Billionaire Venture Capitalist Michael Moritz Pledges $115 Million To Oxford

Billionaire venture capitalist Michael Moritz has pledged more than $115 million to the University of Oxford to set up a scholarship fund for low-income students. In what the English university is touting as the “biggest philanthropic gift for undergraduate financial support in European history,” Moritz and his wife, Harriet Heyman, have committed the money, which with a ‘matched funding challenge” from Oxford, will generate over $460 million to aid lower-income students.
Moritz, a Welsh-born alumnus of Oxford’s Christ Church college, called his pledge in a university press release “a fresh approach to student funding in the U.K.–fueled by philanthropy.”
“Real talent is housed everywhere,”he said. “Our new scholarship programme means that a gifted student–irrespective of financial circumstances–will always be 100% confident they can study at Oxford.”

Moritz’s gift is the latest in a spate of large gifts from billionaire families to educational institutions. In May 2011, the parents of American billionaire Ronald Perelman donated $225 million to University of Pennsylvania’s School of Medicine in what was the largest single donation in the university’s history. In 2010, Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg announced his plans to help improve Newark‘s public school system with a $100 million challenge grant, which had to be matched by money raised by city mayor Cory Booker.
Under the Oxford program, students from families whose income is under $25,000 will receive financial support totaling nearly $17,000, which covers all living costs. These students will also have lower rates associated with student loans. Currently, about one in 10 students at Oxford, or just under 1,000, come from families in this income bracket.
According to the university, the goal of the program is to have half of those students on Moritz-Heyman scholarships within three years of the program’s launch in the Fall. The program will be open immediately for application this Fall to any incoming students whose families meet the income requirements.
“Eventually all such students would be covered by the scheme or equivalent similar scholarships,” read the Oxford release.
Moritz was unavailable for immediate comment.
Moritz’s total gift will be given in three equal tranches of about $38 million and will be matched by investment returns from the university’s endowment. Each time a tranche from Moritz is given, the university must raise $77 million, in addition to the billionaire’s gift and the matching funds from its endowment, before it can receive the next installment of the donation.
This is not Moritz’s first gift to Oxford. He donated $50 million to Christ Church college, where he studied as an undergraduate, in 2008.
Worth $1.7 billion as of Forbes’ valuation for the 2012 World Billionaires List, Moritz is chairman of venture capital firm Sequoia Partners. He recently stepped out of a position monitoring day-to-day operations at the Menlo Park, Calif.-based investment company because of health reasons.

25 Top Internet Billionaires and the Secret to their Success

Who are the 25 top internet billionaires in the world? What’s the secret to the success of the top internet billionaires? How did they come about their wealth? How did they become billionaires? And how can you replicate their success strategies to become a millionaire or billionaire? You are going to find out soon.

In this article, I am going to list the top 25 internet billionaires and also highlight the secret to their success. But before I proceed, I want to emphasize the point that this article not focused on the wealth and net worth of the internet billionaires; rather, it’s more interested in the “how” of their success.

If you are more interested in knowing the estimated net worth of the internet billionaires; then Forbes magazine is the right place to go. But if you are interested in learning the exact step by step strategies that helped these internet entrepreneurs became billionaires; then please read on. Now who are the 25 top internet billionaires in the world?

                25 Top Internet Billionaires in the World

1.            Mark Zuckerberg –          Facebook

2.            Larry Page –       Google

3.            Steve Case –      AOL

4.            Jeff Bezos –        Amazon

5.            Reed Hastings –                Netflix

6.            Jerry Yang –        Yahoo!

7.            Craig Newmark –             Craiglist

8.            Pierre Omidyar –              Ebay

9.            Sergey Brin – Google

10.          Eric Schmidt – Google

11.          Masayoshi Son – Softbank

12.          Hiroshi Mikitani – Japan’s leading online shopping mall

13.          Charles Schwab – Online investing to the masses

14.          Ma Huateng – Runs China’s most popular online chat service

15.          Robin Li – Baidu

16.          Mark Cuban – Broadcast

17.          Andreas Von Bechtolsheim – Google Investor

18.          William Ding – China’s second largest online gaming site

19.          Shi Yuzhu – Giant Interactive

20.          Yoshikazu Tanaka – Gree

21.          David Filo – Yahoo!

22.          Marc Benioff – SalesForce

23.          Peter Thiel  - Facebook Investor

24.          Jack Ma – Alibaba

25.          Todd Wargner – Broadcast

Now that the 25 top internet billionaires in the world have been listed, I think it’s time we dig into the behind-the-scene secret to their success.

                25 Top Internet Billionaires and the Secret to their Success

1.            They took advantage of trend

                “There are no shortcuts. You have to work hard, and try to put yourself in a position where if luck strikes, you can see the opportunity and take advantage of it. I would also say it's hard not to fool yourself. Everyone tells you how they are going to be "special," but few do the work to get there. Do the work.” – Mark Cuban

The fist secret to the success of the internet billionaires was their preparedness and ability to take advantage of a moving business opportunity. The internet came as a trend and while most established business owners fought to resist its impact on their businesses; these internet billionaires embraced the internet and went about seeking ways to use it as leverage. The ability to take advantage of trend; the ability to accept change is the big difference between successful entrepreneurs and the average business owners.

                “To truly prepare for the unexpected, you’ve got to position yourself to keep a couple of options open so when the door of opportunity opens, you’re close enough to squeeze through.” – Pierre Omidyar

2.            They started small

The 25 internet entrepreneurs listed above are billionaires by all standard but they were not so many years ago; and they did not become internet billionaires overnight, they started small. Most people admire entrepreneurs such as Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos and Larry Page but only few knew the starting point of these entrepreneurs.

                “There are no shortcuts.” – Reed Hastings

One key to becoming a successful entrepreneur or business owner is the ability to start small. Most people dream big but only few are humble enough to start small. I think it’s worthwhile you know that Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, Jerry Yang, David Filo, Sergey Brin started their internet businesses from the dorm of their various schools; Jeff Bezos started Amazon from his garage.

                “Most people think it's all about the idea. It's not. EVERYONE has ideas. The hard part is doing the homework to know if the idea could work in an industry, then doing the preparation to be able to execute on the idea.” – Mark Cuban

These internet billionaires did not sit on their business ideas and business plan; waiting for the million dollar investor. They started with what they’ve got on hand and kept it going till they hit fame and fortune. So if you must replicate the success strategies of these internet billionaires, then you must be willing to start small.

3.            They worked for free

                “It’s not because of the amount of money. For me and my colleagues; the most important thing is that we create an open information flow for people. Having media corporations owned by conglomerates is not just an attractive idea to me.” –Mark Zuckerberg

Extraordinary success comes with extraordinary sacrifice. During the early startup years of these internet billionaires, they weren’t paid a dime. They worked for free developing their business ideas and even when their various companies was formed; they kept working for free.

                “Most people think it's all about the idea. It's not. EVERYONE has ideas. The hard part is doing the homework to know if the idea could work in an industry, then doing the preparation to be able to execute on the idea.” – Mark Cuban

What’s the lesson I am trying to stress here? The lesson I am emphasizing is that “delayed gratification is essential to becoming a billionaire and building a successful business; whether on the internet or offline.”

4.            They were innovative

I did a careful research and found out that the internet billionaires were not pioneers in their niche; they were late comers but they came with a competitive strategy, “innovation.” Google and Yahoo weren’t the first search engine; before them was ask.com.

                “We are targeting innovation. We believe mobile applications are essential.” – Larry Page

Amazon wasn’t the first online bookstore; other small independent bookstores existed but Jeff Bezos used innovation as an edge to position Amazon as the world largest bookstore. Facebook wasn’t the first social networking site; MySpace was already on ground and successful but Mark Zuckerberg positioned Facebook using innovation as an edge.

The lesson here is that you don’t have to be the first to win; you don’t have to reinvent the wheel, all you have to do is improve on the present idea and you will have a winner on hand.

5.            They had a mission

                “The thing I really care about is the mission; making the world open.” – Mark Zuckerberg

One of the reason the 25 internet entrepreneurs listed above became billionaires was because they had a mission; a mission to positively affect humanity. Why do you want to start a business? The answer to this question will determine if you’ll succeed or not.

