5 life Lessons to learn from Toke Makinwa this year
[bctt tweet=”“It’s not about finding your voice. It’s about giving yourself permission to use your voice” – Kris Carr” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Toke Makinwa is a Nigerian media personality, television host, vlogger, and author. She might not be everyone’s favorite but she’s done pretty much for herself. Her book On Becoming tells of her journey in life – her struggles after her parents died, her marriage and her faith in God. Hate or like her, she’s not letting whatever life throws get the better part of her. She’s simply living her TM baby girl life. Here are five life lessons we can all learn from Toke Makinwa: Resilience It doesn’t matter how many times life knocks you down, what matters is your comeback. If there’s one thing I admire about Toke is her ability to bounce back. She knows how to keep her head up and remain true to her goals. Life has sure dealt her some cards but she’s still standing strong! After a bad divorce and shaming from the media, she went on to bag some endorsements and even wrote a book titled On Becoming. Life’s gonna throw some curve balls your way! Never let a bad situation keep you down. Rise above it! [bctt tweet=”Don’t let the many slip-ups and downtrodden moments get in your way” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Hard work “Hard work does not necessarily guarantee success, but no success is possible without hard work” – Dr. T.P Chia” Some will argue that being hard working doesn’t guarantee success. But you’ll agree that every success has a trace of hard work in it. Success doesn’t come easy; you’ll have to work your ass off (well, for some of us). She’s s symbol of a career driven lady. A real boss lady. Drive and Passion As Oprah Winfrey said, “Let passion drive your profession”. To truly enjoy your career, to feel fulfilled in whatever field you find yourself in, you have to have some amount of passion and drive in you. There’ll be days you want to quit; the day you’ll feel like giving in to naysayers. But, that drive and passion right there? That’s what will give you the nudge and push. As a media personality, Toke is passionate about impacting lives. It’s your duty to educate and touch as many lives as you can. And that’s what she’s all about. Let the naysayers talk Oh yes, they’ll talk! They’ll be the ones whispering “you can’t do it”, and then they’ll try so hard to pull you down. They’ll criticise your every work and misconstrue you. Trust me, there are always naysayers who say it can’t be done. But you know what darling, let them talk! They can’t stop your shine. If you stop to throw stones at every dog that barks, you won’t reach your destination. It’s never too late Who said it’s too late to turn a new leaf? Or pick yourself up from where life knocked you down? Who said you can’t get another job or live the life you so desire after many trials? Who said you can’t date again after a bad breakup? Listen up motherland moguls, it’s never too late to live the life you want or to become the lady you hope to become. You have so much passion and talent waiting to be unleashed. There’s so much you can do. Don’t let the many slip-ups and downtrodden moments get in your way. Just shake it off and pick yourself up. When life knocks you down (and at some point it will), don’t get a mat and camp there. No! Rise above it, pick yourself up, learn from your mistakes and do better. Become better. Know that it’s never too late, let the naysayers talk, follow your drive and passion, work hard and be resilient. To get featured on our Facebook page, click here to share your story with us.
