This is often the first question we ask strangers at networking event, in the Gautrain, at a conference, at a wedding, braai [barbeque]. On the surface it seems like an innocuous query, one we ask each other every day, a nicety we utter so we have something, anything, to talk about. The majority of the answers are…

Pick your customers. For you to pick your customers means you need to know what customer you are looking for. Picking your cusotmers means you need to know that not every customer should be your customer. Fire the ones that are wasting your time and effort because they not pushing you to do great work. Yes,…

There are two different types of hustle: The one hustle is of always asking, of putting yourself out there, of looking for discounts, shortcuts and a faster way. This is the hustle of what you don't know won't hurt you, of the ends justifying the means. This hustle is about cutthroat, shrewd business, nothing personal…

Yes, It is very important to focus on a niche market as opposed to a broad market or industry. No, There is no conflict. The smallest viable market is the biggest insight any startup can have. Become a meaningful specific, not a wandering generality. Play to your minimum viable audience.  Specialists get the critical mass. Get very specific: “We specialise in…

LORA Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship strives to bring thought leaders, men and women who are pathfinders, entrepreneurs and change agents, men and women who have affected the very fibre of our thought processes, who influence our set of beliefs, and engage our mindsets in elements of value. LORA has invite experienced entrepreneurs to share their stories…

Chapter #1 I walk down the street. There's a hole in the sidewalk. It is a very deep hole. I fall in ... I am helpless. It isn't my fault. It takes forever to find a way out. Chapter #2 I walk down the same street. There's a deep hole in the sidewalk. I pretend…

Recently I have been around close people who are temporarily confined to crutches or wheelchair. It interesting to see the looks people give when they see someone on crutches or wheelchair. They are probably asking themselves: "What happened?" "I hope she will be fine," I guess this is human nature to stare when a person…

Every now and then I will open a couple of my  books and see my underlinings from years before, or a note in my father’s hand, or in the hand of some anonymous reader before me. And I understand that civilization is passed on through this alchemy of words on a page. Books have a…

"Thus everyday and during every hour of our time beyond sleep, the demons embedded in our society, that stalk us at every minute, seem always to beckon each one of us towards a realisable dream and nightmare. With every passing second, they advise, with rhythmic and hypnotic regularity - get rich! get rich! get rich!…

... You maintain by compromise. When you compromise your integrity [lie, cheat, manipulate] to achieve something, you will have to continue that compromise in order to maintain keeping that thing. Don't compromise your principles. Do what is right, not what is easy.

You are most powerful when you are most silent. People don't understand the importance of silence. People never expect silence. They expect words, motion, defense, offense, back and forth. They expect to leap into the fray. They are ready, fists up, words hanging leaping from their mouths ready to rebut what you say. People never…

Underneath and beyond the surface noise in your mind, lies the silence that is your true nature. All true communication, comes out of silence, and leads back to silence. When the mind finally understands, it falls silent. It is in silence that you feel the vibration of creation itself, that you hear the sound of…