufacturing

63. Clearing and Forwarding
64. Computer Software Development
65. Contract Publishing
66. Freelance Writing
67. Office Supplies
68. Designing
69. Hotel, Motel Supplies
70. Modeling
71. Acting
72. Manuscript Reviewing
73. Video Recording
74. Art- Cartoon
75. House/ Room Rental
76. Binding
77. Telephone services
78. Publisher Representative
79. Gardener
80. Party Planning
81. Drug Supply to Chemist
82. Production of Packed Fried Meat
83. Detergent Production
84. Chalk Production
85. Hair Dressing
Business Ideas Catalogue 451

86. Furniture Making

87. Crop Husbandry
88. Sign Writing
89. Ice cream making
90. Tailoring
91. Marketing agent
92. Floor & Rug Cleaning
93. Leather Production -Shoe, bag
94. Arranging Comedies
95. Canteen / Restaurant
96. Refreshment sales
97. Food Item sales
98. Supermarket & Variety Stores
99. Bookshop
100. Tourism & Tours.
101. Game Centre
102. Transporting Agency
103. Photocopying Centre
104. Horticulture
105. Printing of Stationery
106. Travel Agency
107. Video Club
108. Manual Labour
109. Export & Import Business
452 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

110. Courier Business

111. Used Automobile Owners agent/ Sales
112. Manufacturing of Juice
113. Educational Book Publishing
114. Cocoa Bean Merchandizing
115. Construction
116. Garment Manufacturing
117. Paint & Varnish Manufacturing
118. Tyre Retreading
119. Bottling of Soft Drinks
120. Manufacturing of Matches
121. Diary Production
122. Plastic Manufacturing
123. Screen Printing on Cloth
124. Scanning Business
125. 201 Machine Use
126. Cord Machine Use
127. Cement Manufacturing
128. Singlet Manufacturing
129. Passenger Bus Service
130. Haulage
131. Insecticide & Pesticide
132. Shopping bag, purse, shoes, et al
133. Oil Servicing Company
Business Ideas Catalogue 453

134. Paper Conversion Business

135. Wire, Nails, Nuts, et al
136. Rice Milling
137. Fertilizer Production
139. Business Centre
140. Sticker Production & Sales
141. Customized Product
142. Creative and Innovative Products
143. Career Pursuit
146. Repairs
147. Script Writing
148. Script Review
149. Lesson & Weekend Classes
150. Rental Services
151. Music Production
152. Voice Over
153. Playing of Music Instrument
154. Song writing/ Arrangement
155. Making of Sound Track
156. TV & Radio Programme
157. Studio
158. Video Production
159. Balloon decoration
160. Packaged Water Business
454 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

16 I. Rug & Carpet Washing

162. Audio Duplication
163. Audio & Music Club
164. Foreign University Admission Consultant
165. International Business Representative
166. Mail Dropping
167. Kingdom Business- Selling
168. Magazine / Journal Production & Sales
169. Production & Manufacturing of Games
170. Seminars and Training.
 SECTION FIVE

THE SUCCESS MODULE

Understanding true success
How to succeed
Dangers of success
Time management 101
Goal setting 101
Decision making 101
What's your problem?
456 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

“The way you get started is to quit talking

and begin doing.”

Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up, it knows that it

must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed.

Every morning a lion wakes up, it knows that it must outrun

the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death.

It doesn't matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle, when the

sun comes up, you better start running.

This clear understanding about the reality of life helps both the
gazelle and the lion to do what they need to do to stay alive.

Many in life wants to succeed, but don't even understand what

success is all about nor do they know the price they need to
pay. The greatness of a man is not in what he has, but in the
course he lives for, and the price he is willing to pay to achieve
that course.

We have just one life to live, and this life has no duplicate.
Every day when we wake up life moves on because nobody
grows young, everybody grows old. Life has given us many
gifts, and we all need to know the purpose of each gift, and
know how to use them.
458 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

The gifts of life include:

 The gift of work.
 The gift of money.
 The gift of friends.
 The gift of problems.
 The gift of family.
 The gift of learning.
 The gift of laughter.
 The gift of giving.
 The gift of gratitude.
 The gift of a day.
 The gift of love.
 The gift of a dream.
What is your dream in life?
What can and should you do to see it happen?
Are you willing and ready to pay the price to fulfill your
dream?
Success in life is generally defined as the achievement of a goal
or the fulfillment of a dream, and this to me is not an accurate
definition of true success, because the lack of understanding of
true success has made many run with this definition without
finding the needed fulfillment which only comes by true
success.
 Setting and reaching a goal
 Dreaming and fulfilling a dream…

are not the definitions of true success because your goal or

dream may not be the right one. A lot of people dream and set
Understanding True Success 459

goals to get to the top of the corporate ladder, and they do all
they can to climb the ladder to the top only to discover that the
ladder is leaning on the wrong wall. Many others also dream
and set goals of becoming rich and wealthy. Hence, they do all
they can legally and illegally to make it happen, believing that
the end justifies the means, but they end up realising that true
success and fulfilment still did not happen for them.
 Fulfilling negative dreams does not make you successful
in the true sense of success or else Hitler was a success.
 Achieving negative goals does not make you successful in
the true sense of success or else Osama Bin Laden was a
success.

TRUE SUCCESS DEFINED

TRUE SUCCESS IS THE PROGRESSIVE ACHIEVEMENT OF

THE CREATOR'S GOALS/DREAMS FOR YOUR LIFE.

It is not the fulfillment of just any goal but of the Creator's goal,
of worthy, positive, goals and dreams.

While transporting some unfortunate mental patients from

one secure place to another, the newly appointed bus driver
stopped at a roadside restaurant for a natural break. On his
return to the bus, all twenty patients were gone. Being a
resourceful person and fearing the consequences of his
negligence, he drove to the next bus stop, where he claimed to
be a replacement for the usual service. Allowing only twenty
people on board, the driver made straight for his destination,
where he warned members of staff at the gates that the
“patients” were deluded and extremely volatile. The angry
“patients” were removed, sedated and incarcerated. They
remained in detention for three days until members of staff
were able to check their records and confirm their true
460 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

identities. The actual patients were never found.

Did the driver achieve a goal?- Yes

 Did the driver achieve the employer's goal? - No

He was resourceful, creative and cunning in setting a new goal

and dream of getting twenty people to the location, but that
did not make him a success because he did not achieve the goal
or dream he was meant to achieve.

True success has major sides and uniqueness to it that sets it

apart from the general understanding of success.

VITAL FACTS

1. TRUE SUCCESS IS A JOURNEY NOT A

DESTINATION

There is no particular location or level you will get to in life that

is the final destination or bus-stop called Success. Success is a
journey and not a destination. As long as you are where you
should be and you are doing what you should be doing per
time, you are a success.

2. TRUE SUCCESS BEGINS WITH THE DISCOVERY OF

LIFE'S PURPOSE

A life without a purpose is an experiment. We are all creatures

of purpose because the Creator had a purpose in mind when
he created us. That purpose He had in mind for us is our own
unique life mission and assignment. Discovering that purpose
and working to fulfil that purpose is what true success is, and
where true success begins.
Understanding True Success 461

3. ONLY THE CREATOR KNOWS WHO IS TRULY

SUCCESSFUL
You can achieve any goal you want
You can fulfill any dream you want
You can call yourself successful
Others can call you successful etc

But if the person that created you and gave you an assignment
and life mission does not call you successful, you are a failure.
He is the one that knows why He created you and what He
created you to achieve.

Instead of spending your life pursuing your own goals and

dreams or other people's goals and dreams for you, why not
discover your real life's mission and assignment and start
living for that because that is where true success and
fulfillment come from.
From movie stars
To music stars
To football or sport stars
To all kinds of celebrities all over the world called “success…”

We have continually seen that they still don't find fulfillment

in all their achieved goals and fulfilled dreams because of the
foundational error that stems out of a lack of understanding of
true success.
 They have achieved their goals
 They have fulfilled their wildest dreams
 They have made all the money
 They have acquired all the fame etc
462 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Yet they have not become TRUE SUCCESS.

4. TRUE SUCCESS IS UNIQUE TO YOU

No one can beat you at being you. There is only one you and no
one can be like you better than you. You are created as an
original and not a copy of other people. We have over seven
billion people on the face of the earth today, and none of them
have your
 Thump print
 Voice print
 Eye print etc

You are one in seven billion and so is your success track. Don't
try to be like someone else or else, you will fail. Be yourself.
One of the greatest if not the greatest secret of true success is
being yourself.

5. ALL THE SECRETS OF SUCCESS IN LIFE ONLY

MATTERS WHEN THE BASICS ARE COVERED

There are countless books available on earth today on the

subject of success. This module on success is not meant to
duplicate them, but to present a different angle of true success.
All the success principles you know are useless until the basics
are covered which is
 True definition of success as seen and…
 The fact that it begins with the discovery of purpose etc

When you settle the basics, then all the principles, laws, keys
and strategies of success will now come to play. We will
examine few in this module.
Understanding True Success 463

They include but are not limited to:

 Being yourself
 Seeing right
 Thinking right
 Being properly informed
 Positive confession
 Right action
 Persistence
 A fighting spirit
 Risk taking
 Right relationships
 Diligence
 Investment mentality
 Wisdom and common sense
 Excellence
 Positive attitude
 Time management
 Goal setting
 Faithfulness
 Creativity and innovation
 Proper preparation
 Networking
 Self-reliance
 Prioritising
 Giving and generosity
 Determination
464 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

 Zeal and passion

 Order
 Confidence
 Ideas
 Experience
 Mentoring etc

EVIL PHILOSOPHY

To achieve true success, there are some evil philosophies and

belief that must be eradicated and re-evaluated because they
limit our potentials and possibilities.

The fact that an opinion has been widely held is no evidence

that it is not utterly absurd. It is just an opinion but can become
your own evil philosophy if you don't question it. Many
people have believed a lie so much that when they finally
encounter truth, they fight it.
1. Whatever Will Be, Will Be!
Whatever will be will not be; you have to make it be. You
have a part to play in what will be in your life, so don't
leave it to chance.
2. Half Bread is Better Than None!
Why settle for half bread when you can get full bread or
even own the bakery. This is a limiting belief that
positions you to settle for less and it is a mediocre
philosophy.
3. Let Sleeping Dogs Lie
Why will you allow sleeping dogs be if they are lying
Understanding True Success 465

down on your seat or your bed? Will you vacate your

place for dogs? Don't settle for less in life.
4. You Cannot Have Good Always Without Evil
No wonder your life has been in cycles of good and evil,
instead of good, better, best. Your expectations attracted
your reality. It is time to change your expectations so as to
change your manifestation.
5. A Bird in Hand is Worth More Than Two in The Bush
A bird in hand is useless compared to millions of birds in
the bush. If only you are willing to go into the bush and
hunt for them. Many times out of laziness, we come up
with evil philosophies.
6. Fingers are Not Equal
Yes! Physical fingers in your hand are not equal but that
does not make any of them valueless. Lose one and you
realise that they are all valuable. You are not even a finger,
so why look down on yourself.
7. A Fool at Forty is a Fool Forever
A fool at any age can be a fool forever if he refuses to let go
of his foolishness. It is never too late to become wise
because the day you wake up and wise up is the day you
change.
8. Life Begins at Forty
So, what have you been doing from birth - dying or just
existing? If you are below forty and you believe this, I feel
so, so sorry for you because it means you are not yet alive.
466 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

9. What Goes up Must Come Down

I thought that was just the lyrics of a song. When did it
become the philosophy of your life? Is your age coming
down? Is your wisdom and knowledge coming down? Is
the price of goods coming down? Think my friend!
10. He Who Laughs Last, Laughs Best
Why laugh last when you can laugh always and why
laugh best when laughter is not a competition. When we
programme ourselves with these strange philosophies,
they limit and restrict us.
11. Don't Bite More Than You Can Chew
Like one of my friends will always say, “Bite more than
you can chew and let God help you chew it”. Why dream
small when you can dream big, and why settle for less,
when you can have the best.
12. The Patient Dog Eats The Fattest Bone
Are you a dog? Are you okay with just bones?
I am sure you are not a dog; and no matter how fat the
bone is, it is nothing compared to the meat except for a
dog.
13. Majority Carries The Vote
That everybody is doing it does not make it right.
Majority may carry the vote in your life but you alone will
suffer the consequence, so wise up and defend your vote
in life.
14. If You Cannot Beat Them, Join Them
What an error of judgment! Don't you know that if you do
Understanding True Success 467

it the way they do it, you will also end up with their
result? Don't join them. If you cannot beat them, separate
yourself and move on. Be unique and exceptional.
15. If You Do It You Will Face The Music
Please face the music and enjoy the beat. Good music is
good for the soul. If you face the music well, one day you
may be the one singing the song or conducting the
orchestra.
16. The End Justifies The Means
The means is as important as the end because if the means
is wrong, the end will never be right. Every part of the
process demands order, justice and integrity. Don't ever
despise the process on the way to the promise.
17. Opportunity Comes But Once
Who told you so? Are you the one who creates
opportunity? Why expect only one opportunity when life
is full of opportunities that show up on a daily basis. Keep
watching and be sensitive because opportunities are
everywhere.
18. Opportunity Once Lost Can Never Be Regained
If it depends on you yes, but not when the Creator is
brought into the equation He can restore even wasted
years and bring back lost opportunities like no one else
can ever do.
19. Get It By All Means
All means? Good or bad? No! No! No! Don't get it by all
means. Only get it by all good, legal and proper means or
else you will get it and regret it.
468 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

20. God's Time Is The Best

What kind of watch does He use? Do you limit Him by
your time? God's time is the best only if you know His
time and don't use this philosophy to stay lazy and
unfruitful.

Let me close this chapter by revealing to you five facts of life

that determine and affect true success.

FIVE IRREFUTABLE FACTS FOR TRUE SUCCESS

1. You Are Not Created To Be A Failure

It does not really matter what state you are in now, or what the
opinions of people are concerning you. You are not created to
fail.
You may have failed in an exam
You may have failed in a business
You may have failed in a relationship etc…
But that does not make you a failure.

There is a difference between failure as an event, and failure as

a person. Your life events and circumstances do not define you
because you are not an event. Your present state is not your
final status. Even if you presently don't look like a success, it is
only a matter of time because you are not created to be a failure.

2. There Is No Such Thing As Luck

Many people would have become great and successful except

for the fact that instead of paying the price for success and
greatness, they are waiting for a lucky day. Nobody succeeds
by accidents in life, and people don't become great by luck.
Understanding True Success 469

When opportunity meets with preparation, you claim a man is

lucky. Anyone you see that is great and successful today did
not get there by luck or by accident, but by consciously or
unconsciously activating the laws and principles of success.
Even the lottery winners are not lucky because to win a lottery,
laws of success are applied unconsciously.
You believe in the lottery-faith
You buy the ticket-seed and action
You buy tickets over and over again - persistence
You wait for the date of result-patience etc

3. No One Can Make You Fail Without Your Permission

Universally, excuses have been known as the trademarks of

failure. When people succeed, they take responsibility; but
when they fail, they blame others. What's your excuse?
 Are you disabled or physically challenged? - So are
countless others who have become successful despite
their disability.
 Are you uneducated? - So are millions of people who have
made a success out of their life.
 Are you an orphan? - So are numerous orphans who are
the envy of many today.
 Are you a minority? - So are many minorities all over the
world who have become successful. etc

No matter your condition, you have no excuse to be a failure.

You have a responsibility to become successful. Obstacles
cannot stop you; problems cannot stop you; most of all, other
people cannot stop you. Only you can stop You.
470 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

4. Your Desire To Succeed is a Proof That You Can

Succeed

We normally take it for granted that everyone has positive

desires and expectations; but truth be told, not everyone
desires or expects the positive in life. Pessimism is a culture
and a way of life for many. Your desire for something is a proof
of its existence somewhere, and if you pursue your desire,
achieving it is inevitable. The starting point of all achievements
is desire. Keep this constantly in mind that weak desire brings
weak result just as a small amount of fire makes small amount
of heat. The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity and
the optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty. Human
beings have the remarkable ability to turn nothing into
something. They can turn weeds into garden and pennies into
fortunes. It all begins with a strong desire.

5. Success in Life is Not For Those Who Wish For it But For
Those Who Work For it.

You don't have to be great to get started but you have to get
started to be great. Anyone can accomplish virtually anything,
if they want it badly enough and if they are willing to work
long enough and hard enough. An object will remain stagnant
until a force is applied, and so also your life will remain in the
same spot until you do something about it. If wishes were
horses, beggars will ride and the only place where success
comes before work is in the dictionary.

To succeed, stop wishing; work hard and work smart because

pursuit is the proof of the desire, and what makes desire come
to pass is working at it.
 CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

“Small minds talk about people; mediocre

minds talk about events; great minds talk
about ideas.”

An old blind man was sitting on a busy street corner in the

rush-hour begging for money. On a cardboard sign, next to an
empty tin cup, he had written: “Blind - please help”. No one
was giving him any money.

A young Advertising Executive walked past and saw the blind

man with his sign and empty cup. She also saw many people
passing by, completely unmoved, let alone stopping to give
money. The advertising writer took a thick marker pen from
her pocket, turned the cardboard sheet back-to-front, re-wrote
the sign and went on her way.

Immediately, people began putting money into the tin cup.

