Discovering Old Trails of Entrepreneurship as if they are New

When I started to find my feet in this entrepreneurship thing, there used to be talks here and there about collaboration being the new currency. And without a doubt, I jumped on the train.

The other reason was that such a train had no clear route where I come from. Yet, we knew of it because the trails seemed to have left a long line of evidence that it wasn't foreign to us, but somehow sabotaged along the way.

I remember when we would talk about this collaboration thing, we’d often reference other communities that had a functional train of collaboration. You’d hear my people confidently reference Muslims, Jews, and so on.

It really puzzled me that we ended up reviving that long-lost trail of evidence by starting a small thing called Homegrown Shandis, a vehicle to get us to this new "currency."

Little did I know that same proof-of-concept would get me into a deeper school of thought, the kind where you hear a lecturer say: “Entrepreneurship is like jumping out of a plane and realizing you forgot your parachute… and you have to figure it out mid-air.”

The resonance was a living prophecy, one I lived alongside others who attended the same school-of-thought, seeking belonging when the community couldn’t accept or understand us.

The metaphor became reality, one we endure to this day.

Nevertheless, time moved on, even while we were stuck in the moment, trying to untangle the cobwebs just to clearly see the fall we had taken from the plane. Never mind the parachute that we still had to figure out before the crash.

Mid-air, as you raise your head to look at the clock of life, everyone is now talking about “showing up.”
It became a thing, just like collaboration, when it turned into currency.

Mind you, all of these concepts are old and known, but I guess they were kept in the hands of a few.

Because when I, too, started showing up mid-air during the fall - untangling the intricacies of entrepreneurship while trying to build its parachute - it was slowly becoming a gospel that we all began to preach and grasp.

Albeit the adjustment to the situation was becoming apparent, then COVID came and changed us into influencers.
We all had to adapt.
The pacing got faster, and it didn’t care who became obsolete.

While we were still learning that, now everyone is talking about “skin in the game.”

“You need to have skin in the game.”
“Those who have the money you need, have skin in the game.”

Now, we’re trying to figure that out too, discovering the hidden tracks walked by those who’ve kept the gates closed, making us struggle to get to the other side.

Yes, that’s what it has felt like thus far.

However, we walk the terrain with bravery and our heads held high.

Even more, we are now transforming to gain the skin in the game required for us to get there.
Anticipating the next wave, as if it’s a newly discovered concept to live by.