THINKTHRU

                                                                         

We crave not the fish

The net we plea

Teach us not the sermon

The scriptures we yearn

Of rivers we know

Show us how to swim

We have recited the rhymes

Now, let us make ours lyrics

Oceans of books you showed us

Our unique dreams, let’s show in turn

A pen for a paper

Talents for knowledge

To speak you imparted

Now, to our voices do listen

And as we speak

Our own sounds we echo

La la la la la lo lo lo

So help us God.

         

                    FARMING IS NOT FOR THE POOR!                                                                                                                         Bukola 'Bello

What comes to your mind when you hear the word “farm” or “farming”? Rusted hoes and bended cutlasses swinging back and forth atop the toughened hands of a sun backed poverty stricken lowly dude? Or some remote locality made up mostly of bushes; thorns, feral animals, muddy water and a poor rickety care taker called farmer? Well, that’s about the flawed picture an average college student and even older ones paint of farming in this “oil crazed” era of ours. Little wonder Agriculture, since the oil boom in the 1970s, has been given little or no attention. Needless detailing the failure of the nation to manage her oil wealth efficiently and prudently; it’s only appears alternative economy; majorly Agriculture is being sought after earnestly now, not only by Government but among individual citizens.

The question that comes to your mind next as well as mine is why this change? Yeah. But to answer this question, let’s reason on a few points together. Why did the nation abandon Agriculture for oil decades ago? I’ll say because oil was seen then as the hot cake that Agriculture was not. Consider the print media; why has the world shifted from the print media to electronic media and swiftly at that? My answer would be, because the world perceived E media is big deal while print media is long thing (beaming). Or why are you reading this piece on your smart phone now and not a massive Desktop with a wide keyboard spread in front of you? Technological innovation I’ll call it.

Come to think of it; why would you wait 24hrs to read a news item on a dailies when you can actually catch the latest news, on the countless and emerging blogs for less and in  varieties, and why do you think Journalists are now threatened? Change, I’ll call it, nobody knew blogging would be the in thing by now.

 Why would a mum rather prepare Pando yam and egusi soap on a tiring Sunday evening with no helping hands around than engage in the laborious traditional mortar and pestle type of pounding? That’s because either of the options enhance comfort while the other doesn’t, thanks to the brains behind the initiative, even though it’s a strategy to consume more of our money( smiling).

 More significantly, why are more folks trooping into entrepreneurship now than ever before? To that, I’ll say because more folks are getting wiser by the day.

One trait of a wise person economically speaking is having the initiative to plow into the viable and hottest sector and on time too. Farming or Agriculture is hot now, and will ever be. You can never go wrong with a plot of land or less as your farm portion and anything from fruits to grains or cassavas and vegetables would be just good. Remember, it doesn’t have to be an 8am – 4pm thing,  just give as much time as your plants require and you can be as flexible as you desire (you are your own  boss here) and you are good to go. Apart from the attractive economical advantages, farming is the only way you can be sure of feeding well and you know you how important that is to your health.

So, please, stop having that impression that farmers are poverty stricken uninformed minority, it starts with as simple as acknowledging the fact that farmers are nation feeders and their career is equally important as other noble careers. So would you join me as we go farming the world to wealth and health!

RAPID REALISTIC RESOLUTIONS

I am not usually so freaked about making resolutions for a new year or “new year resolution” as it is traditionally known, not only because I have seen many “resolutionees” over the years, flout whatever they have resolved to do or not to do within just few days into the new year, I have also noticed that the noise about resolutions only lasts till mid-January, and before long, everyone seems to relax into the old habit, usually of laziness and laxity. Nonetheless, I have discerned that it is often advantageous to come up with resolutions or even goals not only at the beginning of a year but periodically. By periodically, I wish to suggest that such resolutions could come up every new school term/session, monthly, at the beginning of each week or by quarterly. We don’t have to wait a whole year to make a resolution or decision, that way, we would have to wait till the year ends before we could judge how well we’ve performed and as they say, life is short, but time is even shorter. So these days, many young people can hardly have the patience to wait a whole year to see how well they have achieved the previous year. In fact, as younger ones, a whole year may seem like a whole decade to us. However, as it is often said that experience is the best teacher, I will like to some short term resolutions that you could achieve in the next two weeks, three months or thereabouts (I have tried them, and it worked for me within a short while). For the purpose of this discussion, I will call it the RAPID REALISTIC RESOLUTIONS (RRR).  The beauty of this plan is that as the name implies, they are resolutions you could make rapidly or swiftly, that are realistic and achievable and quite effective. More so, they are resolutions that will profit your immediate environment and you.  Below is a list of such RAPID REALISTIC RESOLUTIONS that you will be sure to achieve before the next school term ends.

