My Interview With JobsDB
It is really weird how things kinda of happen. I was at a friends wedding reception and was seated to a guy named Mark. We had one of those conversations, you know “so how do you know the groom/bride?” kind.
Anyway, we eventually got to sharing what we did for a living. It turns out Mark works for JobsDB Singapore. He was very keen to do an interview with me. I was actually very surprised. But they were doing a series of interviews with young entrepreneurs. And in my case specifically they were looking to share my story of how I left my banking career and went on to Internet Marketing.
Long story short, we did the interview, it went live a few days ago and I thought I would share it with you here as well.
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What is your business about?
My business involves creating and selling very niche products online. Currently I am focusing on informational/educational products that can be bought and downloaded online e.g. PDF Books. But I plan to add other type of products like software in the future.
What inspired you to start your own business?
I have always wanted to be part of a successful business, even from a very young age. However, it has only been the past 3 to 5 years that I felt that I wanted to own my own business. I think there are some obvious reasons why one might want to own their own business e.g. money, own boss, time flexibility etc. And all of them had a part in my decision to start.
But what started me moving in this direction was knowing what I didn’t want anymore. I just grew tired of working for someone else i.e. working very hard and long hours for something/someone and not being able to receive the ultimate reward/benefit from it. I just started to think, if I am going to work this hard and this much, I might as well work for myself.
What were your previous jobs before you started your own business?
My professional background has always been in banking. Specifically an area in banking called Cash Management. I have worked for 2 foreign banks at the local and regional level. My last position was in a local bank here in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where I headed the Sales division for Cash Management.
What do you like best about being an entrepreneur?
In my particular business, I really like that I am not stuck doing the same thing over and over again (things are always new). Once I have finished creating and setting up a particular product, I can then start to think about the next.
Yes, there are certain fundamentals in developing, selling and maintaining the product. But each new product idea brings a new set of challenges and excitement. I feel quite lucky because this aspect of my business suits my personality very well.
What challenges do you face being an entrepreneur?
Right now, owning a very new business and being the only person running it, my challenge is to stay on course and not have my hands in too many different things, just yet (So focus and discipline is key). It sounds pretty obvious, but I really found that it was a challenge.
I can afford to do other types of businesses/ventures later. But for now my focus is very laser sharp on what I am doing now to ensure its success i.e. one step at a time
What are your business goals for the future?
Ultimately, I would like to build and own several successful businesses. It will take some time of course, but like I said earlier, one step at a time. And then later I will just be able to do it faster.
Check out Shazlan’s website at www.shazlansufian.com
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You can check out the original interview by clicking here.
My 5cents Worth On How To Get Started
I just got back from Singapore on Monday and on the way back I met up with some great folks on the bus. By chance they were keen on Internet Marketing and asked me for my advice on how to get started in the biz.
I had often thought of what I would tell myself if I could start all over again, so I was ready and happy to share with them what I thought.
I explained to them if I had to do it all over again I would:
Choose one model of Internet Marketing – Internet Marketing is a “Monster” of a thing with so many different aspects (e.g. affiliate marketing vs. product creation, article marketing or blogging or AdWords). All of them work and generates people money, but, to understand it all and become proficient right a way is “nuts”. So initially just focus on one business model and don’t do a shotgun approach.
Make sure the model suits your working personality – To be successful in any business you got to be able to see yourself do well in it and of course enjoy it. In my case for example, one of the things, that I now realize I was terrible at and did NOT enjoy was blogging. I am by nature not a very creative person or great writer, so to have to be creative regularly was very painful (FYI this post has so far taken me more than an hour and half to do and I am not even done yet…sigh). But I did pursue blogging because someone told me it was a free and great way to make easy money (oh the error of my ways!).
Then find a mentor and/or a program specializing in that field, which will lead you in a guided step by step, hold you by the hand, ask all the questions you want kind of way – One of the most ridiculous things I thought I could do was to “FIGURE” it out all by myself. I was thinking “I was a banker for 8 years, housewives can do this, I can do this!”. What happened next? I found out I was WRONG and very quickly grew to respect housewives or anybody that was successful at this. Mentors have years of experience in being successful at their chosen field. And you can purchase all of their knowledge and experience for a fee. Instead of fumbling around researching what works and what doesn’t work. But again, do your research and find someone that you will be happy to work with.
To drive my advice home for them, I just shared some of the mistakes and aimless, time wasting activity I was involved with when I was getting started (these deserve a post of its own, so look out for that soon). We all had a good laugh. But it really did make me think how far I have come and the amount I have learned since I started.
