Meet 33 year old prominent businessman Abi Mazibuko, the founder of AJ Technologies and Telecommunications. Abi is seen as a leader in the business sphere, he is also a motivational speaker with audiences in the thousands at most of his seminars and public events.
Abi is a best-selling author, his book, “The Art Of Selling” is seen as the marketing and sales “bible” for young movers and shakers. We sat down with Abi to get some masterclass tips:
- We living in a country with an extremely high unemployment rate, how do you motivate the youth to stay positive?
We need to remove the fear of failure from our youth, many of our young people limit themselves from starting up businesses or stop themselves from doing well at school or university because they have this fear of failure. They are so afraid to go all in because they fear being ridiculed by their peers if they don’t do as well as they want or if they don’t succeed at the first attempt.
I spend a lot of time emphasizing that validation should come from within. Ambition and working smart are the secret ingredients to achieve massive success. We need to teach our youth how to start-up businesses from a young age, how to sell their product and services efficiently. Most importantly how to persist until they succeed.
- Share three super business tips for the youth?
- Learn how to market/brand yourself and network well, the more hands you shake, the more money you make.
- Provide quality service and interactions : There are many successful businesses that forget that providing great customer service is important. If you provide better service for your customers, they’ll be more inclined to come to you the next time they need something instead of going to your competition.
- Have an exit strategy, when you start a business you have to understand how to scale your business, ways on how to scale it but most importantly how can you sell your business someday.
- How do you define success?
If I achieve my life goals, and then along the way I can give back in one way or another, that is success. Achievements are nothing if I’m the only one benefiting. If I fall, who will pick me up? The people I helped to bring up of course. Money and achievements can be a lifeboat to a certain degree. But you will reach a peak where that part of life no longer satisfies you. Where you feel nothing matters like it should anymore. The people you’ve helped out of their poverty or unsavoury situations will always remember you. They will fight for you in your darkest moments. Encourage you and praise you as a show of thanks for the belief you had in them to reach the success that they have become. When you find yourself in that position, you’ve reached true success.
- What challenges did you have to overcome at the beginning of your journey?
Building the brand. One that people could believe in. Undeterred from my core values. Steadfast in faith. Yes, finances were tough, but the brand always came first. All else came a distant second. Building a trustworthy brand was the toughest part of my growth. That brand is Abi Mazibuko.
- What have you enjoyed most about starting your own company?
The obvious answer is the freedom of being my own boss. That’s a given. But starting my own company has allowed my creativity to flourish. I solve problems in all kinds of “magical” ways without the constraints of a corporation’s set rules. I’ve also noticed that a lot more opportunities have opened up since going my own way. I’ve been able to branch out in ways I never could have imagined. My job satisfaction is currently at two hundred percent and rising.
- What are some of the objectives of your course and book “The Art of Selling”?
I can break it down into four segments. Selling, efficiency, customer service, and a goal-orientated Personal Action Plan. My book breaks down these four concepts comprehensively while the course elaborates extensively. By following my tried and tested formula, you will understand the inter-related techniques of goal setting, productivity and success. You will also be versed in the ability to identify and network with new clients while simultaneously mastering customer-focused selling.
- What are the qualities of a good entrepreneur?
Someone who initiates the process of finding new opportunities and establishing relationships. Someone who converts opportunities into clients. A leader who manages relationships through excellent customer service and grows those relationships through problem-solving, results-driven consistency.
