I celebrate everyone who is working and making a living with what they studied in school, that is a huge blessing, please be grateful for it. I do hope you love the experience and find joy in it. Not many of us were able to work and make a living out of what we studied in school – at least not immediately after school. This is a conversation for another day I am sure – I can write a whole book about this. Hahahahaha. I have learnt not to blame anyone for the things I have not yet achieved in my life though, no regrets, I love my life – but looking back, if situated in a different environment within the first two decades of my life (perhaps a more developed part of the world), I would probably be doing something else today, and it could possibly be exploring more about the science of things, especially the chemistry thereof.  Who else can relate?

I love chemistry especially, and perhaps that was what drew me to be interested in studying any of Nutrition, Food Science or Pharmacy after High School. I remember filling Pharmacy as one of the choices each time I wrote JAMB, and to think that I wrote that exam four times!!! Oh yeah, let’s not even start that one today – the pain through those 4 years of writing the same exam again and again is something I will tell you about another day. Talk about following one’s passion, I am one example.  And I was still willing to follow this passion even after the University, but the reality of living in my birth Country choked that passion somehow. It is sad to see so many scientists working in the Bank or Consulting Firms today – and those were the few lucky ones. I mean,  It is perfect if that was what they wanted, but it is sad when they had to for lack of opportunities in the science and technology fields.  I wish it was not that way. 

I took up a job in a Meat Factory, where I was earning like one tenth of what my colleagues who took the Bank/Consulting jobs earned. Then I moved on to another Food company which was even worse – plus awful working conditions. And I know many friends who had the same or even worse experiences.  So many of us left our passion/career of interest and nurtured our numerous other skills, so that we could feed ourselves and our loved ones. I am not here to recount the disadvantages of being born in Nigeria, not today. I want to celebrate the resilience and versatility that I and thousand other colleagues/friends of mine have developed. I want to celebrate how we have evolved, how we have re-invented ourselves. We are amazing people. We are resilient people. I celebrate everyone who has built other TRANSFERABLE SKILLS to be able to continue to take care of themselves. I challenge every young person to do the same. Re-invent yourself my dear, learn new skills, whether you are working in line with your passion/career of interest or not; and especially while you are waiting for your “dream” to come to pass. Please don’t wait forever, be busy, learn something new.

I learnt web design, project management, office management, business management, entrepreneurship, etc starting from school, through NYSC and even while doing all sorts of jobs.