                “The most important single thing is to focus obsessively on the customer. Our goal is to be earth's most customer-centric company.” – Jeff Bezos

A business mission is essential to starting a business and growing a business because it helps you the entrepreneur maintain focus; it keeps you on course. Without a strong business mission; you might hit success but you can never sustain that success. MySpace went under because Facebook; its competitor had a stronger mission and that business mission became the driving force behind Facebook’s success.

                “Basically, our goal is to organize the world's information and to make it universally accessible and useful. That's our mission. When we started, we had about 30 million Web pages, which was quite large for the time — that was two years ago. Now, we have well over a billion Web pages. So that gives you some idea of how we've grown in content. So we try to make more and more stuff available to people, we try to, when you come to Google, fulfill that need that you have as quickly as possible.” – Larry Page

6.            They served everyone for free

Have you ever been charged for doing a search on Google? Were you charged a subscription fee for your Yahoo, Google and Facebook account? The answer is no. The reason these internet billionaires became successful was because they served everyone for free. Mark Zuckerberg helped family and friends stay in touch without charging a dime. Google provides direction to vital information without charging a dime; Craiglist is also a free resource.

                "If you want to be rich, simply serve more people." – Rich Dad

Now what is the key point here? The key point for success here is to provide a valuable service to many people for free or a lot less than normal.

7.            They reinvested in their business

The last secret to the success of the internet billionaire was that they reinvested in their businesses. Jeff Bezos didn’t pay a dividend for five years; Larry Page and Sergey Brin worked their socks off without getting a dime. These internet entrepreneurs became billionaires because they reinvested not only the profits; but their time and resources.

Instead of taking a profit and throwing a party; they chose to stay committed and expand their business via strategic acquisitions. Re-investing in your business is essential to business growth and expansion.

As a final note, these are the top seven secrets to the success of the internet billionaires. Do you want to become an internet billionaire? All you have to do is to replicate these seven success secrets and I will see you at the top.

Are You Really Prepared to be an Entrepreneur?

So you want to become an entrepreneur? You want to start your own business and be your own boss? Well, I say congratulations but my concern is: are you really prepared to be an entrepreneur? Do you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur?

                Is starting a business risky?

“He that is prepare; has half won the battle.” – Sun Tzu

I have been an entrepreneur for over five years and I want to state that it has been a worthwhile adventure. Over these years, I have learned a lot of things that I wouldn’t have learned if I didn’t take the entrepreneurial route. As I reflect over my years as an entrepreneur, I have come to realize that there’s nothing glorious about being an entrepreneur. In fact, you are better off keeping your job than starting a business. Now for those wanting to become entrepreneur, let it be known to you that entrepreneurship is not a bed of roses; it’s a war zone.

                “Experience taught me a few things. One is to listen to your gut no matter how good something sounds on paper. The second is that you are generally better off sticking with what you know and the third is that sometimes, your best investments are the ones you don’t make.” – Donald Trump

Now don’t think I am trying to scare or discourage you from starting your own business. No. I just want to share with you the realistic truth about building a business, so that you can better prepare yourself. Just as a general must prepare adequately before a battle, so must an entrepreneur prepare before starting any business; and business is a series of unending battles. If you fail to prepare adequately, you are destined to fail; and nothing can save you.

Most people think entrepreneurship is all about raising capital and pursuing million dollar projects but it isn’t so. Entrepreneurship is a thing of the mind; it starts from the inside and reflects on the outside. Business idea creation, critical thinking, risk analysis and problem solving all occur on the inside; and this means that if your mindset is not right, you have failed from the start.

                “There are no bad business or investment opportunities. There are only bad entrepreneurs and investors.” – Rich Dad

Are you really prepared to be an entrepreneur? Well, you better be because the moment you decide to become an entrepreneur; you have just sounded the war drums. When I started my first business few years ago, I was very excited because I have taken a bold step. I was burning with enthusiasm and determination; but looking back now, I can see how naïve and unprepared I was back then. Even as at the time of writing this; I don’t think I am still prepared for the future challenges of building a business.

Are you really prepared to be an entrepreneur? Well, you better be because it is never going to be a smooth ride. Right from the day I decided to become an entrepreneur, it has been problems and challenges all the way. In fact, I have been dealing with challenges from day one and the more I solve them, the more the challenges get bigger. Don’t think money or success will shield you from the challenges of the business world; it won’t. In fact, the bigger your success and the more money you acquire, the bigger your problems will be. So you’ve got to be prepared.

                “Without the element of uncertainty, the bringing off of even, the greatest business triumph would be dull, routine and eminently unsatisfying.” – J Paul Getty

Are you really prepared to be an entrepreneur? Well, you might think you are prepared because you have spent quality time working on your business plan. You have thought everything through and plugged the loopholes; you have done your SWOT analysis and you are prepared to face the competition. Well, I give you thumbs up for your effort; but I want you to draw your attention to something.

Most people think the biggest challenges in business is either finding customers or fighting competition but I stand to tell you that it isn’t. The biggest challenge you will face in business sometimes come from the inside. It could be from your family, friends, employees or even you. In fact, the most deadliest challenges are usually unforeseen; I am talking about factors which are beyond your control. It could be an ailment or disease, a change in trend, it could be the loss of a loved one, it could be a natural disaster, it could be a change in government’s policy (Consider the Amazon associate business owners who were wiped out just because of a slight change in tax laws by some states); in fact, it could be anything. The question is: are you really prepared to face whatever comes?

One of the reasons why I have stayed true to the cause is because I am adequately prepared to face what comes; I have toughen my mind over the years, never to be shaken by surrounding circumstances. I have faced critical family challenges, i have been robbed at gun point, I have handled crucial business problems, I have been backstabbed by my closest friends, I have once lived with the fear of liquidation, etc. but the joyous part of it is that the more I encounter and solve these problems as they come; the bolder and tougher my mind becomes.

                “Prepare for bad times and you will only know good times.” – Rich Dad

As a final note, the point I am trying to emphasize is that business is not a bed of roses; never expect a smooth ride. Don’t be carried away by the hype, fallacies or stories of successful entrepreneurs. You have to be prepared for the worst; you must toughen your mind. The sad part is that I can’t really tell you how to prepare yourself because it’s a thing of the mind. But a good way to begin is to analyze your personal strengths, weaknesses and your risk bearing capacity. I rest my case.

                “In the end, you are measured not by how much you undertake but by what you finally accomplished.” – Donald Trump

Have you ever compared yourself with entrepreneurs such as Bill Gates, Henry Ford, Warren Buffett, Steve Jobs or Larry Page? What entrepreneurial skills do these great entrepreneurs possess that you don't? How did Mark Zuckerberg attain a net worth of $6billion in 2010 while commanding a network of over 100 million users on Facebook? How did Aliko Dangote emerge the richest black man in the world? What secrets or entrepreneurial skills are needed to build a successful from scratch? If the answers to these questions interest you, please read on.

                "I wanted to be an editor or journalist. I wasn't really interested in becoming an entrepreneur, but I soon found I had to become an entrepreneur in order to keep my magazine going." – Richard Branson

I hope you know that to be a successful footballer, you must possess the necessary skills of a footballer. The same goes for every other profession including entrepreneurship. In this article, I will be tearing apart, the important entrepreneurial skills that set apart; the great entrepreneurs from others. If building a business is your concern, then you should make the acquisition of these entrepreneurial skills a priority.

                "Skills make you rich, not theories." Rich Dad

Without beating about the bush, below are five important entrepreneurial skills you must develop to build a successful business from scratch.

                Five Entrepreneurial Skills You Need To Build a Successful Business

1.            Personal Skills

"It takes 20 years to build a reputation and only five Minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you will do things differently." – Warren Buffett

The first skill you must develop as an entrepreneur is your personal skill. Now what do I mean by personal skills? Personal skills are simply those skills that are attached to your personality, more like habits. They are the characters possessed by successful entrepreneurs. For instance; if you are a professional proofreader, then it's important you develop a keen eye for spotting errors.

                "Great men are ordinary men with extra ordinary determination." – Abraham Lincoln

When I talk about developing your personal skill with respect to building a business, I am talking about developing your entrepreneurial mindset. You have to be in the right mindset before ever starting a business. Being in the right mindset entails you have abandoned the get rich quick mentality and above all, you must have integrity.