1. Simply bag it! This RRR forbids you to throw refuse or waste of any kind on the floor of wherever you might find yourself; school halls, dormitories, playing fields, markets, streets or churches. If there are no waste bins around, simply bag it; put it somewhere safe in your bag and remember to dispose it when you get home.
2. Sorry and thank you. This RRR requires that you always be quick to say sorry and thank you whenever there is need for it. In fact, you don’t have to wait till the need arise for it; there will always be reasons for you to say sorry and thank you. And add this: you don’t have to be the offender or receiver to say sorry or thank you. It doesn’t matter if you are the subject or object. If you resolve to always do this, you will be a happier person.
3. Don’t impress, be impressed. This RRR prohibits you from any action to impress your folks. If you love to impress people; you will end up impressing not even yourself. Such attitude emanates from selfishness and pride. For example, as you prepare for another school term, are you determined to impress your folks that you are from a rich family, thus pressuring your parents to buy you a new school bag when the old one is still good? You don’t have to impress your folks, just be yourself and be impressed by those who are morally chaste and academically sound, someday, someone will be impressed by you, and that will be a great achievement for you.
4. Put on a smiling face.  Smile, it adds to your face value. This is one of the easiest resolutions anyone can make on planet earth. Just smile. I didn’t realise the importance of this habit until recently. That very good morning I had left home, annoyed, after a little disagreement with my siblings, only to stumble upon a prospective employer at the bank I went to make transaction. I was so embarrassed that he saw me with my face all squeezed up angrily, more so that he had granted me an interview earlier in the week. I did not realise how horrible I looked until he smiled so warmly to me, I quickly adjusted my face and smile back, but I knew I had already passed a wrong message. From that day, I decided I will always put on a smiling face no matter the situation. Luckily, you don’t have to face an embarrassing situation like mine before you make it a resolution to smile always.

INFOTECH:

THE YOUNG ARE TAKING THE LEAD!

What comes to your mind whenever someone, maybe your teacher or friend, mentions Information Technology or simply IT? Well, not to bore you with superfluous jargons at this level, I will succinctly tell you about three young guys who developed unflinching interest in IT at a tender age and amazing success that came their ways in the long run.

D'Aloisio launched Summly (a mobile application) in December, 2011 from his bedroom at the age of 15. He had taught himself how to code (write computer program) at the age of 12. Despite being so young, he received funds from big companies such as Horizons Ventures, which happens to be the venture capital arm of Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-Shing and also received advice from actor Ashton Kutcher and artist Yoko Ono. Two years later, at 17 (earlier this year, 2013), D'Aloisio sold his popular news reading application to Yahoo Inc., for $30 million, instantly becoming one of the world’s youngest self-made technology millionaires. Yahoo also employed this lad to work at its London office. Are you astounded? Here is another one!

David Karp earlier this year reached an agreement with Yahoo to acquire Tumblr for $1.1 billion. Tumblr? You may ask. Yes, Tumblr is an online personalised blogging platform launched by David Karp at the age of 18.

Mark Zuckerberg, the owner of Facebook, developed an interest in computers at an early age. When he was about 12, he used Atari BASIC to create a messaging program he named Zucknet. His father used the program in his dental office so that the receptionist could inform him of a new patient without yelling across the room. The family also used Zucknet to communicate within the house. Together with his friends, he also created computer games just for fun. "I had a bunch of friends who were artists," he said. "They'd come over, draw stuff, and I'd build a game out of it."

