I once did an entrepreneur profile of Dr Lance Mambondiani. He is an iconic Zimbabwean business executive with vast experience in the business and banking sectors. Dr Mambondiani is a highly respected academic, director in several companies and a recipient of several awards and academic scholarships. He holds a PhD from the University of Manchester. His thesis was on Corporate Governance, Bank Ownership and Profitability. He also holds a first-class MSc in Development Economics and International Development from the University of Manchester. He did a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) at the University of Zimbabwe. Today I thought it relevant to look at some of the inspirational things he has said before.

The Indispensable Place Of Putting In The Work

“I believe strongly in good old-fashioned hard work, passion, and pouring my heart and soul into every assignment that I am privileged to lead. God’s gift to me is my potential and my gift to God is what I can do with my potential.”

This is absolutely true! I have even noticed that an unqualified person with hard work, passion, pouring in their heart and soul can produce better results than someone qualified without those attributes. It clearly shows you how pertinent putting in the work is. Come to think of it this is coming from someone with a PhD, a Masters, and a Law degree.

The Right Attitude Towards Failure

“Do not be afraid to fail. Success is learning from failure and learning to embrace failure as an option. You have to be bold and courageous and take risks if you are to achieve your goals.”

Failure is simply an indicator that you missed something. You figure out it and do better next time. So, failure is truly a cue to learn more and improve yourself.

The Right Qualities Of An Entrepreneur

“I love to work with young, passionate, driven, focused go-getters who are not afraid to make hard choices or make mistakes. I am energy driven and I have come to understand that hunger to succeed is often more important than skill.”

I particularly love the part where he said hunger to succeed is often more important than skill. Imagine the compounded effect of having both the skill and the hunger. That is what you should aim for in your ventures.

Challenging What Is Conventional

“I grew up in what we are considered serious professions; law and banking. My happy socks have been a way of challenging convention and adding a little spark to jobs largely considered boring and traditional.”

I personally believe that no profession is more important than the other. Adding a little spark – I liked that; any profession can be spiced up to be engaging and dynamic.

Compete With Only Yourself

“I do not believe in competing with anyone or anything. I compete with myself. My aim is to be a better version of myself today than I was yesterday.”

This is easier than done for most people but is essential to a consummate human experience. I find it even ironic that when competing with someone else it is easy to lose yourself.

Everyone Matters

“I love people. I was brought up to serve with humility. I believe that someone else does not have to fail for me to succeed. There is enough room for us to succeed together. For that reason, I am always happy to support passionate, driven go-getters in whatever way I can.”

Love is the most powerful force there is. Combined with humility it is the most powerful combo all of us should have. The society we live in is largely toxic and broken mainly because of a lack of love and humility.

Having A Multigenerational Mindset

“I am passionate about being a part of a generation that stands for something and wants to leave the country better than we found it. We owe it to our children to do better than those who precede us.”

“Ultimately, I would like to teach my kids to do ten times better, ten times faster than I have done. I would like to leave my family with more than just a kango pot, but a multi-generational thought process, for self and the country.”

The Bible speaks of how a father should leave an inheritance for their children and children’s children. Sadly most Zimbabweans do not have that mindset. When I did an entrepreneur profile of Ken Sharpe I touched on this generational aspect – something Mr Sharpe underscores as well.

I am confident you have gotten the much-needed inspiration from these quotes. It is always a wise thing to regularly pick the minds of successful people. You might not get the opportunity to sit down and talk with them. However, you can take advantage of what they say during public speaking engagements. You will tap into a wealth of life-changing insights.