                “The most important thing in your business relationships is your reputation for honesty. If you can genuinely and sincerely fake honesty, you will be a success. Never doubt it.” – The Mafia Manager

If you carefully study the lives of successful entrepreneurs, you will observe they are courageous, passionate about their entrepreneurial calling and most of all, they think outside the box.

                "Men of genius are admired, men of wealth are envied, men of power are feared, but only men of character are trusted." – Arthur Friedman

                "Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak, courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen." – Winston Churchill

To develop these personal skills, I will recommend you read the 15 Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs and How to develop yours and the 12 Traits of Successful Entrepreneurs. These articles are bound to set your entrepreneurial fire blazing.

2.            Communication skill

                "The test of a real comedian is whether you laugh at him before he opens his mouth." – George Jean Natha

The next important entrepreneurial skill you need to develop is communication skill. A famous speaker once said that "the fact that you are talking doesn't mean someone is listening." I don't know who made this statement but I know there is an atom of truth in it.

                "Your words have the power to start or quench passion.” – John Mason

To be a successful business owner, you must be a powerful communicator. Look at Bill Gates; whenever he speaks, people listen with rapt attention. Steve Jobs successfully launched the IPod and IPad because he was a powerful communicator. Whenever Warren Buffett gives a directive or recommendation, people act.

                "If the customer says they are not interested, it means you are not interesting." – Jeffrey Citomer

Investors scramble for Buffett's annual letter to his CEOs. Why? They do so because Warren Buffet has taken time to perfect his communication skill. Now how do you develop this communication skill? Warren Buffett; the billionaire investor once confessed in an interview that he took a public speaking course at Dale Carnegie’s academy to improve his communication skill. So to get started, I'll suggest you read How to Improve Your Communication Skill or better still; attend a seminar on public speaking.

                "The more I risk being rejected, the better my chances are of being accepted." – Rich Dad

3.            Negotiation skill

In the course of building a business, you are bound to negotiate deals. You negotiate with customers and suppliers over goods and services offered. You negotiate with bankers over bank loans terms and conditions, just as you negotiate with investors over equity and stakes.

                "If you cannot negotiate, you will end up getting good deals at exorbitant prices or worse still, you will get nothing." – Ajaero Tony Martins

Bill Gates became the richest man in the world in his thirties because he strategically negotiated a deal with IBM in his early 20s. If Bill Gates lacked persuasion skills, his name may not have been imprinted in the sands of time. So if you cannot negotiate, if you lack persuasion skills; building a business may just be a dream to you. Negotiation or persuasion is an art that can be learned, all you have to do is to devote your time to learning it and you will become a master at it.

4.            Leadership skill

                "In business, leadership skill is not an option. It's a necessity." – Rich Dad

Business is all about your relationship with people. It entails uniting people with different backgrounds, beliefs and skills to a common cause. It entails forging people with different skills and ideologies into a business team.

                "Good leadership consists of showing average people how to do the work of superior people." – John D. Rockefeller

I have never seen a great business without a great leader at the helm of affairs. Building a successful business therefore requires you become an excellent business leader. Take a look at Bill Gates, Henry Ford, John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, Thomas Edison, Aliko Dangote, Steve Jobs and so many others. These men are great leaders in their respective businesses.

                "Business is not just doing deals; business is having great products, doing great engineering and providing tremendous service to customers. Finally, business is a cobweb of human relationship." – Henry Ross Perot

Successful entrepreneurs were not born business leaders; they were made. They became business great leaders because they desired it; they humbled themselves and learned the art and science of leadership. Today, they are leaders in their game with a huge number of followers.

                "Everyone has an invisible sign hanging from their neck saying, 'make me feel important.' Never forget this message when working with people." – Mary Kay Ash

It’s within you reach to become a good corporate leader or but you must first develop the first three entrepreneurial skills listed above which are: personal skill, communication skill and negotiation skill. This is necessary because these three skills are vital components of effective corporate leaders.

                "The ability to deal with people is as purchasable as a commodity as sugar or coffee and I will pay more for that ability than for any other thing under the sun." – John D. Rockefeller

5.            Sales skill

                "If you cannot sell, you will be sold." – Ajaero Tony Martins

This is perhaps, the most important entrepreneurial skill of all. I decided to list it last so that I can explain its details in full. The reason I regard this as the most important is because I have never seen a business that doesn't sell one thing or the other. If you are not selling tangible items, then you are probably selling intangible items such as services.

                "A man's success in business today turns upon his power of getting people to believe he has something they want." – Gerland Stanley

I regard sales skill as the most important because life is all about selling. To get a good job, you must sell yourself to your employers. Even before you get married, you must sell yourself to your spouse, convincing him/her that you are the best partner. Success in business is also all about selling; you must first sell yourself to your investors, next to your suppliers, your business team and employees and then to your customers.

                "The best way to turn a woman's head is to tell her she has a beautiful profile." – Sacha Guitry

Many people shy away from selling because they are afraid of rejection. Bill Gates sold himself to IBM before he became a billionaire. Steve Jobs personally sold his products such as the IPad in the media. Thomas Edison and Ray Kroc started as salesmen; I am also in the business of selling. The moment I stop selling; I will cease to be an entrepreneur. So my last note to you today is this "start selling something."

                "The ability to sell is the number one skill in business. If you cannot sell, don't bother thinking about becoming a business owner." – Rich Dad

In conclusion, I want you to go over the five entrepreneurial skills again and decide which one is missing in your life. As a last note, I leave you with this quote;

                "Skills make you rich, not theories." – Rich Dad

Must-Have Skills for Entrepreneurs

You’ve decided that you want to get out of the corporate rat-race and be your own boss. As you begin planning how to start your own business from home, you begin listing down what you want to do and what you can do. You tell yourself that you love to do a little bit of everything ­ you can do research, Web design, write, with a 10 years experience in legal and administrative support. But then, you ask yourself, “What skills do I really need to have to succeed as a home based entrepreneur?” If you are thinking of starting a business, you will need a broad array of entrepreneurial skills to succeed in today's competitive market. You must possess basic skills necessary to enable you to start, develop, finance, and market your own home business enterprises. There are a number of qualities and skills you need to have, including personal attributes, business skills and management capability. While you may not have all of them right now, there are five basic skills you really must have to run any kind of business. These five skills are: 1. Sales and marketing skills. Sales and marketing are the two most important skills you must have when you plan to start your own business. A business is nothing if it has no customers. You may have the fanciest computer with the latest graphics software, but if no one is knocking at your door to hire you as a graphic designer, then you better rethink why you are in business in the first place. Maybe you are better off employed by a firm. To have revenues and profits, you first need to have customers. To get customers, you must be able to market your business and possess the skills to close the sale. As you plan your business, you must begin to think how to reach your target audience and the people who may need your products or service. This entails understanding the concept of marketing, and using the tools that your budget permits. You must have a knack for understanding what people wants, listening to their needs, and interact well with other people. It would be extremely helpful if you possess excellent written and oral communication skills to help you sell your products and services (more so if you are a solo entrepreneur who will be doing everything by yourself). You need to create a buzz about your business by talking to people and presenting to them your business. You need to write ads, press releases and story ideas about your business. Starting a business is a time to get out of your timid self and begin to aggressively market your venture. That’s the only way you can succeed. 2. Financial know-how. You are in business to make money. Therefore, the most important skill you must have is the ability to handle money well. This includes knowing how to stretch the limited start-up capital that you have, spending only when needed and making do with the equipment and supplies that you currently have. You also need to identify the best pricing structure for your business in order to get the best kind of return for your products or services. Success in business is not limited to those who have tons of capital in the beginning. Look at the failed dot-coms with funding of as much as $100 million. Even if they are awash with cash, they still ended up as a failure because they were not able to manage their money well. They lavished themselves with high-tech office furniture and gave their CEOs fancy jets to fly, only to have their cash flow depleted in less than a year. If you are able to manage your cash flow well when the business starts to run, you will be able to survive the ups and downs of self employment. The important thing is to always focus on the bottomline. For every spending, always ask yourself: “How much will this contribute to my bottom line?” If it will not give your business anything in return financially, better think twice before opening your wallet. 3. Self-motivation skills. As an entrepreneur, you do not have the luxury of bosses and bureaucracy to tell you what needs to be done. Everything rests on your shoulder ­ from thinking where to get the money to fund the business, to developing the product, to determining how to reach the customer, and so on. Only you will create the plans, and change them should the situation shifts. You need to be smart enough to know when you need to go ahead, and when to stop. To succeed in business, you must be a self-starter with a clear desired goal in mind. You must have the confidence in yourself, and in your ideas (how can you sell your ideas to others if you yourself do not believe in them?). More importantly, you must be willing to focus your energy and work hard towards each and every step that will make your enterprise a success. Especially if you work at home, it is doubly hard to get into the work mindset: sometimes, the television is just too tempting that it is hard to get out of your pajamas and begin typing in your computer. You therefore must have that extra drive and commitment to make sure that you are taking the necessary steps to make your dream of a successful business a reality. 4. Time management skills. The ability to plan your day and manage time is particularly important for a home business. When you wake up in the morning, you must have a clear idea of the things you must do for the day. Especially if you are running a one-person operation, you must have the ability to multi-task ­ be the secretary at the start of the day typing all correspondences and emails, become the marketing man writing press releases before noon, make sales call in the afternoon, and become a bookkeeper before your closing hours. Imagine if you are selling products and you still have to create the products, deliver and fulfill the orders, rush to the bank to cash the checks. Lots of job for a simple home-based business! No, you don’t have to be a superman (or superwoman). You simply have to know how to manage time and prioritize your tasks. One difficulty of working from home is that you can never seem to stop. There are simply too many things to do, as if work never stops (and it doesn’t!). Part of having good time management skills is knowing when to stop and when to leave work, and begin doing your other roles in your family ­ as the husband, wife, mother or father. You must be able to know how to keep your home life separate from your work life, and ensure that there exists a balance between the two. 5. Administration skills. If you can afford to hire an assistant who will organize your office space and file your papers and mails, lucky you! However, most start-up entrepreneurs cannot afford such luxuries. Over and above the tasks of managing, marketing and planning your business, you also need to possess a great deal of administration skills. You need to file your receipts so tax time will not be a trip to Hades. You need to do all the work in terms of billing, printing invoices, collecting payments, and managing your receivables. Starting a business is never easy, even if you have the perfect background and possess all the above skills. Having all the needed skills and qualities will not even ensure your success. But having these basic skills will, at least, lessen the pain of the start-up process, giving you greater chance in seeing your business grow and prosper.