WEBINAR WITH YETUNDE SHORTERS: THE P.O.W.E.R OF PURPOSEFUL PERSONAL BRANDING (JULY 19)
What comes to mind when you hear the term ‘personal branding’? A perception of oneself? A unique identity? No matter the thought, your personal brand reflects your reputation, your legacy, the people you surround yourself with, your authenticity…the list is endless! Having a well-defined personal brand requires you to be proactive about how you manage it. This starts with thinking about what you want to be known for and then taking purposeful action to ensure that’s the image you’re creating. So, what does it mean to have a ‘purposeful personal brand’? How can it earn you top dollar without blowing lots of schmoney on stuff that won’t even do justice to your brand? Join Yetunde Shorters, on Thursday, 19th July, as she shares secrets that will earn you multi-six figures without spending a dime on advertising or marketing through purposeful personal branding. Yetunde Shorters helps the inspired go-getter create an authentic, purposeful and fun personal brand that helps you do what you love while helping others, in a way that creates financial freedom for you and your family. [bctt tweet=”Discover the #power of purposeful personal branding with @Yetunde on July 19th at 12PM EST! Register here: bit.ly/yetundes” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Some of the topics we’ll cover Identifying where your purpose comes from and get clear on it Ways to elevate your personal brand How to develop a brand statement that represents you best Secrets that will earn you multi-six figures without spending a dime on advertising or marketing Register below to get access to this opportunity and submit questions you would like Yetunde to answer. Webinar details: Date: Thursday, July 19th, 2018 Time: 12PM Miami // 5PM Lagos // 6PM Johannesburg Watch Part 1 below: Watch Part 2 below: About Yetunde Yetunde Shorters is an international publicist and an industry leader in helping women entrepreneurs discover their purpose and provide value to the right people to make profits. She is also the creator of ICY PR, the Afropolitan Chef and Founder of ICY ACADEMY and a 4-time Amazon best-selling author. With over 15 years of experience working and securing publicity for multiple Grammy Award Winning Artists, International Celebrities and Entrepreneurs, Yetunde has been featured in Elle, CBS, Zen Magazine, Tropics and more. She is masterful at connecting her client’s sense of purpose to prosperity. She also uses her skills to help emerging entrepreneurs create value, save time and increase productivity. In partnership with She Leads Africa, Yetunde is launching A Purpose Breakthrough 101 session, a 90 minutes intensive brand clarity session, where she delves deep into your purpose to connect it to profits. She also runs the ICY ACADEMY PERSONAL BRANDING MASTERCLASS, where you learn strategies that get results, techniques that save you time and access to a powerful network of go-getters who provide the support you need to thrive in your purpose.
FACEBOOK LIVE WITH ANULI OLA-OLANYI: CAREER HACKS FOR MILLENIALS (JUNE 26)
Hello, millennials! You’ve probably received advice on how you can “build a more successful career” from a handful of people. However, very few people give a break down of how you can advance yourself, or what to do when you face a challenge, like when your boss is not paying you what you’re worth – sounds familiar? Designing a career you’re passionate about or deciding on a career path can be challenging, and the chances of getting a good class that can really teach you how to do that are slim. Well, with a few career hacks, you can take small steps every day that will bring you success in the long run and that’s why you don’t want to miss this discussion! Join us on Tuesday, June 26th, for a Facebook Live chat with Añuli Ola-Olaniyi, founder of HEIR Women Development, who will be giving advice on how to achieve the ultimate career for yourself. Añuli believes women are strategizing to become empowered and rule the world alongside men. She has effectively delivered cutting edge training that has elevated people both in their professional and personal life. [bctt tweet=”Design the ultimate career with @anuliolaolaniyi, founder of @heirwoman on June 26th at 1PM WAT! Click here for more: bit.ly/AnuliOla” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Some of the topics we’ll cover So you got the job, now what? Career habits to avoid How to maintain career capacity How to handle job rejection Facebook LIVE details: Date: Tuesday, June 26th, 2018 Time: 1PM Lagos // 2PM Joburg// 3PM Nairobi Watch Facebook Live with Anuli: https://www.facebook.com/sheleadsafrica/videos/2092897934266849/ About Anuli Añuli Ola-Olaniyi is the founder of HEIR Women Development, an enterprise created to support young women in capacity and skills building in a career. Prior to this, Anuli began her career at John Lewis Partnership UK and she is currently the Deputy Managing Director of HM Ltd, ED of DV Solutions NG and an Advisory Board Member of the Women in Leadership Institute (WLI). With a wide range of experience across a number of different sectors and having completed tasks for high profile companies, Anuli graduated from the University of Ibadan with a BSc in Psychology and holds a Masters in Human Resource Management from Middlesex University UK. A believer in continuous professional and personal development, Anuli is a CIPD certified Human Resource Professional as well as a qualified Prince2 Practitioner in Project Management. She also holds certifications for Gender studies from the UN Women Training Centre. PMP trained, Anuli is currently working towards her certification from PMI Institute.
