A new thought; an idea is what creates jobs to convert natural resources to marketable goods. New thoughts occurs to many people but are only expressed by those whose inhibitions have not been tempered by societal inhibitions: the young.
One legacy that President Moi bestowed Kenyans is the increased centers of higher learning.
Universities and colleges are ideas factories, ideas do not come from professors and lecturers; they are to set in their ways to think unconventionally! Ideas come from students, the country just need a system to listen and nurture them. Microsoft, Google, Facebook … Just to name a few, Came from student ideas in university doom rooms. Kenya has over 20 Universities and Colleges, each with students that are no different from those in universities in the USA.
Kenyans have to let the students imaginations run wild and then provide them with an outlet to give an Elevator Pitch to those with money but whose ideas well have run dry: the adults. Student riots is just an indication of the energy and resourcefulness that the students have but with no suitable outlet shows itself in street fights with police.
The best and most straight forward elevator pitches I have come across are by people who do not ordinarily get into elevators, – hawkers, matatu touts. “Chai karamu” mandasi!, one or two words that prequalify the audience and enable the people to only engage prospects and avoid antagonizing others! University and college students need to be socialized into generating ideas and then communicating them in simple straight forward elevator pitches that attract resources.
The students must be taught that when you solve someone’s current immediately indentifiable problem they commit to pay immediately and it’s upto you to collect immediately. For example, People go to restraunts, when they are hungry, they pay,are feed or are feed and pay then leave. They return if their needs were met when they need food again!
To catch the attention of a listener in an elevator pitch, you have to tell them in twenty seconds which of their immediate problems you solve or how you are going to make them money solving an identifiable persons problem. Say, “What immediate itch you are scratching” in plain language in twenty seconds!
To build income from ideas, Most entrepreneurial types need to quickly qualify who is a prospective client or investor, hence the elevator pitch should be able to clearly identify the problem they solve in simple layman language so that both the speaker and listener can make a quick decision whether its worthy pursuing the discussion either as a possible client who has that problem and is in the market for a solution or someone who can relate and would invest some resources in the process of solving the problem while earning a return.That saves time for both speaker and listener. They then can talk about the weather and wonder apart if they are not a fit or the speaker can move onto method and territory if the initial hook was a fit!
In the case www.harambee.co : the portal aims to connect ideas and resources enabling communities to pool I seas and resources for the common good.Harambee.co has a category of student projects category of campaigns to encourage college and university students to put their ideas on the market and find backers. The ideas and resources market should teach them that business is not done in a vacuum, they are laws, politics and cultural sensitivities! We then provide a crowd funding portal to raise resources from family, friends and supporters – if you cannot sell your brilliant idea to family, friends and supporters, it may be a sign that it will not fly in the market!
Www.harambee.co does not have an “all or nothing” rules, it provides a more flexible fundraising schedule and supports both the US dollar via PayPal and the Kenya shillings via PesaPal. This three ensure that college and university ideas stay on the market. Therefore, from the elevator pitch to the cocktail circuits, The students should be aware of everyone’s valuable time and the need to spent it well. Communication is a constant negotiation process, if An Idea can not be able to solve an immediate problem that a prospect has or can relate to then both the ideas vendor and the resource source could be wasting valuable time!
Tell a college or university student to list an idea on Harambee.co , it may be the start of a very beneficial endeavor!
Www.harambee.co
Be truthful from the start
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Encouraging University and College students to showcase IDEAS
