My Entrepreneurship Journey, and how You can get started.
**Nowadays, many of us take in and regurgitate information that tends to be opinion, so before starting, I wanted to make it clear, this is entirely an opinion piece. Everyone’s journey will be different, and this is just how I got started. Skip to “Getting Started” if you want a quick guide. Otherwise, enjoy the story.
My Never-Ending Conquest
“Veni, Vidi, Didici” — I came, I saw, I learned.
I started looking into entrepreneurship as a young kid, around nine years old. However, I didn’t pursue anything for a while, possibly because I was oblivious to the joy entrepreneurship brings to me or simply because I had much more important things to me at that time — gaming. I’ve always been an avid gamer, yet 2012/2013 is the year it all peaked. Minecraft was my game of choice, and in North America all-day, every day, kids just wanted to go home and play Minecraft. For those who are familiar with the game, Minecraft has servers that users play on, and in many scenarios, these servers have ranks that users have to pay for. At the time, my income was quite underwhelming. I mean, It mostly consisted of chores and helping my Mom out, so I couldn’t pay for or even convince my Mom to buy me these ranks. Over time, I realized that if I wanted a rank for cheap, I would have to give it to myself. Thus, my server was born, and it was a hit. I had all the kids in my grade, giving me money for ranks, and eventually, my server was self-sustaining. But all things have to come to an end, and it turns out that most kids were telling their parents that the money (which they gave me for ranks) was for a field trip; I’m sure you can tell what happened next. Instead of going into full detail about each project I’ve done, I decided to list them below.
- ZoraxPvp (My brother’s server)
- Moo____(I honestly forget the name here)
- J&C Inc. (Not Incorporated)
- My Numerous Other Minecraft Servers
- JrPlays MC (5k Youtube Channel)
- Splash Gaming (Gaming Network)
My First “Job”
At 13ish, I went to summer camp in Parry Sound. After about a week, I was not too fond of it. I found the activities I participated in to be too meaningless. I felt no growth by doing arts and crafts or cooking hot dogs, and I asked my parents to take me home. I was instantly rejected. But instead of making me live there for another two weeks, I got a job. I was responsible for helping with the mail. I’m serious. I was put on mail duty and was no longer considered “a camper.” I was responsible for sorting through the mail, taking any contraband (candy, food, etc.), and delivering it to cabins. I worked with my counselor and was doing work. I was incredibly happy with it. After that summer, I stopped camp and moved to actual outreach opportunities — helping build water pipes in Peru, Taking care of abused elephants in Thailand, etc. And looking back, I think that was indeed a catalyst for the work I do today. It showed me how my work could impact others, which is what motivates me to this day.
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Oxcres and Ordcoin
In grade 8, when I was about 14, I started Oxcres. Oxcres was initially a dropshipping site, which for non-eCommerce folk, means a site where you take products from wholesalers and resell them at a margin to make a profit. Quick to say, I made nothing. However, Dropshipping taught me fundamental marketing, finance, and research skills that I utilize today, which I’m incredibly grateful for. For people starting with entrepreneurship, dropshipping is an excellent first path. It introduces you to the world of business and doesn’t require an extreme amount of legal work or Startup knowledge to get going. Just ensure that you provide a product people want, and you market it as a need. But like I said, I made nothing. After that, hurdle, I entered marketing. I completely rebranded Oxcres as a Millenial Marketing Agency and got some attention for it. I worked for a few businesses providing them with marketing towards younger crowds like teens and younger kids. However, I was mostly working for free to get experience. But it got to a point where working for free was both unsustainable and dissatisfying, as it felt like I was running a club and not a real business.
Ordcoin is my first legitimate, legal startup that I’m genuinely proud to work on. We’re providing consumers with a new trading and transactional environment that is fixing the current problems millions have faced with Crypto. The current system is slow and incredibly confusing. So Ordcoin is offering instantaneous transactions with a Crypto debit card, but beyond that, our rewards and savings system provides you with a new way to pay and save.
The initial idea behind Ordcoin was born out of frustration at my school. My school only takes cash that made me truly mad, and as a 15-year old, I knew that although many kids don’t carry cash, they bring their phones. So I devised a solution where I would build a centralized blockchain network, so my school can track transactions, understand stock, and know when people bought items. That way, they understood what’s popular and what isn’t. I got into contact with private schools all around Toronto and tried to get meetings. Unfortunately, I got declined, ignored, and waved off by nearly every school. I was devasted. This idea was about to go to waste when someone advised me to think bigger. How could this idea be used on a grand scale? Instantly I was reminded when I tried to spend Crypto in a store and realized how difficult it was. It was incredibly difficult, and the process was long and tedious. But when it worked, the jolt or even tingle of being able to spend something like Crypto was immediate. Since that day, the idea of crypto spending has fascinated me, and with that, Ordcoin was born.