Francine Irakoze: Explore your talents, master them, and find a way to shine on the continent
Francine Irakoze was born in Burundi and grew up in many countries including Japan, Germany, and Belgium. Francine held various positions including Team Leader, Program Coordination/Liaison, and Interim Program Manager at Mckesson Canada before starting her global health career. In 2015, she was selected to join the 2015 – 2016 Global Health Corps Fellowship cohort as an Operations Officer in Rwanda She was later promoted to Operations Manager/Program Specialist. Francine now works in Toronto for Canadian Physicians for Aid and Relief (CPAR) as a Program Coordinator/Proposal Writer. In this article, she talks about returning to Africa, her work with CPAR, the projects she worked on as a GHC fellow and her humanitarian work across Africa. What does a typical day look like for you and what projects are you currently focusing on with CPAR? CPAR is a sustainable development NGO in Ethiopia, Malawi, and Tanzania. My daily tasks include providing operational and programmatic support to the headquarters and the field offices in Africa. My workload ranges from closely monitoring programmatic activities reviewing narrative and financial reports, working on multi-annual funding applications to recruiting Emergency Canadian Physicians for our Medical Placement Program among other tasks. I sometimes travel to meet field teams. Last month I visited Malawi to conduct research on the country’s Sexual Reproductive Health landscape and secure partnerships with local organizations. Overall, the varieties of my tasks make it hard to predict my day, but my one constant regardless of country or time zone – is my light cup of coffee every morning. You once interviewed civil war health workers in Burundi, what did you learn from the experience? In 2015, Burundi faced a social-political crisis that sparked deadly protests and violence between state forces and suspected opposition. In the same year, I moved from Toronto to Kigali, Rwanda as a GHC fellow with Health Builders. I would wake up every morning worried about my family and friends living in Burundi. It was very hard for me to grasp how different life in Kigali was compared to my hometown of Bujumbura. Writing became my coping mechanism. “Letter to Burundi”, wasn’t meant to be published but the positive comments I gained reminded me of the incredible power of using one’s story and voice to raise awareness. With “White Coats, Dark Times.” I felt compelled to share this story of the conflict evolving in Bujumbura. More importantly, I wrote this article to honor my friends who were fighting, as physicians to save lives. Around the world, conflicts stretch everything thin: a person’s sense of safety and security, emotional stability, and resources. On the other hand, conflicts also create heroes whose courage and resilience become inspirational. “White Coats, Dark Times” turned out to be, for me, a bridge between these two conflict-generated realities. Why do you think many other young Africans decide not to return home? As I grew older, I started having a strong desire to return to the continent to contribute to change from there. [bctt tweet=”I would encourage Africans in the diaspora to continue exploring their true identity locally and globally – Francine Irakoze” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Everyone needs to develop various skill sets, explore their talents, master them, and then find a way to shine on the continent – not just in the international development sector but in finance, fashion, technology, the arts, and more. My hope is that one main factor will drive our common homecoming journey, to play our part (however small) and to lift our continent up with hard work and positive contributions so it can thrive both politically and economically. Why prompted you to return to Africa? When I went back to Burundi as a teenager I was exposed to the harsh reality of life in an impoverished environment. Sadly, I saw family members struggling to afford prescriptions drugs and others dying of preventable disease. After a few years, I gained more perspective on the dangerous combination of poverty, infectious disease, and inaccessibility to primary health care. This was such a systemic problem in my country that, I felt compelled to get involved in the field of global health. What advice would you share with other young leaders interested in the global health sector? Global health is hard work because it’s about fighting for health as a human right and any fight against injustice is not easy. My advice would be for young leaders to be vigilant and always analyze power dynamics at play. As you prepare to enter the fight for health equity, equip yourself with the knowledge of where disparities stem