I was on time for the meeting and sat in the Managing Director’s office, suit and tie and all. I was there to discuss the online presence of the MD’s company. It is worth mentioning that this company is one of the largest – if not the largest – exporter of carpets from Pakistan. Sitting in the office, I saw a few people come in, place papers on the table etc, and leave. But the MD was no where to be seen. A kid, with jeans and a t shirt, casually walks in and shakes my hand. He asks me why I am here, and soon we are talking about websites and the online demographic. He then asks me, “why should I expand online when I already am running on full capacity?” It took me some time to realize that I was talking to the MD. He was the owner’s son, and looks after the company when his father is out of the country.

###

Ask any ‘family business’ and they will tell you that the best way to lean business is to get your hands dirty as soon as possible. They might also tell you how their ‘forefathers’ didn’t make it big because they were schooled at Harvard, but because they had the most gutts and a very large capacity for persistence.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the only way to make a lot of money is not through a job, but through being self-employed, through business; and the best way to learn business is to get your hands dirty as soon and as early in life as possible.