After a while, when the cup was overflowing, the blind man
asked a stranger to tell him what the sign now said, it says, “It
is a beautiful day - you can see it - I cannot”. The Advert
Executive knew how to succeed at using advertising but the
old blind man did not. That “Know-How” made a difference in
the result.

Many want to succeed in life and at different tasks, goals and

472 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

endeavours but fail because they don't know how to succeed.

Let's use this chapter to examine the major steps required to
succeed in life and at anything.

1. Get The Right Definition Of Success

How do you define success? The last chapter was used to

give a clearer understanding of true success. In order to
truly succeed, the first step will be to have the right
definition of success.

2. Define Your Destination

To succeed at achieving anything, you must have a

definition of exactly what you want. You must know
what you want, so you can know when you get it. You
must know where you are going so you will know when
you get there.

3. Have A Specific Goal And Target

Your goals and target must be specific and not hazy so

you can work at it. A double-minded man is unstable in
all his ways and can hardly get anything done. Therefore,
have a specific goal and target if you want to succeed.

4. Write Down Your Goals

An unwritten goal is not yet a valid goal. The faintest line

is longer than the longest memory, and writing down
your goals helps to activate different faculties of your
being that will aid your success. There is a different
outcome between those who write down their goals and
those who don't.
How To Succeed 473

5. Define The Specific Time To Achieve It

Timing yourself helps challenge you and bring the

discipline required to achieve success. You cannot just
leave things to chance or believe the “whatever will be,
will be” philosophy. Define the timing, and work at it so
you can speed up your journey of success.

6. Develop A Plan To Achieve It

If you fail to plan, you have already planned to fail; and

success remains just a dream without a plan. Develop a
plan on how you will achieve your planned success and it
will help you greatly. If you plan well, you will do well.
Proper planning prevents poor performance.

7. Put Strategies in Place To Achieve It

Plans require strategies to be executed. Many just plan

and re-plan but don't strategise and proffer action steps to
fulfill their plan. The action-steps are the strategies
required to make things happen. Anyone that wants to be
successful must be strategic.

8. Find Out The Price You Need To Pay And Commit To

Paying It

There is a price to pay for anything meaningful in life, and

only those who pay the price will get the prize. To
succeed, there are prices to pay. You must find out the
prices you need to pay, the sacrifices you need to make,
and make up your mind to pay the price, or else your
dream will end up as a nightmare, and your success a
mirage.
474 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

9. Get To Work-Act

One thousand good intentions is not as powerful as one

action. No matter the dream, the goal, the strategy etc,
until you act, it ends up as nothing. The journey of a
thousand miles begins with a step. Action is very vital if
you want to succeed because if it is going to be, it is up to
you.

10. Fight Opposition And Stay Focused

To become successful in anything, you will face

challenges, but you must refuse to give up and fight
opposition. You will also face distractions but you must
refuse it and stay focused. If you refuse to give up and
stay focused, you will succeed.

These ten steps are simple yet powerful, and should be

adopted and applied by anyone that wants to succeed.

FIVE FACULTIES OF SUCCESS

There are five faculties of success you must put to work in

order for you to become a success in life. They all have a part to
play in determining your success.

1. Your Words

What you say matters a lot and your confession affects

your success, so watch your mouth. Nobody can rise
above their confession in life. Negative words and
confessions will limit you and negate your success, while
positive words and confessions will propel and boost
your success.
How To Succeed 475

2. Your Thoughts

Your thought determines your destiny and success in life.

If you think you can or you think you cannot, you are
right because it is what you think that matters.
Sow a thought - reap an act
Sow an act - reap a habit
Sow a habit - reap a character
Sow a character - reap a destiny.
Think positive at all times and refuse negative thoughts.

3. Your Desire

What you desire determines what you pursue, and what

you pursue determines what you achieve. To become
successful, you therefore have to fan the flames of your
desire and ensure your desires are strong, positive and
channelled in the right direction that will propel you to
succeed.

4. Your Expectation
What you expect determines what you attract
What you attract determines what you inspect
What you inspect determines what you respect
What you respect determines what you manifest
Let your expectations be positive at all times because they
will affect what you manifest.

5. Your Imagination

Your imagination helps you with the formation of

476 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

images, and if the images formed are wrong and

negative, it determines your outcome. Your imagination
is so powerful that it gives you the ability to take an
excursion trip into your future and come back to make a
sound futuristic decision.

You will succeed!

THE SERGEANT MAJOR'S RUDE PARROT STORY

A Retired Sergeant Major inherited a talking parrot from a

recently departed relative who had run a busy dockside pub.
For the first few days in his new home, the normally talkative
parrot was distinctly shy. The old Major, despite his stern and
disciplined ways, felt sorry for the bird, and gently
encouraged it with soft words and pieces of fruit. After a week
or thereabout the parrot began to find its voice - a little at first.
Responding to the kind treatment, the parrot's vocabulary
continued to recover, including particularly the many
colourful expressions it had been taught in the dockside pub.

The old Sergeant Major began to be quite irritated by the

parrot's incessant rudeness, and after a few more days of
worsening profanities, decided action was required to bring
the bird under control. The Sergeant Major tried at first to
incentivise the parrot with the promise of reward for good
behaviour, but to no avail. He next tried to teach the bird a
lesson by withdrawing its privileges, again to no avail. The
parrot remained stubbornly rude. Finally, the old major
flipped into battleground management mode. He grabbed the
bird, clamped his hands around its beak, and thrust the
struggling, swearing parrot, into the top drawer of the freezer,
slamming the door tightly shut.
How To Succeed 477

The swearing and struggling noises continued inside the

freezer for a few seconds and then abruptly stopped. The
Sergeant Major listened for a while and then, concerned that
the parrot's shock might have been terminal, carefully opened
the freezer door and opened the drawer to look. The parrot
slowly clambered out of the drawer and perched on its edge.

“I must apologise for my rude and disrespectful behaviour,”

said the parrot. “I promise never to use bad language again.
And by the way, what did the turkey I saw in there do?

The retired Sergeant Major tried many strategies before he

succeeded in his goal. I hope and believe that you won't need
to try ceaselessly. With the knowledge you are getting, you
will hit the bull's eye at all times.
478 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

“Your talent is God's gift to you. What you do

with it is your gift back to God.”

The story goes that sometime, close to a battlefield 200 years

ago; a man in civilian clothes rode past a small group of
exhausted battle-weary soldiers digging an obviously
important defensive position. The section leader, making no
effort to help, was shouting orders, threatening punishment if
the work was not completed within one hour.

“Why are you not helping?” Asked the stranger on horseback.

“I am in charge, and they do as I tell them”, said the sectional

leader, adding, “help them yourself if you feel strongly about
it”. To the section leader's surprise, the stranger dismounted
and helped the men until the job was finished. Before leaving,
the stranger congratulated the men for their work, and
approached the puzzled section-leader.

“You should notify top command next time your rank

prevents you from supporting your men - and I will provide a
more permanent solution”, said the stranger. Up close, the-
section leader now recognised General Washington, and also
the lesson he had just been taught.
480 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

This sectional leader obviously has a warped view of

leadership, and probably confused leadership for ruler-ship,
and punishment for motivation. I am sure he did not start out
like that, but now that he is a sectional leader and has people
under him, he has become a victim of the dangers of success.

This module on success will not be complete if I don't share

with you about the dangers of success. I have seen people
change just because they have tasted a little “success” and then
everyone around them become inferior and valueless to them
and should be serving them.
 For some, it is the danger of early arrival that causes it
because they became “successful” too early, and were not
mature enough to handle what comes with it.
 For some, it is their lack of character, because their
charisma has taken them to a level of “success” where
their character could not keep them.
 For some, it is a complete ignorance of the fact that success
attracts many dangers which will never be your
possibility, if you were not successful. There are some
temptations a poor man or commoner will not face.

Don't bother to rise if you plan to fall because great will be your
fall. That is why only those at the top face the danger of falling
because, he that is down needs fear no fall. Many do a lot to
become successful in life but don't equally do a lot to study in
advance on the dangers associated with success. Obtaining
success is one thing, maintaining it is another. I have seen a lot
of people do all they can to “succeed” and when they finally
reach their goal, they become something else and you begin to
wonder can money, fame and status really change people that
much? YES IT CAN.
Dangers Of Success 481

I have an unpublished book on this chapters topic and series of

teachings on it. But due to space constrain, let me just focus on
the ten dangers I have discovered that successful people
should guide against.

1. They Forget Where They Are Coming From

One major danger of success is that people tend to forget

where they are coming from once they attain a level of
“success.” A river that forgets its source will soon dry up;
it is only a matter of time.

I have seen people spend time, money and all just to get
pregnant and have a child, only to finally do and start
maltreating the child.

I have seen people weep and beg to get a job and after they
are employed, they become lukewarm.

People don't seem to appreciate what they have until they

lose it, and that is not a wise way to operate in life.

2. They Begin To Trust Their Means And Wealth

It was a hot afternoon traffic and everywhere on the

highway was blocked as cars manoeuver for space. We
were all crawling until we later realised that the traffic
was caused by a minor accident involving an SUV and a
motorbike. The motorbike man had obviously scratched
the SUV and was begging. The “BIG” man was furious
and refused the man's apology and other road users'
intervention. The scratch in my opinion was not much to
warrant the adamant and unforgiving posture. I wound
down my car window to see the scratch closely and
overheard him telling the motorbike man loudly:
482 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

“Do you know who I am?

I can beat you up and pay your hospital bill,

burn your motorbike and replace it in multiple folds

etc”

I was amazed. Why use a sledge hammer to kill a

mosquito? He obviously was already trapped by the
danger of success. Money has a better purpose than
beating and hospitalising people with it or burning and
replacing motorbikes with it. He obviously has started
trusting in his money, and felt he could get away with
anything just because he was rich.

3. They Despise Those Below Them

Never look down on anybody because no condition is

permanent in this life. Learn to value and appreciate
people, no matter who they are. Always remember the
golden rule Do unto others as you want to be done to you
because whatever you do, you will reap. Truly successful
people are always looking for opportunity to help others.
Unsuccessful people or those trapped by this danger of
success are always selfish and self-centered; asking what
is in it for them. That is a wrong road to tread; and if
someone is going down a wrong road, he does not need
motivation to speed him up, he needs education to turn
him around.
 Don't despise your cooks and stewards - they can
poison you
 Don't despise your drivers - they can kill you
 Don't despise your security men - they can arrange
your death
Dangers Of Success 483

 Don't despise your staff - they can set you up

No matter who you are, never despise people

4. They Become Proud And Arrogant

The greater you are, the humbler and the more relatable
you should be, because who you are and all you have
achieved and become is not your making. The higher you
go, the greater the fall. When you see people that allow
“success” get into their head, they lack understanding.
Pride goes before a fall and a haughty spirit precedes
destruction. God resists the proud and gives more grace
to the humble.

This danger when welcomed will make you a mockery in

people's view and deprive you of goodwill from people,
because they will wish otherwise for you.
 There is nothing you have now that you cannot lose
 There is no level you are in now that cannot cease
 Even your life itself is not your own and can end
tonight

When you think of the futility of life, how you can sleep
today and never wake up tomorrow, how nothing but
God can give you tomorrow, you should humble
yourself, bury pride and avoid arrogance.

5. They Neglect What They Did To Obtain Success

Obtaining is one thing, maintaining is another. Whatever

you did to obtain anything in life, you must continue to
do it to sustain and maintain it.
484 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

 What you did to get married, you must keep doing

to stay married
 What you did to become wealthy, you must keep
doing to preserve wealth
 What you did to succeed, you must keep doing to
stay successful

One danger of success is the fact that once people become

successful, they start taking things for granted; neglecting
what they used to do, and before long things begin to fall
apart.

OBTAIN - SUSTAIN - MAINTAIN, it's all part of the

package

6. They Reduce Their Zeal And Commitment

Don't ever become too big to serve. A politician who was

an usher in a church where I speak annually once came to
seek my counsel after he became a Commissioner. He
wanted to know if it was okay to stop ushering now that
he was a Commissioner. I laughed because being a
Commissioner is not forever but time based. So, is a
Commissioner too big to be an usher in the Church?

Don't allow yourself to become too busy that you ignore

the basic pillars of life. Stay zealous and committed to the
truth, and to what you believe and live for, no matter how
“big” you become. Remember that the greatness of a man
is not in what he has, but it is in the course that he lives for,
and the price he is willing to pay to achieve it.
Dangers Of Success 485

7. They Become Unteachable

I am always amazed when I come in contact with people

who think they know it all and have nothing to learn. To
be unteachable is a major problem in life, because the day
you stop learning is the day you start dying. Nobody
knows it all and nobody owns the monopoly of wisdom.
We all need each other, and we learn daily. No matter
how knowledgeable you are, others are more
knowledgeable than you in certain areas.
 If you don't learn from your doctor, you may die
before your time
 If you don't learn from your lawyer, you may attract
trouble
 If you don't learn from life, you may end up in
misery.

Life is a school of continual learning, so don't stop

learning.

8. They Overestimate Their Importance

Nobody on earth is indispensable, and it will be very

good for you to know and realise that,
 Before you came, there was life
 After you die, there will be life
 Whatever you are doing, others have done before
you
 Whatever you are doing, others will still do after
you die
486 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

You need to have a balanced estimation of your value and

channel it properly.
 To devalue yourself is inferiority complex
 To over value yourself is superiority complex

No matter who you are, you are valuable but definitely

not indispensable

9. They Surround Themselves With The Wrong People

Success has many fathers but failure is an orphan. When

you are successful you will have many sycophants and
“yes men” surrounding you because of what they can
gain by associating with you. If you are not careful, you
will confuse the “yes men” and parasites around you for
family and friends. They are neither your friends nor your
family because they are only around you for their selfish
agenda; hence, cannot be trusted, and cannot be totally
loyal to you. When troubles or challenges come into your
life, then you will know who is who.

Wise people choose their friends carefully at this stage,

and hold on to old friends and family that have been there
while they were coming up. Sieve the people around you,
and make sure you are surrounded by real and genuine
ones who have your interest at heart.

A king who was surrounded by sycophants wanted to

really sieve the people around him because only one
person around him was always having a contrary opinion
and he was beginning to dislike the person. He then
invited everyone to a get together at the palace and served
Dangers Of Success 487

bitter palm wine. Everyone was laughing and telling the

king how sweet the wine is, but this lone voice came to
him and told him the wine was bitter. He advised the king
not to patronise the supplier again. This made the king
realise that he was surrounded by the wrong people, and
he made this person his personal special adviser.

10. They Become A Target For Shame And A Fall

How many times have we seen politicians resign in

shame, due to one misconduct or the other?

How many times have we seen celebrities break down

and end up in drug and alcohol rehabilitation?

How many times have we seen celebrities commit suicide

and overdose on drugs?

If people don't learn to avoid the dangers of success, they

end up in shame and destruction.

A word is enough for the wise.

488 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER FORTY

“Control your time or someone else will;

control your destiny or someone else will.”

After twenty-five years in the same parish, Father

O'Shaunessey was saying his farewells at his retirement
dinner. An eminent member of the congregation - a leading
politician - had been asked to make a presentation and a short
speech, but was late arriving.

So the Priest took it upon himself to fill the time, and stood up
to the microphone: "I remember the first confession I heard
here twenty-five years ago and it worried me as to what sort of
place I'd come to... That first confession remains the worst I've
ever heard. The chap confessed that he'd stolen a TV set from a
neighbour and lied to the police when questioned,
successfully blaming it on a local scallywag. He said that he'd
stolen money from his parents and from his employer; that
he'd had affairs with several of his friends' wives; that he'd
taken hard drugs, and had slept with his sister and given her
VD.

You can imagine what I thought... However I'm pleased to say

that as the days passed I soon realised that this sad fellow was a
frightful exception and that this parish was indeed a
wonderful place full of kind and decent people...
490 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

“At this point the politician arrived and apologised for being
late, and keen to take the stage. He immediately stepped up to
the microphone and pulled his speech from his pocket: "I'll
always remember when Father O'Shaunessey first came to our
parish," said the politician, "In fact, I'm pretty certain that I was
the first person in the parish that he heard in confession."

The politician's late coming and inability to manage his time

put him in an embarrassing situation that he was yet to be
aware of. Time management is a very vital aspect of life,
success, and wealth creation, and that is why I have dedicated
a whole chapter in this module to treat it. The inability of many
to manage their time well has led to failures in many areas and
when people don't respect time, they lose respect.

Time is a convertible resource and time wasted is resource

wasted.

1. Time Is Life

We use the phrase life-time to represent the entirety of a

person's life, which is the time between birth date and death
date. To waste time is to waste life.

2. Time Is Money

You spend hours, days and weeks working and giving your
time to your employer or your business, and what you get in
return is not more time but money in exchange for your time.
To waste time is to waste money.

3. Time Is Knowledge

All the knowledge you have today came in exchange for the
time you gave to learning and education, and the more time
Time Management 101 491

you gave to it, the more knowledge you had. Time wasted is
knowledge wasted.

4. Time Is Love, Family And Relationship

The love you share today, the relationship you have today, the
family you have today, all exist because you invested time to
build them. LOVE IS SPELT TIME in families.

