THE SECRETS OF DANGOTE’S SUCCESS

Not a few people are intrigued with the stupendous success of Dangote and are understandably curious to know how he did it and learn one or two things from his methods. Dangote has hinged his secrets on these main cardinal points:

FAITH & BELIEF IN GOD:

Although this writer emphatically believes that whatever you believe in is your private issue and your personal business (not the way some Nigerians shove their faiths down the throats of an unwilling audience even though they fail to walk the talk themselves), the deep-rooted importance of faith (or hope) (in anything, Mark Zuckerberg is an atheist billionaire before you get carried away…lol) cannot be underestimated. Born into a devout Muslim family and raised along Islamic tenets, Aliko Dangote never fails to ascribe much of his success to his Creator. Yes, I agree to a great extent, faith is very crucial in pursuing any goal.

FORESIGHT:

One of the very best decisions Dangote ever made was leaving Kano for Lagos. Although at that time, Kano was still a bubbling commercial center and many members of the family felt comfortable doing business there, Dangote knew that the future of business was in Lagos, where he operates today and owns one of the most palatial residences in Africa. In 1977, he followed his late uncle, Usman Amaka Sanusi Dangote to Lagos when he was just 20. He thought the patriarch would oppose the move at first, feeling they might think Lagos life would corrupt him but he had to risk it any way. He said family business was good but you have no independence and one cannot make it much there so he had to map out his own path to greatness, all by himself. Dangote states: ‘Having come from a rich family does not give you an automatic license to riches. You just have to create your own idea and work hard. I have never seen any Nigerian that has really made money from inheritance. It is very, very difficult. And that is why I always encourage my own children to work very hard especially when it comes to making their own money. I am not saying they shouldn’t rely on the fact that yes, they come from a rich home. But sometimes, it can be a great disadvantage. Because there are some certain businesses that you wouldn’t like to do because your name is so and so.‘
He also said: ”I did not really inherit anything from my father, apart from maybe two buildings. I had three Benz 911 (10-tonner trucks) which my grandfather bought for me and they were working and he was keeping the money for me at that time. So by the time I came out, I had about N127,000 or so. And then my grandfather also gave me a letter to collect N500,000 as loan to be paid back in two years but there was no interest.’

In an inteview with Forbes in September 2012, he stated: …although I came from a rich home, I did not use my family’s money to reach where I am today.

My people have a saying and it goes thus: ‘Agboju logun fi ara re foshita’ meaning ‘he who depends and relies on inheritance exposes himself to the perils of poverty and squalor.’ That is for all the agbojuloguns.

Dangote also said of family business: ‘Working with the family, you hardly ever succeed because you have other children. You know it is difficult when you come from a large family.’

PASSION FOR SERVICE:

The very interesting with the Dangote story is that, like many other billionaires across the globe, they actually did not set out to be billionaires in the first place. However, they had a burning passion and desire for a dream, service or product. For Bill Gates, it was to place a computer in every house on earth, for M Zuck, it was to ensure more connection for all of humanity, for Adenuga, it was to revolutionize the telecommunication sector and link more people seamlessly while for Dangote it was to do something spectacularly great for his nation by identifying the needs, creating useful products and placing it at the doorsteps of his people. Making money was not initially his principal goal but a deep desire to have a positive and tangible impact on his immediate society. Ideas are everywhere, tap into one today and you will be rich beyond your wildest dreams. Wake up and smell the coffee, forget blood money ritual, it is disgraceful nonsense. Dream big, press on, do something revolutionary for the world and you see unbelievable wealth falling on your laps.

PRUDENCE: Okay, Mr. Bling Bling, let me quote Dangote here in his own words: ”I do not spend my money any how.” It was a few years ago while reading The Millionaire Next Door that I really understood the difference between being ‘rich’ and ‘wealthy’. Footballers like Didier Drogba, Lionel Messi (hope he don come out of hiding, Bayern no easy na…lol!) are rich while people like Warren Buffett, Carlos Slim, Aliko Dangote, Amancio Ortega and Prince Abdulwaleed al-Talal are obscenely wealthy. To get a clearer picture, have you ever wondered why footballers and all the diamond-dangling entertainers are never billionaires and many even end up dead broke after their careers?

Yes, there’s a huge difference between being rich and wealthy. That you are rich does not necessarily make you wealthy but you are obviously rich if you are considered wealthy. Rich people who are usually dependent on regular salaries or wages like footballers spend money anyhow (and unfortunately, those are the ones we see more often in the tabloids but are rarely good examples of sound financial management. Oluwamario Omobalotelli, I hope you are reading this…lol) while billionaires (the truly wealthy) are very careful and frugal with their spendings (although there are rare exceptions like Larry Ellison) and are meticulous accountants (or married to one, research has shown that most wealthy men in the US are married to women who are far better managers of financial resources and assist their hubbies in stabilizing the monetary foundation.

The koko of the tori na for una to watch who you marry. You know the interesting thing? The study also shows that many of these wives are schoolteachers, na hint I give you be that o! LOL!) Dangote is a shrewd businessman who will only splurge his money on what he can afford and is absolutely necessary. To be prudent, watch your choices, select those you walk with (use Mortein to delete the parasites) and be disciplined. Like everyone else on earth, you’ve got 24 hours in a day. Your time starts now…

HARDWORK: For some strange reasons, many people think that the life of a billionaire is all chocolate and vanilla with no kpof kpof and pior wota but the truth is that the average billionaire (I don’t mean the thieving leaders of Africa o!) is far more hardworking than you are. Yes, there is the cruise on the Caribbean, the skiing in Aspen, the daylong golfing at Akwa Ibom and all-night parties on superyachts but you also conveniently ignore the fact that billionaires do not spend everyday of the year sunbathing in Monaco or getting lap dances in Las Vegas. They work, and they work hard (and smart). Hear Dangote: ‘To start with, I don’t work 12 hours a day. I work at least 18 hours a day. On weekends, I don’t work at all.

If the laziness of some people who dream of billions every second can be converted to energy, it would power a nuclear station. You don’t spend all day in bed (unless you are making money on the bed and I don’t mean ashawo work) pinging, tweeting, gbeborun-ing and offering no useful service to humanity and still complain of ‘poor-verty’. If you are to achieve your dreams, you need to wake up first. Many people want to get something for nothing but in a Universe which abhors total vacuum and loves balance, duality and karma, this is being unrealistic.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT NICHE:

Today you hear of Dangote noodles, Dangote spaghetti, Dangote salt, Dangote sugar, Dangote flour, Dangote cement, Dangote juice and all those brands which all relate to the basic needs of mankind. Dangote said he will never dabble into a business he knows nothing or little about.