Entrepreneurial Skills:The Skills You Need to Build a Great Business

What makes someone a successful entrepreneur?
It certainly helps to have strong technology skills or expertise in a key area, but these are not defining characteristics of entrepreneurship.
Instead, the key qualities are traits such as creativity, the ability to keep going in the face of hardship, and the social skills needed to build great teams.
If you want to start a business, it's essential to learn the specific skills that underpin these qualities. It's also important to develop entrepreneurial skills if you're in a job role where you're expected to develop a business, or "take things forward" more generally.
In this article, we'll look at the skills you need to be a successful entrepreneur, and we'll explore resources that you can use to develop the traits needed for success.

Defining Entrepreneurship

Some experts think of entrepreneurs as people who are willing to take risks that other people are not. Others define them as people who start and build successful businesses.
Thinking about the first of these definitions, entrepreneurship doesn't necessarily involve starting your own business. Many people who don't work for themselves are recognized as entrepreneurs within their organizations.
Regardless of how you define an "entrepreneur," one thing is certain: becoming a successful entrepreneur isn't easy.
So, how does one person successfully take advantage of an opportunity, while another, equally knowledgeable person does not? Do entrepreneurs have a different genetic makeup? Or do they operate from a different vantage point, that somehow directs their decisions for them?
Though many researchers have studied the subject, there are no definitive answers. What we do know is that successful entrepreneurs seem to have certain traits in common.
We've gathered these traits into four categories:

• Personal characteristics.
• Interpersonal skills.
• Critical and creative thinking skills.
• Practical skills.

We'll now examine each category in more detail, and look at some of the questions you will need to ask yourself if you want to become a successful entrepreneur.

Personal Characteristics

First, examine your personal characteristics, values, and beliefs. Do you have the mindset that's typical of successful entrepreneurs?

• Optimism: Are you an optimistic thinker? Optimism is truly an asset, and it will help get you through the tough times that many entrepreneurs experience as they find a business model that works for them.
• Vision: Can you easily see where things can be improved? Can you quickly grasp the "big picture," and explain this to others? And can you create a compelling vision of the future, and then inspire other people to engage with that vision?
• Initiative: Do you have initiative, and instinctively start problem-solving or business improvement projects?
• Desire for Control: Do you enjoy being in charge and making decisions? Are you motivated to lead others?
• Drive and Persistence: Are you self-motivated and energetic? And are you prepared to work hard, for a very long time, to realize your goals?
• Risk Tolerance: Are you able to take risks, and make decisions when facts are uncertain?
• Resilience: Are you resilient, so that you can pick yourself up when things don't go as planned? And do you learn and grow from your mistakes and failures? (If you avoid taking action because you're afraid of failing, our article on Overcoming Fear of Failure can help you face your fears and move forward.)

Interpersonal Skills

As a successful entrepreneur, you'll have to work closely with people – this is where it is critical to be able to build great relationships with your team, customers, suppliers, shareholders, investors, and more.
Some people are more gifted in this area than others, but, fortunately, you can learn and improve these skills. The types of interpersonal skills you'll need include:

• Leadership and Motivation: Can you lead and motivate others to follow you and deliver your vision? And are you able to delegate work to others? As a successful entrepreneur, you'll have to depend on others to get beyond a very early stage in your business – there's just too much to do all on your own!
• Communication Skills: Are you competent with all types of communication? You need to be able to communicate well to sell your vision of the future to investors, potential clients, team members, and more.
• Listening: Do you hear what others are telling you? Your ability to listen can make or break you as an entrepreneur. Make sure that you're skilled at active listening and empathetic listening.
• Personal Relations: Are you emotionally intelligent? The higher your EI, the easier it will be for you to work with others. The good news is that you can improve your emotional intelligence!
• Negotiation: Are you a good negotiator? Not only do you need to negotiate keen prices, you also need to be able to resolve differences between people in a positive, mutually beneficial way.
• Ethics: Do you deal with people based on respect, integrity, fairness, and truthfulness? Can you lead ethically? You'll find it hard to build a happy, committed team if you deal with people – staff, customers or suppliers – in a shabby way.

Tip:
You can improve your people skills further by taking our How Good Are Your People Skills? self-test.

Critical and Creative Thinking Skills

As an entrepreneur, you also need to come up with fresh ideas, and make good decisions about opportunities and potential projects.
Many people think that you're either born creative or you're not. However, creativity is a skill that you can develop if you invest the time and effort.

• Creative Thinking: Are you able to see situations from a variety of perspectives and come up with original ideas? (There are many creativity tools that will help you do this.)
• Problem Solving: How good are you at coming up with sound solutions to the problems you're facing? Tools such as Cause & Effect Analysis, the 5 Whys Technique, and CATWOE are just some of the problem-solving tools that you'll need to be familiar with.
• Recognizing Opportunities: Do you recognize opportunities when they present themselves? Can you spot a trend? And are you able to create a plan to take advantage of the opportunities you identify?

Practical Skills

You also need the practical skills and knowledge needed to produce goods or services effectively, and run a company.

• Goal Setting: Do you regularly set goals, create a plan to achieve them, and then carry out that plan?
• Planning and Organizing: Do you have the talents, skills, and abilities necessary to achieve your goals? Can you coordinate people to achieve these efficiently and effectively? (Here, effective project management skills are important, as are basic organization skills.) And do you know how to develop a coherent, well thought-through business plan, including developing and learning from appropriate financial forecasts?
• Decision Making: How good are you at making decisions? Do you make them based on relevant information and by weighing the potential consequences? And are you confident in the decisions that you make?
• Core decision-making tools include Decision Tree Analysis, Grid Analysis, and Six Thinking Hats.
• You need knowledge in several areas when starting or running a business. For instance:
• Business knowledge: Do you have a good general knowledge of the main functional areas of a business (sales, marketing, finance, and operations), and are you able to operate or manage others in these areas with a reasonable degree of competence?
• Entrepreneurial knowledge: Do you understand how entrepreneurs raise capital? And do you understand the sheer amount of experimentation and hard work that may be needed to find a business model that works for you?
• Opportunity-specific knowledge: Do you understand the market you're attempting to enter, and do you know what you need to do to bring your product or service to market?
• Venture-specific knowledge: Do you know what you need to do to make this type of business successful? And do you understand the specifics of the business that you want to start? (This is where it's often useful to work for a short time in a similar business.)

