Success is earned. To keep it, it needs to be sustained. These obvious facts are not so obvious when you’re struggling with and facing many debilitating challenges. Life feels unfair especially when people around you seem successful without much fuss. Unlike what many may believe, sustainable success cannot be demanded. It is the result of what has been produced. By Nimroth Gwetsa, 28 October 2015.

Failure and Success
Business foreclosure is unpleasant and undesirable even if it happens to someone else. Foreclosure is the manifestation of failure. Not all failures need to end in death. Even death can be overcome through resurrection. Failure is the seed for success provided there is willingness to plough lessons learned from such failure. Your beliefs influence your next actions. Failure would be permanent if you believe there’s nothing else that could be done to proceed from such failure.

Success on the one hand, can breed other successes if achievements are handled analogously as a flywheel. Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary defines flywheel as, “a heavy revolving wheel in a machine that is used to increase the machine’s momentum and thereby provide greater stability or a reserve of available power during interruptions in the delivery of power to the machine.” A flywheel is one of engineering’s masterpieces. Imagine what would become of your business if your achievements were used to increase momentum of success and to provide greater stability or reserve of available power during interruptions in your business ventures!

I subscribe to the school of thought that “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” This idiom is not an excuse for doing nothing. Neither does it discourage innovation and continuous improvement. To the contrary, improvements and innovation all stem from the existence of a problem, which causes discomfort and a desire for a better experience or outcome, resulting in the opportunity for the implementation of a solution being created. Without a problem, no solution would be desired.

Failure could be caused by many reasons. Success cannot be reached unless the following three essentials are in place:
1. Problem
2. Ability
3. Offering

These three are loaded words. They encapsulate many other factors for consideration.

Problem
We have already seen, though briefly, the importance of the existence of a problem. Without it, there would be no discomfort, and in turn no desire and quest for a better outcome. Problems are a gift for human development. The more problems we have, the greater the opportunities for our advancement.

We fail to succeed when we wish away our problems, or demand others to solve our problems. Even if others heed the pressure of our demands and relieve us of our current problems, we will remain disabled and dependent on handouts for everything else in our lives. Simply put, demanding solutions could be tacit admission of our inherent laziness and failure to apply our minds properly.

Not all demands are invalid. Rights are rights and should be freely given. Anyone forcing anyone to beg for their rights is a criminal. In which case and where possible, those denying others their rights should not be surprised when demands are made. Walking away and hoping time would heal the situation and result in the prevalence of sanity, may not always be the answer.

We live in a fallen world and it would be naïve of us to think evil could be overcome simply by ignoring or submitting to it. Evil must be fought fiercely with good for good to prevail. I’m thus not opposed to all demands being made. I’m simply calling for more introspection on requirements for overcoming problems faced than simply making demands. Issuing demands may not be the best answer to those problems.

Ability
No one can be overcome by a problem they are able to solve. English is not my first language and I do not wish to give the wrong impression that I master the language. However, there’s a difference in meaning between “unable”, “inability” and “disability”. These words are not synonyms. Check them out and realise the difference.

Inability does not necessarily imply disability. Neither does it necessarily mean being unable. Likewise, disability does not necessarily imply being unable.

• Inability reflects more the state of being, that is, something more habitual.

• Disability reflects a condition of being, that is, nature, inner quality or property of something.

• Being unable reflects a situation of being, that is, relative to outward circumstances.

Having regard to those subtle descriptive differences, we note that:

• Being unable could be overcome through training, exposure, opportunity, or collaboration among others.

• Inability could be overcome through changed thinking and beliefs.

• Disability could be overcome through substitution.

What all these tell us is that it should be difficult for anyone to easily give excuses for not doing anything. When nothing is done, something undesirable may be produced. Saying “nothing would be produced when nothing is done” would be incorrect. Something is always produced whether or not any effort is made. That “something produced” could be prolonged suffering, impoverishment, hardship or whatever other undesirable outcomes we may have to face as a result.

To avoid being victims of undesirable outcomes, we should strive to change our thinking, develop our abilities or acquire from others, so we are well equipped to apply them to overcome our challenges.

Offering
Knowing about the problem and having the ability or means to acquire those abilities to overcome it and doing nothing about the situation, symbolises laziness, much less the height of foolishness.

Something has to be produced physically as the answer to the problem causing the discomfort. Sacrifices may be necessary for something to be produced. The best and most effective sacrifices are from the most loved or cherished things. Such sacrifices tend to result in the production of great and long lasting results spanning generations.

