The Third Most Important Skill in Business (Part 3) By Dr Strive Masiyiwa

Study to show yourself approved.

There is more to sales and marketing than simply putting an advert in a newspaper or on social media. Sales and marketing is a professional discipline just like engineering or accounting.

You must be conscious of the need to acquire some deeper academic understanding of this subject if you want to run a successful business or be a top executive.

You know by now that I don't believe in experience which is not supported by continuous study and scholarship.



Although I had a passion for selling, my own professional training was in electrical engineering which I studied at university. I also majored in economics. When I decided to go into business, I focused my studies in finance and accounting, as well as in sales and marketing.

These days if you have a degree you can study things like an MBA if you want to get into finance, accounting, sales and marketing. But even if you didn’t get to university, there are diplomas you can study in these subjects, even through night school, and online.

It’s up to you to do your own research. One good online place to start looking is https://www.coursera.org which I’ve mentioned here before. If you go to this website just type in any business subject you want to study, like accounting, finance, economics, sales and marketing. They also offer financial aid.

The things I teach you here are not enough to ground you in these areas. This should just be enough to get you started after realizing the importance...

Accounting, finance, economics, sales and marketing: These are the bedrock for any entrepreneur, irrespective of your choice of business. You might be a farmer, or a doctor planning to set up clinics. Maybe you’re in real estate, or retail. It doesn’t matter.

Thanks to technology, no matter where you live, if you have a Smartphone, computer and internet connection, it is possible for you to study at the best universities in the world online. Check it out and tell me what you find.

__Study to show yourself approved.

Accounting, finance, economics, sales and marketing:  These are foundational skills. Take economics, for example: What does economics have to do with your life?  Everything! The role of the government in your economy, private markets, consumer choice, production decisions, market structures, monetary and fiscal policies, unemployment, inflation, international trade and exchange rates… These are not just academic topics for professors. They impact you and your life, one way or another, every single day

I'll say it one more time: Accounting, finance, economics, sales and marketing! Yes, you’ll go on to hire experts in some of these areas as your business grows, but you must have a basic grounding yourself to be able to deploy and manage your teams effectively

To be continued. . .