“We know a lot of companies that have closed globally with a lot of money,” Ignace Turatsinze said, adding that “money is not the ultimate appointee.”
Turatsinze, Co-founder and CEO of PayingTone, a company aiming to develop and offer financial products to increase retail access across Africa, believes that money and funds are not as important as understanding your mission and vision.
“You have to understand why you are doing that [your business] and how,” he said “the moment you understand that it pushes you to learn and continuously learn. If you don’t, you’ll fail as soon as you face your first challenge.”
There is no doubt that money is the most important aspect of running a business. We think that a business starts and ends with money and do not get me wrong money is definitely a big deal but like Turatsinze said aren’t there major companies that crashed whilst they had a lot of investments and funds?
Other entrepreneurs agree with him that money is not the only consideration or priority in running a business.
Peace Ndoli, Co-founder and COO of Lifesten Health, believes that one of the most important things a startup needs is mentorship rather than money.
She emphasized the importance of mentorship in getting your innovation out there.
“The most important thing is the support system,” she said, “because you can sit in a room and have an idea, but if it doesn’t get to the people, you’ve wasted your time.”
The founder of Schoolnest, JMV Karegeya, agrees with these innovators that money is important but not the most important thing. He believes the team can make a significant difference.
“Money is actually the second thing,” he explained, “the first thing is actually your team. Even if you raise a lot of money, it will be useless if you do not have a team that is good at what they are doing.
Iradukunda Marie Grace, the Founder and CEO of Huuza Games, believes that it must begin with you and what you are doing. In other words, it must be about the problem you are solving in society.
“If you have money but don’t use it to solve the right problem, your business will fail,” she stressed.
Many young people do not take the first step toward implementing their solutions because they believe that only money will provide them with the necessary kickstart or even keep their businesses running.
However, because these young people are already in the business, they say money is the last thing you should be concerned about.
Girihirwe Hervé describes your mission, product, and customers. “It is about the producti fit and your customers. “It is not about the money; it is about the people who drive your business,” he said.
“Your customers will be the life of your business; focus on them, understand their challenges, and everything else you’re thinking about as if money will come as you go,” he said.
As a result, while funds and money are important, as an entrepreneur you must focus on the solution you are bringing, seek mentorship, and invest in your customers.