You can also learn from others who have worked on projects similar to the ones that you're contemplating, or find a mentor – someone else who's been there before and is willing to coach you.

Viashiria vya Kitamaduni vya Maendeleo ya Binadamu:

Kukuza maendeleo ya binadamu na kuheshimu tofauti za kiutamaduni ni changamoto kubwa kwa
Afrika na kwa dunia nzima. Katika mazingira ya sasa mambo matatu ni muhimu katika
kufanikisha lengo hili.
La kwanza ni kubuni rajua (dira) ya pamoja: Afrika haina budi kubainisha rajua yake yenyewe
kwa ajili ya mustakabali wake. Tafiti za malengo ya muda mrefu zilizofanyika katika ngazi ya
kitaifa na kikanda zinaonyesha kwamba rajua ya namna hiyo itajumuisha nyanja mbalimbali za
kiuchumi, kijamii, kisiasa, kimazingira, kitamaduni na kiteknolojia. Katika kila uwanja, mikakati
sahihi haina budi kubuniwa kwa kuoanishwa na malengo ya muda mrefu ya rajua hiyo. Katika
uwanja wa utamaduni, mkakati unaofaa zaidi ni wa ukuzaji wa umoja katika uanuwai kama
unavyohimizwa na Ripoti ya UNDP1 2004 ya Maendeleo ya Binadamu. Mkakati huu hautilii tu
mkazo katika kuvumiliana, bali pia katika kushirikiana miongoni mwa vikundi vya wenyeji
katika ngazi ya kitaifa na ya kikanda. Aidha unadokeza haja ya kuvumiliana na kushirikiana
katika ngazi ya kimataifa miongoni mwa mataifa.
Mchakato wa uundaji wa rajua hiyo hauna budi kupewa umuhimu sawa na matokeo yake.
Mchakato huo hauna budi kuwa shirikishi na jumuishi kwa kadri iwezekanavyo, kama lengo ni
kuwa na rajua yenye kunufaisha wengi na inayomilikiwa na walio wengi pamoja na jumuia
mbalimbali.
Pili, utendaji ni kipengele muhimu na unapaswa uhusishe masuala ya shughuli za utafiti, hatua za
kisera na shughuli za utekelezaji. Shughuli za utafiti hazina budi kushughulikia masuala ya
viashiria vya kitamaduni vya maendeleo na viashiria vya maendeleo ya kiutamaduni. Masuala ya
kisera yatahusu uundaji na utekelezaji wa viunzi ambavyo vitalazimisha kuwapo kwa tathimini
ya ubora wa shughuli za utamaduni. Shughuli za utekelezaji hazina budi kuelekezwa katika
kuhimiza kuingiza sera za utamaduni katika mikakati, sera na programu za maendeleo za maeneo
na za taifa.
Tatu ni tathmini na ufuatiliaji. Hata kama rajua iliyobuniwa itakuwa inatia hamasa na utekelezaji
wake utafanywa vyema, bado maendeleo haya inabidi yatazamwe kama mchakato wa kujifunza
ambao unapaswa kufanyiwa mapitio, marekebisho, na mageuzi ya mara kwa mara. Na ni
muhimu kuhakikisha kwamba wadau wote wanashirikishwa katika mchakato huu wa tathmini na
ufuatiliaji, na kwamba juhudi za makusudi zinachukuliwa kuhakikisha kwamba wote
wanashirikishwa kikamilifu

you need to know your purpose

I discovered long ago what I was put on this earth to do.I determined my true purpose in life,my “right livelihood.” I discovered how to inject passion and determination into every activity I undertake.And I learned how purpose can bring an aspect of fun and fulfillment to virtually everything I do.Now I’d like to help uncover the same secret for you.You see,without a purpose in life,it’s easy to get sidetracked on your life’s journey.It’s easy to wander and drift,accomplishing little.But with a purpose,everything in life seems to fall into place.To be “on purpose” means you’re doing what you love to do,doing what you’re good at and accomplishing what’s important to you.When you truly are on purpose,the people,resources,and opportunities you need naturally gravitate toward you.The world benefits too,because when you act in alignment with your true life purpose,all of your actions automatically serve others.Learn to get in touch with the silence within yourself and know that everything in life has a purpose.

BAJETI YA SERIKALI YA MWAKA 2012/2013

BAJETI ya Serikali ya mwaka 2012/2013 inatarajiwa kutumia Sh15 trilioni katika vipaumbele saba ikilinganishwa na Sh13.5 trilioni zilizotengwa mwaka 2011/12.Waziri wa Fedha na Uchumi, Dk William Mgimwa aliileza Kamati ya Bunge ya Fedha na Uchumi kuwa matumizi ya kawaida ya Serikali yanatarajiwa kuwa Sh10 trilioni na fedha za maendeleo ni Sh5 trilioni.
Dk Mgimwa alimweleza mwandishi wetu kuwa kipaumbele cha kwanza katika Bajeti yake ya kwanza tangu kuteuliwa hiyo ni miundombinu.
Kwa mujibu wa waziri huyo, miundombinu imegawanyika katika makundi manne ya reli, umeme, maji salama, usafirishaji na uchukuzi ambavyo vimetengewa jumla ya Sh4.5 trilioni.
Vipaumbele vingine vya Serikali ni kilimo, viwanda, rasilimali watu, huduma za jamii, utalii, biashara ya ndani na nje na huduma za fedha.
Habari kutoka ndani ya kikao hicho zilisema kuwa katika bajeti hiyo, fedha zilizopelekwa Wizara ya Uchukuzi kwa ajili miradi ya maendeleo ni Sh252 bilioni huku sekta ya usafiri wa reli ikitarajiwa kutumia Sh130 bilioni.

Katika Bajeti hiyo ya maendeleo, Wizara ya Ujenzi imetengewa Sh693 bilioni, wakati sekta ya nishati ikiwa nayo imepewa umuhimu na mradi wa ujenzi wa bomba la gesi kutoka mikoa ya kusini umetengewa Sh325 bilioni.

Mwelekeo huo wa bajeti unaonyesha pia kwamba, Wizara ya Afya na Ustawi wa Jamii imetengewa jumla ya Sh364 bilioni.

Kuuza mashangingi

Taarifa kutoka ndani ya kikao hicho, zilisema katika mkakati wa kubana matumizi, Serikali itapunguza matumizi ya magari ya kifahari kwa kiwango kikubwa.
Katika hatua hiyo, inatarajiwa pia kupiga mnada baadhi ya magari hayo yanayotumiwa na mawaziri, manaibu waziri, makatibu wakuu na wakurugenzi na kununua magari madogo yenye gharama nafuu.

Hata hivyo, chanzo chetu kilisema waziri huyo hakufafanua suala hilo akisema atalizungumza zaidi wakati wa kuwasilisha Bajeti hiyo Mjini Dodoma.
Takwimu za Serikali za mwaka juzi, zilionyesha kuwa Serikali Kuu hadi na Tawala za Mikoa na Serikali za Mitaa (Tamisemi) ilikuwa ikimiliki magari 40,000, kati yake 11,000 yakiwa ya kifahari.Tayari Wizara ya Ujenzi kupitia timu ya wataalamu mwaka Aprili, 2007 ilitoa ripoti ya namna bora ya kupanga matumizi ya magari ya Serikali kwa kuangalia kila daraja la kiongozi, lakini ripoti hiyo iliishia mezani kwa aliyekuwa Katibu Mkuu Kiongozi, Philemon Luhanjo.(chanzo gazeti la Mwananchi )

15 tips for running a business from home

Working at home may be the dream of many, but it is not easy to make it happen. It takes an iron will and a lot of discipline not to deviate from its target. Basing your business in your home has a number of advantages, but at the same time is extremely challenging and demanding it. It is not easy, but you can do. On this site we have published a lot of tips to make your business or home based business work better. But it never hurts to update the topic and that is precisely what we do today. The following is a list of 15 recommendations to help you achieve your goal without much trauma.