5. Time Is Everything

Whatever you can get with time, whatever you can become
with time, whatever you can achieve with time-Time IS IT.
When you view time from this perspective, you will never
waste or toy with time again because the only competition you
will ever have in life is really the competition between your
disciplined and undisciplined mind.
 You are your greatest asset in life, so you need to put your
time, efforts and money into training, grooming and
developing your greatest asset which is you.
 Time is a period within which an event occurs
 Time is a cycle of occurrence

There are different root words that are translated to mean time:

>> AEON:

Age or generation like age to age or generation to

generation.

>> CHRONOS:

Chronometer which evolved from the shadow of

the sun i.e. the sun dial and became your wrist
watch or wall clock called a chronometer which
492 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

measure the hours of a twenty four hour day

>> KAIRUS:

The exact moment when an event or something

occurred to the minute or second.

Think over these examples to gain clearer understanding.

 When a baby girl is born, she has a potential to be a wife
and a mother even though she is still a baby. So, she is in
the AEON of being a wife or mother because she is alive.
 When she gets engaged and is preparing for her wedding
day, she is in the CHRONOS of being a wife, but the exact
time she says I do and make the vow is the KAIRUS of her
being a wife.
 When she gets pregnant, she enters into the CHRONOS of
motherhood which takes an average of nine months, but
the exact time she pushes the baby out into this world is
the KAIRUS of her motherhood.

Time management is therefore all about knowing how to

manage and make the most of your generation (AEON), your
available time (CHRONOS) and your perfect timing
(KAIRUS).

There are three things you can do with time just like money:

− Waste time- which is what foolish people do

− Spend time- which is what average people do

− Invest time- which is what wise people do

Time management is about spending your time meaningfully,

Time Management 101 493

purposefully, productively, and investing it wisely.

VITAL FACTS ABOUT TIME

1. Everybody Has Time

Time is very democratic, and everybody that is alive has

time. Whether rich or poor, male or female, young or old,
we all have time.

2. Everybody Has Equal Time

Everybody on earth has twenty four hours a day because

time is a leveler. No matter who you are or what you have
you cannot create extra time.

3. God is The Giver of Time

God gave you time, and He is the only One who knows
how long you have left on earth. Nothing you do can get
you one second extra when God says your time is up.

4. You Cannot Role Back Time

Nobody grows young. Everybody grows old. Time-travel

is only in the movie world, and all the surgeries of this
world can only change your appearance and not reduce
your age.

5. Time Waits For No One

You cannot freeze or pause time except on your cable TV;

not real life. Everyday you wake up time is going forward
and moving on. Dates are changing and you cannot stop
it.
494 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

6. Time Is Money

Like we said earlier, time wasted is money wasted. If you

divide how much you make per month by the number of
hours you work, you will get your cost per hour, and
every time you wasted.

7 Time Is Life

1920 - 2013 equals your life-time like we said earlier. Do

you know that if you sleep for eight hours every day, by
the time you are 30 years old, you would have slept for ten
years?

24 = 8 +8+8, so 8 hours is one 3rd of your day. If you sleep

for 8 hours, work for 8 hours and play for 8 hours, check
your life in 30 years. Why sleep for 10 years of 30 years,
and play for another ten? - Think!

8. You Cannot Time Time

You can time yourself
You can time others
You can time events
You can time activities or tasks etc
But you cannot time time; you can only use it and manage
it.

9. You Cannot Have Time For Anything Except You Create

Time For It

I don't have time! I don't have time! - Yes, you do. You
only create time for what you consider important. It is not
time you lack; it is discipline and priority you lack.
Time Management 101 495

Why sleep for 8 hours when you can sleep for 5 hours and
create 3 hours for other meaningful things.

Why play for 8 hours when you can commit those eight
hours to other meaningful things.

10. Your Ability to Manage Time Determines Your Success

In Life

Time wasted is destiny wasted. Since time is a convertible

resource, you cannot have true, meaningful and lasting
success without properly managing your time.

TIME MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES

1. Start With The Creator

Except you are an atheist (and I feel sorry for you if you
are), the best way to manage your time is to start with the
Creator who can take time back from you any day,
anytime.
 Start your day with God in prayer, bible study,
worship etc
 Give Him at least ten percent of the day as your
tithe. i.e 2 hours and 40 minutes daily, doing
something with Him.
 Start every day, week, month, year and season with
Him.

This gives you the wisdom and grace to succeed at time

management and at life.

2. Have A Priority List And Be Organised

If you don't develop this culture of having a priority/to

496 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

do list, you will find yourself “majoring” on the minor

and “minoring” on the major. There are some “must-
haves” of an organised life that will aid your time
management.
 Dairy
 Journals
 Address book
 Card holders
 Year planner
 To do list
 A good wrist watch
 Calculator
 Calendar
 A notebook
 etc.

They must all be readily available to you. Your IPAD or

phone can do a lot of this if not all in this age of
technology. Remember, Pareto's 80:20 rule. Don't waste
80 percent of your time on what produces only 20 percent
result. The secret of success is hidden in your daily
routine.

3. Block Time For Vital Things In Your Life

Remember that you will not have time for something

except you create it.
 Block out your birthday
 Block out your spouse's birthday
 Block out your children's birthday
Time Management 101 497

 Block out your family time and holiday

 Block out your personal retreat and development
 Block out your anniversary etc

If you do these and do the same for your other obligations,

you will have placed a value on your schedule, and it will
be difficult for anyone to encroach on it anyhow. If you
don't control your time, someone else will control it
because good things only happen when planned. Bad
things happen on their own.

4. Plan In Advance

Long time planning and big picture thinking is very vital

for anyone who wants to succeed at time management
and joggle many things effectively.

There is short-term planning - days, weeks or months all

within a year.

There is mid-term planning - one year and above

There is long-term planning - three to five years and

above

Do you have a plan for the next one year in place?

Do you have a five year plan in place?

Do you have a ten year plan in place?

I have had a-thirty-year plan in place being annually

reviewed for almost twenty years now. It has also been
mainly reviewed to cover the next ten years ahead. No
one daydreams to be a failure. For those who only dream
of success and never wake up to do anything about it,
498 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

failure quickly becomes their reality.

5. Know Yourself

Those who have worked close with me know that I take

time seriously, and I don't have respect for people who
don't respect my time. To succeed at managing your time,
you need to know yourself.
 What are your strength - S
 What are your weakness - W
 What are you opportunities - O
 What are your threats - T

This SWOT Analysis is also vital for you to manage your

time successfully;
 Do you function better during the day or at night etc
 Do you like taking little naps and be refreshed
 Do you like being woken up from sleep or you wake
up by yourself
 Do you have a short concentration span etc
You must know yourself to manage yourself.

6. Start Early

For over three weeks I had an average of 3-5 hours sleep

maximum per day because of the writing of this book,
and had a target to finish it in one month; coupled with
having to speak daily; twice sometimes, and thrice on two
occasions. But because I started early, I was still able to
meet my target.

Avoid too much sleep. Wake up earlier to do other things

Time Management 101 499

before going out, and gain extra time to achieve more

than you normally will. I have read an average of one
book per week for over twenty years now. With my kind
of schedule, waking up early helps me gain time. If you
sleep by 11pm and wake up by 3am, you have 2-3 hours
extra to read or do other things instead of sleeping from
10pm - 6am and wondering how others seem to achieve
more than you do.

Success does not come cheap, likewise time management.

You have to maximise the early stage of your life when
you still have the strength to go the extra mile, so you can
relax later and have something to show for it.

7. Concentrate Fully On Tasks

One other very vital strategy you need to adopt for proper
time management is learning to focus and concentrate on
tasks.
You can gain time sometimes by doing two things or more
together, but some tasks require your full attention so you
can get it done and move on.
 You can read or listen to music or an audio
programme while using the toilet.
 You can be eating and learning at the same time
through an audio programme
 You can turn your driving time to “School on
Wheel” and achieve more than one thing etc

However for some tasks, if you give 1-2 hours of full

concentration and attention, you get them done with. I
have written over forty books so far and none of my books
took me more than ten days to write. All I do is get all my
500 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

materials together, go away to a hotel or a place alone and

concentrate on it. This one took me three weeks already as
at the time I wrote this chapter and I still had two
sections/module to go; because owing to the peculiarity
of this season of my life, I have to do many other things
while writing.

8. Avoid Procrastination

Procrastination is a thief of time. Never push till

tomorrow what you can do today. Every day, you should
be doing something that will bring you closer to the better
tomorrow you dream of. Avoid:
I will do it later
I will do it tomorrow
There is still time etc

Today is the tomorrow you spoke about yesterday.

Tomorrow never really comes because today is all you
will always have. Do what you can do, when you should
and not push them till later, and crowd the future. You
must be willing to do today what has to be done today, so
you can have tomorrow what you dream to have
tomorrow. The difference between a successful person
and others is not lack of strength nor knowledge, but
rather a lack of will to do what needs to be done when it
should be done.

Sometimes, you can be overwhelmed by the enormity of

the task at hand and that makes you just procrastinate,
but it is not wise. That is fear and laziness in disguise.
Instead of procrastinating when faced with an
overwhelming task or difficult problem, break it into
Time Management 101 501

many parts and handle them one part at a time.

9. Delegate Effectively

Why kill yourself with work when there are people

around you that can help? Insisting on doing what others
can help you do is not wisdom, and can be a sign of
insecurity. Trust people. Train and mentor people
around you, and let them help you.

Delegation is one of the greatest secrets of time

management because if you put proper systems and
strategies in place, you can delegate to people and
machines and get more things done and faster. Let others
do what they can, and focus on doing what no one else
can.
>> If you can and they cannot - concentrate on it
>> If you can and they can - delegate it to them
>> If you cannot and they can - outsource it to them

The days of lone-ranger and solo-operation are over.

These are the days of teamwork, networking,
collaboration, mergers, joint ventures etc. Even lone-
ranger was not alone. He had a horse named Tonto.

To monitor those around you and develop them to help

with task:
 You do and let them watch i.e. Mirroring
 You do with them for confidence i.e. Practising
 They do and you watch i.e. Monitoring
 They do i.e. Delegation by mentoring
502 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

We get more done in life when we don't care who gets the
credit.

10. Avoid Distractions

There are things and people that can constitute a

distraction to you if you don't handle them with wisdom.
 Unnecessary phone calls and texting
 Chatting online and being on social networks when
you should be working
 Watching the television during work time
 Entertaining and accommodating visitors when
you should be working, especially the “I was just
passing by group”. Some people just show up in
your office without notice or appointment and
claim they were just passing by and decided to
check you. Instead of politely appreciating and
dismissing them as soon as you can to see later at a
more appropriate time, you settle down and allow
your precious time pass by.

When you value your time, you won't allow time wasters or
distractions in your life. When you come before great people,
don't waste time, go straight to the point and move on or else
you become a distraction.

NB If I give you money, I can replace it but

If I give you my time, it is gone forever because you

have taken a part of my life that I cannot get back.

This is a major reason why I don't respect those who don't

respect my time because it simply means you don't value me
Time Management 101 503

and honour my life.

How Much Is Your Time Worth?

When a man works for sixty hours a week and makes a

turnover of over two million dollars per annum from all his
different businesses and organisations, see the mathematics.

60 hours /week X 52 weeks = 3, 120 hours work

3,120 hours work = over 2M per annum

2M
3,120 hours = $ 641 per hour

If a man produces an average of $ 641 per hour and that man

now gives you an appointment to meet with him for an hour,
can you now see that he is really giving you time he can never
regain, and $641 value? Now, imagine you going late for such
appointment or getting their and wasting his time.

Knowing your time worth should help you gain perspective.

Some people's time per hour is worth more than you can ever
fathom. The fact that you earn 1-2 dollars a day or 5-20 dollars
per hour does not mean that is where everybody's level is.
Don't try to reduce the value of people's time to your time-
value.
504 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

TIME VALUE CIRCLE

1
Important
4 & Urgent
Not
2
Important
Important
But Not
Not
3 Urgent
Urgent
Not
Important
But Urgent

There are four major classes of things that fight for your time

1. Important and Urgent:

This is an emergency and you should avoid leaving tasks

or things to become emergencies before handling them.
When unexpected emergencies come, no problem. It is
called life. E.g. An unexpected task with a deadline or an
accident involving a loved one.

2. Important But Not Urgent:

This is good and should be the way you operate. If you

prioritise your life and manage your time well, important
things will be done at appropriate time and will be ready
before they become urgent and emergency.

3. Not Important But Urgent:

These are distractions and time-wasters. They are things

and people that just crash into your time and demand
urgent attention even though they are not important. E.g.
elongated and purposeless phone calls or the “I-was-
passing-by-and-decided-to-say-hello” person and you
Time Management 101 505

gave one hour of your time.

4. Not Important Not Urgent:

These are time-wasters or leisure depending on whether

there are important things you could be doing with the
time. Resting, relaxing, having fun time, watching
movies etc are all very good and important for a
meaningful life. Life is not all about work and making
money. They should however be done at the appropriate
time.

ENEMIES OF TIME MANAGEMENT

There are many things and people that can hinder you from
properly managing your time. Some of them are listed below:
 Indecision
 Procrastination
 Indiscipline
 Lack of planning
 Lack of order and organisation
 Doing too much at the same time
 Busy doing nothing
 Laziness
 Interruptions and distractions
 Telephone, television, social media etc

You will never leave where you are until you decide where
you will rather be. Move from where you are to proper time
management.
506 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

“Life takes on meaning when you become

motivated, set goals and charge after them in
an unstoppable manner.”

An elderly couple retired to the countryside to a small isolated

cottage overlooking some rugged and rocky heartland.

One early morning, the woman saw from her window a young
man dressed in working clothes, walking on the heath about a
hundred yards away. He was carrying a spade and a small
case. He soon disappeared from view behind a copse of trees.

The woman thought no more about it. Around the same time
the next day, she saw the man again, carrying his spade and a
small case. Again, he disappeared behind the copse.

The woman mentioned this to her husband who said he was

probably a farmer or gamekeeper setting traps, or performing
some other country practice that would be perfectly normal
and waved it aside.

However, after several more sightings of the young man with

the spade over the next two weeks, the woman persuaded her
husband to take a stroll earlier before the arrival of the man to
the copse of trees to investigate what he was doing.
508 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

There, they found a surprisingly long and deep trench, rough

and uneven at one end, becoming much neater and tidier
towards the other end.
“How strange,” the old lady said.
“Why dig a trench here… and in such difficult rocky ground?”
Her husband agreed.

Just then, the young man appeared earlier than his usual time.
“You're early,” said the old woman, making light of their
obvious curiosity, “We wondered what you were doing and
we also wondered what was in the case.”
“I'm digging a trench,” said the man who continued,
realising a bigger explanation was appropriate. “I'm actually
learning how to dig a good trench because the job I'm being
interviewed for later today says that experience is essential, so
I'm getting the experience. And the case…it's got my lunch in
it.” He got the job.

The young man in the above story had a goal to get a job, and
he set a strategy to reach his goal and the strategy worked for
him.

Goal-setting is a life planning mechanism that makes you win

and become successful in life. Anyone that has ever succeeded
has goal-setting as one of the major parts of their journey and
success story. Imagine a football match without goal posts. It
will be an unending episode of struggles and labour without
result. In life also you need goals to score goals. You cannot be
a goal-getter if you are not first a goal-setter.
No Goal-Setting = No Goal-Getting.

Goal-setting is not just about wishes, but having practical,

workable steps and strategies in place like the trench digger
Goal-Setting 101 509

story. The most important key to achieving great success is to

decide upon your goal and launch out. Get started, take action
and move.

WHY GOAL-SETTING?

Our entire lifetime is made up of days. However, we need to

plan long term even though we live short term, because our
daily living leads to our life-time. There are very vital reasons
why everyone should set goals:

1. IT IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO

Goals are a preview of future events and experiences in

our lives. To succeed in life, we must get goals and work
at them because it is the right thing to do. A life without
goals cannot score goals and such life is going nowhere.
Just as it is not right to play football without a goalpost, it
is not right to go through life without a goal.

2. IT HELPS YOU STAY FOCUSED

You should always bear in mind that your own resolution

to succeed is more important than any other thing. Goal-
setting helps you to stay focused on your dream and
avoid distractions. When a goal is set, everything in you is
channelled towards that goal because it exists. If you
don't know what to do with money, money will tell you
what to do. If you don't know what to do with your time,
others will help you waste it. But when you have a goal
towards a project, you will be focused.

3. IT HELPS YOU TO BECOME DISCIPLINED

A student who has a goal to graduate with a first class will

510 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

become more disciplined.

 He won't miss any lecture
 He will take his studies more seriously than others
 He must not engage in frivolities and entertain
distractions etc

Where there is no vision, the people cast off restrain and

live a wild life. When you set goals for yourself, it helps
you to become more disciplined with the use of your time
and other resources.

4. IT HELPS YOU TO MARK RESULT AND MEASURE

PROGRESS OR LACK OF IT

It takes a goalpost to know the number of goals scored

and the team that wins in a football match. So also in your
life, you need goals to help you know if you are achieving
things and getting result, or if you are stagnant and
retrogressing. When you set goals and achieve them, you
record a success in that area and it motivates you to move
on. The path to success is to set goals, take massive,
determined, and decisive actions, and monitor things as
you go to make necessary adjustments.

5. THE ABSENCE OF GOALS MEANS YOU LACK

VISION AND PLANNING

If you fail to plan, it means you have already planned to

fail, and goal setting is planning. A life without a vision is
an experiment and to lack goals is to lack vision. Look and
ask around, you will realise that no person or group that
wants to achieve anything meaningful operates without a
vision, a plan or a goal.
Goal-Setting 101 511

Make goal-setting a constant, and a priority in your life,

and see how dramatic your change will be.