from in the first place. Stay engaged. We need more people to join this sector to drive concrete change to eliminate health disparities. We should use the fullness of our diverse personalities, professional experiences, backgrounds, and talents, to fight health inequality. I call this D against D: diversity against disparity. We should not tolerate such big gaps in the way people receive medical care or are able to access health insurance, and/or even live or die based on their financial status. What’s your leadership mantra? “Become the kind of leader that people would follow voluntarily, even if you had no title or position.” —Brian Tracy, motivational speaker Working in such a challenging sector, how do you stay inspired and hopeful? I stay connected to other changemakers. I read and stay in tune with other organizations, global health professionals, GHC friends, present and past co-workers. Their vision, drive, approach, and impact are a source of motivation for me. When I was in Malawi, I attended the Segal Family Foundation (SFF), Social Impact Incubator (SII) event. During a small group exercise, I had the opportunity to sit with young leaders tackling issues ranging from improving cervical cancer services to advocating for climate change prevention in Malawi. Listening to them explaining their source of motivations, and describing their organizations’ respective approach to solve local challenges was very informative. It’s during moments like these, when my passion for transformative change aligns with others, that my sense of purpose
WEBINAR WITH ABOSEDE GEORGE-OGAN: THE RISE OF WOMEN IN POLITICS (MAY 30)
For as long as we’ve known, politics has been viewed as ‘a big boys thing’ and not for women. Well, guess what world? It’s time to take a step back because ladies wanna play too! From leading political organisations to being at the centre of political movements across the continent, women are increasingly taking charge of the political platform. Admirable examples of #MotherlandMoguls in politics include Bostwana’s 29- year old, Bogolo Joy Kenewendo, who was recently appointed as Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry and Nigeria’s Ms. Rinsola Abiola, President of the APC Young Women Forum (amongst other titles) – the list goes on! But let’s be honest! Even though there has been a rise in the number of women in legislatures across the continent, more work still needs to be done to integrate women into ‘political governance’. That being said, ladies get in formation…let’s talk about building a fulfilling political career!! To learn more, join us on Wednesday, May 30th for a webinar with Abosede George – Ogan, who is the Chief Facilitator of Women In Politics NG, as well as the Director, Strategy, Partnerships and Stakeholder Management at the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund. Abosede will be sharing useful nuggets on what it takes to build a successful career in politics. [bctt tweet=”Kick start your career in politics with @abosedea on May 30th at 11 AM WAT! Click here for more: http://bit.ly/BoseOgan #WomenInPolitics” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Some of the topics we’ll cover: Why you should be interested in politics The building blocks to pursuing a career in politics Types of jobs available in the field of politics Advice on how to build a successful political career Webinar Details: Date: Wednesday, May 30th, 2018 Time: 11AM Lagos // 12PM Johannesburg // 1PM Nairobi Location: Register below to get access to this opportunity Watch here: About Adebose Abosede George-Ogan is a tri-sector leader with over 14 years’ experience working across the non-profit, private and public sector as a development professional. She is the Chief Facilitator at Women In Politics NG, an online platform that seeks to engage, encourage, equip and empower women especially young women to get involved and participate in politics in Nigeria. In addition to this, Abosede is currently the Director, Strategy, Partnerships and Stakeholder Management at the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund. Abosede began her career in development over a decade ago with ActionAid International Nigeria. From here, she moved on to lead Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Citizenship for Keystone Bank, FirstBank and Samsung Electronics West Africa respectively. Likewise, Ms. George-Ogan has a degree in Political Science/Public Administration from Igbinedion University and an MSc in Communication for Innovation and Development from the University of Reading. She is also the author of the recently launched book, “Building a Conscious Career: How to build a fulfilling and financially rewarding career”. For more information about the book, you can visit www.consciouscareer.com.ng.