So How Do I/You Get Started? Pt.1
I would love to say that the startup world is a 1+1=2 game, but fundamentally, it would grossly oversimply and deceive you. Startups are more like one day 1+1=5 and the next 1+1=-2 as everything is so adaptable and relative to your model, your idea, your solution, even the way you talk.
But, that doesn’t mean I can’t go over a sort of guard rails to look for:
Understand Your Vision
Before you start anything, ask why? What are your intentions going in? Are you driven by fame, money, or status? Or seeing the solution to a problem that bugs you? This fundamental question will determine the Lions and the Sheep. And likewise, it will determine who the successful and the unfortunate people are. Personally, money is a terrible motivator. It will dilute your focus, growth, vision, and even decisions with Cofounders and funding. So be cautious and mindful about why you want to build a company. And always remember that a Founder’s vision will shape a company, but a vision of fortune isn’t a realistic or sustainable one. Impact makes a fortune — which is why Musk is incredibly wealthy but has no interest in material items.
There are so many ways to make quick money but building a startup isn’t one of them. If you want to make fast money, you better invest in your career and look for better-paying jobs. I can guarantee you, there is nothing wrong with that. Startup life isn’t for everyone. — Jumanne Rajabu Mtambalike
Here is another article explaining why money dilutes vision.
Understanding a Market/Market Validation
After you have a clear understanding of your mindset, it’s time to identify what the market looks like. Are you addressing a problem people need/want, or are you putting rationale on an issue that only you face? Many times, startups provide solutions to non-existent problems and eventually fail as there are little people who want that solution. Also, sometimes people build out solutions to issues that have already been solved in the same way. So do your research and understand the landscape. For Ordcoin, I spent nearly six months doing this, and I’m still working on it now. It’s also incredibly crucial to talk to your possible users. I would recommend talking to as many people as possible as they will confirm whether or not you’re addressing a real problem. Talking to experts is also essential, but talking to one expert alone can’t provide you with market validation.
Minimum Viable Product
Perfection is stupid and impossible, and thus, your first product should be developed quickly but smartly. Don’t deliver a product in a week that doesn’t have your message behind it, but take time and release a raw product yet represents what you do. For Uber, that was a black car service, and for Amazon, it was a basic online bookstore. Don’t try to build the next Amazon in 2 months, as users may hate it, and that’s two months down the drain. Instead, create an initial product (that works somewhat well) and use BML loops (Build, Measure, Learn), which will allow you to get insight from users and continue building on liked features and removing any unnecessary or disliked functions. Amazons’ initial MVP was quite terrible, but it worked. Look below.
Iterations and Learning
I touched on this before, but users are everything. If you’re not focused on the user, your head is in the wrong space. Users are your customers and drive growth in every area of your startup. Set up meetings with users and get as much information from them. On that note, never get free advice. It sucks. Make users pay, which will put more value on the advice they give. Nobody complains about free food to the cook, but if you spend $30 for food and it sucks, I’m sure you will complain or talk to a waiter.
Bringing on a Cofounder
Bringing on anybody in a startup is incredibly difficult. Not only legally but emotionally. Startups are almost like your kid; they are needy and sometimes underperform. So be ready when it comes time to give away equity because, from my experience, nothing can be built from one Founder. A whole dilemma was made for this called “The Founders Dilemma.” But before even bringing someone on, I recommend playing an intense game of 100+ questions, get to know them before any handshakes (or elbow shakes with Covid) have occurred. Honestly, I wouldn’t bring on anyone you haven’t known for longer than two months. And in most scenarios, people cofound with a friend or partner. But in the scenario you decide to cofound with a new person Vesting Agreements are crucial!!! These agreements will protect you, the company, and the possible cofounder and allow equity to be given overtime instead of outright. These agreements are standard in the Valley and across the world and are so crucial with new companies. In the scenario, a cofounder leaves, and no vesting agreement has been made. If equity was given, that person can run away and own a large percentage of your company legally. But with vesting agreements, equity is given to the cofounder over 3–5 years (depending on the contract), ensuring commitment and safety. A cliff can provide extra insurance in the scenario where your cofounder is terrible. Just a simple push off would do. I’m joking. A cliff is a 1-year agreement that no equity is given until a full year with the company is complete. This insurance allows the majority holder to fire the cofounder (under appropriate circumstance) if shit hit’s the fan.
Up, Up and Away
This guide is the first few steps in getting a startup going, and obviously, these details and even execution is dependent on your startup. If you guys are interested in a Pt.2 talking about investors, marketing, pitching, selling, and more, let me know by clapping up this article! And overall, for those who took the time to read my story, I truly appreciate it!
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