3 KINDS OF GOALS

Goals can be looked at or approached in three ways:

1. Short-term goals: - This covers for goals that fall within
twelve calendar month.
2. Mid-term goals:- This cover for goals that fall within one
to three years mainly.
3. Long-term goals:- This covers for goals that are from four
or five years and above

Everyone needs to have short, medium and long term goals in

place for their lives and others areas.

GOALS FOR YOUR ROLES

You need to set goals for your different roles in life to help you
plan effectively for success in all areas.
e.g. I am a son
I have siblings
I am a husband
I am a father
I am a boss
I am a pastor
I am an individual
I have a career
I am a member of few associations etc

I have to set goals for each of these roles I play in life on an

512 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

annual basis. Look into your own life and develop your roles
and responsibilities list. I have twenty-two roles and areas to
cover in my life annually for now, and I have to plan and set
goals to have all round success in all the areas. Nobody
succeeds by accidents. When a goal matters enough to you,
you will find a way to accomplish what may at first seem
impossible. In life, there are those who SEE opportunities and
there are those who SEIZE opportunities. Goal-setting for
different roles helps you seize the opportunity to have
multiple success stories.

GOAL ANALYSIS

Goals are not wishes or wishful thinking, and goals don't fulfil
themselves. There are two ways to analyse goals and be
effective in your goal-setting.
1. The ABC strategy
2. The SMART strategy

Strategy One
A - Achievable
B- Believable
C - Concrete

The ABC strategy means your goal must be achievable,

believable and concrete.

To set a goal to be pregnant and become a mother all within

five months is not achievable and not believable. Your goals
must be something that can be realistically achieved, and must
be believable by you and also by others involved in the
achievement of the goal. It must also be concrete and not a-pie-
in-the-sky kind of goal. To say you will get married soon is not
Goal-Setting 101 513

a concrete goal. It needs to have a timeline to make it concrete.

Strategy Two
S - Specific
M - Measureable
A - Achievable
R - Realistic
T - Time bound

The SMART strategy covers for the ABC and more. It means
your goals should be specific. I want to make more money is
not specific; you need to state how much. I want to be rich is not
measurable; you need to state how, and what will constitute
the riches for it to be measurable.

It has to be achievable and not a baby in 5 months goal. It has to

be realistic and not “I want to be the president of America” and
you are not an American citizen. It has to be time-bound and
not an “I will make it soon” kind of goal. How soon is the soon,
and how do you define the soon? When your goal is SMART
and as simple as ABC, then it becomes an effective goal and
success is certain.

“I have learned one thing during my time on

the soccer fields; it is amazing how fast you
can run and the things you can do when you
have a goal in mind, and it applies to the rest of
my life too.” - Jeremy Morin

HOW TO SET AND ACHIEVE GOALS

1. WRITE IT

To set and achieve your goals, you need to write it down,

514 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

because an unwritten goal is an unserious goal. When

you think it, it is a wish, but when you write it, it becomes
a goal. Like I said in the last chapter, you need to have
tools of organization easily accessible with you, i.e. diary,
planner, journal, pen etc.

2. PLAN IT

Goals don't fulfill themselves, so you need to have

strategies in place to achieve your goals.
 Have a plan on how to achieve your goal.
 Have strategies and action steps on how to achieve
the plan.

If you just develop a plan without strategies and action

steps, it will remain a plan on paper and not a result in
reality.

3. PURSUE IT

One thousand good intentions are not as powerful as one

action, so you need to give attention to your intentions
and act. Goals will never be achieved without a
corresponding action.
“I plan to”
“I hope to”
“I intend to” etc.

This will remain a plan, a hope and an intention until you

add action to it. Pursuit is the proof of desire, so pursue
your desired goal with action.
Goal-Setting 101 515

4. ACHIEVE IT

Don't pursue your goals for pursuing sake without any

intention to achieve it. You will be amazed to realize that
there are people who do things just to be on record that
they put in some efforts and not because they are
committed to achieving any meaningful result. Life is too
short to spend it experimenting.

5. MAINTAIN IT

To obtain or achieve something you set out for is good,

but to sustain and maintain it is another. To win a trophy
or medal once is good, but to win it over and over again
and maintain the lead is of greater honour. Don't achieve
to lose, but achieve to maintain.

6. GROW IT

If you run a hundred metres for a minute, it is something

but to run it for 15 seconds is something else; to do it in 7
seconds is mind-blowing. You need to grow in your goal-
setting and expand your territory as you grow. Think big
and don't settle for less.

7. SHARE IT

Life is not all about you, but about the impact you make in
your generation. Success and achievements in life are all
meant to be shared. As you achieve your different life
goals, share with others and give back because true
fulfillment comes through sharing and becoming
significant.

See you at the top!

516 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

“99% of failures come from people who have

the habit of making excuses.”

A landscape gardener ran a business that had been in the

family for two or three generations. The staff were happy, and
customers loved to visit the store, or to have the staff work on
their gardens or make deliveries-anything from bedding
plants to ride-on mowers. For as long as anyone could
remember, the current owner and previous generations of
owners were extremely positive happy people.

Most folk assumed it was because they ran a successful

business.

In fact it was the other way around...

A tradition in the business was that the owner always wore a

big lapel badge, saying “Business Is Great!”

The business was indeed generally great, although it went

through tough times like any other. What never changed
however, was the owner's attitude, and the badge saying
“Business Is Great!”

Everyone who saw the badge for the first time invariably
518 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

asked, "What's so great about business?" Sometimes people

would also comment that their own business was miserable, or
even that they personally were miserable or stressed.

Anyhow, the Business Is Great! Badge always tended to start a

conversation, which typically involved the owner talking
about lots of positive aspects of business and work, for
example:
 The pleasure of meeting and talking with different people
every day.
 The reward that comes from helping staff take on new
challenges and experiences.
 The fun and laughter in a relaxed and healthy work
environment.
 The fascination in the work itself, and in the other people's
works and businesses.
 The great feeling when you finish a job and do it to the
best of your capabilities.
 The new things you learn every day-even without
looking to do so.
 And the thought that everyone in business is blessed-
because there are many millions of people who would
swap their own situation to have the same opportunities
of doing a productive meaningful job, in a civilized well-
fed country, where we have no real worries.

And so the list went on. And no matter how miserable a person
was, they'd usually end up feeling a lot happier after just a
couple of minutes listening to all this infectious enthusiasm
and positivity.
Decision Making 101 519

It is impossible to quantify or measure attitude like this, but to

one extent or another, it's probably a self-fulfilling prophecy,
on which point, if asked about the badge in a quiet moment,
the business owner would confide: "The badge came first. The
great business followed."

People begin to become successful the minute they decide to

be. When the decision was made that business-is-great badge
should be a culture, greatness was set in motion.

Shallow men believe in luck and circumstances, but strong

men believe in cause and effect. The quality of your life today is
a product of all the choices and decisions you have made
before now, and the quality of your life tomorrow will be
determined by the quality of choices and decisions you make
now.
YESTERDAY'S DECISION IS TODAY'S REALITY.
TODAY'S DECISION IS TOMORROW'S REALITY.

You can determine and create your future by the choices and
decisions you make today. Since your decisions eventually
determines your destiny, it is very vital and wise to know how
to make the right decisions in every area of life, and that is why
I have included it in this module.
 You cannot succeed without having to make decisions.
 You cannot make, manage or multiply money without
making decisions.
 You cannot become an entrepreneur or start a business
without making decisions.
 You cannot create wealth without making decisions.
 You cannot make impact and be significant without
520 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

making decisions.
 You cannot be successful in life without making
decisions.

We all make decisions daily:

 Decision of whether to wake up or keep sleeping.
 Decision of what and when to eat.
 Decision of whether to bath or not.
 Decision of what to wear or put on.
 Decision of where, when and how to spend the day etc.

Some decisions are easy to make because they have no major

negative consequences if they are wrong. However, some
decisions are major and hence require sensitivity, maturity
and care because the consequence of making a mistake in them
is huge and can affect our destiny.
e.g. Where to work.
Where to live.
Who to marry.
Which course to study.
Where to worship.
How to respond to things.
What to accept or reject etc.

We are all servants of our choices and decisions once they are
made and we have to submit to the consequences and results
of our decisions whether positive or negative.

INDECISION IS ALSO A DECISION! Not deciding is a

Decision Making 101 521

decision. Not deciding on time is a decision and they all have

consequences.

FACTORS THAT AFFECT OUR DECISION MAKING

There are many factors that have the ability to influence and
affect our decision making in life, but due to space constraint,
let me deal with just few of them.

1. Your Level Of Maturity

Maturity does not come with age, but it comes with the
ability to handle responsibility and choose good above
evil at all times. When you are matured, you make better
decisions because you don't allow emotions and
sentiment to cloud your sense of judgment.

2. Your Level Of Exposure

A primitive and myopic person cannot make the same

quality of decision that an exposed person will make.
Your level of exposure educates and stimulates your
thinking, and it broadens your view and perception
which invariably has a great effect on your decision
making ability and the quality of your decisions.

3. Your Level Of Experience

We are all products of our past experiences, both positive

and negative and these experiences have a great influence
on our decision making in life. People who have had very
negative experiences in life and are yet to be free from the
pains, hurts, betrayals and experiences of the past tend to
be very pessimistic and negative about life. They will
mostly see the negatives before they see positive, if at all
they do.
522 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

4. Your Mentality And Mindset

We have examined different evil philosophies earlier in

this module, and if you hold onto any of such mindset, it
will affect your decision making. A man that believes
“whatever will be will be” will have no motivation to
make any meaningful decision to make it because of his
mindset. If you have a poverty mentality it will mirror
and show in your decision making. If you have
materialism mentality, it will show in your decision
making. Your mindset matters a lot.

5. Your Upbringing And Background

“Charity begins at home” has become a popular saying

globally, and only goes to show the effect of your
background and upbringing on you. If you grow up in a
home filled with love, care, nurture, mentoring, teaching,
protection etc it will show up in your decision making.
And if you grow up in a dysfunctional family filled with
abuse of all kinds and was raised to feel inferior,
devalued, useless etc it will affect your decision making.

6. The Environment

The environment we grow up in is one, the environment

we presently live and function in is another. A lot of
people have become victims of their environment and
they are trapped to think like they think, do like they do
and become like the environment due to the constant
influence of the environment both negative and positive. I
remember moving into an estate years ago before I built
my own house, and the environment quickly began to
influence my decisions positively because the level of
comfort and class in the neighbours and neighborhood
Decision Making 101 523

made me realize I have a long way to go and I had to

buckle up.

7. Your Association

Show me your friends and I will show you the kind of

person you are, because birds of the same feather flock
together. If you associate with positive people, it will rub
off on you and affect your decisions; if you associate with
negative people it will also rub off on you, and affect your
decisions.

Who are your friends?

Who influences you?

Don't be deceived to think you can associate with

negative people consistently and not be consciously or
unconsciously influenced over time.

8. Your Counselors or Advisers

Every wise person should have mentors, counselors and

advisers in their network that they consult before making
decisions that affect different areas of their lives. “A man
that ask questions never gets lost” greatly depends on the
person he asked. If you ask a man who is equally lost and
he wants to feign knowledge, he will direct you wrongly.
The quality of your counselors and advisers therefore
determine the quality of counsels or advice they will give
you, because they cannot give what they don't have.

9. Your Mood And State Per Time

If you study people closely, and you really come to

524 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

understand them, you will know the timing and the way
to approach them when you need them to do something.
Your moods and the state of your heart, your emotion,
and psychological frame of mind all affects the decision
you make.
 Mood swings can become decision swings.
 Temper tantrums can become decision tantrums.
 Physical sickness can become decision sickness.
Be your best before you make decisions at all times.

10. Your Level Of Education And Knowledge Of The Area

One other factor that will affect the level and quality of
decisions you make is how knowledgeable you are about
the area you need to make a decision about, and also your
level of education will be a major influence on your
decision. An illiterate cannot make the same kind of or
quality of decision like an educated person will.

Increasing your level of education and becoming

knowledgeable about different areas of life will be a great
asset, and leverage for you in life and in decision making.

DECISION MAKING STRATEGIES

When faced with a problem or a challenge, you need to be very

wise and strategic about the decisions you make on how to
solve such problem. The difference between failure and
success is doing a thing NEARLY right and a thing EXACTLY
RIGHT.
“I nearly made it.”
“I nearly got it.”
Decision Making 101 525

“I nearly finished it.”

Nearly is not complete, so it is vital to make right decisions at

all times and not nearly make a right decision. This is
important because every great leap forward you make in life
comes only after you have made a clear decision of some kind.

1. Define The Problem

If you have to make a decision, the first strategic step is to

define the problem by deciding the exact decision that has
to be made.

2. Analyze The Problem

Now that you know what you have to decide about, the
next step is, Do you have a decision, how vital will the
decision be etc? Do your analysis.

3. Develop Different Alternatives

The next step is to come up with different alternative

decisions that can be made because in some cases you
have only two options and in others you have diverse
options.

4. Evaluate The Different Options

Take time to think over the different options to know the

advantages and disadvantages of each option. This
evaluation will help you know which direction to tend
towards for your conclusion.

5. Think Deeply On The Option

After evaluation, this is the time to pray about it, if you do

526 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

believe in prayer. If you don't, spend time in deep

meditation and reflective thinking to decide which option
to choose. Decisions should never be taken lightly, the
stages should each be followed.

6. Choose The Option You Feel More Comfortable Or

Have Peace With

If you go through step five by taking it to God in prayer,

then whatever you have peace with or are led to do is
what you should do, and if you decide to do meditation
and reflective thinking, then, choose whatever option you
are comfortable with.

7. Take Effective Action

Once a decision is arrived at using this strategy, then take

action and face the consequences. In life you have to go
through a process, and if you make decisions and things
go wrong, just learn from it and move on.
 Not making a decision is a decision.
 Wrong decision is a decision.
 Right decision is a decision.

You may start out being undecided or making wrong

decisions often, but with time, experience, maturity and
learning, you come to a level where you hardly make
wrong decisions.

15 LAWS OF DECISION MAKING

1. Never make a decision under pressure or when you are
weak (physically, emotionally, mentally etc).
2. Never make a decision in a haste without deep thinking.
Decision Making 101 527

3. Never make a decision based on inadequate information.

4. Never make a decision without wise counsel.
5. Never make a decision without divine approval.
6. Never make a permanent decision based on temporary
issues.
7. Never make a decision based on emotions and
sentiments.
8. Never make a decision to insist on doing what others can
help you do.
9. Never make a decision without considering all options
and the consequences of the decision.
10. Never make a decision to go to war or a battle where there
are no spoils. Don't fight if there is nothing to win, and be
sure the result is worth the effort before you do.
11. Never make a decision without calculating the risks
involved, because you should not allow your expectation
exceed the practical potential and realities of your
resources.
12. Never make a decision that ends up as a waste of time. If
the return is not greater than the investment, then the
endeavor is not worth your time.
13. Never refuse to make a decision you need to make when
you need to make it because delay can be dangerous.
14. Never be indecisive because you are afraid of making a
wrong decision. Life is a school and you learn through
mistakes sometimes.
15. Never make a decision without 100% commitment to
stand by your decision and its consequence.
528 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

 Allow yourself a 10% ratio to be wrong.

 A 50% likelihood of betrayal.
 A 100% commitment to survive it all.

If you can really develop yourself to get it right in the decision-

making aspect of your life, majority of your lifetime is already
settled.
I have seen people make millions, because of their decisions.
I have seen people lose millions because of their decisions.
And I have my own story to tell too, both positive and
negative.

It is my belief that everything I have included in this book and

in every module is worth the sacrifice, and I really do hope that
it helps you and you become a success story.

See you at the top!

 CHAPTER FORTY-THREE

“You cannot keep doing the same thing

over and over again and yet expect a
different result that is another dimension
of insanity.”

A very old lady looked in the mirror one morning. She had
three remaining hairs on her head, and being a positive soul,
she said “I think I will braid my hair today.” So she braided her
three hairs, and she had a great day.

Some days later, looking in the mirror one morning, preparing

for her day, she saw that she had only two hairs remaining.
“Hum, two hairs…. I fancy a centre parting today”. She duly
parted her two hairs, and as ever, she had a great day.

A week or so later, she saw that she had just one hair left on her
head. “One hair huh…,” she mused, “I know a pony-tail will
be perfect.” And again she had a great day. The next morning
she looked in the mirror, she was completely bald.

“Finally bald hum”, she said to herself, “How wonderful! I

won't have to waste time doing my hair any more….”

This woman was definitely full of positive image and positive

attitude, and that is one very wise way to always approach life
530 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

and all that life brings. It is better to always respond positively

than react negatively.

What is your problem? The ability to positively handle the

challenges and eventualities of life is very key for all-round
success. I have decided to end this module with this so as to
further make available principles, strategies, and insights that
will help achieve the purpose this book is set to achieve.

A PROBLEM IS DEFINED AS ANYTHING THAT HINDERS

PROGRESS OR SERVES AS OBSTACLES TO ACHIEVING
SET OBJECTIVES.

Many of what people call problems in life are really not

problems. It is just a function of their perception.

 If it is not stopping you, it is not a problem - just life.

 That you don't like or feel comfortable about something

does not make it a problem.

