Don’t Put a Boeing 747 Engine in a Poor Tractor

7 years in. Still building. Still filtering the noise

Folks, I’ve been building my restaurant chain for the past seven years. Along the way I’ve launched other ventures too. And I can tell you this: apart from dishonest people and carefree employees, another difficult thing to deal with as an entrepreneur is advice.

If you haven’t “made it” yet by society’s definition, you will drown in unsolicited advice. Family, friends, customers, even strangers will tell you how to price, how to staff, how to expand, how to brand, how to beat competition, how to sustain, and the list is endless. Most of it misses the mark completely. But here’s the part we forget: most of the people giving it mean well. They speak from love, concern, and genuine interest in seeing your business grow. Hence, the intention is rarely the problem.

What they often lack is insight. And that’s not their fault. There are things you can only know if you’ve actually built from scratch. If you’ve failed a few times and rebuilt. If you’ve started many things, and are still starting more in spite of the odds. People without that lived experience will always give advice that’s academic. By the book. Clean. Perfect on paper. But business on the street and on the ground is messy. Margins are thin. Power goes out. Staff quit on a Friday. Customers pay on Monday. You can’t learn that in a lecture.

The real challenge for most founders isn’t finding people to give advice. It’s finding people who understand where you are right now, and can still take you where you want to go. You need people who are ambidextrous. People who can mop the floor with you today, and also draw the org chart for 20 locations tomorrow. People who can price a bowl of jollof for today’s market, and also think about supply chains and systems. That flexibility is rare.

Most people only know one universe. Especially those who are “educated” in just one way. They assume everything must fit perfectly into that universe, even when reality is screaming otherwise. They’ll tell you to buy the Boeing 747 engine because that’s what big companies do. But as Jack Ma puts it, “When your company is a poor tractor, don’t try to buy a Boeing 747 engine for it.” You’ll break the tractor, waste the money, and still not move.

So if you’re building right now, filter hard. Be grateful for the love behind the advice, but test it against your reality. Learn the difference between what works in books and what works on the ground. Find mentors who have grease on their hands and vision in their eyes. People who’ve been in the trenches, and still think big. Because growth isn’t about collecting more advice. It’s about getting the right advice for the stage you’re in. Otherwise, you’ll spend years trying to fly a tractor. And the same people who told you to bolt on a Boeing engine will be the first to ask why you wasted it.

Finally, remember this: entrepreneurship is a marathon, not a sprint. Let those who treat it like a 100-meter dash burn out early. You focus on building momentum for the long haul. It’s the end that matters, not how fancy the steps look along the way. Take your time. Build right. And while you’re at it — carpe diem.