Swahili people say “Akili Ni nywele kila mtu ana zake…,” loosely translated as (… intelligence is like hair every person has his/her own”.
I find that proverbial statement alive and practical with this innovative and creative Kenyan Engineer who has put his engineering knowledge to good use.
Meet Sammy Nyiri, a mechanical engineer by profession with a unique taste for beauty coupled with a creative brain is the man on a mission. Mr. Nyiri is minting millions of shillings through his artistic style.
Nyiri converts and transforms metallic containers into eye-catching luxurious houses for commercial purposes.
They say an entrepreneur sees a business opportunity where other people see the problem only. Nyiri saw a business opportunity in a company that was closing shop and was selling containers at cheap prices.
As an entrepreneur he didn’t think twice, Nyiri took a calculated risk and bought for himself four containers at a cheap price and transformed them into a luxurious house for resale making a profit of $30,000 from four containers.
Even though, the project took six months to transform the four containers into luxury homes fetching a $ 30,000 tells how creative and intentional Nyiri is as an entrepreneur
Knowing the value of complementarity, Nyiri sought help from local furniture who was competent in an area he wasn’t good at dealing with the nitty-gritty of the house.
So, what lessons can we learn from Nyiri’s success?
One – business opportunities are everywhere you just need to be observant to seize opportunities when fate throws them your way. Just like this Kenyan Engineer, who fetched $ 30,000 by transforming containers into luxurious houses;
Two -knowledge is wealth use it to your advantage and take control of your life. In that, a knowledgeable person has an edge or a competitive advantage over an underprivileged person.
Three – seeks assistance where you’re not good to make you complete and succeed in your endeavor. Nyiri sought a local furniture man’s expertise to help him deal with the nitty-gritty of the house.\
Four- be innovative and open-minded. Nyiri uses a solar system to power the container. He built 60 feet deep well for solar water heating which consists of a 300-liter water heater that utilizes six solar panels during the day and batteries at night. That shows how innovative he was because he knew what he wanted.
Five – surround yourself with people of substance. Just like Nyiri got his property idea from a friend you can also receive your breakthrough in business or career through a friend if you surround yourself people smart people and those who are business-minded people.
In short, business opportunities are around you seek them out. Change the way you think around problems, change the way you see problems. Always remember that even mathematical calculations are called problems and their answers are called solutions. That should tell you one thing.
Life’s problems have solutions
So, when you find yourself in a situation, ask yourself, what am I solving? And for whom?
Be someone’s solution. — people are looking for answers not problems
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