#YouthMatters: Lusimadio Simao, founder of Entrepreneurs NBA

Can you tell us more about the business accelerator you are running?

Entrepreneurs NBA is a business accelerator, operating within the venture capital and private equity sector. We are mainly focused on developing small and medium businesses.

Our programme is designed to:

• Help businesses build a network for sustainable exchange (partnership and collaborations)
  
• Facilitate business exchange between them.
  
• Share business advices and experience.
  
• Promote appropriate training to executives and leaders from all industries and backgrounds.

Our team is qualified and success oriented, with a great record of successfully achieved projects. And our services are strictly oriented to:

• Promote a productive network around your business
  
• Increase business revenue
  
• Develop faster business expansion.

What is your title and what does your role entail?

I am the founder and CEO of the company. Besides assuring that the objectives and vision of the enterprise is fully respected. I'm on a journey of building a new and skilful team who is able to deliver just one of my greatest passions. But speaking to business executives, building strategic training system that suits clients perspectives and selecting and support entrepreneurs and business individuals to develop new business ideas are my main concern or duties within the company.

When did your passion for entrepreneurship begin?

I started when I was 12 years old selling water from the tanks. This was a family business, and that time we had two tanks, and I was managing one. From then, I started seeing myself as a business owner. And a crazy thing about me is that I have never wanted to be someone's employee, even though I had to work for some. It's the reason why I refused a great job offer after matric from an oil and gas company in my native country Angola.

Tell us about your journey so far. The up, the downs.

Wow... one thing I can assure you is that nothing is easy to be attained. But with determination and discipline, building up the "right" knowledge, we can attain anything we want.

My journey until here has not been easy. I have started businesses and failed. Spoken to people and have been deceived. But I never give up. There is this quote from Elon Mask that once said in an interview, "... For me to give up, that simply means I am dead...".

What is your biggest motivation?

Excellence. Inspiration. Influence.

To leave a footprint that will inspire and influence my generation and the upcoming.

Since running the business accelerator. Could you share an example of a company you successfully helped?

Yes. I currently work with some small and medium businesses around South Africa in various industries including beauty, media, health and more.

But I will share about a client from Mpumalanga that reached out to Entrepreneurs NBA. His idea was to build a print shop business. I personally help him with business planning and establish a solid idea of what he wanted and need to do. And now he is doing quite well.

Besides that I have been sharing business advice, locally and internationally. Entrepreneurs have been contacting me asking for new idea, and other asking me to validate their ideas.

If you could travel back in time, what advice would you give yourself?

Patience is not always the best choice. Change in direction may work when patience is not the solution. This is what I would give anything to learn, if I have to go maybe 10 years back.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?

Having at least 2-3 successful SMEs, a happy family and a book in the market; by the way, I am working on a book that is going to be entitled Success, The Theory, which I hope will inspire other entrepreneurs.

As we celebrate Youth Month, do you have any words of encouragement for the youth?

There is a Bible verse that says, "Youth is known by their strength". We need as the youth of today to be conscious of our strength, which has nothing to do with the physical but inner strength.

For more, go to https://www.facebook.com/entrepreneursnba.