Agency Manager of SAGICOR LIFE Inc, Brenton Hilaire has advised persons to develop ways in creating their own opportunities instead of waiting for opportunities to come their way.
Addressing the launching ceremony of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) Financial Information Month (FIM) 2016 Theme, Song and Video held at the Financial Centre on Tuesday, he argued that people have to create their own opportunities.
“I believe that we have become too accustomed to where we are at present, we seem to believe that we can sit down and wait for opportunities to come and wait for opportunities to come knocking on our door, but in truth and in fact this is not the case…we have to create our opportunities,” Hiliare said.
He highlighted four tips to assists persons in pursuing opportunities.
“We will start with taking the initiative…a lot of time we sit down and wait for something to come our way, whereas in order for us to be actively successful we have to prepare ourselves for the opportunity that can arise,” he explained.
Secondly, he noted, one should, “be ahead of the curve.”
“We see in the Caribbean that we like to follow each other, you would have ten places to buy food and each of those ten will sell pelau, and then another person will come and sell pelau again. Why should you be the eleventh person to sell pelau?” he asked.
Thirdly, Hilaire indicated that one should be open to new ideas and unexplored territory.
“We in the Caribbean, it was said early, we seem to be conservative. There is a tradition in the Caribbean and it’s as if this tradition limits our ability to expand,” he noted. “We are afraid to step out of this boundary, but when you have to think about it everything around us at some point was a new idea and at some point an unexplored territory.”
And in his final point, Hilaire encouraged persons to be, “bold and courageous.”
“Whenever you attempt the three points that I mentioned earlier you are going to be discouraged,” he noted. “Persons who should be encouraging you are going to tell you it will not work. You are going to find distractions on your left, on your back, at the front, everywhere, but you have to stay steadfast in your vision, you have to believe in what you are going after, be bold about it, be brave about it, be courageous.”
Meantime; Loans Supervisor of Grenada Union of Teachers Credit Union, Matonia Munroe said one need to look within since “creating opportunities begin with you.”
“Education does not merely prepare you to implement but rather to define, and creating the need to look at ways of defining opportunities,” she stated. “The vision of an idea should not stop at ponder…translation must also follow.”
Munroe stated further that opportunities are never about what you do not have, it’s always about how you employ what you have.
“Let’s challenge ourselves, we complain I cannot get a job, there is an opportunity to create your own business, you complain that there isn’t enough scope, you need to be the stretch factor, you say that I deserve a better salary, how about multiplying your investments, you say that you have no finance, you need to work with your available resources,” she remarked. “I need to leave this place, it’s a famous thing we Caribbean people say, we always feel there is not enough scope, well I challenge you to remain and employ your skills. Excuses will never get us anywhere.”
This year the ECCB is celebrating 15 years of FIM under the theme: “Create, Optimise, Pursue and Embrace”.
The activities for FIM for Dominica are still being finalized.
On Tuesday presenters from various countries in the Caribbean including, Dominica, Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Montserrat, St Lucia, St Vincent, Grenada and St Kitts &Nevis among other guests and media all formed part of the ceremony through regional video conferencing.
In both the public and private sectors we are limited to a mindset that refuses to visualize outside the norm. Ask why it is being done that way and you are told, because it has always been done that way.
Equally restrictive is duplicating what has been done elsewhere. What might be right for the US or China is not necessarily right for Dominica. And by the time we do it the world has moved on.
I couldn’t agree more! Dominica may not be perfect for everything, but it’s a very good location to set up certain businesses, such as e-commerce and services businesses.