How to Invest Collaboratively with Friends: Tomie Balogun
[bctt tweet=”When you invest with others, you take advantage of the power of many – @tomie_balogun” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] As a certified financial educator and Instructor, Tomie Balogun has a lot of experience in investing with friends. While pursuing her MBA, she and a few classmates started an investment club. Their passion to achieve financial freedom and make an impact on society saw them successfully invest in various small businesses and assets. However, investing with friends hasn’t always been that easy. Like Tomie, many people have had bad experiences either loaning money to a friend or requesting for a loan. The conclusion: money and friends are a horrible mix! However, the question many ask, is it still worth investing with friends or anybody else?. Tomie gives us tips on how to make this work. The Power of Many Think about the way you ask more people to contribute money to a party, so everyone can have more food options. Investing with other people helps increase the number of resources you raise and strengthens your financial future. Investing in Bigger Things Co-investing in an investment club gives you the opportunity to invest in bigger opportunities, share risks and share higher returns as well. For instance, while real estate is a great asset class that always appreciates, not a lot of young people can invest in it. However, if 5 or more people decide to come together and invest, they will have more cash. Over time, they can earn returns from their initial investment and continue to flip multiple real estate deals. That’s a better option than waiting till your 40’s to eventually own real estate. Choosing the Right Team You might be thinking, co-investing or starting an investment club is great but what about the emotional issues that come with investing with friends or colleagues at work? This can be tricky! The first thing you need to do while selecting partners is to avoid sentiments. You need to make sure that you choose your partners with clarity and objectivity. When identifying people, choose partners who are disciplined with spending money and more importantly, have a strong sense of integrity. Shared values are very important when co-investing. Details, Details, Details! First, you need a legal structure in place to protect everyone’s interest. When this happens, you limit liabilities in investment deals. You can register your club as a limited liability company or a limited partnership. What’s important is to make sure you have the papers to support your words if things go wrong. Secondly, they say the devil is in the details. In creating your legal documents and other admin paperwork, make sure you don’t skim through anything. Practice good financial bookkeeping, assign roles to manage tasks and create a constitution! Remember all information can be important! Make that Money Work Once you sort your membership and legalities, you can then start contributing money. Don’t set unachievable contribution rates, but set goals that everyone can work towards. If everyone believes in the goal, they will eventually build it too. At the end of the day, there are many options to invest. However, investment clubs are both great for collaborative investing and also fun! They are a smarter way to take advantage of the power of many to achieve your wealth goals sooner. So as soon as you can, get your motherland moguls into formation and start co-investing together towards your financial freedom.
WEBINAR WITH SUPRIYA SHARMA: TAKE CHARGE OF YOUR BRAND WITH DIGITAL MARKETING (APRIL 19)
Building a successful brand can be risky business and quite a challenge, especially in this forever evolving digital space! FYI – that’s all about to change…keep reading! While you should tailor your brand’s strategy to its specific goals, how can you ensure that your brand stays ahead of the game, amidst the disruption, through digital marketing? Allow us to school you!… [bctt tweet=”Join @HodanTV for a webinar on April 5th, to learn about building a digital community.” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Some of the topics we’ll cover Building a community with the power of storytelling Tips for innovative storytelling using YouTube Building your confidence as a digital entrepreneur and African woman Register below to get access to this opportunity and submit questions that you would like Supriya to answer. Webinar Details: Date: Thursday, April 19th, 2018 Time: Lagos 11am // Johannesburg 12pm // Nairobi 1pm Register for this webinar with Supriya below: [ninja_forms id=170] About Supriya Join Supriya Sharma, on Thursday, 19th April, as she teaches us how to take your brand’s success to the next level with digital marketing. Supriya Sharma is the Managing Director of SAS Business Solutions, a global service provider catering to big business houses, SMEs and educational institutions. She has spoken at some international events of repute on topics that include Leadership & Women, Time Management, Effective Business Communication, Being beautiful, Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace, Digital Marketing (take charge of your business) and Entrepreneurship. [bctt tweet=”Take charge of your business through digital marketing with Supriya Sharma on April 19th. Reg here: http://bit.ly/SupriyaSharma” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Some of the topics we’ll cover Steps to choosing the right marketing network Best practices to curating valuable and shareable content Tips for leveraging the right brand influencers A guide to effective content promotion via social campaigns Building a sustainable brand strategy with digital marketing Register below to get access to this opportunity and submit questions you would like Supriya to answer. Facebook Live Details: Date: Thursday, April 19th, 2018 Time: 11AM Lagos // 12PM Johannesburg // 1PM Nairobi Watch here: About Supriya Supriya Sharma, is a certified corporate trainer, coach and motivational speaker who began her academic journey as a scholar (gold medalist) in aerospace engineering. She was offered full scholarships at renowned US and UK universities and further developed her skill set to be an astute management professional gaining valuable experience in HR, corporate communications, sales and marketing. Seeing the current status of the world’s economy, Supriya decided to pursue a course in entrepreneurship from one of India’s Ivy League business schools, where the idea of SAS was born. In 2014, Supriya represented Nigeria in the Dreamforce Conference which was held in San Francisco, USA. To add, she has conferred the title of Ms Intelligent – Lagos & Ms Talented – Lagos in the Beauty Pageant organised by ICA in 2017. Supriya strongly believes in giving back to the society as a part of her responsibility. In this view, she actively volunteers her time to develop employability skills among the Nigerian youth and is closely associated with women empowerment missions across Asia and Africa.
