Delayed gratification

One thing I am quickly learning about running a business is that you put in a lot of time, effort and

money however you are one of the last to reap the benefits. In a normal business when month end

comes, you ensure you pay your employees, you pay your bills, you pay your creditors and lastly

yourself.

In running our Genesis business over the past few months and more so now as we are selling and

making some money I believe that we encounter this challenge. Our first priority is to ensure that

our product is produced and if of high quality and that our business is running smoothly. In doing so

we have paid for materials, labour, marketing and other operational costs. We are spending

evenings and afternoons at markets and putting in a lot of our scarce resources. However, we will

only get our share of the profits after it is all done when we close the business.

This is teaching me that in owning and running a business, you are first in line to make sacrifices and

last in line to reap the financial rewards in your own pocket. It requires a level of maturity and

discipline to ensure that you put your business first. Even if your business is making money when

you are starting off, that money often needs to be reinvested to promote the growth of your

business. I speculate that this may be a reason why some businesses have failed in the past.

I realise that to make the “Big Bucks” in business it takes big sacrifice and patience.