The Springboard, Your Virtual University, a radio programme of Joy FM, has commenced a new series which it has titled, ‘My Top Ten’.

The new series seek to find out the most important principles or lessons that undergird the lives of accomplished people and even more importantly, the experiences that led them to those lessons.

This is to help guide the youth who may wish to walk in the path of these accomplished entrepreneurs and business leaders.

Taking his turn on the maiden edition of the series, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Margins Group, Mr Moses K. Baiden, said he started his first business at the age of 23 with just US$100 dollars from his father’s garage.

He said since then, he had been in business for the past 30 years, which proved that no obstacle should be in the way of one’s purpose.

“Whenever there is a will there is a way, so let’s not despise small beginnings, no matter where you are starting from,” he stated.

Mr Baiden pointed out that there were several principles that had helped shaped his life, but he selected the ones that had been the most important to him, whether in business or normal life.

1. Purpose: He noted that there must be a purpose in each and everyone’s life. “There must be a purpose in everything you do. There will be several purposes during your lifetime but you cannot do everything at the same time so you have to settle on some and pursue them.”

2. Passion: “You must pursue your purpose with passion. Discipline, from the home of the school, is a selling regime that makes life easy by routinising certain actions that make you operate in this world. But beyond that, what really will keep you up is love. This is what will push you and make you have competitive edge in business.

“Sometimes pursuing what you love doesn’t come with financial gains but it makes you happy. So if you balance that with some kind of financial freedom, then it will bring you fulfilment. Passion flows from the soul and it teaches you a certain regime that will only keep you focused over time, whether it gives you lots of money or not.”

3. Values: “You must have a clear set of values to govern your life. Values determine which range of passion and purposes you will pursue. It is your values that will tell you not to do anything that will result in crime or anything that does not have integrity.

4. Humanity: “You must be humane. It’s not always about money, you just recognise you are a human being and have to be humane in everything that you do. You must impact humanity and leave some footprints.

5. Knowledge: “Pursue knowledge, ask tough and good questions when you meet more accomplished people and do not forget the answers they give you. In one lifetime, it is not possible to learn everything that there is in life, so one has to recognise that to get relevant knowledge, you should read, take short courses and find people who have done it before and learn from them.

6. Embrace change: “You must embrace change because it is constant. People are afraid of change, so when they get to a comfort zone, they want to stay there but life is full of seasons. Everybody has opportunities if he/she is concentrating. You must look for a change in the pattern in order to take advantage of it. When preparing, you are looking for a set of circumstances to come together to cause a change that will make the preparations you have been making come to bear.

7. Know your customers: “Know your customers and their needs because that is the first step to problem-solving and products creation. The products come after the needs because customer needs are constant, but the products, solutions and services change.”

8. Inner peace: “Ensure you have a peaceful home. Without inner peace and the right environment, you or your vision can die prematurely. Even in choosing a partner for marriage, if you really want to be an effective leader and perform at a certain level, you need peace at home. You need the family framework and support.”

9. Understand the principle of money: “No matter how hungry you are, never eat the hen that lays the golden eggs. Don’t spend what you haven’t earned and don’t borrow for consumption. When you learn this principle, you will learn to cut your coat according to your size.”

10. Strive for excellence: “You must always strive for excellence. If you want to play in a league, you must aim for the Champions League and not the Colts League.”