FACTS ABOUT PROBLEMS

1. Problems Are Inevitable

Life is a school and problems are normal to life because

they have their own purpose to fulfill, and like a song
writer once wrote:
“If I had never had a problem
I will never have known that
God could solve them.”
Problems are normal to life. So brace up.
What Is Your Problem? 531

2. Problems Are Solvable

Problems exist to be solved and today's problems are also

tomorrow's testimony. When problems show up, don't
worry, don't fret, because they will be solved, it is only a
matter of time.

3. Problems Are Beneficial

Yes, you read it right. There are benefits in problems.

 Problems reveal your potentials.
 Problems motivate you.
 Problems educate you.

If you learn from today problems, you will conquer

tomorrow ones.

DIFFERENCES TO NOTE

There are three different types of problems, and different ways

to respond to each type.

1. Potential Problem

This is not yet an existing problem, but has the potential to

become a problem. The way to respond to this is to take
preventive action because prevention is better than cure.

2. Perceived Problem

This is not yet a problem, neither is it going to be a

problem except you allow it or turn it into one, because it
only exist in your mind for now. The way to respond to
this is to ignore it. Even though perception is reality to
you, your best option is to ignore it, or else you end up
532 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

creating a problem where there is none.

3. Real Problems

These are the real problems that require your attention

and prompt action, and the best way to respond when
faced with real problems is to take decisive actions.
You need courage to change what you can change.
You need grace to accept what you cannot change.
You need wisdom to know the difference.

Some people erroneously believe that if you ignore a

problem, it will take care of itself but that is only true for
perceived problem, because real problem won't take care
of itself without decisive action on your part.

3 THINGS TO DO WITH REAL PROBLEMS

1. Take action to eliminate it.
2. Look for an alternative so you can by-pass it.
3. Face it and go through it to conquer it, or grow through it.

The three options above are very important and should be

registered in you.

HOW PEOPLE RESPOND TO PROBLEMS

1. Shock: - This is not the right way to respond to problems

because problems are normal to life and being shocked
changes nothing.

2. Ignore: - This is also an error and a wrong way to respond,

except for perceived problem which is not real problem.
What Is Your Problem? 533

3. Focus on It: - This is also a wrong response because you

should focus on the solution, not the problem.

4. Fear: - If you respond to a problem with fear and worry, it

does not solve the problem, it only compounds it.

HOW TO SOLVE PROBLEMS

1. Define It: - Find out exactly what the problem is in order

to be sure it is really a problem.

2. Describe it:- How is it a problem and in what way does it

affect you or stop you?

3. Detach It:- Separate yourself from the problem because

you are different from the problem.

4. Doubt It: - Refuse to accept the problem as a controller or

ruler over you.

5. Determine The Outcome: - Come up with alternatives to

get a desired outcome and come out of the problem.

6. Design A Solution: - Choose one of the options you have

come up with and solve the problem.

7. Deal With It: - Act on the solution proffered and make

sure you get result.

8. Document It:- Testify of your victory over the problem to

encourage others and to seal your victory.

In closing, please do realize that most of the time, the real

problem in life is ignorance, because ignorance is darkness and
534 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

keeps you down. Learn to seek counsel and help for any area of
life where you are facing a problem. Don't die in silence.

Congratulations for coming this far.

Lets' start wrapping things up as we go to the next module!

 SECTION SIX

THE LEGACY MODULE

Retirement Planning 101
Strategies for Wealth Preservation
Journey to Significance
Health is Wealth
The Unavoidable Realities of Today
Windows of Opportunity
Books that Helped me Create Wealth
The Final Word
536 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

“An individual who is active in higher learning,

soon becomes an individual active in higher
earning, because we work to learn and not just to
earn.”

Welcome to the legacy module as we begin to conclude this

book. This section is focused on dealing with things that have
to do majorly with the later part of our life; the end results of all
our labours and efforts, and what we leave behind. There are
three inevitables in the career or business life of everyone and
nobody can escape it, you only need to be adequately prepared
for it:-
RETIRE - leave active service due to age or years of service.
RESIGN - leave a place of work voluntarily for many reasons.
RETRENCHED - sent away from a place of work due to dismissal or
other reasons.

Our focus here is the need for you to plan for your retirement
which is an inevitable thing, even if you are an entrepreneur
and run your own business, you still need to plan for your
retirement. You cannot leave your retirement planning for
others to do on your behalf without your direct involvement.
Planning, preparation, maintenance culture etc are alien
538 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

cultures to many people, and when one has the “whatever will
be will be” philosophy, it becomes worse.

To plan means to prepare and strategize for something in the

future or towards a goal. The past is like a river flowing out of
sight, and the future is like an ocean filled with opportunities
and delight, and planning takes you into that desired future.

Retirement is the period or season of your life when you are

out of active service. The general retirement age globally now
is at age 65 or after 35 years of active service, but that is now
being increased to between 65-70 in different countries and it is
causing protests.

When people refuse to learn from history, history repeats

itself. Looking into the history of the retirement age concept,
you realize that the age 65 was originally selected as a time of
retirement by the “Iron Chancellor” Otto Von Bismarck of
Germany, when he introduced a social security system to
appeal to the German working class and combat the power of
the socialist party in Germany during the late 1800s.
Somewhat cynically, Bismarck knew that the program would
cost little because the average German worker never reached
age 65, and many of those who did lived few years beyond that
age. When the United States passed the social security law in
1935 (more than 55 years after the conservative German
Chancellor introduced it in Germany), the average life
expectancy in America was only 61.7 years. Of course, people
who did reach 65 had a considerable number of years to live to
enjoy social security benefits before. Now the story is different.

Today there is no security in social security. Many nations

have billions and even trillions in unpaid pensions and
pensioners and senior citizens who did not plan for their
Retirement Planning 101 539

retirement but left it for others to do now have regrets. The

plan was set up with the mind that only few will reach 65 years
and now with many living longer, it is a different story.

THE STAGES OF LIFE

We have looked into the stages of life earlier in this book, but
let me just review it a little to fit into this context again.
Stage One:- 1-25 years = Learning stage or morning of life
Stage Two:- 26- 50 years = Earning stage or afternoon of life
Stage Three:- 51-75 years = Turning stage or evening of life
Stage Four:- 76-100 year = Fading / Resting Stage or night of life

Nobody grows young, everybody grows old. So, everyone

should start planning their retirement from day one when they
start their first job, just like you start planning for your death
from birth. Like I mentioned before in this book, I don't believe
anyone should work for more than fifteen years of their life
without having something in place that works to secure their
future. No one will plan your future for you if you don't plan it
yourself. The heights that others have reached and kept were
not attained by sudden flight but they, while others slept, were
toiling upward in the night. It is 3.22 am now and I have been at
this desk for fourteen hours with less than one hour up to use
the restroom, and have a meal, no one is here to see this but
when the book is out and the rewards starts flowing in, people
then see it.

The retirement stage of your life need not be a time of poverty

and misery because at this stage, you are expected to have
attained financial independence, and that means even if you
don't work or make any extra income again, the returns from
540 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

your existing investments should take adequate care of all

your needs, wants and luxuries and still not run out.

A research that has been carried out virtually everywhere in

the world with the same result, regardless of location,
economic climate, or political climate is the retirement
research. If you randomly select one hundred (100) young men
aged twenty (20) and follow them up for the next forty (40)
years, till they reach age sixty (60), you will find out the
following result:
 1% of them will have attained financial independence and
be extremely rich and wealthy.
 4% of them will be rich and wealthy.
 5% of them will still be working and struggling to make
ends meet.
 36% of them would have died.
 54% will be broke, poor, penniless and dependent on
relatives, their children, government or charities and
church welfare.

Put yourself in the picture:

 Have you retired already? If so where do you belong in
the percentile?
 Are you yet to clock sixty or retire? How much longer do
you have, and which percentile will you fall into?

None of the outcome in the research was thrust on any of them.

It was a result of their choices and their planning or lack of
planning. You need to have a financial plan for your
retirement, and for your future because nothing just happens.
Retirement Planning 101 541

You never make it to the next level by holding on to the first,

and actions stems from having dreams that are bigger than
your fears. Think about the considered retirement research
statistic, and really think about your life and your future. IS IT
WELL?

Numbers and statistics have a way of taking a man by the hand

and leading him down the path of reasoning. You need to take
your future serious, stop procrastinating, and plan your
retirement. It takes great courage to faithfully follow what we
know is true.

SEVEN STEPS AND STRATEGIES

1. Develop Investment Mentality

We have dealt extensively with this already, you need this

as step one for a successful retirement plan.

2. Choose Your Own Retirement Age

You don't have to be bound by the 65-70 years bondage

cycle; you can retire young and retire rich. Decide when
you want to retire and get to work. Remember what we
treated under the pathway to wealth chapter.
Financial planning steps - Ascertain your location
- Determine your destination
- Choose your vehicle

You need to do that again for your retirement planning.

3. Identify Your Future Needs

If you have chosen your retirement age, then identify how

542 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

much you will need then to sustain yourself and take care
of all your needs. When doing this, you should consider
inflation, your possible health needs, dependents that
will rely on you etc.

4. Choose The Right Vehicle And Use Multiple Streams

If you have ascertained your location and determined

your destination by identifying how much you will need
to retire and after retirement, then the next step is to
choose which vehicle or vehicles you will use to achieve
your goals. We have examined all kinds of vehicles in the
module on wealth creation, and have also dealt with
multiple streams, so you know what to do.

5. Start Early

“Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy

and wise” is the lyrics of a nursery rhyme we used to sing
when I was at nursery school, and it has stuck with me
because it is deep and very meaningful. To succeed at
retirement planning with ease, start early.

Like I said earlier, you should start planning for your

retirement the very day you start working. Once you
commence your first job, decide your retirement plan and
put an exit strategy in place to keep you focused or else,
you get stuck and trapped in the rat race cycle.

6. Join The New Retirement

The new retirement is the trend of the 21st century, and

not the 65-70 years old retirement trap. In the new
retirement, you use financial intelligence, investment
mentality, multiple streams etc to create huge wealth as
Retirement Planning 101 543

fast as possible, and lock it down into cash flow for life.
This helps you retire young and retire rich.

Imagine using wealth creation principle to create wealth

so that by age forty you already have let's say 100 houses
debt-free worth over fifteen million dollars, and you have
a monthly cash flow of seventy thousand averagely.
Can't you retire at forty? Did I hear you say it's impossible
or difficult? May be that mindset is your problem. It is
POSSIBLE, POSSIBLE, POSSIBLE. In the last few years
alone, houses that used to sell for over one hundred
thousand dollars per house now go for as low as ten
thousand at auction due to the housing crises. Can you
see the opportunity?

Real estate, businesses, intellectual property etc have

helped create great wealth that can make you retire
young and retire rich, which is the new retirement.
Starting your own business, growing it, and taking it
public, is another formula that the new retirees have
used, and it is working for many.

7. Write Your Will

Writing your will is part of planning for your retirement

because it helps you plan your legacy. Many have labored
for life and died without a will only to have things fizzle
away by crises. You came into this world empty, and it is
certain you are leaving with nothing. Writing a will does
not mean you are going to die soon; it is just you applying
wisdom to plan your future and your legacy.

Once you die, you lose control without a will, and who
gets what will be determined by others or the state
544 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

because you have no will. Who is your next of kin? You

have to settle this now. A lot of people are married and
still have their siblings or friends on vital forms as next of
kin without changing it, only to die, and getting access to
their benefits becomes a problem for their spouses and
children.

WHY WRITE A WILL?

1. Because you are not a fool;
2. Because you love your family and want to secure them.

Anyone who has something to share should have a will in

place no matter how young they are, and anyone who is forty
(40) and above should have a will.

Once you hit forty (40) two things I recommend you do are,
 Write your will
 Do a general medical check-up, and start doing annual
check-up from that point to stay healthy and live long.

You can always prepare your will by yourself. There are lots of
software packages that can help you, but getting a lawyer to
help you is your best option.
 Get a lawyer.
 Make a list of all you own.
 Make a list of all those to benefit from you.
 Let the lawyer handle things.

Retirement planning is vital- if you plan well, you will do well.

 CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

“A mind once expanded by a new idea, never

returns to its original dimensions.”

Several men were in a golf club locker room. A mobile phone

rings;
“Yes I can talk,” says the man answering the call, “You're
shopping are you? That's nice.”
The listening men smile to each other.
“You want to order those new carpets? Okay. And they'll
include the curtains for an extra five thousand?... Sure, why
not?”
More smiles among the listeners.
“You want to book that week on Necker Island…. They're
holding the price at twenty-two thousand?... Sounds a
bargain… You want a fortnight?... If that's…. what you want
honey, okay by me”
Smiles turn to expressions of mild envy.
“And you want to give the builder the go-ahead for the
new conservatory? Seventy-five thousand if we say yes today?
Sounds fair…. Sure, that's fine.”
The listeners exchange glance of amazement.
546 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

“Okay Sugar, see you later… yes, love you too,” says the
man, ending the call.
He looks at the other men and says, “Whose phone is this
anyway?..”

No wonder! It is not his phone. Anyone that spends money like

that for real can never stay wealthy or preserve their wealth.
Creating wealth is one thing, preserving it is another. I know a
lot of individuals and families who used to be very rich, but
today they have lost their wealth and become history because
they could not preserve their wealth.

1. Realize That True Wealth Is Not Cash Based But Asset

Based

Money is not wealth, but wealth includes money, riches

are mostly attributed to cash, while wealth is mostly
attributed to assets. You can therefore be rich (loaded
with cash) and not wealthy (loaded with assets). We have
earlier looked at the ingredients of true wealth in the
financial intelligence module, and you should know that
by now.

To preserve wealth, you must make sure you move

beyond riches to wealth, and use assets to preserve your
wealth. Rich people become poor when they lose their
money, but wealthy people may lose their money but will
still regain it through their assets. Real estate, businesses,
intellectual property etc are all assets you can use to
preserve your wealth.

2. Establish Multiple Streams Of Income

It comes up here again because it is important, when you

Strategies For Wealth Preservation 547

have multiple streams of income covering different

sectors and kinds of streams like we have earlier seen, it
helps secure your future and preserve wealth because
everything cannot always go wrong at the same time.

3. Choose And Train Your Successor

Success without a successor is successful failure. What is

the essence of laboring to create wealth just to lose it all
once you die, or hand it over to successors who will
squander it? If you have great ideas and no confidence to
share them, you will not get credit for having them. So the
same way you labour to create wealth, you must labour in
the same way to choose, raise, train and mentor your
successor whether they are your kids or not.
 Let them learn and grow through the rank both
outside the company and within to gain maturity
and experience.
 Give them the best education and training.
 Distribute your inheritance while you are alive if
you wish to avoid conflict after you have gone.
 Hand over to them while you are still alive to
mentor them. This is vital so you can help guide and
mentor them, and so you can help fight their battles
and help with oppositions.
 If your shoe is too big to fill with no competent
successor, then take the business public and let a
trust manage your estate for the next generation.
 Avoid the male/female child brouhaha when it
comes to a successor. Every child is a child and can
be your successor regardless of gender.
548 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

 Avoid the first child brouhaha; let the most

competent and capable child handle things
regardless of age. If your first son is an addict and a
truant, will you insist on handing over things to
him just because he is first son? Think!

4. Guard Your Health

Health is wealth and preserving your health will help

preserve you to create wealth and preserve wealth.
 Take time to rest or be laid to rest.
 Eat well.
 Sleep well
 Take a lot of water.
 Eat fruits and vegetables.
 Exercise well etc.

Why die before your time?

I have seen people lose their health in pursuit of wealth

only to now want to use the wealth to buy back their
health. I have seen people lose their family in pursuit of
wealth, only to now want to use money to get back their
family. A very wealthy man I know never cared about his
health or his family, but today he is incapacitated and his
wife and children have confined him in a nursing home
and travel the world on his private jets enjoying all the
money the way they want. He is still alive, but his health
is gone.
Strategies For Wealth Preservation 549

5. Establish A Legacy By Giving Back

What do you want to be remembered for? You have to be

relevant and significance conscious because that is one
way to preserve your wealth and influence your
generation. All lasting wealth comes from enriching
others in some way, and nobody was ever honored for
what they received but for what they gave. Preservation
of wealth and establishing a legacy is practised not much
in words but in attitudes and in actions.
 Set up a foundation to give back.
 Establish endowments.
 Establish legacies, etc.

When you do your giving while you are still living, you
will know where it is going.

6. Give God His Rightful Place

Remember the Titanic.
Remember AIG.
Remember Enron.
Remember Bernie Mac and Fannie Mae.
Remember Bernie Madoff etc.

And no matter who you are or how big you think you
have become, you can sink like the Titanic, and go belly
up like Enron without God. And no matter the money,
riches or wealth you think you have, without God, it can
disappear like a smoke and like the billions that
disappeared in the Madoff scheme.

A word is enough for the wise!

550 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

“You can get everything you want in life, if

you just help enough other people get what
they want.”

A British family was on holiday in a rented motor-home in the

USA. Travelling through California, they visited the Magic
Mountain amusement park close by Los Angeles. Mid-
afternoon, halfway through what was turning out to be a most
enjoyable day at the park, Mum, Dad and the three kids came
upon a particularly steep plummeting ride. In the queue, the
ride attendants strongly warned everyone about the risks of
losing hats, spectacles, coins and keys, etc., and these warnings
were echoed by large signs around the ride. During the ride,
Dad lost the keys.

