Many young people want to start their own business, be their own boss, and make money. However, they struggle to come up with creative and original business ideas that will help them compete in a world filled with entrepreneurs.
Luckily, we can learn about how to come up with a great business idea from Kibena.
Kibena is 10 years old and everyone’s most reliable friend. Whatever the problem, Kibena is always ready to lend a hand. She lives with her Bibi (grandmother in Swahili) who encourages her to try her best – it’s no surprise she’s at the top of her class in school!
HOW KIBENA GOT HER BUSINESS IDEA!
It’s school break, and Kibena is bored at home. She’s read all her books at least 3 times and wishes school was open so that she could get more from the library. Kibena has always loved to read, and when she grows up and she wants to make a lot of money and start her own library.
You see, many young people think that they can’t do something because they don’t have enough money. The reality is that there are other skills that are incredibly important for success in business.
Starting a business requires:
- A good product that has demand in the market
- A clear business plan and understanding of your customers
- Creative ways to raise money and capital
- A way of letting people know about you (advertising and marketing)
But the first step to starting any business is to have a good idea like Kibena. So how can you come up with your own business idea?
FOUR STEPS TO COMING UP WITH A GOOD BUSINESS IDEA
1 What do you love to do? A famous Chinese philosopher, Confucius, once said “choose a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life”. Think about the things you enjoy the most in life: it could be your favourite subject in school, your favourite hobby or sport, or even a talent you have that you really enjoy. For example, Kibena loves books and reading. She spends all her spare time reading and talking to her friends about the books she loves.
2 Identify a big problem and/or challenge you have? Your business should offer a solution to a problem you and other people have. For instance, Kibena realises that there are not enough books to read over the holidays. That’s a problem that she can solve through her business.
3 Do other people have this problem too? A business is all about providing a product and/or service to other people. So you can’t be the only one who has a certain problem, challenge or desire. You have to think about whether your business will be helpful to other people. For example, if Kibena is bored, then her friends may also not have enough activities to do over the holidays. She’ll have to do some research to find out for sure.
4 What can you start doing today to help solve this problem? You don’t always need a lot of money to start a business, all you need is an idea that can be worked on today. Basically, you can start small. For instance, Kibena doesn’t have money to build a big library. But she has her books, and a little money to buy and borrow more. Therefore, she can start a small library in her house.
So are you ready to come up with your own business idea? Let us know on our Facebook page!
Next time we will learn how Kibena took her business idea and made it into a plan.
Get to know Kibena: