1. Start from within by identifying and connecting with your inner passions i.e those things that come to you naturally and for which you can do effortlessly.

2. Identify and develop the skills set that are applicable to that field.

3. It is not enough to develop those skills, find the strategic edge that will allow you stand out differently from what other people doing similar things are doing, go out of your immediate circle and identify needs within what other people are doing and for which opportunities exist for you to plug into their work.

4. Put your house in order. Learn to be organised as an individual by prioritizing your interests and activities.

5. Tap into available resources/support groups from different organizations and learn to channel your problems, challenges, difficulties constructively.

6. Build credibility around yourself and your work. Decision makers are ALWAYS drawn to credibility and are more willing to commit their resources to supporting you when they perceive that you have done your homework well.

7. It is true that nobody makes it alone but guess what, nobody knows you better than yourself, so the first push HAS TO COME FROM YOU.

8. Don’t start out looking for money, look for people, the right people. Money is important but having the right people, people who believe in what you represent, friends who add value to your budding ideas and do not discourage you are invaluable. They are the ones who connect you to where the money is.

9. Invest your time and sense of awareness in Personal Grooming so that the right people will be drawn to you long enough to listen to what you have to say and add value to your work. Personal grooming ranges from brushing up on your communication skills both spoken, written and non-verbal; updating yourself on what constitutes acceptable standards of personal conduct in social and business circles ie etiquette, being a good listener, learning to think before you speak, to general body hygiene (yes, it matters!).

10. Learn to see the opportunities within every challenge you encounter. The opportunities we have in Nigeria to make a success out of ourselves cannot be found anywhere else in the world. The challenges and socio-economic handicaps we face in our daily and national life are only there to fuel our inner energies and drive us to stay committed to our inner passions for guaranteed self-sufficiency. If the system seems to fail us, the least we owe ourselves is not to give up on ourselves and the next person. It is not a lie that “the sun shines brightest after the rain”