BUSINESS ACUMEN

A Muslim man in Delhi is regarded as a successful motor mechanic. The secret to his success can be learned from one of his experiences:

In 1982, the news spread that the Maruti car, manufactured by the Japanese company Suzuki, would soon be available in the market. This Muslim man immediately realized that once the Maruti cars started running on Indian roads, the need for their servicing and repairs would also begin. At that time, anyone who knew how to work on these cars would certainly be very successful.

The Muslim man knew that Suzuki in Japan had been making and selling the same car in Pakistan for the past ten years. Thousands of these cars were on Pakistani roads. So, he decided to go to Pakistan to learn the trade. He traveled from Delhi to Karachi and stayed there for two months, learning how to repair and service Suzuki cars. Then he returned to Delhi.

When the Indian-made Maruti cars started running on Indian roads, he had already gained the necessary skills. As a result, he began working on Maruti cars. Customers valued his work, and he earned a good amount of money by servicing Maruti cars.

If you think about it, you’ll see that the success of the mentioned Muslim man depended on three things: awareness, foresight, and action. He knew that Suzuki company cars were in use in Pakistan. Then, he forecasted that soon the servicing and repairs for these cars would begin in India. Finally, he had the courage to take the necessary steps to seize this opportunity.

These qualities define commercial acumen. Someone with this skill is likely to succeed in the world. Success is a fifty-fifty split; it relies fifty percent on opportunities and fifty percent on the ability to seize those opportunities.