Kelechi Udoagwu: Moving Fast and Breaking Things
From Tinsel to Technology. Kelechi is changing the narrative of African women in the tech world. Kelechi Udoagwu is an Accra-based Nigerian tech entrepreneur/consultant, presenter, advocate, student, and writer. Up until 2017, she was the full-time communications director at MEST Africa. She is also the co-founder of Skrife and produces and hosts the web series- Tech Roundup with Bitnode. Her work revolves around empowering through mentorship, edutainment, speaking engagements, multimedia content, and connecting to new opportunities. In this interview, she talks to us about her growing passion for technology and the need to empower more women and girls to venture into the tech industry. You’ve switched your career many times. What inspired your journey? It’s always interesting to be reminded of how varied my career has been. For me, it’s all been work, work, work – the different ways I earn money and contribute to the world. I started modeling while I was in the university. It was just for fun at first, then I graduated and focused on it full-time. That was when I got the Tinsel gig and I was fortunate to work with other big brands as well – Samsung, MTN, Haier Thermocool, Lipton, Vitafoam, and others. These early experiences prepared me for “adulting” as I learned to manage my money, deal with people from all walks of life and build a professional persona. After NYSC, I got my first 9-5 job as a Fashion Brand Manager but resigned after six months because it wasn’t very fulfilling. I then decided to explore a new industry. I was fascinated with tech entrepreneurship because it seemed like an easy way to make quick bucks. I got into tech in 2014. It’s been one of the best decisions I’ve made in my life yet. I love the industry, I love the variety and I love the fast pace. I worked as Head of Communications at MEST and founded my startup, Skrife in 2016. I also started creating multimedia – video and written – content – for brands, entrepreneurs, and thought leaders. [bctt tweet=”African women are a special breed. We do so much with a little and stay strong even when the shit hits the fan – @kelechiudoagwu” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] What part do African girls play in the next generation of technology, and how can they harness these potentials? It’s time, however, that we stop limiting ourselves to manual labor and start working smarter. It’s time we leave what we’re used to and conquer new mountains. They say “when you educate a woman, you educate a whole community,”. Imagine what we can do for Africa if we join in the global progression and conversation around technology. We don’t all have to be programmers but we can all be a part of the industry. There are branding, marketing, HR, design, community management roles available. If we do this, the next generation of African women will have role models who look like them and they can build on what we started instead of starting from scratch like we are. How has your journey been moving into the tech space? My journey has been interesting. I’ve never been one to ask for permission to make a move and that has helped me navigate the various industries I’ve been in, especially tech where “move fast and break things” is a mantra. Now is the best time for us to be involved. The industry is welcoming and there are a lot of opportunities directed at women specifically. It’s not always going to be like this so it’s wise to take advantage now. What principles and work ethics have played a role in propelling you further in your career? My ability shake off rejection easily greatly helped my career. Believe me, I’ve been rejected a lot of times. I believe getting ahead is a numbers game and for every 100 no’s, there’s one yes that makes it all worth it. My entire life, not just career, revolves around keeping my word. If I say I’ll do it, I do it. If I’m not sure, I say I’ll get back to you and think about it some more. This has helped me a lot at work – keeps my mind clear, keeps me happy with the people I work with and also keeps them happy with me. Tell us about your new book ‘Living Everyday like its Saturday’. I’m super excited about it! I have had so many ideas for books to write but this is the most relevant to me and my audience at this time. The book will chronicle the lessons I’ve learned being a freelancer from Africa – how I structure my day, deal with clients around the world, brand myself, use technology, etc. I can promise everyone in advance there will be no fluff in this book; only hardcore, real life, actionable advice. As a creative, what impact does quality content have in telling the African story for mainstream media? When we started Skrife, our goal was to build a platform and writers’ community that is synonymous with quality. If a client ever complains about a job done via Skrife, we refund their money or rewrite it at no extra charge. Creating content is like real-time documentation of our everyday experiences and it can be the difference between an economy that prospers and one that fails. Every time you read a book that was written ages ago, you step into the mind of that person. With technology changing everything around us, it is very important that we document these early days so the next generation continues from where we stopped instead of starting all over. “To forget is to throw away.” Also by creating more positive content, we can change the narrative of Africa. We can stop close-minded and sheltered foreigners from thinking we don’t read books or use the internet. Chimamanda Adichie was recently asked if there are libraries in her country. [bctt tweet=” We stand on the shoulders of great men and women who have passed
