Man Founded Solar Energy Start-Up, Shares Experience Of Race Hurdles In Entrepreneurship Journey
Source: Meet Insights, Mr Furqan is on the extreme right
Founder of 10 Degree Solar, Mr Furqan Shamsudin, was recently featured on the Plan B podcast where he shared his story on starting his company that specialises in solar based renewable energy.
Source: National Solar Repository of Singapore
In a special interview with our Plan B reporter, Mr Furqan shares his experiences in navigating this unique industry as one of the few players from a minority race.
CAN YOU SHARE WITH US ON HOW YOU GOT THE MOTIVATION TO START THIS COMPANY?
One thing that I noticed from my younger years was the excitement I got from being challenged in creating something from scratch to something that brings value to the market. It is a factor that I draw my motivation from. Although motivation in entrepreneurship can be scarce when faced with a mountain of rejections and obstacles, discipline in your field and confidence in yourself are keys of the game.
HAVE YOU CONSIDERED TO VENTURE INTO OTHER INDUSTRIES APART FROM RENEWABLE SOLAR ENERGY?
Yes, I have considered venturing into other industries but the timing has to be correct. At the current point of time, I choose to focus on renewable energy, especially solar energy, as I believe that you need to focus on a particular trade and master it before venturing into other industries. In my opinion, having multiple ventures without having a strong backbone in one is a recipe for disaster. You might risk losing it all. Yet, I acknowledge that venturing into other industries is necessary to bloom but the timing has to be precise and calculated.
WHAT WERE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES YOU FACED AS ONE OF THE ONLY MALAY-RUN COMPANIES IN THIS INDUSTRY BEFORE YOU STARTED NETWORKING WITH OTHER PLAYERS?
One of the challenges is creating a name for yourself. As a minority in an industry that is Chinese dominated, it is difficult to build trust and credibility and forge relationships with clients, suppliers and vendors. Some examples of these challenges include the language barrier where several Chinese businessmen spoke in Chinese when I was in their presence which made me feel ostracised as I could not understand the conversation and racial stereotypes where I received remarks such as “Melayu tak tau buat business, nanti tak lama lagi tutup. Beli dari Cina lagi bagus.” (Malays don’t know how to do business, their business will shut down soon enough. Buy from Chinese better.) from a Malay business acquaintance during a project meeting.
Sometimes it’s really demoralising to receive such negativity from even your own race which makes business dealings difficult and frustrating at times. It also makes it difficult to shift the preconceived notions the public have of us as “unreliable” Malays to “reliable” Malay business partners as such racist sentiments are still prevalent to this day and I constantly look up to our Malay-Muslim leaders like our President, Madam Halimah Yacob, and our Singaporean Malay-Muslim business leaders for inspiration and motivation.
LASTLY, DO YOU HAVE ANY PIECE OF GOLDEN ADVICE FOR THE YOUNGER GENERATION THAT WANTS TO DABBLE IN ENTREPRENEURSHIP LIKE YOURSELF?
There are many pieces of advice and quotes from great entrepreneurs and business leaders that we can get inspiration from. But I would like to break it down into a few practical steps.
If you intend to venture into entrepreneurship:
Do lengthy research on the market
Make detailed plannings (Business Plans)
Take action fast if it deems reasonable (Calculated Risks)
If you fail, learn from your mistakes and start from step 1 again
That is the only way to learn. There is no shortcut to success.
Reporter’s Opinions: I’ve listened to the podcast episodes prior to interviewing Mr Furqan. One consistent point I’ve observed from the challenges he faced is that it’s important to build credibility and conduct sound research before venturing into anything whether it’s business related or not.
That’s why I’m always open to working different jobs and learning new skills in or out of school because it’s interesting and important to adapt to the changing times. It may seem trivial but it’s still a new experience that can always be added to our resumes.
Listen to Plan B’s Podcast this week!
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