“Excitement is building in the countdown to the launch of Ojimah, a multi-channel platform specialized in the Travel, Tourism and Hospitality industry” says CEO and founder Mike Tavares. Ojimah was created to mitigate the negative impacts of the industry whilst promoting the social, cultural, and environmental wellbeing of the local community.
Mike Tavares is optimistic that Ojimah’s ecosystem of solutions is poised to empower African communities and change the dynamics of travel worldwide by facilitating a win-win situation for all industry players, travellers, and destinations.
It has been two years since the beginning of the project and days ahead of the official launch of its travel platform. We asked Mike if he could share any advice for people starting their journey as entrepreneurs.
“Starting a business and building a product are not for the faint of heart. It begins with an idea, followed by hours of research and reaching out to people that can help. Having a solid concept, well-researched information and a strong network will set your future business up for success”, says Mike.
According to Mike, entrepreneurs should really take their time and challenge their assumptions to be sure that is a rock-solid idea before fully committing to it. He adds, “while your business idea may have been perfectly sound at the time of conceptualization, by the time you get started, a lot of variables will have changed, so be ready!”.
So… here is Mike’s top 5 tips for an aspiring entrepreneur.
- Find something you love and fight fearlessly for its success. Eventually you will know what real wealth is!
- Ask yourself, “What are you doing today to reach your goals?” Those small steps you take every day will get you where you want to go.
- Don’t let disappointments get you down. Instead, stay focused on the big picture and do not underestimate the power of failure as a teacher.
- Physically and mentally, be ready for the long run. Getting your mind right is one of the biggest keys to a great long run.
- Finally, ask yourself “Are you ready to change your lifestyle?” In my case, to put together such an amazing product, I become “less” of a father, “less” of a son, “less” of a brother, and “less” of a friend. Time that I will never recover. Are you ready for it?
On a final note, “no entrepreneur starts their business journey knowing everything. This is some of the advice I wish I’d been given when starting Ojimah and I hope it helps”, says Mike. He then concluded with this quote:
“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”
MAYA ANGELOU