Edirin Edewor: When failure gives you wings, fly higher
Edirin Edewor is a two-time Amazon Bestselling Author, a Mindset and Author’s Coach, and an Entrepreneur. She works with three types of entrepreneurs to help them publish their books and establish their brands. Through Edirin’s Process Publishing System, entrepreneurs are helped to write their books with ease in record time get published on Amazon and become bestsellers. She also caters to the AUTHORPRENUERS who want to sell their books profitably as well as create extra streams of income through their writing. Finally, Edirin’s 5-Step Process Blueprint helps unknown and underpaid entrepreneurs in the service industry become highly influential and highly paid personal brands. How do you think your past failures set you up for success? In 2011 when I was 20, I attempted suicide. After that, I have had 502 of my job applications rejected in 4 years. I failed in 9 out of 11 business in 5 years. I battled with depression and a diagnosis of Early Onset Rheumatoid Arthritis at age 25. With all this suffering, I felt like a failure and thought my life was over. After much reflection, I began developing a growth mindset which helped me overcome all of these difficult times. I eventually wrote two books; The Productivity Checklist which became an Amazon Bestseller in 2016 and You and Your Mindset. Understanding that my failures were only learning processes, helped me eventually succeed in life and business. These lessons have helped me effectively start, scale and sustain my business in no time. So, now I help others too. [bctt tweet=”Understanding that my failures were only learning processes, helped me eventually succeed in life and business. – Edirin Edewor” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] You do a lot of great work with authors. How important is writing to establishing one’s authority in any given field? A lot of influential business people today have written books to establish themselves as authorities in their fields. From Robert Kiyosaki, Brian Tracy, to Steve Harris, Arese Ugwu, Nimi Akinkugbe and myself. Sharing your knowledge with the public shows that you know what you’re doing. It also helps you reach a lot more people with valuable information and grows your value perception. What tips would you give our young Motherland Moguls who are trying to gain influence in business? Everyone has to start from the bottom. No one gets to the top of the mountain by falling there. Getting to the top of the mountain of success requires you to climb. It will take some time, dedication, commitment and keeping a positive attitude in the face of obstacles. One great way to growing influence is getting published and growing your own community. There are many skills and tools to help with this. Social media platforms have made it easy to grow your influence and build a community of a loyal following today. [bctt tweet=”I’d like people to understand that life is in processes and you need to master one level to get to the next one. – Edirin Edewor” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] From your experience what are the difficult aspects of being an entrepreneur in Africa? First of all, being an entrepreneur anywhere, male or female, is difficult. However, Africa presents some unique challenges. The continent is not as technologically and industrially advanced as first world nations. Therefore, there are limited opportunities available to us. This forces us Africans to be creative and create unique solutions to solve our challenges. Secondly, the African market is still not largely globalized and the ease of doing business on a global scale is still being stifled by the political and economic environment. What advice would you give other entrepreneurs on handling this? As stated earlier, we have to create unique solutions to our challenges. While we wait for certain technologies to become available to us, we should maximize on what we have. This also includes constantly seeking opportunities to partner with global businesses to create more favorable conditions to do business. Here is where building trust and fostering good relationships become vitally important. From your past failures, what would you advise a young African woman getting set to start a business or career? Being patient and intentional about learning the lessons even when you fail, helps you learn faster, fail less and fly higher. Today I have built a multi-million naira business sharing this message and helping entrepreneurs build influence so they can share their stories and impact others. If you’d like to share your story with She Leads Africa, let us know more about you and your story here.