But what we offer should not be the solution looking for a problem. A solution should be the “answer to an acknowledged problem” (Keith M. Eades, paraphrased). This presupposes there is good understanding of issues before the solution is provided.

What do we make of all these?
How do we move from a mentality of making demands to being active champions and creators of our sustained successes?

In demanding, we will always be subservient, for no one having what’s demanded will give all away without a battle. Even if victory is gained afterwards, it would not necessarily imply that success will be sustainable.

Eventually, it is about what is produced sustainably to meet requirements of those aggrieved by the discomfort of problems faced. Without the well management of the interplay between problem, ability and offering, we may continue to experience overwhelming problems and be prone to experiencing failures.

Lessons from farming
The environment needs to be available and conducive for business to thrive. Such an environment is to entrepreneurs, what land is to a farmer.

Land availability
Without land, there would be no farming at least as we know it today. Without the availability of conducive business climate, no good business can be conducted. As in farming, those with access to land can farm. Likewise, when operating in an exclusionary business environment, there would be many aggrieved entrepreneurs locked out of opportunities to conduct good business.

Just as land must be obtained or made available for farming to occur, conducive business environment needs to be created and made available for entrepreneurs to ply their trade. Creation of such an environment would ultimately benefit everyone. No one can thrive when many are suffering. Despite our divergent views about causes and solutions to sufferings, without gracious sacrifice, we would see many unrests and increased demands, even for things that should not be demanded but earned.

Government is not the only important party to facilitate the creation and availability of conducive business environment. Big business has the power and opportunity to give emerging noncompeting enterprises opportunities to advance their businesses. It takes willingness and gracious sacrifice sometimes, for bigger gains to be achieved resulting from the creation of such an environment.

Land appropriateness
Each type of land is suitable for specific type of farming. A farmer needs to know which land would be suitable for their needs. Likewise, entrepreneurs in other business contexts need to understand and try to find conducive environments for their business needs.

Fit for purpose offerings
Any farmer producing products without clear understanding of the needs they would address risks producing products that may not sell. At best, they risk being price-takers for producing over supplied products. In which case, their problems for which farming was meant to be the answer may remain unresolved.

For entrepreneurs, the importance of correct identification of problems for which solutions are produced cannot be emphasised enough.

Other important factors for consideration
1. Be “plugged in”. Avoid isolation and try to be part of a community of common interests to share ideas and enjoy benefits of collectivism without losing individual identity.
2. Be well informed. Keep abreast of current affairs and trends to understand their impact on your business.
3. Be decisive. Even when not all information is available, do not wait to exhaust all possibilities before embarking on your business venture.
4. Work harder and smarter. Do not confuse hard work with prolonged hours of work. Putting on more hours is necessary. So is waking much earlier to begin working on the day’s activities. But there will be no productivity or so called “out of the box thinking” without rest. Having a good rest refreshes the mind and enables introspection. Introspection is the basis for hindsight we know is the best sight.
5. Have the right kind of faith. Faith is the power largely responsible for the outcome achieved. You cannot proceed if you do not believe. Likewise, giving up is having faith that not proceeding is the best answer. Do your best by applying your abilities as practically as is possible and leave the rest to faith. Take note of Paul Hovey’s profound observation that “a blind man’s world is bound by the limits of his touch; an ignorant man’s world by the limits of his knowledge: a great man’s world by the limits of his vision.”
6. Materialise your ideas. Having ideas is not the panacea. Convert those ideas to tangible offerings that others could buy.
7. Be discreet. Watch out what you discuss with others about your ideas. Do not make the mistake of talking too much to others about your ideas. Do not excuse inaction by wanting others to validate your ideas. Always remember this eternal truth as written in Proverbs 29:11 that “a fool uttereth all his mind: but a wise man keepeth it in till afterwards.” Keep some secrets to yourself and never tell your whole mind upon your ideas. Know that if you cannot keep your secret, no one else could.
8. Be resourceful. Use information abundantly available on the Internet to find solutions to anomalies and unforeseen circumstances that could arise.
9. Be focused. Do not be swayed by passing fables from talebearers. Know your priorities and understand the consequence of not sticking to the plan.
10. Have the end in mind. Do not compromise on quality. Without quality, you may have comebacks and unhappy ending. See quality as future dividends you would earn. The poorer the quality, the less or no dividends you would earn and the poorer you’d become. The higher the quality, the greater the chances of being a price-maker with increased opportunities for repeat business and business expansion. All these, would mean profiting handsomely from your efforts.

We have something in us we could use to propel ourselves to success. Like a flywheel, let us incrementally build on each achievement despite its size, to reach our greater life goals.