1. Before opening a business in your home, evaluate whether you have the necessary requirements for such a venture. Start a business in the house, requires discipline, planning, initiative, professional independence, persistence and willingness to take hours of solitude.

2. When choosing the site of his house, to install the office, prefer one that is as separate from the house shake, preferably with separate entrance.

3. If you have employees, it becomes key to have a separate entry for them. This is the best way to preserve the privacy and security of the family.

4. Concentrate their activities in a single space. Prepare the room, bathroom or garage to host the business, using the same furniture and equipment to be adopted at an ordinary office.

5. The planning office should include acoustic treatment on walls to prevent noise from domestic activities in your home do not interfere with work.

6. Special attention are the positions of the chairs, table, computer. Follow the rules of ergonomics, to avoid health problems in the future.

7. When mounting the office, remember that things you like an office ideal. Things related to the right furniture to be taken into account as much time you will be there to be uncomfortable.

8. Do not use your home address for business cards and business correspondence. It is best to have a postal address or use a virtual office.

9. Answer your phone professionally. It seems obvious, but the fact of being at home makes some entrepreneurs respond with a simple “hello” instead of using the company name.

10. Do not mix personal accounts with the company. Control finances (yours and the company) with rigor.

11. Set hours of work in his office and try to fulfill them. For use as a basis that the times when customers and suppliers work and not personal preferences.

It is useless to begin work at six in the morning if your customers are accustomed to meeting in the afternoon, for example.

12. Organize and manage your time with parsimony. Meet deadlines and commitments to the customer. The fact that your company is in a garage means you will not be punctual, have good price and quality.

13. Take care of your appearance. Dress every day like it was for the office or as having an appointment with an inverter. The appearance helps to convey an image of seriousness and professionalism to customers, suppliers and employees.

14. Talk to someone outside the “office” at least once a day. Spend the day alone and in silence, communicating only by email or text messages can lead to stress. Plan lunches, go to seminars, lectures and conferences related to their business. Visit their suppliers and customers frequently.
15. For those who work in an office, it is normal to create small distractions throughout the day to relieve stress. The fact of working at home does not mean you have to work eight hours per day without interruption.

Why People Fail in Business!

There are 5 reasons why entrepreneurs fail or never make it to the top. Everyone keeps saying to me it’s hard, otherwise everyone would be starting their own successful business and making their own money instead of working for someone.
But although the top reason that people fail in business is because they never get started as they are scared to risk their hard ‘earned’ money, one of the main reasons is self doubt. Not believing in ones self, makes us less determined and less ambitious. So here are five descriptive reasons, if you have any more to add comment after reading through.

#1 Scared of Losing ‘Hard Earned’ Money

The top reason is one that a lot of individuals/entrepreneurs fall under, the fear of losing hard earned money. Now let me tell you something, your going to lose money, your going to learn from that loss of money and your gonna go on and lose more money, until you learn and until it suddenly hits you in the face that ‘you finally get it’, you finally know what it takes to run a successful and profitable business.
Money has no worth unless spent, so whether that’s building an empire or spending it on clothes, don’t just leave it there, lifes too short and your not going to take it with you, so lose the fear and at least you can say you tried and you failed, but trust me you’l succeed as long as you know what your doing!

#2 People That Put You Down

I can not help but find this stupid but it’s true. People are always going to be against you when  you are just starting out, they will never believe you can be as successful as you aim to be, because it never happened to them. Now when someone tries to put you down, just think to yourself, why are they trying to put me down? and the answer is because they can not do it themselves.
Never let somebody tell you, you can not achieve something. Soon as you start ‘making it’ being successful, those people that once doubted you are suddenly your friends’  again. Why? because you have money now, your successful and they will probably try to get on your good side. I believe in forgiving, but not forgetting.

#3 Listening Too Much To People’s Opinions!

Now I know this one may seem to be similar to the last point, but it’s not. In this instance, what I mean is; people fail in business because they make the wrong decision of asking people that do not have experience or a business mind about what they think of an idea. Let’s face it, I don’t mean to be too judgmental here, but some people are just meant to work for other people, they have been brought up that way and they require security more than high risk = high reward.
So to overcome this, ask people for their opinions but never doubt your own opinion. Trust me when I say this, your end action should be as a result of what you think, not what some stupid individual thinks, that can not see the overall picture in your mind. You know more than you think you do, so trust yourself and make your own decision!

#4 Lose Hope Too Quickly

Now this is one of my biggest disadvantages that really bugs me and I need to resolve it other wise I am going to ultimately fail. Every individual that ends up thinking about starting their own business, loses hope. The reason is it’s hard, for every strong advantage of an idea, there are possibly about 3 disadvantages and this results in us questioning whether we really have the skills and experience necessary to make an idea of this proportion succeed in this competitive environment.
For example if I get an idea and it’s good but also has several flaws which could result in the idea ultimately failing, I lose hope. I don’t think to myself we’l overcome it and just run with the idea and learn on the way. So my next aim is by September 2012 to create my idea and run with it and see what happens, of course a calculated risk will be taken but more of not questioning my entrepreneurship ability or questioning whether I will succeed.

#5 Not Enough Networks

Now I emphasise this because it is really important. The more people you know, the more people that will look into your idea and direct it towards some of their friends which may have the experience needed to support and consult the idea to a large extent and maybe even invest so you do not have just your money riding on this.
You have to remember that people are what move money around the world, one service for another service. I may for example want to  listen to music on the go on my mobile, therefore that is where spottily comes in, because it is cheaper than actually downloading every single album that I like, I just pay $10 dollars and I can listen to any songs for 1 month. It’s supply and demand and whoever believes in competition is not thinking very clearly for one reason. It’s all about focusing on what your doing and whether it will be successful, leave competition for the other businesses to focus on and for you too later focus on. Individuals will come to you for your brand and service. Just make something unique and well and you will wonder why you did not start earlier.

How to Minimize Stress as a Startup Owner

As people living in a hectic, fast-paced world, we’re all pretty accustomed to a good amount of stress.

However, few of us are prepared for the kind of stress business owners often experience. If you’re a startup owner, you may be struggling to keep your stress levels under control. Since the success of your business hinges upon your mental well being and ability to do your job, you have to learn how to manage and minimize the stressors in your life.

This isn’t always easy, but it can be done. Here are a few tips to help you stay sane in the crazy world of business ownership:

• Make prioritizing tasks a priority – You probably have what seems like hundreds of things on your agenda each day, and each of those things probably seems important to you. However, it’s crucial that you take a step back and focus on doing what needs to be done right away. It’s not a mistake to put some things on the backburner. You can get those things done when you have some extra time or you can delegate non-essential tasks to your employees. Trying to do more than you can realistically handle is a recipe for stress.

• Don’t forget about your health – Your ability to do well as a business owner depends on your mental and physical health. So, eat healthy, exercise often, and spend time doing non-work-related things that you enjoy. Keeping yourself healthy will allow you to be better equipped to deal with stress and the challenges of your demanding job.

• Don’t lose sight of the big picture – Things will go wrong. You and your employees will make mistakes. Unless something happens that seriously threatens the health of your business, don’t sweat the small stuff. You’ll have a much easier time if you can focus on the big picture, take mistakes with a grain of salt, and learn from everything that goes wrong.

• Figure out ways to make your job easier – Research and invest in software that will help make your job and life easier. If your budget allows for it, consider hiring an assistant to help you with all the paperwork, data entry, reporting, and correspondence associated with your job. Next time you go on a business trip, consider flying on a jet charter and skipping the chaotic and unpleasant experience at the airport. Do what you can to lighten your load and make things simpler. Eliminating all the stressors you possibly can makes a world of difference.

