Shhh! The Walls Have Ears — how not to be swallowed by the sharks
My late dad, Abdulfattah Jimoh was a man of wit. May Allah forgive him and grant him paradise. Composed, and very easygoing, he would hold me by hand as we go to negotiate and close business deals as far back as when I was 10. One of the things he always echoed into my ears was
“Ibrahim, always maintain decorum.” Yes, I was very smart and full of ideas but he cautioned as I grow old, “be discreet with your plans until you’re done implementing.” Till date, I’ve kept that in my heart.
See, the world is a fierce playground. That is one of the reasons we learnt early in life “not to count our chickens before they are hatched.” Aside that, the evil eyes is real. You don’t want someone to crush your dream before it even comes to life. That is why I pity all these ladies doing pregnancy photo-shoot etc. I marvel at how careless and unwise our generation has become.
In 2019, I met my good friend and brother Rilwan Akeyewale to discuss a business idea I’m so passionate about. And as we discussed the business model, one first thing he asked was if I had registered the name and opened social media accounts for the business.
Unfortunately, I hadn’t. So he strongly advised that I do. He said,
“there was a time I had an idea with a friend and we were glad it will work and continued to plan, not until we saw our business idea implemented by another person.”
His guess was that, probably someone heard about the idea somehow, somewhere and the person executed.
He never forgot the lesson and he advised me not to fall into same.
As an entrepreneur or even for your personal life, be discreet with the information you give to people about your plans. It can be even suicidal as a business owner to start discussing your plans all around.
Don’t forget that the wall have ears and your competitors are like geckos 🦎 around your wall.
So, be discreet.
While it is true that often times you’d need to discuss your idea to get clarification and perfection, you should know who to discuss with and to what extent the information you should share.
Be wise. And Trust smartly.
Here is a post I saved and shared since 2017. Facebook brought it out today and I want you to read it and take lessons too.
The author, Strive Masiyiwa, eavesdropped a business conversation from 2 staff from a competitor company on a plane. After he landed, he immediately implemented it.
Those guys were finished. Perhaps foolish to have thrown their fish into the mouth of an eagle🦅.
Don’t be like them. Take head.
PS: Olasupo Abideen discusses teaches how you can execute your ideas 💡 as fast as possible on the GrantMaster Africa Podcast Ep 4. Listen to it here: https://grantmasterafrica.com/gma-ep4/
PPS: I consult for businesses and entrepreneurs on how to get grants and grow their businesses and cause. Check out https://grantmasterafrica.com to learn more about our services.
