There’s an old Chinese proverb that to accomplish
something great a person would need three things. Great timing, great location
and peace among the people (team). That is essentially what this week’s topic
is about. How to make the right things happen at the right time. Out of the
three elements, we’ve discussed about the importance to build a functional team
last week (peace among the people). And the inventing of Internet has ensured
businesses without location advantages to be reachable by potential consumers
by a few clicks. Thus the most important element of successfully accomplish a
venture is to select the best timing. Sounds like an old story out of an old
book with Gypsies and crystal balls, but reality confirms with this theory
(like we talked about in class). In the article Launching a Risky Project?
Learn from Entrepreneurs in Africa,
Rule three states: “Keep costs low in the
beginning and plan for scalability… Start with the smallest version of the
business that has a shot at success, and plan to learn and grow from there.”
This is a profound statement, because it is really saying is to have a
potentially successful business model and through experiments and experience it
will be revised and be ready when the right time comes.
An old Chinese general called Sun Tzu once
wrote an international best seller called “The Art of War”. This article summarized
a six step strategy from “The Art of War” in regard of timing.
1.
Notice the signals of timing
2.
Be in tune with the timing of
potential partners
3.
Be aware of the relationship
between your objective and your timing.
4.
Use your intuition to improve
your timing.
5.
Back up your intuition with
data and planning.
6.
Use common sense
Timing is a great advantage of iCraftPath.
The original craft movement was in fact diminished after the 1920s. However
because of the financial crisis in 2008, a great many people lost their jobs
and had free time on their hands. Due to the hatred of corporate America and
the fact they don’t have anything to do at the moment, many people started to
hand make crafts and sell thing to express their feelings and to earn some
extra income. In just seven years the movement has grown exponentially and
started to have a rough look of a modern industry. Pittsburgh is a rather small
city compared to some of the metropolitan cities where crafts movements thrives.
Thus the craft movement wasn’t caught up in Pittsburgh until recently. There
hasn’t been any education services tailored specifically for crafters and there
aren’t any community organization to unite the craft community to grow its
market shares. What iCraftPath can do better at timing is to be in tune with
the timing of potential partners. There are many resources within the city of
Pittsburgh that can be utilized to help crafters further their businesses and
to partner with local organizations can also create a sense of community for
crafters who participate. So what do you think about the old Chinese proverb
and its implications on planning business implementations?
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