Failures Made Me Pull Up By Bootstraps

A
humble beginning is just a step to the right direction
Shortly after high school, I began working odd jobs that came in handy. My first self-employment was in baking and distributing mandazi (buns) with a bicycle. That was during
the early 2000s but I did not last long in that line. Part of the reasons being
competition, and rather than compete with copycats who were supplying similar
products to same customers, I had to strategize.
Failure
is never fatal
I began dealing with milk buying this commodity from farmers in
Nyandarua County and transporting same to Nakuru town for resale, again using
the bicycle. I was in this business for about two years, but, like in my
previous business, I was also dealing with competition. Also, it was rigorous
transporting milk on poor roads then. By that time, there was no proliferation of
boda boda motorcycles as is the case
today. Some factors like glut of market with similar product, especially at
peak seasons, meant all was not well at times.. As I was not making much
progress, I decided to engage in farming, growing mainly tomatoes for the
market, but this venture did not fare well either.
You
can learn a new set of skills as you work

Growth
is not exponential but a process
At the beginning, I began as the main fundi and would subcontract others
depending on nature of a project to do. But today, the company had grown and
we’re three masons, all of whom I have trained, two carpenters and six labourers.
We do hire extras like plumbers and electricians on a contract basis, like when
a need arises in order to meet a project’s completion deadline. It is not
without challenges that we’re witnessing growth, though. Competition from
established entities is one of them. Also, some clients are hard to deal with,
especially where work done may not be commensurate with what they are offering.
More, the cost of hiring some equipment is another issue. But what matters at the
end is the satisfaction of looking back at a job well done.
Maximize
your potentials
Apart from doing construction works, I’m
also a signwriter, a landscaper and also do emceeing in events. If there is a
slump in construction activity or the project has stalled as a result of the
client having financial difficulties to sustain works, I engage in boda boda (motorbike) business as we wait for
current and new clients to contact us.
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