Where to Start

South Africa is one of the most sophisticated, diverse and promising emerging markets globally. Strategically located at the tip of the African continent, South Africa is a key investment location, both for the market opportunities that lie within its borders and for the opportunity that exists to use the country as a gateway to the rest of the continent, a market of nearly 1-billion people.

A great idea may not always be a profitable business. You have to solve a problem being experienced by a lot of people AND do so profitably!

So, you think you have a business idea. What’s next? Before ideas become reality they must undergo validation as business opportunities. One can start by identifying the gap in the market typically fulfilled by innovation.

Benjamin Disraeli, a 19th century British Prime Minister, once said, “Man is only great when he acts from passion.” For today’s aspiring entrepreneur, exploring avenues of creativity to find your passion is likely the quickest route to increase your chances of launching a successful business. Where to start? Here, five exercises to help you uncover your passion.

I’ve met a lot of really bright engineers and entrepreneurs who I think could do great things if they pursued a big, interesting problem in a big, interesting market. But instead they get enamored of scratching their own itch, i.e., solving a problem they themselves have experienced and then didn’t find, didn’t like or didn’t even look for someone else’s solution to the problem.

One common piece of advice given to budding entrepreneurs is to follow your passion; do what you love. The idea is that by building a business rooted in something you are already passionate about, it will be easier for you to push through tough challenges and stick it out.