To keep up with Mark's burgeoning interest in computers, his parents hired private computer tutor, David Newman to come to the house once a week and work with Mark. Newman later told reporters that it was hard to stay ahead of the prodigy, who began taking graduate courses at nearby Mercy College around this same time.

At age 21, he launched Facebook. Today, Zuckerberg at 29 is one of the richest men in the world. In fact, he is the highest paid CEO in the world.

If you take note of the individual names mentioned above, you will notice no African name was mentioned! While so many brilliant young Africans/Nigerians are doing so well in many other life endeavours, we seem to be lagging behind when it comes to Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Another notable point is that these great men all started pursuing their dreams at a very young age. You will, therefore, agree with me that you do not have to wait until you are out of college before you begin to pursue your career. Now, you can see why it is a wake-up call for you to be the next super star in this area, ICT, even while you are still very young.

The world has gone InfoTech completely and there is no excuse for you and I not to achieve a global feat in ICT.

Who says you cannot be the next Nigerian superstar in the Information Technology world!

START EARLY

I recently meet two young men and proud employers of at least ten other young people. During our discussion, I got to realise that these young employers only had one wish: that they had started created a niche in their animation/3D visualization line of work earlier. Later that day, there ensued a discussion between the men and me on the need for young ones to start exploring the entrepreneurial realm as soon as they have basic formal education. Let me share some of the points of our discussion, you will be inspired.

DISCOVER YOUR PASSION

No one can do this for you; do it yourself! Good enough, all of us have our own talent, ability, flair and capability that have been deposited in us; we only need to find out what this super talent is, to think through. When I was younger, we used to have a neighbour whose son always cared for pets. He would feed them, protect them and nurture them; he knew when they were ill and what to do to make them well. Soon, we began seeing him as a pet enthusiast but he was actually becoming a pet “care taker”. Many years later, when I saw him again, he had become the biggest animal farmer in his area, supplying animal product. I was not surprised, at least as much as others. What helped my neighbour’s son? He discovered his passion, and early. Take a good look at you, what is that thing you find yourself doing effortlessly and often? That might be your own talent. Discover it and go right after it. Remember, you must believe it to achieve it and it’s never late but better early!

DON’T EXCHANGE YOUR TALENT FOR A DEGREE

One fact you can never be told in school is that talent cannot be leant there! And your teachers always are concerned about your academic performance than your talent – after all, schooling is not attending some talent hunt show. You can attain a degree from Harvard University (That’s about the most prestigious University in the world) and refuse to develop that golden talent deposited in you by your creator. Four months ago, at a conference, I meet a young lady who resigned as a frustrated banker at the age of 27. She is now a fulfilled author of a bestselling novel in the US (her novels are sold in Nigeria too). The point is that, it pays to explore one’s talent than to endure one’s labour. You enjoy yourself more that way. Do not trade your talent for the best of degrees or education; always ensure that you develop your talent equally. I am not discouraging you from going to school; in fact, education is the bedrock of any notable achievement. But you do not have to place education above your talent. Don’t you ever compromise! Your talent is equally profitable. Now let me give you this little task: try and find out that thing that you do effortlessly and enjoyably, remember, you can thinkthru it yourself. Once you identify that, then the rest is history.

                                                                       ENTREPRENEURIAL

 

When I was in college, I hardly paid attention to words like “self-employed” or “entrepreneurship” or perhaps our teachers/guidance hardly talked about it; somehow the entrepreneurial world inadvertently evaded most students of my generation- just about a decade ago. We all wanted to become top medical Doctors, respected lawyers, professional engineers, chattered accountants, great Economists and other high sounding professional careers. Talking success, those were our perceived way outs. One had to aspire to become either of these or will be “nowhere to be found”.  No doubt, these professions are not only well respected; they play very crucial roles in any nation’s development, hence the prestige placed on them. But after stepping outside the borders of the college and getting ahead into the “real world” did I realise loads of vocations in which one can actually carve out one’s golden niche in the labour market, yet these are not the fields we used to eye so passionately but naively back in school. The Increasing dearth of vacancies even for those trained in the careers earlier mentioned further necessitate the need to begin to look into the other side of the coin; the major reason we work being to put food on the table among others. From fashion designing to photography, beads making to make over, event planning, detergent production, catering services, the list is endless; young ones have various options from which to choose; all serving as a sure means to earn an earnest living if well managed. The truth is: the richest in the world are entrepreneurs. Unlike those of my generation, modern college students need not be ignorant of the various opportunities that knock at their door, they need not be unaware of the various additional skills they could acquire alongside their education which could be of great value to them after college or even sooner. Below are some entrepreneurial traits any young one who desire to be an entrepreneur should begin to develop.       

