Business Lessons from Eliud Kipchoge
What you need to know:
- Businesses started from a deep desire to solve a problem affecting society are more likely to succeed than those founded on a deep desire to make money.
- Business owners who achieve success are disciplined operators who will stick to a pre- planned budget, expansion plans etc
- How many kilometers is your business running per week, month etc in preparation for the big leap?
On Oct 12, 2019, a beaming and seemingly fresh Eliud Kipchoge stormed into the Guinness Book of World Records as the first human to ever run the marathon under 2hrs.
It was the crowning of an illustrious career as an athlete-with all the accolades that go with success-and a sure proof that success beckons those who are ready to go the extra mile.
Though his success will not count for competitive running as it was achieved in highly controlled non-competitive conditions, the achievement proves that-as their punchline read- truly, NOhumanisLIMITed.
Kipchoge’s achievement has very key lessons for business owners seeking to take their enterprises to the next level. Just like Kipchoge went through a series of mindset and physical situations towards his success, businesses go through a similar route before achieving greatness.
The first lesson is desire. It is a deep desire to achieve something that triggers and drives action towards it. Kipchoge desired to proof that humans have no limit-not at any one time was money his driver as he already had made good sums in his previous wins-and he did it. Businesses started from a deep desire to solve a problem affecting society are more likely to succeed than those founded on a desire to make money.
The second lesson is passion. Kipchoge is evidently passionate about running, as was seen at his post-run press conference where he challenged journalists about running even at age 65. His passion radiated throughout the run and at no time did he look like he didn’t enjoy want he was doing.
Business owners are more likely to succeed if they enjoy doing what their business is all about.
The reason why, among others, many businesses fail is because of the copycat culture found in most of humans-starting a business simply because your neighbour started one and is seemingly successful. A business owner with no passion for the business gives up at the earliest sign of struggle. Passion drives success.
Third is drive. To achieve his fete, Kipchoge had to literally cruise at the speed of the car beaming green laser lights ahead of the front pace makers, a constant 21.2kmph. Starting a business is the easier part, cruising it into posterity requires the founder’s exceptional drive.
Discipline also played a key role in Kipchoge’s success. To achieve his goal, he had to keep to a rigorous training schedule, diet, sleep and bodily denials. Business owners who achieve success are disciplined operators who will stick to a pre- planned budget, expansion plans etc.
Fifth is preparation. Kipchoge got into preparations immediately after his failed attempt in May 2017. The most impressive part of this was his 200km per week runs, six days a week. This translates to nearly a marathon every week. As a business owner, what are you doing to prepare your business for the next big leap? How many kilometers is your business running per week, month etc in preparation for the big leap? Are you only comfortable with what you have achieved?
Sixth, Kipchoge never took temporary defeat as failure when he missed the under 2hour mark by 26 seconds in May 2017 at Monza, Italy.
Persistence is one quality that separates successful business owners from the rest.
On a river course that has rocks, the hardest rock is eventually chipped away by the persistent knocking of water, however soft the knock might be.
The writer has ran many local and international full marathons. He is the Project Promoter and Lead Franchise Consultant at Africa Franchising Accelerator Project aimed at achieving faster African socio-economic integration under AfCFTA.
We work with country apex private sector bodies to increase the uptake of franchising by helping indigenous African brands to franchise.
We turn around struggling indigenous franchise brands to franchise cross-border. We settle international franchise brands into Africa to build a well-balanced franchise sector. We create a franchise-friendly business environment with African governments for quicker African economic integration.