YOU EITHER CREATE OR ALLOW EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS TO YOU

To be powerful, you need to take the position that you create or allow everything that happens to you. By create, I mean that you directly cause something to happen by your actions or inactions. If you walk up to a man in a bar who is bigger than you, has obviously been drinking for a long time, and say to him, “ You are really ugly and stupid,” and he jumps off the bar stool, hits you in the jaw, and you end up in the hospital—you created that. That’s an easy-to-understand example.
Here’s one that may be harder to swallow: You work late every night. You come home tired and burned out. You eat dinner in a coma and then sit down in front of the television to watch a basketball game. You’re too tired and stressed out to do anything else—like go for a walk or play with the kids. This goes on for years. Your wife asks you to talk to her. You say, “Later!” Three years later, you come home to an empty house and a note that she has left you and taken the kids. You created that one, too!
Other times, we simply allow things to happen to us by our inaction and our unwillingness to do what is necessary to create or maintain what we want:
■You didn’t follow through on your threat to take away privileges if the kids didn’t clean up after themselves, and now the house looks like a war zone.
■You didn’t demand he join you in counseling or leave the first time he hit you, so now you’re still getting hit.
■You didn’t attend any sales and motivational seminars because you were too busy, and now the new kid just won the top sales award.
■You didn’t take the time to take the dogs to obedience training, and now they’re out of control.
■You didn’t take time to maintain your car, and now you’re sitting by the side of the road with your car broken down.
■You didn’t go back to school, and now you are being passed over for a promotion.
Realize that you are not the victim here. You stood passively by and let it happen. You didn’t say anything, make a demand, make a request, say no, try something new, or leave.

YOU’RE COMPLAINING TO THE WRONG PERSON

Have you ever noticed that people almost always complain to the wrong people—to people who can’t do anything about their complaint? They go to work and complain about their spouse; then they come home and complain to their spouse about the people at work. Why? Because it’s easier; it’s less risky. It takes courage to tell your spouse that you are not happy with the way things are at home. It takes courage to ask for a behavioral change. It also takes courage to ask your boss to plan better so that you don’t end up working every weekend. But only your boss can do anything about that. Your spouse can’t.
Learn to replace complaining with making requests and taking action that will achieve your desired outcomes. That is what successful people do. That is what works. If you find yourself in a situation you don’t like, either work to make it better or leave. Do something to change it or get the heck out. Agree to work on the relationship or get a divorce. Work to improve working conditions or find a new job. Either way, you will get a change. As the old adage says, “Don’t just sit there (and complain), do something.” And remember, it’s up to you to make the change, to do something different. The world doesn’t owe you anything. You have to create it.

55 School Drop Out Billionaires and Successful Entrepreneurs

Do you feel dejected or left behind by your peers because you don’t have a college degree? Do you see your supposed illiteracy as a limitation to achieving your dreams? Or are you in the group that thinks education is the ultimate yardstick for success? If any of these questions best describes you, then please read on.

How does it sound to your ears that most of the world’s richest men and women were school drop outs? Well don’t be surprised; it’s the truth.

                “I have nothing against education. But at times, education gives people false confidence. It makes people relax, trusting in the power of their certificates rather than in working hard.” – Rasaq Okoya

Today, I will be sharing with you a brief compilation of the entrepreneurial success stories of self made men and women; who took the bull by the horn by building a business, without being held back by the lack of a college degree. These men and women found their entrepreneurial spirit, surmounted business challenges, completed the entrepreneurial process and became successful entrepreneurs.

                “I have been within the four walls of school and I have been on the street. I can confidently tell you that the street is tougher, challenging, daring, exciting and more rewarding. In school; you play alone. But on the street, you play with the big boys.” – Ajaero Tony Martins

Warren Buffett, Mo Ibrahim, Mike Adenuga, Oprah Winfrey, George Soros, John D. Rockefeller, Sam Walton, Jerry Yang and David Filo, Anita Roddick, Sergey Brin and Larry Page, Jeff Bezos, Pierre Omidyar, Martha Stewart, Henry Ross Perot and Aliko Dangote; the richest black man in the world did not make the list because they possessed college degrees. Without wasting much of your time, below is a comprehensive list of some of the world’s richest school drop out billionaires.

                “Behind every adversity is an opportunity. If you lament over the adversity, you will miss the opportunity.” – Ajaero Tony Martins

                The World’s Richest School Drop Out Billionaires

1.            Bill Gates: He is the billionaire co-founder of Microsoft Corporation, the world largest software company. Dropped out of Harvard to focus on building Microsoft. According to Forbes magazine, Bill Gates has held the position of the world richest man for thirteen consecutive years and he not showing a sign of letting go that position.

                “To win big, you sometimes have to take big risks.” – Bill Gates

                “We were young, but we had good advice good ideas and lots of enthusiasm.” – Bill Gates

2.            Thomas Edison: Thomas Edison was labeled dumb and scatterbrain by his school teachers but he went on to become one of the world’s greatest inventors and founded General Electric; one of the most powerful companies in the world.

                “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” – Thomas Edison

3.            Orji Uzor Kalu: He is one of the richest men on the soil of Africa. This young billionaire was rusticated from college for his participation in a student’s protest. Instead of lamenting over his predicament; he started trading on palm oil and from that humble beginning, he grew his business into a conglomerate “Slok Group.” Though he was later pardoned by the school authorities, he rejected the amnesty offer thereby refusing to return to school.

                “A good businessman must have nose for business the same way a journalist has nose for news. Once your eyes, ears, nose, heart and brain are trained on business, you sniff business opportunities everywhere.” – Orji Uzor Kalu

4.            Li Ka Shing: Billionaire owner of Hutchinson Whampoa; one of the largest conglomerates in Hong Kong, with operations that span over fifty countries and more than 220,000 staff worldwide. Dropped out of school at the age of 15 and started out by selling watch bands.

                “The first year, I didn’t have much capital so I did everything myself. I had to keep my overhead low by learning everything about running a business, from accounting to fixing the gears of my equipment. I really started from scratch.” – Li Ka Shing

5.            Richard Branson: Best known for his adventurous spirit and outrageous business tactics. He dropped out of school at the age of 16 to start his first successful business venture; Student Magazine, bought his own 79-acre Caribbean island when he was just 24 and he was knighted in 1999. He is the billionaire founder of the Virgin brand and its 360 companies. His companies include the famous Virgin Atlantic Airways.

                “I wanted to be an editor or journalist. I wasn’t really interested in becoming an entrepreneur, but I soon found I had to become an entrepreneur in order to keep my magazine going.” – Richard Branson

                Successful Entrepreneurs and World’s Richest School Drop Out Billionaires

6.            Lawrence J. Ellison: Larry Ellison dropped out of college twice and was told by his adoptive father that he would never amount to anything but he went on to become a billionaire by building Oracle, the world’s second largest software company.

                “I have had all the disadvantages required for success.” – Larry Ellison

7.            Michael Dell: He dropped out of college at the age of 19 to start PC’s Limited; later renamed Dell Computers Inc. Dell became the most profitable PC manufacturer in the world making Michael Dell a billionaire.

                “I had to give it a full go and see what happened.” – Michael Dell

8.            Steve Jobs: Billionaire co-founder of Apple Inc and Pixar; dropped out of Reed College to start Apple.

9.            Henry Ford: This automobile billionaire was born in abject poverty. He never saw the four walls of school but he went on to build Ford Motor Company and become one of the richest men that ever lived.

                “Thinking is the hardest work to do, that’s why so few people are engaged in it.” – Henry Ford

10.          Walt Disney: Walt, regarded as the most influential animator because of his creativity with cartoons. He dropped out of high school at 16 and founded Walt Disney; a company which now has an annual revenue of about $30billion.

                “If you can dream it, you can do it.” – Walt Disney

                Successful Entrepreneurs and World’s Richest School Drop Out Billionaires

11.          Ray Kroc: Billionaire Ray Kroc never saw the four walls of school and spent most of his life working as a salesman. He bought McDonald’s in 1961 for $2.7m and grew it into a multi billion dollar company.

                “Press on. Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.” – Ray Kroc

12.          Debbi Fields: A 20 year old housewife with no education and business experience started Mrs. Fields Chocolate Chippery and became the most successful cookie company owner. She later renamed, franchised, and then sold Mrs. Field’s Cookies.