 

Not all successful people are born that way. In fact, anyone can be a successful entrepreneur. However, there are some specific entrepreneurial traits a person must have to be successful in the field of business. Of course, entrepreneurship is not for everyone. But with these particular character traits you can see if you really have what it takes to succeed in the highly competitive world of business. What are these essential entrepreneurial traits that anyone who is interested in starting a business must possess?

 

1. Independence

This is the most common denominator of all entrepreneurs. He wants to seize control of his future which is mainly why he decides to become his own boss instead of labouring under the gaze of a master. An entrepreneur has a strong sense of independence and will march forward with a purpose and that is to earn money through his own means and hard work.

 

2) Persistence and Determination

The world of entrepreneur is fraught with both success and failure. An important quality of a successful entrepreneur is the doggedness to continue pursuing his goal despite some setbacks and obstacles that he might encounter on the road. This persistence and determination is fuelled by a burning desire to achieve his goal and succeed in his chosen field of business.

3) Self-Confidence

Along with independence, an entrepreneur possesses self-confidence. He believes in his capabilities and he makes sure that he will put in his best effort into his particular endeavours and likewise expect the best results from it. Belief in one's capabilities is very important in achieving any goal - especially in the world of entrepreneurship.

      4) Creativity

In the business world, you cannot afford to be complacent and uncreative unless you want the competition to move up ahead of you. So, you really need to be very creative – you should be able to create new ideas as well as find new ways to solve problems. By doing this, you can make sure that you stay ahead
of the competition. Creative people are naturally curious, inquisitive, bright and highly flexible when thinking. They keenly observe their environment and have an eye for spotting new trends that could potentially be a business opportunity.

     5) Organized and goal-oriented

An entrepreneur knows the value of organization in a business endeavour. All efforts must be focused towards achieving the goal. A good entrepreneur systematizes every move s/he makes so that less time and other resources are
consumed in achieving the goal. A good entrepreneur has the ability to consolidate his/her resources.

     6) Visionary

An entrepreneur has a vision for his future. S/he is guided by this vision in everything s/he does. This vision may be for short or long term, but all visions are to ultimately succeed in expanding the business.

     7) Risk Taking and Tolerance for Failure

A good entrepreneur realizes that loss and failure are inherent in any business
endeavor. Thus, an entrepreneur must always be ready to make calculated risks and face whatever consequences these risks might have. Entrepreneurs must have the courage to face failure and start again even in the face of setbacks. As in all fields of endeavour, the characteristic of a successful entrepreneur is in never giving up and picking up the pieces and continuing the journey even if failure momentarily obstructs the way.

   8) Perseverance and Hard Work

These are perhaps two of the most important entrepreneurial traits. An entrepreneur must be ready to endure hardships that come especially when the business is just kicking up. Without these traits, the future benefits of such businesses cannot be realised. So, it is very essential that an entrepreneur learn to be persevering and be very hard working.

     9) Commitment

An entrepreneur will not achieve success if he/she gives up at the first sign of trouble. Commitment to his business and to its success springs from the urge to achieve the goal.

      10) Honesty and Honour

 Another very important mark of a good entrepreneur is being honest and honourable in all business dealings and interpersonal relationships. So, make sure to only promote a product that you have either honestly used or have lookedover and know that it does what the vendor says it does.

So, do you think you have what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur? Make sure you have the above mentioned entrepreneurial traits and qualities and I assure you that you definitely have what it takes to succeed in the world of business.

 

Written by Vicky Phillips