Gen Y Speaks: My learning journey since starting my first business at 17

I started my first business at the age of 17 offering copywriting and marketing services. At that time, I was studying international business at a polytechnic.

It was largely a one-man operation, with me doing most of the writing, though I roped in some friends who can write well to help on a part-time basis at times when the workload got heavy.

Almost three years on, I now employ three full-time staff and have expanded my businesses to include branding and marketing consultancies, digital marketing development and business development.

I wouldn’t call myself a successful businessman yet, but I have learned a lot in my short entrepreneurial journey so far.

Ironically, most of these lessons came from real life experiences dealing with clients, instead of my diploma course in the polytechnic.

One of the greatest lessons I’ve learned from running my businesses is the importance of honest and transparent communication with clients.

This is key to fostering a relationship that is not merely transactional.

In my case, this sometimes means being upfront about my young age. Once, a client in his mid-40s thought I was older and asked me where I was bringing my kids for holidays during the June school vacation.

He almost tripped when I told him I was 19 and not married. But far from writing me off for being wet behind the ears, he had a good laugh and said I carried myself well for someone my age.

When dealing with prospective clients, I prefer to meet them to have a better sense of their needs. 

Knowing that my age could work against me, I strive to see what is the best way for me to add value for the clients. The key is to convince them I know what I am talking about and can help them.

Of course, when I first started out as a teenage entrepreneur, things did not always go smoothly. Take for example, disputes about the amount of work done, which I have since learned are common in this industry.  

Early on, I had made the mistake of not drafting a contract for a website development project for a friend. Even after the website was completed in accordance with his previous request, he kept asking me to do extra enhancement work.

I felt that he was taking advantage of our friendship, but the episode showed me for the first time how cut-throat the business world could be.

More importantly, it taught me how to protect myself in future — always over communicate if you are unsure if the other party fully understands your message, and always draft a contract to clearly spell out the terms.

This brings me to my disappointment with my diploma course. Something as vital as drafting of contracts and essential communication skills were not covered in depth in class.

I eventually learned about drafting contracts from other entrepreneurs who were willing to share tips with me.

I had enrolled in a polytechnic thinking that the lessons will provide me with hands-on, practical and industry-relevant learning that would help me in my business.

Yet I found that this was not always the case.

For instance, I was looking forward to a first-year module on the fundamentals of marketing and branding, and in particular, the craft of digital marketing and how to use social media and influencers to promote a brand.

But my six-month-long module was largely theoretical. Though my lecturer cited some examples of how some big corporations use digital marketing platforms to push their products, there was no hands-on projects for us to apply what was taught.

Another example that stood out was a second-year module on entrepreneurship, starting a business and business development.

Coincidentally, my business partner and I had just launched a new business that matches driving students to private driving instructors only a few months before the module commenced.

So, I was excited and hopeful that we would get to work on strategies like minimising cost, maximising operational capacity as well as product development.

But again, the lessons were largely classroom-bound tutorials. I am not sure if this is because the lecturer had never started his own business before.

It got me thinking: “Could someone who has never had the experience of being an entrepreneur teach that very subject in a tertiary institution?”

That said, this is my perception of how my courses went and others may well feel otherwise. And to be sure, my polytechnic education was not all negative.

I found a module on preparation for the workplace that taught us interview skills, resume writing and career planning useful as the lecturer conducted practical tests in class.

One other good thing that came out of my polytechnic education was my internship at a corporate training and coaching company.

The boss was an old contact I had met through networking in the past. Under her tutelage, I got many opportunities to execute and practise the concepts and theories taught in school.

My experience shows that outside of their classes, students can be proactive in their learning process by taking up internships and seeking out experienced professionals to ask them about their working experiences and what they have learned.

There is much insight and knowledge to be gained from those actively plying their trade, instead of lecturers teaching off a textbook.

I consider myself blessed to have met so many wonderful friends through my work mainly via networking events. Many of them have openly shared tips with me and inspired me to do better.

Going forward, I hope I can pay it forward too and help other budding entrepreneurs if I have the opportunity.

I will also be happy to go back to my polytechnic to give guest lectures on what I have learned in my entrepreneurial journey so far.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jerald Oon has just obtained his diploma in international business and is currently awaiting enlistment. He owns Dragonstone, a full-service digital marketing and branding company based in Singapore.