Due to the fact that the motor-home was a replacement vehicle

resulting from a breakdown earlier in the holiday, there were
no spare keys. And there were six keys on the lost bunch:
ignition, front doors, side door, fuel tank, propane tank, and
storage cupboards.

The park attendants drove the family back to the motor-home,

suggesting the least damaging ways to break into it.
Fortunately a window had been left slightly open, enabling the
middle son to be put in and to open the doors from the inside.
552 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Inside the motor-home Mum and Dad discussed what to do.

They were stranded. Middle son (all of six years old) said he'd
got a key-said he'd found it-but no one was listening properly.
"Perhaps it will fit, I'll get it." (The optimism of young children
of course knows no bounds.) Not thinking for one second that
little lad's key would fit, Dad tried it. Incredibly the key fit the
ignition - and the driver's door. Middle son is a hero. It seems
he'd found the key in a cupboard when packing his clothes
soon after the motor-homes were swapped after the first
vehicle broke down.

The next day back at the camp site, Dad called a local locksmith
to see what could be done. "I might be able to make new keys
from the locks, if you bring the vehicle to me," said the
locksmith, so the family drove to the locksmith, whose
business was in a small shopping centre in the California
countryside. The locksmith looked at the motor-home, and
said he'd try. "If you come back in an hour I'll know better what
I can do for you." The family went to the nearby shops and a
coffee bar to pass the time. Dad returned to the locksmith to see
how things were going. The locksmith says he thought he
could make new keys for all the locks, but it would be a long
job.

In fact the job took the locksmith most of the day. The family
hung around the locksmith's, visited the shops again, and
generally made a day of being at the little shopping centre.
While working on the locks and the keys, the locksmith talked
with the family about England, about America, about the rides
at Las Vegas, about motor-homes, about business, about locks,
about families and kids, about lots of things. Later on in the
afternoon the locksmith said that he'd nearly done, "But you
have time to go get something to eat if you want. When you
Journey To Significance 553

come back I'll be done." So the family went to a burger bar for
something to eat. An hour later, the family returned to the
locksmith's shop. It was 4pm and they'd been at the shopping
centre since 10.00 in the morning. When Dad entered the
locksmith's shop the locksmith was smiling. He put two new
gleaming bunches of keys on the counter. "Here you go-a new
set of keys for all the locks, and a spare set too," said the
locksmith, "And I tell you what I'm going to do..." Dad offered
his credit card, gratefully. "You know, I've had such a great
time with you guys today," says the locksmith, "You can have
these for free."

This is a true story. It happened over ten years ago. I still tell
people about it now, like I'm telling you. The company is
Newhall Valencia Lock & Key, in the El Centro Shopping
Center, Canyon Country, California. This little company gave
me and my family an experience that transcended customer
service, and I was delighted when I found their business card
in my kitchen drawer the other day, because it prompted me to
share this story and to properly express my thanks.

Just a final note, I'm not suggesting that great customer service
is about giving your products and services away. Obviously
that's not a particularly sustainable business model. What I'm
saying though, is that there are times when you'll see
opportunity to do something really special for a customer, or
for another human being, and when you do it, the ripples of
your 'good pebble' can stretch around the world, and last for
years and years. So, within the boundaries of what's possible
and viable for you, drop in a good pebble whenever you can
and make some ripples of your own.

Years later, this story is still being told and here I am telling it
here for you to also see, just because one man chose to do
554 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

something significant.

There are three levels of existence and function in life, and

everyone must strive to journey to the ultimate level.
LEVEL ONE IS SURVIVAL LEVEL
LEVEL TWO IS SUCCESS LEVEL
LEVEL THREE IS SIGNIFICANCE LEVEL

At survival level, you are all about just surviving and meeting
your needs, so you don't consciously pursue significance.

At the success level, you are sometimes concerned about

making more, and securing what you have.

At significance level, you are more concerned about giving

back and imparting your world. This level, where making a
difference is your top priority is where you should journey
into. It is called being significant.

The dictionary defines journey as an act of traveling from one

place to another, especially if they are far apart, taking a trip or
traveling is also referred to as a journey.

Significant is defined severally as:

 The importance of something especially when it
affects the future.
 Large or important enough to have an effect or be
noticed.
 Full of meaning, special, momentous, important,
highly expensive.

“The journey to significance is the act of moving from

where you are now to a place or greater place of impact,
Journey To Significance 555

influence, and meaning to people and places.”

I can list names of all kinds of people both male and female
from all over the world, and you will immediately recognize
their names, and this will be so because they are significant
either negatively or positively.

OSAMA and OBAMA

Even though their names sound, spell and look familiar, one is
significant in the negative, and the other is significant for the
positive.

Osama Bin Laden - significant for terrorism.

Barack Obama - significant for being the first black President of

America.

Being significant can be a negative significance or positive, and

no one should be negatively significant but we all should
journey to a place of positive significance, which is the focus of
this chapter. All those that are very significant in our world
today or those that have passed on were not all born
significant, but they journeyed to a place of significance, and
you too should do the same.
 We are all born naked and crying.
 We will all die one day.

The day one is born, and the day one dies, are two significant
dates in one's life, and one cannot choose those dates except
you decide to commit suicide.
1912 - 2012
Date of Birth - Date of Death
556 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

What you do between these two dates determines your

significance on earth, and it is not everyone that has the
opportunity to die and rise again to have a second chance for
significance, and it is not everyone that has the opportunity to
read their obituary and have a rethink on life. Alfred Nobel,
the founder of the Nobel Prize had that opportunity. Read his
story.

THE ALFRED NOBEL STORY

In 1888 Alfred's brother, Ludvig died while visiting Cannes

and a French newspaper erroneously published Alfred's
obituary. It condemned him for his invention of dynamite and
is said to have brought about his decision to leave a better
legacy after his death. The obituary stated Le marchand de la
mort est mort ("The merchant of death is dead") and went on to
say, "Dr. Alfred Nobel, who became rich by finding ways to kill
more people faster than ever before, died yesterday." Alfred
was disappointed with what he read and concerned with how
he would be remembered. On 27 November 1895, at the
Swedish-Norwegian Club in Paris, Nobel signed his last will
and testament and set aside the bulk of his estate to establish
the Nobel Prizes, to be awarded annually without distinction
of nationality. He died of a stroke on 10 December 1896 at
Sanremo, Italy. After taxes and bequests to individuals,
Nobel's will gave 31,225,000 Swedish kronor (equivalent to
about 1.8 billion kronor or 250 million US dollars in 2008) to
fund the prizes.

The first three of these prizes are awarded for eminence in

physical science, in chemistry and in medical science or
physiology; the fourth is for literary work "in an ideal
direction" and the fifth prize is to be given to the person or
society that renders the greatest service to the cause of
Journey To Significance 557

international fraternity, in the suppression or reduction of

standing armies, or in the establishment or furtherance of
peace congresses. There is no prize awarded for mathematics,
but see Abel Prize.

The formulation for the literary prize being given for a work
"in an ideal direction" (i idealisk riktning in Swedish), is cryptic
and has caused much confusion. For many years, the Swedish
Academy interpreted "ideal" as "idealistic" (idealistisk) and
used it as a reason not to give the prize to important but less
Romantic authors, such as Henrik Ibsen and Leo Tolstoy. This
interpretation has since been revised, and the prize has been
awarded to, for example, Dario Fo and José Saramago, who do
not belong to the camp of literary idealism.

There was room for interpretation by the bodies he had named

for deciding on the physical sciences and chemistry prizes,
given that he had not consulted them before making the will.
In his one-page testament, he stipulated that the money go to
discoveries or inventions in the physical sciences and to
discoveries or improvements in chemistry. He had opened the
door to technological awards, but had not left instructions on
how to deal with the distinction between science and
technology. Since the deciding bodies he had chosen were
more concerned with the former, the prizes went to scientists
and not to engineers, technicians or other inventors.

In 2001, Alfred Nobel's great-grandnephew, Peter Nobel (b.

1931), asked the Bank of Sweden to differentiate its award to
economists given "in Alfred Nobel's memory" from the five
other awards. This has caused much controversy whether the
Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of
Alfred Nobel is actually a "Nobel Prize”
558 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Today we all hear of the Nobel prizes but that one single event
in his life is what changed him. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE
REMEMBERED FOR?

You cannot determine where or how you are born, but you can
determine how you die - significant or not.

What stops a lot of people from becoming significant is more

internal than external:
Their beliefs and mindset:
 What difference can I make?
 I don't have what it takes.
 Who cares what I do or become?
 It is not easy.
 I just want to survive.

Many close the door of greatness against themselves due to

these negative mindset and evil philosophies like we
examined earlier. No matter who or where you are, you can
make a difference and be significant at your level, no matter
how small.

THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE, I AM GOING TO LET IT

SHINE! True change comes from within. Like Alfred Nobel;
you need to have a change of heart, change of mind, change of
anything that needs changing so as to journey to significance.

BLACK BOY STORY

Once there was a small black boy. Everybody would tease him
for his black colour. Even his mother also would curse her fate
that she had so ugly looking child. Due to all this, he used to
Journey To Significance 559

feel very sad, disappointed and lifeless.

One fine day he was standing by his window looking at other

children playing in the ground. Then he saw a balloon seller on
a street corner. His eyes sparkled as he gazed at all the different
coloured balloons-red, blue, white, green, yellow. The
colourful balloons in the sky fascinated him so much that he
rushed down the ground and stood near the balloon seller for
hours.

The old man selling the balloons saw the boy hesitated, and
then gathered his courage and approached. "Tell me mister;"
said the boy, "Do the black balloons fly as high as the others?"
The old man felt a tear forming in his eye. He picked the boy
up, sat him on his knee and said, "Look."

He let go of all the balloons. They drifted up in a cluster, higher

and higher into the blue sky, until they were so high they
disappeared. "Did you see that?" the balloon seller asked.

"Yes," said the boy. "Did the black balloons fly as high as the
others?"

"Yes, Mister, they did."

"You see my boy, the balloons are like people. The important
thing isn't their colour, or what they look like on the outside.
Rather, the important thing is what's inside. And what's inside
you makes all the difference in life." Realizing that it is the
content and not the container that mattered most, the boy rose
above limitations and became a great man.

Remember the five irrefutable facts of life? If it is going to be, it

is up to you because nothing just happens. It is your content
and not your colour that makes you significant in life. If you
560 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

activate a significance mindset and allow being significant to

shape what you do, you can recreate your world. Ignore
people who tell you “you can't” or try to discourage you,
because failure, rejection, discouragement etc, are all steps on
the way to success and significance. I don't think much of a
man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday, so let all
that this book has revealed become an ignition and motivation
for you to become significant. Give a man a fish, you feed him
for a day, teach a man to fish and you feed him for life. This
book is aimed at teaching you to fish.

The Bumble Bee's ability to fly is still an unsolved mystery

among scientist because based on it size and make-up, it
should never fly, but that is life. Your ability to achieve
anything is not dependent on people but on you. The bumble
bee is not aware of the Scientist and “Expert” opinion, so it
flies. I guess the day the bumble bee can hear them, they will
sow seeds of doubt in it and it will be limited.

BUMBLE BEE STORY

A well-known myth says that scientists once proved that

bumblebees should not be able to fly. The myth started from an
over-simplified calculation on a napkin at a dinner party. But
even detailed models of the flight of the bumblebee are limited
because they are based largely on the motion of tethered
bumblebees, which behave differently. Now Lijang Zeng of
Tsinghua University in China and colleagues have devised a
laser system that accurately measures the key parameter in the
flight of any insect - its 'body vector' (Lijang Zeng et al 2001
Meas. Sci. Technol. 12 1886).

The apocryphal story about bees not being able to fly arose
because the roughness and flexibility of their wings was
Journey To Significance 561

neglected in a quick calculation. The wings of a bumblebee

bend to create vortices that provide lift on both the upward
and downward strokes, and a full analysis of the bee's flight
involves many factors: wing angle, wing deformation,
aerodynamic and inertial forces on the wing, and so on. All of
these parameters are expressed in terms of 'body vector' - that
is, the exact orientation of the insect's body.

Existing methods for measuring the body vectors of insects in

free flight assume that the wings act symmetrically, but this
only happens if the insect is flying in a straight line. To
measure body vector more accurately, Zeng and colleagues
developed technique that accounts for more realistic curved
flight paths.

The team glued a sliver of glass weighing just 0.8 milligrams to

the top of a bumblebee's body, between its wings. The
bumblebee was then allowed to fly freely inside a small clear
box, illuminated from above by an array of 49 lasers. As the
bumblebee changed direction and orientation, the laser beams
bounced off the glass onto a trapezoidal screen suspended
above the box.

Synchronized cameras above and at the side of the box

monitored the position of the bumblebee and this allowed the
team to calculate the angle of reflection of the laser light and
then the body vector. Coupled with velocity and acceleration
data provided by the cameras, the technique should allow
biologists to model insect flight much more precisely. Using
the new method, Zeng's team found that the bumblebee's body
vector varied considerably, even as it flew in their small
experimental chamber.

When you go against the norm, you become exceptional

562 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

and hence become significant.

THE NEW BREED CREED

I am a new breed.
A new breed without greed.
I am being Raised, Empowered and Released.
I am a world changer and a history maker.
I am a new breed.
The media world is waiting.
The entertainment world is waiting.
The sport world is waiting.
The political world is waiting.
The world of education is waiting.
The financial sector is waiting.
The social and spiritual worlds are waiting.
The world of science and technology are waiting.
I am a new breed and am ready to show up.
I am a new breed.
I make positive impact wherever I go.
I am a role model at all times.
I am a solution and not a problem.
I am the best in all I do.
I do the right things at all times.
I have great value for time.
Journey To Significance 563

I care for and respect people.

I am establishing a positive legacy.
I am a person of honour and integrity.
I make my family and nation proud.
I am a new breed without greed.
We are the new breed.
We are without greed.
All the spheres of human endeavor are waiting for us.
So help me God.
564 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

“Effective people are not problem - minded;

they are opportunity - minded, they feed
opportunities and starve problems.”

A school head was alerted by the caretaker to a persistent

problem in the girls' lavatories: some of the girl students were
leaving lipstick kisses on the mirrors. The caretaker had left
notices on the toilet walls asking for the practice to cease, but to no
avail: Every evening the caretaker would wipe away the kisses,
and the next day lots more kisses would be planted on the mirror.
It had become a bit of a game. The head teacher usually took a
creative approach to problem solving, and so the next day she
asked a few girl representatives from each class to meet with her
in the lavatory.

"Thank you for coming," said the head, "You will see there are
several lipstick kisses in the mirrors in this washroom.."

Some of the girls grinned at each other.

"As you will understand, modern lipstick is cleverly designed to

stay on the lips, and so the lipstick is not easy at all to clean from
the mirrors. We have therefore had to develop a special cleaning
regime, and my hope is that when you see the effort involved you
will help spread the word that we'd all be better off if those
responsible for the kisses use tissue paper instead of the mirrors
in future.."
566 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

At this point the caretaker stepped forward with a sponge

squeegee, which he took into one of the toilet cubicles, dipped
into the toilet bowl, and then used to clean one of the lipstick-
covered mirrors.

The caretaker smiled. The girls departed. And there were no

more lipstick kisses on the mirrors.

Wow, who will like to taste or drink toilet water? Even though the
girls were naughty, they still cared about their health enough to
stop when the news spread.

I have spoken on health matters severally at different point in this

book and just felt I should dedicate a whole chapter to it alone to
really drive home the importance of being healthy and health
conscious.
 You need good health to make money.
 You need good health to manage money.
 You need good health to multiply money.
 You need good health to succeed at entrepreneurship.
 You need good health to enjoy the money.
 You need good health to become significant etc.

Bad health and sickness can wipe you out financially. I have seen
people sell houses just to pay for a kidney they needed, I have
seen people go bankrupt nursing a sickness that refused to go;
and I know of people that spend a huge amount of money
annually just to stay alive. Don't be a victim.
 Rest well.
 Sleep well.
 Eat well.
 Take lots of water.
 Take lots of fruits.
Health Is Wealth 567

 Exercise regularly.
 Be very health conscious.

I am not a health expert, so I may not go deep into health issues,

but please take your health serious because if you get all the
money in this world and end up with bad health, you may end up
losing all the money trying to get your health back and that will
be bad.

BODILY EXERCISE PROFITS YOU

Walking, jogging, running, cycling, house chores, workout,

skipping, aerobics, recreation, sports etc, are all different forms
and degree of exercises you can explore, and all you need is to
make sure:
 You do it frequently (FREQUENCY).
 You do it with great intensity (INTENSITY).
 You do it for a good duration of time and not just few
minutes (DURATION).
 You do it continually as a lifestyle and a culture
(CONSISTENCY).

When your exercising has frequency, intensity, duration and

continuity, there are benefits.
1. It shapes you.
2. It strengthens you.
3. It removes bad fat.
4. It helps you grow and glow.
5. It helps improves stamina.
6. It improves endurance.
7. It reduces anxiety and depression.
8. It improves immunity.
568 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

9. It helps you save money that sickness should take.

10. It balances your hormones.

FRUITS AND THEIR BENEFITS

Please let this table guide your consumption

Health Is Wealth 569
570 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
Health Is Wealth 571

MEDICAL CHECK-UP

Prevention is better than cure, and nobody needs to die before

their time. I want to once again advise that a regular medical
check-up become part of your culture and lifestyle, especially
if you are forty and above. You don't have to be sick to see a
doctor. You can schedule an appointment with a doctor just for
regular check-up.

