#LifeLessons: ”How I Started My Engineering Company With N600”- Samson Makinwa

Samson Makinwa, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Techo Quip Limited, Lagos, did not discover his real life purpose until he was 40. But with that awareness and N600 in his pocket he launched an engineering company which, in less than 27 years, has grown into a multi-billion Naira enterprise, touching lives across the country also picking awards from six Nigerian Heads of State. In this life lessons interview with me, Makinwa says: “Once you discover the lion inside of you, nothing shall be impossible.” Enjoy his notes on the journey.

LESSON 1
With a clear vision, nothing is impossible.

Until I was 40, I never believed I could amount to anything. I was after many meaningless pursuits and I was scared that I could die without any meaningful achievement. I discovered later that God created everyone for a specific purpose and nothing would make sense until this is discovered and is pursued. It can happen at any age. My own discovery came the day I was 40. I was just reflecting on my life generally alone in my room, asking many personal questions reflectively. Suddenly, I discovered that I had a passion in me that must be pursued. I was trained as an engineer in India, but I had never used that skill until that time. I suddenly began to see that I could start a company that specialises in fabricating machines. The pictures were just coming in flashes. It was like a sleeping lion in me suddenly came alive. The moment God showed me a vision, I decided to push it with everything inside of me. At the time, I had just N1000 in my pocket but I discovered something very interesting: When you have a vision that you are passionate about, many obstacles will give way.

I gave my wife N400 out of the money and I used the balance of N600 that I had to rent a shop in an uncompleted building. I had the shop; I was ready to work, but customers were not coming. I didn’t have money to place advertisements. In fact, then it was only Daily Times and Business Times and Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) that we had then, there was no way I could get myself into the newspapers or appear on Television.
I kept thinking of what to do until one day I just stumbled on the letters to the editor column in Business Times. Some of the letters were actually about people requesting contacts of people who could supply one product or the other. I got hooked to that, I realised that I could use the maiden name of my wife to write to the editor requesting some products. I did that and it was published. Then, I wrote another letter in my name positioning myself as the specialist who could supply those equipment I had listed. I put the physical address of my office in the paper and it was published. The following day four rich businessmen who wanted the machines visited my office. Once they were assured that I could produce the machines, they paid money. It was their money that I used to open my First Bank account and opened another shop. I was able to deliver the orders to their satisfaction. That opened more doors for me, as those people spread good reports about me. I have never looked back since then. Another lesson I also learnt is that you have to keep an open mind to receive ideas from God. One single idea can make all the difference in the pursuit of your vision.

LESSON 2
Not many people would believe in your vision initially.

I usually tell people that with any vision you have, you must come to the hard reality that not many people would believe in it initially. I witnessed this first hand. When I shared the vision with my wife, she just dismissed it with cynical comments. I could understand where she was coming from. The vision I was describing did not match the reality on the ground. We were in a one-room apartment, I wasn’t achieving anything. I could hardly take care of my responsibility as a husband. I told her that morning that she was standing in front of a millionaire. I shared my vision of building an engineering company that would be a force to be reckoned with in the country. She just laughed, dismissing every single thing I said. I was not discouraged. In any case, I relocated from the areas we were staying, moved away from friends and associates to a remote area where I could pursue my vision. I was not discouraged. I eventually opened the shop; I was sleeping inside the shop; I wasn’t going home. She came there one day and stood at the entrance and looked at me and said ‘so this how you want to end your life?’ I told her to come in, she asked, come in where? My wife refused to join me until about 8 months later when I had made my first million. That is the way of vision.

LESSON 3:
If you cannot fire, don’t hire.

I had a brother; he is my half-brother. We are of the same mother but not the same father. I brought him to Lagos to join my business. I trained him and I was taking him with me whenever I was going out to prospect for business. He learnt the job and was doing very well and I began to trust him. Sometimes I would send him to go and see a customer and things like that.
Then, a friend of mine introduced me to a retired Central Bank of Nigeria official who wanted to do some machines that I should see him. I did and we quoted N35 million to do the job for him. I thought that was a big break. The man asked for some documents which I sent to him through my brother. The two of them were age mates, so it was easy for them to get along. Unknown to me, my brother went there and told him he was the one that would eventually do the job and convinced the man to give him the job which he promised to deliver at N20million. That was how my brother cornered the business.
He left and started his own business and even built a factory like mine. This is my own relation. Can I fight him? Of course no, because he is my brother.
The lesson here is anybody you cannot fire or take a legal action against if need be, don’t hire him or her. In the case of my brother, the next thing I should have done was to fire him and publish a disclaimer, but if I had done that, it would affect me negatively. If you want to protect the person, you will be damaging your business.

LESSON 4
Life has seasons.

