By David Malherbe – Published in Drakenstein Gazette – Friday 11 October 2013
To be an Entrepreneur, the owner of your own business, puts you in a leadership position that you have perhaps never considered yourself to be in.
The basic aspects of being an entrepreneur is to start the business activities and then to keep them going. You need to give direction to the business and this requires initiative.
You cannot lead an organization and people unless you as the leader did not first determine what you would like to achieve. When Joseph in the Bible explained to the Pharaoh the meaning of his dream, he also supplied him with a plan of action to take the country forward during the years to come. He gave direction. I believe that is why the Pharaoh appointed him to be leader over Egypt.
Very often business owners merely manage their businesses, keeping all systems in place and running. This is necessary for the day to day smooth operation of the business, but it does not lead to growth and expansion of the organization.
There needs to be a leader who, amidst all the day to day problems and challenges, will be able to look at the bigger picture and give direction to grow and prosper the business. Unfortunately most business owners get so caught up in the day to day management of their businesses that they do not make time to plan for future growth. If you do not make time to plan for future growth, you often end up with crisis management of one problem after another.
We often place too much emphasis on good management and too little on leadership. Really great leaders usually try to divert attention away from themselves and towards the larger goal of building a great company. They are often humble people but very professional in what they do.
Therefore if we look at successful business organizations we will usually find good leaders at the helm. They do not look to enrich themselves or try to impress others with their wealth, but they first and foremost care for the well-being of the business and the people that work for them.
David Malherbe and Dewald Scholtz will discuss this topic in more detail Monday evening from 19:00 till 20:00 on Radio KC 107.7 FM in the program “You the Entrepreneur”
(David Malherbe is a business- and career consultant and lives in Wellington. He can be contacted via his web page www.jedidiah.org.za or T/F 021-873 0262 or on Facebook at “Jy die Entrepreneur.”)