There have been cases of people that should have died but a
regular check-up saved them because a danger was
discovered before it became life threatening. Don't joke with
any sign or symptom you feel and don't understand, because
in my years of leading people, I have seen people die that
needed not to die.

May you live long and live healthy!

572 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

“People don't care how much you know, until

they know how much you care, so don't tell me
how good you are, show me!”

Our world today is a different world from those of our

grandparents, and there are many unavoidable realities in this
21st century world of information and technology. I remember
the turn of this century in 1998-1999, the millennium bug and
Y2K buzz was all over the world, and people had all kinds of
speculation about this century. Twelve years later, we have
seen great, tremendous, and amazing things become part of
our world.

Our unavoidable realities include but not limited to:

 Need for a mentality/paradigm shift.
 The reality of globalization.
 The need for networking.
 The need for strategic positioning.
 The need for wisdom and excellence.
 The need for creativity and innovation.
 The New media reality.
 The new trends as earlier discussed etc.
574 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Our physical, mental and intellectual resources need to

continually grow and change because they are our personal
capital in today's world.

One unavoidable reality I want to deal with in the chapter as

we start bringing this module and this book to a close is the
need for you to:

 Give back to your world as an individual or

company, and becoming responsible and
significant.

People don't care how much you know, until they know how
much you care and saying you are a good person or company
is not good enough, you must show it. Giving back helps you
to become fulfilled too because the degree with which you are
helpful to others and give back is the degree to which you will
be fulfilled. Money does not bring fulfillment!

You must have a generous spirit and be a giver because

“Givers Never Lack”.
Give your time.
Give your talent.
Give your treasure.

At the airport after a tiring business trip, a lady's return flight

was delayed. She went to the airport shop, bought a book, a
coffee and a small packet containing five gingernut biscuits.
The airport was crowded and she found a seat in the lounge,
next to a stranger. After a few minutes' reading, she became
absorbed in her book. She took a biscuit from the packet and
began to drink her coffee.
The Unavoidable Realities Of Today 575

To her great surprise, the stranger in the next seat calmly took
one of the biscuits and ate it. Stunned, she couldn't bring
herself to say anything, nor even to look at the stranger.
Nervously she continued reading. After a few minutes, she
slowly picked up and ate the third biscuit. Incredibly, the
stranger took the fourth ginger nut and ate it. Then to the
woman's amazement; he picked up the packet and offered her
the last biscuit. This being too much to tolerate, the lady
angrily picked up her belongings, gave the stranger an
indignant scowl and marched off to the boarding gate, where
her flight was now ready. Flustered and enraged, she reached
inside her bag for her boarding ticket, and found her unopened
packet of ginger nuts.

The stranger was not wrong after all, but was a man with a
generous heart who must have settled that giving is living.
You or your company should always think of ways to give
back because it is an unavoidable reality of today's world.

THE MILLENIUM DEVELOPMENT GOAL (MDGs)

In September of year 2000 as the world entered a new

millennium, The United Nations headquarter in New York
played host to a unique gathering where the world agreed to
focus on eight key areas for the first 15 years of this
millennium. Known as the Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs), this eight-point agenda is expected to be fulfilled by
2015. With just few years to go, the journey is still very far. My
foundation and I have joined the world in doing our part to
help make the world a better place. Will you join the crusade?

UNDERSTANDING THE MDGs

1. Eradicate Extreme Poverty And Hunger.

576 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Living below 2 dollars a day is the UN definition of

poverty, while living below 1 dollar a day is known as
extreme poverty which is the level a great percentage of
people operate in, especially in Africa.

2. Achieve Universal Primary Education.

Every citizen of the world has a right to basic primary

education and millions of people have been deprived of
this in different nations of the world.

3. Promote Gender Equality And Empower Women.

The gender discrimination in different nations and

various sectors of human existence is no doubt an
unwelcome development that needs urgent attention.
We all have a part to play and should do.

4. Reduce Child Mortality.

The statistics of still births, infant and child mortality is so

high that it brings tears to one's eyes. It is amazing how
poor the medical facilities are in so many parts of the
world even in the midst of plenty due to corruption and
lack of good leadership.

5. Improve Maternal Health.

Many women die at childbirth in hospitals all over the

world, and many survive childbirth but end up with
diverse health problems. People's health and life need not
be jeopardized as it is in today's world, and things must
change.

6. Combating HIV/AIDS, Malaria And Other Diseases.

Incurable diseases have taken a central stage in many

The Unavoidable Realities Of Today 577

lives today, and billions of dollars have been spent and

are still being spent on finding a cure. Except the cure
comes, millions will still face avoidable death.

7. Ensure Environmental Sustainability

The global warming debate is an ongoing conflict in

today's world; deforestation, gas flaring, and pollution in
water bodies etc. need urgent attention.

8. Develop Global Partnership for Development.

Networking and mergers are no doubt the way forward

in today's world, and forging profitable and strong
partnership in combating problems is a good agenda. It's
been over eleven years now, and even though a lot has
been done, a lot still needs to be done and the time is short.

Will the MDGs be achieved by 2015?

That is a big question and we all have a part to play in

making our world a better place.

In which of these eight areas can you or your organization

come in and give back? Corporate social responsibility is no
more just an option in today's world, it is an unavoidable
reality and a trend to flow with, because it is a practice that
leads to significance, and that is what having money is all
about.

Be generous with your products, services and profits. John D.

Rockefeller, the standard oil founder who died in 1937 was one
of the world's richest business barons. In his lifetime, he gave
away today's equivalent of $5 billion. He told his own story
this way: “I had to begin work as a small boy to support my
mother. My first wages amounted to $1.50 per week. The first
578 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

week after I went to work I took the $1.50 home to my mother.

She held it in her lap and explained to me that she would be
happy if I would give a tenth of it to the Lord. I did, and from
that week until this day, I have tithed every dollar God has
entrusted to me. And I want to say that if I had not tithed the
first dollar I made, I would not have tithed the first million I
made”.

Dear reader, being generous is the hallmark of people who live

successful lives and who operate business with soul. If your
exclusive reason for operating your business is personal gain,
you will find yourself empty because you are shallow. Some of
the greatest joys of becoming successful are associated with
acts of generosity to your team, your customers, your staff and
your community.

As a Christian, I believe in tithing and giving and I have done

that with results for over two decades now and I am fulfilled.
My business and I give back in many ways because we believe
in this as a corporate culture.
 Daily broadcast to help educate people.
 Free monthly seminar “School of Money”.
 A free weekly Success, Business and Leadership School .
 A percentage of our profits, our services and our products
are given out and used for worthy causes.
 Our time, talent and treasure is at work etc.

Rabbi David Lapin in his book “Thou Shall Prosper,” describes

the Jewish tradition of the Havdalah service. It is possibly one
of the most appropriate metaphors I have seen for having a
business and properly viewing prosperity. He says it this way:
The Unavoidable Realities Of Today 579

“As the Sabbath ebbs away each Saturday

night, Jewish families prepare for the
productive work week ahead by singing the
joyful Havdalah service…. The Havdalah
service is recited over a cup of wine that runs
over into the saucer beneath.

This overflowing cup symbolizes the

intention to produce during the week ahead
not only sufficient to fill one's own cup, but
also an excess that will allow overflow for the
benefit of others. In other words, I am obliged
to first fill my cup and then continue pouring
at it more, so that I will have sufficient to give
away to others, thus helping to jump-start
their own efforts.”

I believe the lesson here is like I have said earlier in this book;
we first earn to take care of our needs and responsible wants,
but keep earning simply to give. This formula will make your
business vastly more satisfying if you follow it.

SEED : TIME : HARVEST

The man slowly looked up. This was a woman clearly

accustomed to the finer things of life. Her coat was new. She
looked like she had never missed a meal in her life. His first
thought was that she wanted to make fun of him, like so many
others had done before.
"Leave me alone," he growled. To his amazement, the
woman continued standing. She was smiling - her
white teeth displayed in dazzling rows.
"Are you hungry?" she asked.
"No," he answered sarcastically. "I've just come from
580 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

dining with the president. Now go away." The

woman's smile became even broader. Suddenly the
man felt a gentle hand under his arm. "What are you
doing, lady?"The man asked angrily. "I said you should
leave me alone."
Just then a policeman came up. "Is there any problem,
ma'am?" he asked. "No problem here, officer," the
woman answered. "I'm just trying to get this man to his
feet. Will you help me?"
The officer scratched his head. "That's old Jack. He's been
a fixture around here for a couple of years. What do you
want with him?"
"See that cafeteria over there?" she asked. "I'm going to get
him something to eat and get him out of the cold for
awhile."
"Are you crazy, lady?" the homeless man resisted. "I don't
want to go in there!" Then he felt strong hands grab his
other arm and lift him up. "Let me go, officer. I didn't do
anything."
"This is a good deal for you, Jack," the officer answered.
"Don't blow it."
Finally, with some difficulty, the woman and the police
officer got Jack into the cafeteria and sat him at a table in
a remote corner. It was the middle of the morning, so,
most of the breakfast crowd had already left and the
lunch bunch had not yet arrived.
The manager strode across the cafeteria and stood by his
table. "What's going on here, officer?" he asked. "What
is all this? Is this man in trouble?"
"This lady brought this man in here to be fed," the
policeman answered.
The Unavoidable Realities Of Today 581

"Not in here!" the manager replied angrily. "Having a

person like that here is bad for business."
Old Jack smiled a toothless grin. "See, lady. I told you so.
Now if you'll let me go. I didn't want to come here in the
first place."
The woman turned to the cafeteria manager and smiled.
"Sir, are you familiar with Eddy and Associates, the
banking firm down the street?"
"Of course I am," the manager answered impatiently.
"They hold their weekly meetings in one of my banquet
rooms."
"And do you make a goodly amount of money providing
food at these weekly meetings?"
"What business is that of yours?", the man asked.
"I, sir, am Penelope Eddy, president and CEO of the
company."
"Oh."
The woman smiled again. "I thought that might make a
difference." She glanced at the cop who was busy
stifling a giggle. "Would you like to join us in a cup of
coffee and a meal, officer?"
"No thanks, ma'am," the officer replied. "I'm on duty."
"Then, perhaps, a cup of coffee to go?"
"Yes, ma'am. That would be very nice."
The cafeteria manager turned on his heel. "I'll get your
coffee right away, officer."
The officer watched him walk away. "You certainly put
him in his place," he said.
"That was not my intent. Believe it or not, I have a reason
for all this."
She sat down at the table across from her amazed guest.
582 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

She stared at him intently. "Jack, do you remember

me?"
Old Jack searched her face with his old, rheumy eyes "I
think so -- I mean you do look familiar."
"I'm a little older perhaps," she said. "Maybe I've even
filled out more than in my younger days when you
worked here, and I came through that very door, cold
and hungry."
"Ma'am?" the officer said questioningly. He couldn't
believe that such a magnificently turned out woman
could ever have been hungry.
"I was just out of college," the woman began. "I had come
to the city looking for a job, but I couldn't find anything.
Finally I was down to my last few cents and had been
kicked out of my apartment. I walked the streets for
days. It was February and I was cold and nearly
starving. I saw this place and walked in on the off
chance that I could get something to eat."
Jack lit up with a smile. "Now I remember," he said. "I was
behind the serving counter. You came up and asked me
if you could work for something to eat. I said that it was
against company policy."
"I know," the woman continued. "Then you made me the
biggest roast beef sandwich that I had ever seen, gave
me a cup of coffee, and told me to go over to a corner
table and enjoy it. I was afraid that you would get into
trouble.”
“Then, when I looked over, I saw you put the price of my
food in the cash register. I knew then that everything
would be all right."
"So you started your own business?" Old Jack said.
The Unavoidable Realities Of Today 583

"I got a job that very afternoon. I worked my way up.

Eventually, I started my own business that prospered
with the help of God." She opened her purse and pulled
out a business card. "When you are finished here, I want
you to pay a visit to a Mr. Lyons. He's the personnel
director of my company. I'll go talk to him now and I'm
certain he'll find something for you to do around the
office.”
She smiled. “I think he might even find the funds to give
you a little advance so that you can buy some clothes
and get a place to live until you get on your feet. If you
ever need anything, my door is always opened to you."
There were tears in the old man's eyes. "How can I ever
thank you?" he said.
"Don't thank me," the woman answered. "To God goes the
glory. Thank Jesus. He led me to you."
Outside the cafeteria, the officer and the woman paused
at the entrance before going their separate ways.
"Thank you for all your help, officer," she said.
"On the contrary, Ms. Eddy," he answered. "Thank you. I
saw a miracle today, something that I will never forget.
And... and thank you for the coffee."

I believe you have learnt something from this story, because

givers never lack and your future is in your seed.

THE OLUMIDE EMMANUEL FOUNDATION (OEF).

When I turned forty few years ago, this OEF was established to
create a platform to give back in another dimension.

ERADICATING POVERTY & ESTABLISHING LEGACY

which is encapsulated in its mission statement:
584 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

“To Be An Instrument In The Hand of The Creator To Assist

The World In Poverty Eradication and Establishing A Positive
Legacy For Others To Follow.

To achieve this aim, we have laid forth a SEVEN POINT

AGENDA which puts our goals in clear sight and position us
to work in synergy as a team to leaving the world a little better
than we met it, and leaving a footprint of positivity in the sands
of time.

SEVEN POINT AGENDA

As we are set up to reach out to women, children and men in

diverse geographical locations, cultures and ethnicity cutting
across religious and socio-political barriers, we have laid out a
seven point agenda serving as our operational blueprint:

1. FOOD:

Feeding The Hungry.

To achieve this, Olumide Emmanuel Foundation dedicates to

agricultural and food sufficiency programmes including but
not limited to:
Large scale farming;
Food Kitchens;
Food Banks;
Food packs at special seasons.

2. CLOTHING:

Clothing the Naked.

To provide clothing for the under-privileged in society, the

The Unavoidable Realities Of Today 585

establishment of charity centres, and programmes with

efficient monitoring systems and personnel to ensure that
those who need it, get it. This is achieved through:
- Charity Shops
- Street Kids Target Programmes
- Widows / Widowers Outreaches
- The Aged Targeted Programmes

3. SHELTER:

Sheltering the Homeless.

Shelter is one of the 3 key needs of the human race but

surprisingly, a huge number of individuals across the world
are simply homeless as a result of diverse & complex reasons,
sometimes too complex to explain. Some of these reasons are
natural disasters, family breakdowns, old age, unforeseen
economic occurrences, stranded travellers etc.

Olumide Emmanuel Foundation aims at helping people

without homes through the provision of:
- Transit Hostels;
- Rehabilitation Centres;
- Rents and Renovations;
- Cheap and Quality Accommodation.

4. EDUCATION:
Educating The Uneducated.
Scholarships
Vocational Institutes / Skill Acquisition Centres
Library
586 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Back to school packs (exercise books etc.)

Developing a reading culture campaign.

5. HEALTH:

Supporting the sick; Protecting/Promoting Healthy Living

Boreholes
Medical Outreaches
Awareness Campaigns
Counseling Centres
Medical bill funding
Hygiene / Essential packs at special seasons
Physically Challenged, etc.

6. ENTREPRENEURING: -
Empowering the Poor.
Trainings, Seminars and Workshops
Micro-Financing and Funding
Entrepreneurial School
Wealth creation empowerment broadcast

7. INVESTMENTS: -
Doing Business to Raise Funds for the Foundation.
Raising Partners
Investing Funds
Establish Business
Visit www.oe-foundation.org for details on how you can
partner with or join us in advancing these goals.
 CHAPTER FORTY-NINE

“The price you fail to pay today will be paid

tomorrow with interest. “
Having come this far, I want to use this chapter to invite you to
partake of the investment and wealth creation vehicles we
have in place at our organization. This is to help give you
opportunities to practise the principles you have learnt and see
results from them.
1. THE FINGER PRINTS INVESTMENT CLUB.
2. THE COMMON SENSE ESTATE DEVELOPMENTS.
3. COMMON SENSE TRAINING / SEMINARS
/CONSULTANCY.
4. FINGERPRINTS COOPERATIVE MULTIPURPOSE
SOCIETY.
5. OTHER OPPORTUNITIES.
THE FINGERPRINTS INVESTMENT CLUB
The Fingerprints Investment Club is an initiative of the
Common Sense Ltd board, a company I presently have the
privilege to head as the CEO.
After many years of teaching these investment principles, we
have discovered, along with other experienced and highly
588 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

versatile investors, that a lot of people need those they could

trust to help them set up investment vehicles and oversee their
smooth running.
The Fingerprints Investment Club is, therefore, one of our own
little ways of helping people become wealthy.
It is an investment club aimed at motivating, guiding and
assisting you to invest your money wisely. We call
Fingerprints Investment Club “the pathway to wealth”
because every club member who faithfully and consistently
operates this unique investment plan will become a
guaranteed millionaire at stipulated time frames as you will
see from our investment chart. This is your invitation to
consider becoming a Fingerprints Investment Club member, a
club that will usher you into the millionaires club.
No more wasteful spending! It is time for investing.
FingerPrints Investment puts the three steps on the pathway to
wealth together to help you become wealthy.
Financial Literacy: -
As a club member, you get continuous information and
motivation as well as tips and opportunities through our
seminars and products to help you.
Financial Planning: -
We have created a plan that will become your vehicle to
wealth. You only need to join us and let's ride together. With as
little as N10, 000 a month, you can become a millionaire in five
years (guaranteed) because we give you a guaranteed 20%
return per annum.
Financial Discipline:-
Our bylaws are structured to help you maintain the discipline
required for wealth creation. Patience, consistency and
Windows Of Opportunity 589

delayed gratification are essential ingredients in this discipline.