Joyce Daniels: Stay in your lane, Enjoy your journey, and Raise others
Joyce Daniels is a professional Master of Ceremonies, a senior trainer at the prestigious Dale Carnegie and Associates, and a budding entrepreneur at her own “TAKADEMY” – Africa’s Premiere Training School for Masters of Ceremonies. With all these accomplishments under her belt, Joyce is a force to reckon with. Through her passion for speaking, Joyce has turned her skills into a profitable business hosting events and training others in the field. Despite a degree in Human Anatomy, she has excellent skills in communication and event planning. These skills have enabled her to work with clients from multiple industries and high net-worth individuals. Through her work, Joyce hopes to inspire others to stay in their line and develop their passions and skills. In this interview, Joyce Daniels talks about her passion and how she’s managed to build her brand. What led to you becoming a Master of Ceremonies? I believe I’ve been talkative from my mother’s womb. So, I decided to capitalize on my natural talent and gift of the gab. I wanted to explore a career in a field which requires no inventory, no start-up costs, and no rent. With this in mind, I found a career I enjoy, I love and I fit into PERFECTLY. How can young women refine their gift of gab as a source of income? Young women can self-train or be trained by professionals to serve in various ‘speaking’ capacities, such as TV/radio personalities, broadcasters, voice-over artists, voice actors or join my line of work, as event host MCs (Red Carpet or Main Event). Some of these can be experienced on a full time or part-time basis, in tandem with other interests or full-time job. In your opinion, how can young African women stand out in the marketplace? In my experience, my clients keep coming back and making referrals, because I ALWAYS deliver and on several occasions, surpass their expectations. For young African women, standing out requires understanding and meeting what the client wants and needs. On top of impeccable delivery, the following values can also help young women stand out in the African and global marketplace: Ensure you have top quality wrapped in unquestionable and undeniable excellence in service delivery When quality and excellence are in place, a healthy campaign of branding and marketing should be pursued. If you are top notch, yet unknown, attracting clients and income could be a problem. Therefore, strive to build your brand and make it known. [bctt tweet=”I strongly believe in raising and supporting other women as best as I can – @iamjoycedaniels ” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] What support did you get from other women when you started? The support I have gotten from women has helped me grow and succeed. My support base included women such as Chiaku Ekwueme of AZ4Kids, Ndidi Obioha of Enthyst Events, the Ugochukwu sisters of Sleek, Amie Georgewill of Kolor Kraft and Madam Josephine Anenih. These women believed in me and highly recommended me to other clients, some of whom hired me based on my exemplary work and because I am a woman – they support women too! Why do you always advocate for business owners to ‘Stay in their lane’ on social media? To explain my ‘Stay-In-Your-Lane’ philosophy, I’d like to use a few examples. Bill Gates stayed in his Software lane until he became an enigma. Serena Williams stayed in her Tennis lane until she became an unquestionable force. Mother Theresa stayed in her Charity lane until she became a saint. Oprah Winfrey stayed in her TV Show lane until she became a global phenomenon. Ibukun Awosika stayed in her corporate furniture lane until she gained enough credibility to become the Chairman of Nigeria’s oldest and biggest bank. Alibaba Akpobome stayed in his Comedy lane and made standup comedy a notable profession in Nigeria. Chimamanda Adichie stayed in her literary lane until she has become an international icon and multiple prize winner. The list is inexhaustible. Many people get distracted from their lane for many reasons. These factors include finance (or lack of it), fame (or craving for it), instant gratification and popularity (or non-popularity). I have taken it upon myself to remind people, especially those like me in ‘unpopular’ lanes, to remember despite the challenges, we are unique and different. With the same amount of time, commitment, self-development and optimism, we would reach great heights. [bctt tweet=”Don’t ditch your lane just because it is hard or unpopular! Stay in your lane and enjoy your journey. – @iamjoycedaniels” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Final words to young ladies Whatever your profession or career path, try your best to leave a good trail for others to follow and make conscious and deliberate efforts to contribute positively to your community and society at large.