                “You don’t have to be superhuman to do what you believe in.” – Debbi Fields

13.          Cosmos Maduka: Nigerian Elementary school drop out and billionaire founder of the Coscharis Group.

14.          Ingvar Kamprad: Billionaire founder of IKEA. He dropped out of high school at the age of 17 to start IKEA; now the top home furniture retailer in the world, with over 90,000 employees working in its 200-plus stores, and annual revenues in excess of $10 billion.

                “I’m not afraid of turning 80 and I have lots of things to do. I don’t have time for dying.” – Ingvar Kamprad

15.          Carl Lindner: Billionaire investor and founder of United Dairy Farmers. He dropped out of high school at the age of 14 to deliver milk for his family diary.

                Successful Entrepreneurs and World’s Richest School Drop Out Billionaires

16.          Simon Cowell: Famous for his involvement in American Idols, he dropped out of school at age 16 and started his own record label “Fanfare” at the age of 23.

                “Good is not enough; you’ve got to be great.” – Simon Cowell

17.          Mary Kay Ash: Founder of Mary Kay Inc and best known as the most outstanding business woman in the 20th century. Mary never saw the four walls of school.

                “When you reach an obstacle, turn it into an opportunity. You have the choice. You can overcome and be a winner, or you can allow it to overcome you and be a loser. The choice is yours and yours alone. Refuse to throw in the towel. Go that extra mile that failures refuse to travel. It is far better to be exhausted from success than to be rested from failure.” – Mary Kay Ash

18.          Coco Chanel: Fashion magnate and founder of the Coco Chanel brand, she never saw the four walls of school.

19.          Wayne Huizenga: Wayne is the only person in history to build three Fortune 1000 companies practically from scratch: Waste Management Inc, Blockbuster Entertainment and AutoNation. He is the only person to have developed six NYSE-listed companies.

He also owns the Miami Dolphins and is previous owner of the Florida Marlins baseball team and the Panthers hockey team, making him the only person ever to own three pro teams in a single market, two of which won national championships. He dropped out of college to join a friend in a garbage collection business.

20.          Barry Diller: This billionaire media magnate dropped out of college to start Fox Broadcasting Company. He is chairman of Expedia, and was once the CEO of IAC/InterActiveCorp which includes Home Shopping Network and Ticketmaster.

                “There’s a world in which reasons are made up because reality is too painful.” – Barry Diller

21.          Andrew Carnegie: Founder of Carnegie Steel Company and one of the richest men that ever lived. Born in abject poverty, Andrew never saw the four walls of school.

                “I shall argue that strong men conversely know when to compromise and that all principles can be compromised to serve a greater purpose.” – Andrew Carnegie

                Successful Entrepreneurs and World’s Richest School Drop Out Billionaires

22.          Sir Philip Green: Billionaire retail mogul and owner of the Arcadia brand, he dropped out of school at the age of 16. After four business failures, Philip Green made his first million at the age of 33.

                “If you’ve got a natural talent, I think it’s fantastic. If I wasn’t in retail, being a singer or a tennis player would be a better idea.” – Sir Philip Green

23.          Madame C. J. Walker: She was born into the family of ex-slaves and farmers. Despite being widowed at the age of 20 and faced with extreme hardship, she started a cosmetics business and went on to become the first American self made female millionaire.

                “I had to make my own living and my own opportunity! But I made it! Don’t sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them” – Madam C.J. Walker

24.          Mark Zuckerberg: The youngest billionaire in the world, dropped out of Harvard to promote his social networking platform; Facebook. As at 2010, he was 23 years and worth $4billion.

25.          Ted Turner: Billionaire drop out media mogul and founder of CNN; pledged a billion dollars to the United Nation.

                “All my life, people have said that I wasn’t going to make it.” – Ted Turner

                “Over a three year period, I gave away half of what I had. To be honest, my hands shook as I signed it away. I knew I was taking myself out of the race to be the richest man in the world.” – Ted Turner

26.          Cornelius Vanderbilt: Dropped out of school at the age of 11, began operating his own boat at the age of 16 and became one of the richest men in history.

                “If I had learned education, I would not have had time to learn anything else.” -  Cornelius Vanderbilt

27.          Mayer Amschel Rothschild: was born in a ghetto; started business as a money lender and built the largest private fortune in history. He never saw the four walls of school.

                “Give me control over a nation’s money supply and I don’t care who make the laws.” – Mayer Amschel Rothschild

28.          Ty Warner: Billionaire real estate investor, hotel owner, sole owner, CEO, and Chairman of Ty, Inc. Ty Warner is a savvy, yet private business man. Ty, Inc; made $700 million in a single year with the Beanie Babies craze without spending money on advertising. He has since expanded to include Ty Girlz dolls, directly competing with Bratz dolls.

29.          Howard Hughes: Dropped out of California Institute of Technology and Rice University; founded Hughes Aircrafts and Co and went on to become a billionaire.

“I intend to be, the richest man in the world.” Howard Hughes

30.          Giorgio Armani: Billionaire founder of the fashion brand; Giorgio Armani S.P.A. Dropped out of medical school at the University of Bologna because he couldn’t stand the sight of blood.

                “Remain true to yourself and your philosophy.” – Giorgio Armani

                Successful Entrepreneurs and World’s Richest School Drop Out Billionaires

31.          Asa Candler: Founder of the Billionaire company and world’s most popular brand; Coca Cola. He dropped out of school at the age of 10.

32.          Jenny Craig: With no college degree, this woman started Jenny Craig Inc from scratch and grew it to become one of the largest and most recognized companies in the weight management industry.

                “If I make a commitment to something, I will stick to it no matter what.” – Jenny Craig

33.          Rachael Ray: Despite having no formal training in culinary arts, Rachel Ray made a name for herself in the food industry. With numerous shows on the Food Network, a talk show and cookbooks, high-energy Rachael never slowed down. She has also appeared in magazines as well has having her own magazine debut in 2006.

34.          Milton Hershey: With only a fourth grade education, Milton Hershey started his own chocolate company. Hershey’s Milk Chocolate became the first nationally marketed chocolate.

35.          Frank Lloyd Wright: surpassed all odds to become the most influential architect of the twentieth century. Frank Lloyd Wright designed more than 1,100 projects with about half actually being built. He never saw the four walls of high school.

36.          David Geffen: billionaire founder of Geffen Records and co-founder of DreamWorks.

                “I never went to business school. I was just bumbling through a lot of my life. I was like the guy behind the curtain in the Wizard of Oz.” – David Geffen

37.          Billy Joe (Red) McCombs: founder of Clear Channel media, real estate investor.

38.          Craig McCaw: billionaire founder of McCaw Cellular.

39.          Dave Thomas: billionaire founder of Wendy’s.

                “There’s no one to stop you but yourself.” – Dave Thomas

40.          ay Van Andel: billionaire co-founder of Amway.

                Successful Entrepreneurs and World’s Richest School Drop Out Billionaires

41.          Micky Jagtiani: billionaire retailer, Landmark International

42.          John Paul DeJoria: billionaire co-founder of John Paul Mitchell Systems and Patron Spirits tequilla.

43.          David Green: billionaire founder of Hobby Lobby.

44.          Frederick “Freddy” Laker: billionaire airline entrepreneur.

45.          Kirk Kerkorian: billionaire investor, owner of Mandalay Bay and Mirage Resorts, and MGM movie studio.

46.          Leandro Rizzuto: billionaire founder of Conair

47.          Leslie Wexner, billionaire founder of Limited Brands.

48.          Marc Rich: billionaire commodities investor and founder of Marc Rich & Co.

49.          S. Daniel Abraham: billionaire founder of Slim-Fast.

50.          Theodore Waitt: billionaire founder of Gateway Computers.

51.          Y.C. Wang: billionaire founder of Formosa Plastics.

52.          Paul Allen: billionaire co-founder of Microsoft Corporation; dropped out of Washington State University.

53.          Ralph Lauren: Billionaire fashion mogul. Studied business at Baruch College for two years and dropped out.

54.          Dean Kamen: Billionaire Kamen holds more than 80 US patents; famous for the Segwey PT, Auto syringe and IBOT robotic wheelchair; dropped out of Worcester Polytechnic.

55.          Dhirubhai Ambani: Famous founder of Reliance Group and father to two billionaires; Anil and Mukesh Ambani. Started Reliance Industries from scratch and never saw the four walls of school.