With Fingerprints Investment Club, you cannot go wrong. Don't
miss this opportunity, because like I have said all through this
book, no one will plan your future for you without your active
involvement.
WHAT IT IS: - (F. I. C = Fingerprints Investment Club)
F.I.C is an investment vehicle that gives interested individuals
the opportunity to invest a minimum of N5, 000 (five thousand
naira) every month and get a fixed and guaranteed 20% return.
HOW IT WORKS: -
- You join the club after going through all the membership
process, you decide how much you want to be investing
every month, but the minimum is N5,000 and it must be
monthly. Remember the compound interest element and
the power of annuities.
- We invest the money on your behalf as we deem fit
especially in intellectual property and real estate while you
get a fixed and guaranteed 20% per annum.
HOW TO JOIN: -
- Collect an application form, fill it completely and sign the
agreement.
- Pay a one-time membership due.
- Collect your acceptance letter, code number and identity
card.
- Start investing your chosen amount every month.
- Abide by the agreed by laws.
BENEFITS
- You invest your money and go to sleep, while your money
goes to work for you.
- You get a guaranteed 20% return on your investment per
590 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

annum while the fund manager bears the risk.

- You become a millionaire with ease, and in an assured time
as can be determined from the return on investment chart.
- You will be securing your future, and that of your family.
- You will be planning your retirement with ease.
- You can do this for your Company, self, family, child, baby
or unborn child.
- You become an investor and not just a spender or waster.

Monthly: 5,000 6,000 7,000 10,000

Amount p.a: 60,000 72,000 84,000 120,000
Interest 20% 20% 20% 20%
Years
1 72,000 86,400 100,800 144,000
2 158,400 190,080 221,760 316,800
3 262,080 314,496 366,912 524,160
4 384,096 463,795 541,094 772,992
5 532,915 642,954 750,113 1,071,590
6 711,498 857,945 1,000,935 1,429,909
7 925,798 1,115,934 1,301,923 1,859,890
8 1,182,958 1,425,521 1,663,108 2,375,868
9 1,491,549 1,797,025 2,096,529 2,995,042
10 1,861,859 2,242,830 2,616,635 3,738,049
11 2,306,231 2,777,796 3,240,762 4,629,660
12 2,839,477 3,419,755 3,989,715 5,699,592
13 3,479,371 4,190,107 4,888,458 6,983,510
14 4,247,246 5,114,528 5,966,949 8,524,213
15 5,168,696 6,223,833 7,261,139 10,373,055
16 6,274,435 7,555,000 8,814,167 12,591,666
17 7,601,321 7,627,000 10,677,800 15,253,999
18 9,193,585 11,069,280 12,814,160 18,448,798
Windows Of Opportunity 591

19 11,104,303 13,369,536 15,477,792 22,282,558

20 13,397,164 16,129,843 18,674,150 26,883,069

Monthly: 15,000 20,000 25,000 30,000

Amount p.a: 180,000 240,000 300,000 360,000
Interest: 20% 20% 20% 20%
Years
1 216,000 288,000 360,000 432,000
2 475,200 633,600 792,000 950,400
3 796,240 1,048,320 1,310,400 1,310,400
4 1,171,488 1,545,984 1,932,480 2,318,976
5 1,621,786 2,143,181 2,678,976 3,214,771
6 2,162,143 2,859,817 3,574,771 4,289,725
7 2,810,572 3,719,780 4,649,725 5,579,670
8 3,588,686 4,751,736 5,939,670 7,127,604
9 4,522,423 5,990,083 7,487,604 8,985,125
10 5,642,908 7,476,100 9,345,125 11,214,150
11 6,987,490 9,259,320 11,574,150 13,888,980
12 8,600,988 11,399,184 14,248,980 17,098,776
13 10,537,186 13,967,021 17,458,776 20,950,531
14 12,860,623 17,048,425 21,310,531 25,572,637
15 15,648,748 20,746,110 25,932,637 31,119,164
16 18,994,498 25,183,332 31,479,164 37,774,996
17 23,009,398 30,507,998 38,134,997 45,761,995
18 27,827,278 36,897,598 46,121,996 55,346,394
19 33,608,734 44,565,118 55,706,396 66,847,673
20 40,546,481 53,766,142 67,207,675 80,649,208
592 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Monthly: 15,000 20,000 25,000 30,000

Amount p.a: 180,000 240,000 300,000 360,000
Interest: 20% 20% 20% 20%
Years
1 216,000 288,000 360,000 432,000
2 475,200 633,600 792,000 950,400
3 796,240 1,048,320 1,310,400 1,310,400
4 1,171,488 1,545,984 1,932,480 2,318,976
5 1,621,786 2,143,181 2,678,976 3,214,771
6 2,162,143 2,859,817 3,574,771 4,289,725
7 2,810,572 3,719,780 4,649,725 5,579,670
8 3,588,686 4,751,736 5,939,670 7,127,604
9 4,522,423 5,990,083 7,487,604 8,985,125
10 5,642,908 7,476,100 9,345,125 11,214,150
11 6,987,490 9,259,320 11,574,150 13,888,980
12 8,600,988 11,399,184 14,248,980 17,098,776
13 10,537,186 13,967,021 17,458,776 20,950,531
14 12,860,623 17,048,425 21,310,531 25,572,637
15 15,648,748 20,746,110 25,932,637 31,119,164
16 18,994,498 25,183,332 31,479,164 37,774,996
17 23,009,398 30,507,998 38,134,997 45,761,995
18 27,827,278 36,897,598 46,121,996 55,346,394
19 33,608,734 44,565,118 55,706,396 66,847,673
20 40,546,481 53,766,142 67,207,675 80,649,208
Windows Of Opportunity 593

Monthly: 35,000 40,000 50,000 60,000

Amount p.a: 420,000 480,000 600,000 720,000
Interest: 20% 20% 20% 20%
Years
1 504,000 576,000 720,000 864,000
2 1,108,800 1,267,200 1,584,000 1,800,000
3 1,834,560 2,096,640 2,620,800 3,144,960
4 2,705,472 3,091,968 3,864,960 4,637,952
5 3,750,566 4,286,362 5,357,952 6,429,542
6 5,004,679 5,719,634 7,149,542 8,579,450
7 6,509,615 7,439,561 9,299,450 11,159,340
8 8,315,538 9,383,473 11,879,340 14,255,208
9 10,482,646 11,836,168 14,975,208 17,970,250
10 13,083,175 14,779,401 18,690,250 22,428,300
11 16,203,810 18,311,281 23,148,300 27,777,960
12 19,948,572 22,549,537 28,497,960 34,197,552
13 24,442,286 27,635,444 34,917,552 41,901,062
14 29,834,743 33,738,533 42,621,062 51,145,275
15 36,305,692 41,062,240 51,865,274 62,238,330
16 44,070,830 49,850,688 62,958,329 75,549,996
17 53,388,996 60,396,826 76,269,995 91,523,995
18 64,570,795 73,052,191 92,243,994 110,692,794
19 77,988,954 88,238,629 111,412,793 133,415,353
20 94,090,745 106,462,355 134,415,352 161,298,424
594 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Monthly: 70,000 80,000 90,000 100,000

Amount p.a: 840,000 960,000 1,080,000 1,200,000
Interest: 20% 20% 20% 20%
Years
1 1,008,000 1,152,000 1,296,000 1,400,000
2 2,217,600 2,534,400 2,851,200 3,168,000
3 3,669,120 4,193,280 4,717,440 5,241,600
4 5,410,944 6,183,936 6,956,928 7,729,920
5 7,501,133 8,572,723 9,644,314 10,715,904
6 10,009,360 11,439,268 12,869,177 14,299,085
7 13,019,232 14,879,122 16,739,012 18,598,902
8 16,631,078 19,006,946 21,382,814 23,758,682
9 20,965,294 23,960,335 26,955,377 29,950,418
10 26,166,353 29,904,402 33,642,452 37,380,502
11 32,407,624 37,037,282 41,666,942 46,296,362
12 39,897,149 45,596,738 51,296,330 56,995,634
13 48,884,579 55,868,086 62,851,596 69,834,761
14 59,669,495 68,193,703 76,717,915 85,241,713
15 72,611,394 82,984,444 93,357,498 103,730,056
16 88,141,673 100,693,333 113,324,998 125,916,067
17 106,778,008 122,032,000 137,285,998 152,539,280
18 129,141,610 147,590,400 166,039,198 184,487,136
19 155,977,932 178,260,480 200,543,038 222,824,563
20 188,181,518 215,064,576 241,947,646 268,829,476

From the above chart, you see what you get for up to twenty
years, if you invest from N5,000 to N100,000 .

Study the chart, locate your possibility and make the move. We
hope to hear from you. All our contact details are at the end of
the book.
Windows Of Opportunity 595

N.B. The Fingerprints Investment Club does not only operate

in Nigeria, but only operates based on the currency of any
nation where members come from. Contact us for details.
 The 20% return per annum guaranteed is only for
those who operate their membership for five years
and above.
1- 2yrs = 10% per annum
3- 4yrs = 15%per annum
5yrs & above = 20% per annum
 We also have the Fingerprints Premium which is for
those who want to invest a lumpsum once and still
get the 20% interests per annum.

COMMON SENSE ESTATE DEVELOPMENT

Apart from the F.I.C., another window of opportunity

available through our platform is our estate projects. We are
also into estate development and the estate project is primarily
to make genuine and affordable land and houses available to
interested individuals both for residential and commercial
purposes. We buy large expanse of land in hectares, sell
individual plots to people, and together we develop a fully
functional residential estate. We sell you the land; we can build
for you, manage for you, and help you build wealth through
real estate. We have handled five of such estates so far, ranging
from fifty acres to a two hundred acre estate. By the time you
are reading this, I don't know how many we would have done.
But you can call us anytime you read this and we will let you
know what is on.

You can be a commission based sales agent with us and make

money from our real estate projects.
596 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

If you are an investor just wanting to invest money in real

estate in Nigeria, contact us, we can work together.

COMMON SENSE TRAINING / SEMINARS /

CONSULTANCY

We offer Training Courses / Seminars / Consultancies

covering the scope of this book and more. We do these for
Churches, Organizations, Corporations, Civil Servants,
Students etc. Contact us, and we can work together to make
financial intelligence available. I am available to speak on any
platform, and on various topics and issues.

THE FINGERPRINTS CORPORATIVE MULTIPURPOSE

SOCIETY

For generations, people have created wealth through co-

operatives, thrifts, contributions, networking etc. By teaming
up with others, an individual is able to achieve more than they
could alone.

Together Everyone Achieve More (T.E.A.M). We achieve

more together than the sum total of our individual
achievements. After over a decade of helping people create
wealth, I have realised that bringing people into a network
under an umbrella where they can be closely mentored,
monitored and empowered is vital to them creating wealth.
The Fingerprints Co-operative Multipurpose Society (FIC-
CMS) is a platform that has been created to help you create
wealth.

OUR UNIQUENESS.
- ACCESS TO MENTORING
- ACCESS TO MICRO-FINANCE
Windows Of Opportunity 597

- ACCESS TO LOANS
- ACCESS TO NETWORKING
- ACCESS TO OPPORTUNITY
Contact us for detail.

OTHER BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

 We have over twenty books and products available till

date. You can be a marketer or distributor of all our
products including the present one and make good
money on a part time basis. Contact us.

 We can open you up to a lot of business opportunities for

yourself, your church, your business or your
organization; in oil and gas, travel and tours, etc.

Take advantage of these windows of opportunities.

CIRCUS LESSON

If the circus is coming to town and you paint a sign saying

'Circus coming to the Fairground Saturday', that's advertising.
If you put the sign on the back of an elephant and walk it into
town, that's promotion. If the elephant walks through the
mayor's flower bed, that's publicity. And if you get the mayor
to laugh about it on the evening news, that's public relations.”

If the town's citizens go to the circus, you show them the many
entertainment booths, explain how much fun they'll have
spending money at the booths, answer their questions and
ultimately, they spends a lot of money at the circus, that's sales.
598 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER FIFTY

“It is appointed unto man once to die, but

after death comes judgment. Are you set for
eternity?”

Welcome to a new level of life. I have no doubt in my heart that

this book has affected you positively, because I have been
affected positively by the truths shared in this book. Taking
time out to write this book has been a great refreshing time for
me. The book is not over yet.

How Will Your Death Be Announced?

One thing that is common to all is that we are all born, and will
all die one day, except you are alive in Christ at rapture. When
you die, how will your death be announced? What you do with
the information you have gotten from this book will determine
how your death will be announced. Which of these two will it
be?

# With deep sorrow of heart, we regret to announce the

sudden passing away or the passing away of XXXXXXXXXX,
whose sudden demise took place on XXXXXXXXXX. He / she
is survived by XXXXXXXXXX.

This kind of announcement shows a death that leaves pain and

600 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

sorrow for those left behind. Crying, wailing and anguish

always characterize the burial of this kind because the dead,
most likely left nothing substantial behind.

# With gratitude to God for a life well spent, we announce

the passing away into glory of our XXXXXXXXXX. May his /
her gentle soul rest in perfect peace. He/she is survived by
XXXXXXXXXX.

This kind of announcement shows a death that leaves

something behind. In this kind of burial, people don't cry, wail
or show anguish, they only sob, not because the dead is not
missed, but it was a life well spent with great inheritance left
behind for others to enjoy.

Do you want to die and leave your family and offspring in

pain, or you want to exit with eternal legacies in place?

“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall

gain the whole world, and lose his own
soul?” -Mark 8:36

God wants you to have all the best that the world has to offer
and live in stupendous wealth, but it is all expected to be on the
premise that the spiritual has been put in place. To gain the
whole world and lose your soul is to lose everything. You came
into this world with nothing, and definitely you are going back
with nothing. When you die, all your life's journey will only be
characterized with a dash i.e.

MR INDIVIDUAL SOMEBODY

1950 - 2050

The day you were born will be stated, the day you die will be
The Final Word 601

stated, but every other thing equals _____________. All your

qualifications, achievements, investments, etc will equal dash.

The life you live now will determine what your __________
will be interpreted to mean. A life without Christ will end up in
crises.

In order to find peace with God, you need to embrace God's

love and receive salvation that only Jesus Christ gives. There
are some basic steps you need to take that will usher you into
the world of new beginnings.

1. Recognize Your Need For God.

“For all have sinned, and come short of

the glory of God” - Rom 3:23

We all have need of a Savior, and in order to succeed in life, you

need God.

2. Repent Of Your Sins.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and

just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John. 1:9

Sin creates a wall between man and God, which hinders God
from being able to intervene on our behalf in different areas of
life. However, repentance opens the door for God.

3. Believe In Jesus.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave

his only begotten son, that whosoever
believeth in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life.” - John 3:16
602 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY

Jesus is God's only way to salvation and believing in what

Jesus did on Calvary gives us access.

4. Receive His Salvation.

“But as many as received him, to them

gave he power to become the sons of God,
even to them that believe on his name”
- John 1:12

It is one thing for someone to offer you a gift; it is another thing

for you to receive it. God has offered us the gift of salvation
through His son Jesus, but we must receive and accept Him.

5. Confess Your Faith.

“That if thou shall confess with thy

mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in
thine heart that God hath raised him
from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For
with the heart man beliveth unto
righteousness, and with the mouth,
confession is made unto salvation”
- Romans 10:9 10.

Make a confession of what you believe and begin to walk in

newness of life. Pray this prayer with faith and believe God to
do His work in you as you pray.

SALVATION PRAYER

Heavenly father, I thank you for the gift of your Son Jesus!
Lord I believe in my heart that You died on the cross to redeem
me, and You rose again to justify me.
Come into my life, Lord Jesus and make me whole.
The Final Word 603

Cleanse me by your blood and deliver me by your power.

Let the power of the wicked fail over my life and let your Spirit
take over.
Thank you for saving me. AMEN.

If you have prayed this prayer sincerely from your heart, you
can write me to share your testimony and request for free
literature and materials that will help you grow in God.

SHALOM!

PRAYER OF AGREEMENT

I will like to stand in agreement with you concerning any area

of your life where you need God's intervention. Feel free to let
me know areas where you need prayers and I will be glad to
pray along with you.

SHALOM!

I WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU

If this book has affected you positively in any way, feel free to
get in touch and share your feelings and testimonies. Any
question you have will also be duly handled. You are special to
me and hearing from you will be a thing of joy.

SHALOM!
604 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
 CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE

“Where you will be in five years will be

determined by the books you read and the
friends you keep - Readers are Leaders.”

Start the future now!

I have had the privilege to read thousands of book in my

lifetime because I have read an average of one book per week
for over twenty years now and I want to present you with a list
of books from my library that have helped me in the journey of
wealth creation.
606 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
Books That Helped Me Create Wealth 607
608 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
Books That Helped Me Create Wealth 609
610 THE SCHOOL OF MONEY
Books That Helped Me Create Wealth 611