LimeGig: Arabang Olekanye
Arabang offers valuable insights into the challenges and rewards of being a founder and provides tips for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Arabang Olekanye
Arabang Olekanye is a technology entrepreneur who builds platforms connecting people to earning and learning opportunities. He has explored the future of work with most of his ventures and is currently steering the ship at:
- LimeGig. This online talent marketplace connects skilled talent to paying global gigs.
- BlitzDraw is an online lottery platform that allows people to win things they wouldn't usually afford.
- Netversity is a startup changing how people learn and start careers by getting them into the field the minute they have specific career aspirations/dreams.
- Venus Global is a startup building a new world within an already existing world - this will excite you.
He has created many other failed businesses, but that's okay because he's exploring longevity and is always excited about the future!
How has being an entrepreneur changed you as a person?
Entrepreneurship exposes you to many things about yourself, and you get to know yourself better (what you need to change and what you need to double down on). Being an entrepreneur has taught me many lessons for me, but two changes stand out: entrepreneurship has turned me into a much more calculated human.
Thinking ahead and always trying to be better than you were a minute ago is part and parcel of entrepreneurship. You face existential threats now and then, which helps you meet your fears in all aspects of your life with much more courage and boldness (there aren't many things you can't face head-on and not win once you've been practicing entrepreneurship for a while).
What do you believe are the critical ingredients for a successful small business?
Strategy, an insane belief in your actions, and dogged execution.
What are your plans for the future of your small business?
Those can change any minute depending on how hard the window blows, but here is what I can say: every day is the take-over season for us, and nobody will make our client's/users' lives more manageable than we do.
What motivated you to become an entrepreneur?
You know what they say "some people are born with the gift, some learn it" I happen to be one of those born with it. It has always come naturally to me.
What was your inspiration for starting your own business?
I will forever give all the problems the world has credit for this, the world is full of issues, and I love to solve them via entrepreneurial adventures.
How have you overcome challenges in your entrepreneurial journey?
Every new challenge requires a different war suit, but every day it gets tricky. I remind myself there isn't anything else I would rather be doing. I think it's vital that we each have a playbook, a go-to guide for handling different challenges and how long we are willing to entertain them.
What is your favorite type of frozen pizza?
Vegan Margherita
Can you name all 50 states in 5 minutes?
Yes, even in my sleep. I would start with Florida because that's where my first client came from.
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