ARE
YOU LOOKING FOR JOB (2)?
In the information age, your
financial future is your responsibility whether you are an employee,
self-employed. Government social security schemes are facing funding gaps and
the US for example is increasingly borrowing to close this gap. In Nigeria, the
extended family is playing the role of social security, but with increasing
financial pressure on bread winners due to a variety of factors, the capacity
to play big brother is dwindling.
Thinking about how to start
is putting the cart before the horse. The most important thing is deciding
where you want to go. What is the point making travel plans when you have no
clue where you are heading? Very few people understand that vision is more
important then sight, your imagination more important than what the naked eye
can see. I asked an applicant a few days back where he wants to see himself in
the next 5 years-10 years, and the answer I got – to get a stable job so as to
earn steady income and stop depending on others for sustenance. How is that a
big dream? With your imagination, God is giving you a blank cheque to write
what you want and all you can think about is food and rent! If the man
continues with that mindset, where will he be in ten years? Of course holding
on to a job that help him keep body and soul together. What happens if an
opportunity to become a multi-millionaire stares him right in the face? He will
walk right by, as that is outside his short and medium term plan.
When you have a big dream,
you will see possibilities and ways to overcome obstacles. When all you can
think about is food to eat and a pillow to lay your head, all you will be
looking for is a job to make it happen, and during the oral interview, when you
are invited to ask any questions, what comes to mind? How much is the pay?
What
Is Your Excuse?
There is one thing I admire
about Nigerian banks. They have moved on to dominate the African landscape
despite the massive infrastructural deficits at home. They did not allow it to
hold them back. We now have ATMs 24/7 while our power supply situation is still
nothing to write home about. They saw the obstacles, found a way round it and
went about their business. When former Central Bank Governor announced the
cashless policy pilot of Lagos a few years back, the naysayers had a filed day.
They lambasted him for having the audacity to draw up such an ambitious project
in Nigeria when we have a power crisis and an illiterate population with a lot
of cash circulating outside the banking system. Where is the power? They asked.
What about the market women? Chorused others. As I read the comments online, I
chucked when I remembered a Chinese proverb “Those who say it can’t be done
should get out of the way of those doing it”. Sanusi in his characteristic
manner soldiered on, and the rest is history.
I was listening to Sony Irabor
Live on Sunday and he had a host who was encouraging people in the aftermath of
the Nigeria Immigration Service recruitment fiasco to look inward and take
their destiny into their hands rather than wait for government to create jobs.
He stated clearly that thought the government has an important role to play in
job creation, that does not mean people should fold their hands and wait for
government to create jobs for them. A leady caller still went ahead with a
barrage of questions – where is the power? where is the infrastructure? If one
wants to start a hair dressing salon, where is the money to buy generator etc.?
One question that runs
through my mind while waiting for the guest to respond was – if suddenly light
becomes 24/7, will most of our applicants start business? The answer is
obvious. Some applicants have blackberry and smart phones that are more
expensive than a KV patrol generator. Another question I pondered was – what of
Nigerians that ran abroad I search of greener pasture? Have those of them
without good jobs started business? Is light also not regular where they live
abroad? Why would a Master Degree holder drive a cab, be a night guard or bag
groceries? If you ask them, they have a new set of excuses – high taxes, strict
regulation etc. there is always an excuse. Excuse are buy one, get one free.
What
Is Your Desired Future?
The fact is that many former
applicants are doing fantastic things with their lives. Some have gone to
become employers of labour, after an endless wait for a job. One of such called
in to the program. The fact is that your perception is your reality. It is the
worst of times ad the best of times. There is no money but high rise buildings
are springing up all over the city. Shoprite is expanding aggressively and
investors are moving in despite security concerns. Nigeria is brimming with
opportunity but few have eyes to see it or the boldness to dream big and start
small. This is not a Nigeria phenomenon. It happens in most countries in the
world. In the US, immigrants create more jobs than born citizens. Indigenes
tend to see problems while immigrants see opportunities. The main issue is –
what do you see?
What you see is critical,
that is why there is not right answer because people are seeing different
things. When you are seeing different things, all parties in the argument are
right from their stand point. When you stubbornly refuse to see possibilities
and focus on the difficulties, you will tie yourself to one inglorious spot
feeling justified. You may have made mistakes in the past, spending your
savings on liabilities, but you can start afresh. Where there is a will, there
is a way. The moment you know where you are going, you will figure out a way to
get there.
By Usiere Uko