I would like people to know that there are seasons in life. Age one to 23 is a learning season. Anybody within that age bracket must learn well and equip himself with what he really needs to do. The earning period is from age 23 to 65. This is where you use your skills to generate cash and consolidate. From 65 upwards is what I call the ‘dying’ season because at that age there are so many things you can no longer do: the body begins to shrink and weaken. I encourage people, especially the young ones to be conscious of these seasons and take advantage of the opportunity.
I almost missed my own season at the beginning because after the learning season, I couldn’t apply what I had learned to earn, I wasted 17 years and was left with only 25 years to do whatever I could do. To catch up I did so many things in between. That was why I was sleeping inside the shop; I didn’t have friends, and I closed so late. So, you need to know the season you are in and act accordingly. Now, I am preoccupied with building a business that would outlive me. So, you have to put things in place so that the business can continue smoothly after you.

LESSON 5
You can be rich but not wealthy.

I see money as proceeds of wealth. If we must say that a man is wealthy, then we must be talking of a man who has planted a tree of wealth. Riches go, but wealth remains. A tree of wealth is the vision that God has given to you, your assignment. For instance, this company is a tree of wealth. From here we have done so many things, from here I built my house, I bought cars, I trained my children, we eat, I set up a ministry (a church) where I teach people entrepreneurship. If I am able to build this company into the state of infinity, it means the wealth will continue long after I have gone. Some people can be rich, but not wealthy. I suggest that people go for wealth instead of riches.

LESSON 6
Limit the involvement of spouse in your business.

From personal experience, I would say that one should limit the involvement of one’s spouse in one’s business, especially if one is a man. There are certain decisions you will need to take alone but your spouse may not understand. I have also discovered that many workers don’t like to be bossed around by couples. They would see the business as a family business with little room for advancement for them.
On family finance, I believe strongly that a man should be solely responsible for the upkeep of his household. So I don’t buy into the idea a husband and a wife keeping joint accounts. I believe a man must be a man. When everything is coming from the same purse that belongs to you and your wife, how would your wife acknowledge that you are the one taking care of the home? For her, it is our money. The man has lost his headship. You build the house together, you bought the car together, you train the children together, you even buy food together. Where is the role of the man? The dignity of the man is in that, he brings money from his pocket and gives it to the wife and says this is for food.

LESSON 7
We are all spiritual beings.

The spiritual part of the man is the reason God created him in the first place, the other reason God created man is for marriage because there is a need for reproduction. If the world will continue, then people should reproduce and the final reason is to work for God. My business enhances the spiritual part of me because it is from here I built the church, from here I pay tithe. So the business supports the church work so we can win souls for Christ. My purpose here on earth is the ministry work, but I need the business to be able to carry out the work of the ministry. Many people don’t get this right. I have what I call business class inside the church. I have what I call men entrepreneur forum inside the church; I have what I call woman purse. I train my women. You don’t have to be looking at your husband’s purse; get your own.
This is a tent for the purpose of my family and for the purpose of God’s work.
Another thing I have also learnt, which I consider a great secret is going on retreat. Great people in the Bible that made great impact are people who step aside to listen to God. If you want to make great impact you also have to do the same. Vision on its own is invisible that is revealed by God. If you want God to speak to you about your business and even about your children, then you must be in a place you will be able to listen to Him. When you receive directly from God, even if you have challenges in it, you won’t care. So I go for a retreat from time to time. And it has always been a refreshing time. My own retreat is not God must do it, I pray small, I listen to God. That is the way I see it and I don’t have a specific time when I go on retreat. When I notice certain things that I need to hear from God, I retreat.

LESSON 8
Take care of your health.

I was sick for about four months in 2015; it was a serious one. The medical tests showed that my systems had collapsed. The doctors said I was not having enough rest. We must pay serious attention to our health. We need to have a good rest and good sleep. Don’t allow depression to take over you; always free your heart by forgiving those that have offended you.
Before that sickness, I was not taking care of my health because I was not given to being sick, but that taught me that when we get to the age of 40 and above, we should me mindful of our health.
You have to be careful when you are treating high blood pressure because the medicine you take has side effects on the heart. While you are listening to the doctor, use your sense.
Eat well if you are advanced in age; eat well but very little; avoid carbohydrate; you should also eat fruits a lot.

BOOKS

The Bible
The Richest Man in Babylon

MAJOR MISTAKE
One major mistake I made was bringing somebody so close to the point of making the person almost a partner in this business. I don’t have a partner, but I got someone that I raised to the level of partnership and he caused me so much damage emotionally and financially. I trusted him so much; I left virtually everything in his hands, but he disappointed me and set me back many years.

BEST ADVICE
One of the things he told me is that I should not go into politics, not just partisan politics, but even in the church or any place and the place is becoming political, leave.

Conducted by Ayo Arowolo, this interview first appeared on Thisday