Just after the end of the World Cup this year I received this email:

Someone is smiling upon you today :) Are you ready for this??
CONGRATULATIONS! YOU'VE WON!!
You were the first entrant to correctly predict Spain as the final winner of the World Cup 2010, you found the corresponding cup, you sent it in, and now you'll be receiving 2 AMAYYZING Springleap T-shirts every month for the rest of the year. Well done!!

Ever since then I have been receiving some awesome shirts in the post each mo...

When I worked in corporate all those many years ago, I was exposed to certain tools and terms that we used to solve problems. In the beginning, we relied on a single expert to do the job. Anything difficult was sent to their cubicle and after copious amounts of coffee and late nights the solution would emerge in forms of an equally complicated result. This not only kept their job secure but created an envious career path for other techies.

Later on we began to use a team approach, mostly bec...

With just one month to the Christmas shutdown a lot of small businesses will be scrambling for survival in order to still be in business for 2011. It has been a rough year with the impact of the Soccer World cup , strikes and the low economy.  A lot of small and medium businesses have seen their doors shut for the last time and have had to lay off staff. This is the last thing we need for South Africa. Small business is the key to the emerging economy and job creation, we have to make this wo...

We have moved from Data to Information. From Information to Wisdom. From Wisdom to …. What is the next stage in the evolution chain on learning? Information is a given now days, if we do not know something it is our own fault. If we do not know how to apply that information we need to ask for the counsel of wisdom. This is where Evly comes in to the picture. Build. Gather. Solve. Anything. A platform that allows people to create portals of collective wisdom that can be lowered into the web ...

After a week of great interaction with various Entrepreneurs and stake holders in the business development fields we at the EI campus are filled with enthusiasm and ready to start expanding our tent poles.

Some of our plans include the improved definition of our business roadmap to include milestones that will become achievement points for those building their businesses. To add to this journey we have included a whole new set of legislation, regulation and functional tips that will make eac...

The makeup of any entrepreneurial business needs to be well designed and offer a firm yet flexible framework that can with stand the stress of the small business market but also be portable. 

The main pillar is yourself. The Entrepreneur. You need to know yourself well. Understand your strengths, your skills, your abilities to do the job. Also, almost as important is to know what you are unable to do and what you are poor at doing. This gives rise to the second pillar. 

Congratulations to the winners of our main prize draws. We were able to give away various vouchers and discount coupons at each workshop this week but all participants had to wait for the main prizes until today. Well done to the winners and thanks to our wonderful sponsors. 

Francis Richter wins the USB VOIP phone donated by AllComm

Afsana Khan wins the pack of 50 CD-R donated by IT Force

Quinton Marks wins the 6 session coaching package from Stanford Payne

Grant Harmse wins the wireless...

The Anchor Challenge is revving its engine in preparation for their first annual event to take place in Fish Hoek on 11 December. This is not just another sporting event for those fit professional athletes but has been geared for anyone who is up for the challenge. The full race comprises of a 25km cycle, 10km surf ski, 1.5km swim and a 12km beach run. But not all this needs to be done by one person, they are looking for teams of both men and women and mixed teams, family teams and groups fro...

Cape Town Entrepreneurship Week has gathered momentum over the past few days with a huge volume of people now sitting up and taking notice. For year one of a ten year strategy I am encouraged to see such a high volume of chatter this early in the project. The City of Cape Town and the source partners have achieved a huge goal in a very short space of time. My only complaint is the lack of time in the day to attend all the functions I want to be at.

We had a chance to present a number of exci...

I was planning to write something profound on my blog this morning, really. I had had a good night’s sleep and a healthy breakfast and as I began to get my thoughts together my iGoogle reader popped up with the days blogs that I scan, read and adapt from. I let my eyes drop through the list and as I read, deleted or saved the entries, one jumped out at me from Ideate. POP!

As you know I am a regular contributor to Ideate through my series on various topics, so I am always interested by the...

I am constantly amazed at how sluggish people are when it comes to something new. Change in our lives is seen as a burden and rectum pain even if it may offer some benefit for us.

We coach many different people each month to assist them to break through their person glass ceilings and into new territory. Each case is approached with caution because if I are pushed to hard I will be faced with anger, resistance and resentment. Change is a new constant that we all need to learn to deal with an...

The Cape Town Entrepreneurship Week is a part of the International Week of the Entrepreneur. Cape Town has put together a huge array of events, workshops, talks and open days. The week is split into two sections where the first 3 days 15 – 17 Nov will see many different smaller events taking place throughout the Cape Town greater area. These can be viewed on the CTEW map here.

The Thursday (18^th) is dedicated to the Activa Entrepreneur Summit at the CTICC, Friday (19^th) will see the Activa...

Just along the main road in Lakeside on your way to Muizenberg, Cape Town you can find the building known as the old bakery. This was the home of the bread bakery that oozed smells each morning that made your toes curl and mouth water. Then one day they were gone.

The building stood empty for a while then was revamped, painted and opened once again. It now houses a small selection of shops and restaurants, one of them being Sostanza.

Owner Manager Hope Cornelissen has put her magic touch in...

Today is the first official meeting of the new potential partners of the Entrepreneur Incubator. This sounds like a political statement with no real meat at all. Let me explain.

Due to the downturn in the corporate market and expected increase in people wanting to and having to start their own businesses we are retooling to be able to offer a comprehensive service in a whole new better bigger more efficient way to our clients.

We have some huge plans on paper and today is the next step in ...

The concept of bartering and exchanging your services or products with another person has been around for ages. This has been spoilt and frowned upon since the introduction of commercial entities such as money, banks, tax and all those other ugly things that get in the way of making a living. So when I found the Cape Town Talent Exchange website, I jumped at the chance to screw the banks out of their fees and start getting some real value out of my skills.

A quick registration process and I ...

As a business owner and Entrepreneur we are often faced with failure that comes in many forms. It could be a lost account, a failed test of a product or yet another rejection for funding. For me, I take failure very personally, it cuts me deep and will often take time to heal, but heal it must and we need to get back on that dam horse and keep riding.

A few other issues that get to me are when people do not do as they say and fail to keep appointments, do not show up for workshops they book ...