During a recent gathering, I connected with an inspiring entrepreneur who had relocated from North America to the African continent to build her now-thriving company. As we exchanged pleasantries, she asked, “How long have you been building your current company for?” I then responded, “Almost 5 years.” Following her smile, her words that escaped stayed with me: “Yup, it takes about 5 years for this entrepreneurship thing to make any sense.”
Earlier this month, I was in Lagos-Nigeria to oversee one of our on-going Blossom Academy Fellowship programs. As my colleague and I commuted in the scorching sun to visit potential partners, what kept ringing in my mind was “It takes 5 years.” However, an even more pressing question haunted me at the end of each working day: “Am I willing to spend another 5 years to navigate the building process in another market?”
This deeply held belief was challenged during the Skoll World Forum at the University of Oxford the following week. On several occasions, I engaged with leaders who had accomplished a great deal in a relatively shorter period of time and, dare I say, in even tougher economic conditions. At the peak of my curiosity was precisely when I heard a piercing quote on a panel:
“If it takes ten people to move a big rock, we must not take turns trying to move the rock one person at a time. What’s important is for all ten people to work together to push the rock.”
Indeed, you can spend 5 years trying to push the rock solo or you can rather apply discernment and collaborate with mission-aligned experts who believe in your shared vision. What the forum reminded me of was the importance of introspection to build teams, coupled with the power of compounded experiences. You see, it may truly take 5 years for “this entrepreneurship thing” to make sense. However, it’s also a disservice to yourself if you fail to realize that the skills acquired over the years will simply not translate. So fam, let me also challenge you to get unstuck from the mindset that half a decade or more is your portion to elevation. You too are deserving of a breakthrough at rapid speed because of the seeds you’ve once sown. Believe that.
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This message was originally shared on instagram here.