Pavlo Phitidis on why hardship is a training ground for every business
"The unfortunate formula for success is that you need to make 10,000 mistakes in your industry."
Ask any entrepreneur, and they'll tell you that starting and scaling a business is no easy ride.
No one understands this reality better than international business builder Pavlo Phitidis, who has spent over two decades helping build and scale more than 2,000 companies across four continents.
Most businesses fail before making a profit, but even the most successful companies aren't spared the challenges of building and sustaining a profitable enterprise.
For Pavlo, navigating this reality comes down to one truth: "The unfortunate formula for success is that you need to make 10,000 mistakes in your industry. Those are the hard yards behind building a thriving business."
Laying the Foundation
So, is there a shortcut to reaching the top?
According to Pavlo, growing a business is much like laying the foundation of a building: "Very little can be seen or shown in the first year, or maybe two. But once you have that foundation, you can rack and stack the floors on top of it, one after the next."
In short, there are no shortcuts; it’s a grind, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a formula to reach the summit.
Pavlo says the tough times are what it takes to scale a business.
"You have to work with your team, you have to set a vision, you need to have a purpose defined as positioning that acts as your blueprint, and then the slog of putting one step in front of the next…" he says.
Not every difficult season is a sign something is broken. Sometimes difficulty is the training ground.
Join the conversation
If you want to know how to make the hard times pay off in your business, then join Pavlo Phitidis, alongside an elite lineup of speakers, including businesswoman and media personality Basetsana Kumalo, Loop founder and CEO Kimberley Taylor and former Springbok wing Bryan Habana at the MANCOSA Jacaranda FM Business Breakfast.
- Date: Monday, 17 August 2026
- Venue: Vodacom Dome, Vodacom World, Midrand
- Time: 08:00 – 11:30
- Registration: From 06:30
Ticket Pricing
- Single seat: R600
- Table of 10: R5 500
Seats are limited. Book your seat or table now and be part of the room where Legacy Speaks.
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- http://jacarandafm.com
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