How To Be Rich By Hanging Out With The Smart Entrepreneurs

OK, so we’ve all heard about the success of tech entrepreneurs like Mark Zuckerberg who created Facebook, Ben Silbermann and Evan Sharp who created Pinterest, Sergey Brin and Larry Page who created Google, Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger who created Instagram and Evan Spiegel and Robert Murphy who created Snapchat. Most of them came up with their great ideas in University, and became millionaires before the age of 30! Some tech-billionaires were much younger when they skyrocketed to fame and fortune!

Now let’s think about ourselves…hmmm, somehow, I guess we realize that our 9am to 5pm job paying a monthly salary, almost half of which evaporates in the form of income tax deductions even before we can get our hands on it, doesn’t sound like it’s going to earn our first million any time soon…even though we may already be in our mid to late thirties, forties and fifties.

And expecting to find the next Mark Zuckerberg, join him and become a billionaire when his company goes public, is probably a bit of a stretch. Such success stories are few and far-between. The reality is of course, that sort of thing doesn’t happen all that often.

Sigh… so…guess we missed the boat?:-)

No, friends, all is not lost for those of us who (a) are well past thirty; and (b) have failed to come up with a fantastic, world-changing, ground-breaking idea for a new technology when we were younger, which then turned us into millionaires. It’s not too late – there are still opportunities out there?!

Look around. There are a lot of talented youngsters out there with some incredibly innovative ideas. Sometimes we (slightly older!:-)) folk have a tendency to assume that young people are just wasting time in the hours that they spend online. But who knows, the skills they develop indulging in these so-called “frivolous pastimes”, could be the foundations for a technology idea with fantastic commercial potential.

Young people today have a wealth of ideas, passions and causes. Having been born into the era of technology, technological innovation is part of their collective identity. They use it to make connections and solve problems in innovative ways that are not obvious to us, the generation just before them that only embraced technology in our teens and twenties – we still remember a time before the internet, smartphones, etc.

Our way of thinking was shaped before the dawn of the new, hyperconnected technological era. They are generally more creative, more idealistic, more prepared to challenge the status quo. And sometimes, this allows them to come up with some very interesting ideas and technologies.

Why not spend a little more time with local geeks and technopreneurs, who just might come up with the NBT (Next Big Thing)? Nothing to lose, for us older folk! ?

So, where to find these young, creative technopreneurs/entrepreneurs? For starters, look no further than your own friends and family. How about your own kids, nephews and nieces, children of friends who are in the early-20’s bracket? Do they have an idea they are passionate about, to create something which sounds like it has the potential to grow into a business?

OK, so what if all the youngsters you know are just busy playing computer games all day long and seem to have no other interests, least of all, starting a business? Not to worry – Malaysia already has a pool of creative young entrepreneurs/technopreneurs who have applied for pre-seed funding under the Cradle Investment Programme.

Eventually, successful applicants will come through the pre-seed stage and require further investment to commercialise their product or technology. There is an opportunity to invest in these early-stage companies, once the prototype has been developed using the pre-seed funds. The programme started around 2003 and is still operational.

In addition, there are opportunities for angel investors. An angel investor is a high net worth individual providing capital to a start-up/early-stage business, in exchange for shares/equity in the company. If you happen to be a high net worth individual already, you might also want to explore the Angel Investor network in Malaysia.

If you meet the prescribed criteria and so does the company you invest in, you could be eligible for a tax deduction equivalent to your investment, after holding equity in the company for two years with Angel Tax Incentive Programme.

Even if you’re not a high-net worth individual, and are only in a position to maybe invest a small sum in a promising start up in return for equity, bear in mind that many people have made money just by studying young companies and investing into them at the right time – which is, just before they make it big. The idea then is that when the company hits the big time, your initial investment will double, triple or increase substantially.

Of course, you have to be able to pick the right start-up company and the right group of young business owners. There are some general guidelines to follow, amongst them, seeking out business ideas that result in products that people actually want, looking for entrepreneurs with a good mix of skillsets and a strong dose of passion, who are also prepared to invest their own money into the business venture.

Having said that however, of course, there is no guarantee or recipe for success here. It’s purely a chance that you will take on the technology or the product, and the group of entrepreneurs you choose to back.

So the next time a young person approaches you about a business idea for a new technology, give him or her the time of day and, if the idea sounds like it has some potential, see if you can get involved and contribute. Who knows, there might be a large payback waiting for you at the end of the road?!