Category

womenofrubies

Category

Hello WORriors! Today is #WomanCrushWednesday and our Woman Crush is the fierce, talented, and extraordinary Kemi Adetiba!

Kemi Adetiba is a Filmmaker, Music videos, and television director. She was born in Lagos on January 8, 1980.  While growing up, she headlined two nation TV commercials for detergent brand, OMO. She started out professionally in the media world as a radio presenter with Rhythm Fm 93.7. She switched over to producing and presenting shows on television, including Studio 53, Temptation Nigeria, Soundcity TV, and Maltina Dance All. She got interested in filmmaking and enrolled into the New York Film Academy to hone her skills.

Kemi’s short film Across a Bloodied Ocean was screened at the 2009 Pan African Film Festival and National Black Arts Festival. Her very first feature film, “The Wedding Party”, a Nigerian romantic comedy film, got premiered opening night, at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), as the opening film of the City-to-City Spotlight, on September 8, 2016, and  also premiered on November 26, 2016 at Eko Hotel and Suites in Lagos. The film is a total groundbreaking film.

She has also directed lots of award winning music videos including, Last Bustop -Niyola, My Darling -Tiwa Savage, Sitting On The Throne -Olamide, Anifowose -Olamide, Toh Bad -Niyola, Tease Me -Wizkid, If I Die -Dagrin, Aduke -Tjan, Ekundayo -TY Bello, Today Na Today -Omawumi, among others.She has also been nominated and won lots of awards.

Women Of Rubies celebrates you, Kemi Adetiba. Keep winning!

Being beautiful is undoubtedly important, but it isn’t everything. A girl who is not so good-looking still can have many guys falling for her. The secret to attracting guys is not just being beautiful, as it definitely requires more than that.

The following traits make women desirable in the eyes of men:

  1. Your dress sense

Boys love women who are well-groomed, so take advantage of this. Girls often are confused about what to wear on their date so that their guy won’t be able to resist praising them. Wear something that is tasteful and looks great on you whenever he is around. A girl with a good dress sense knows how to look beautiful, as well as casual.

The common belief that whoever loves you won’t judge you is not true always. Wouldn’t you feel disappointed if your guy dressed in an untidy manner?

2. A tempting fragrance

Let your fragrance work for you when you say goodbye to him with a hug. Guys love it when their girl smells great. Spray the perfume on your wrists, around the neck, behind the ears and under the collarbone to ensure your fragrance lasts.

You can wear different fragrances on different occasions. Buy a variety of perfumes and see which works best for you. Luckily, you don’t have to step outside your home to buy them. With several fragrance e-stores available, you can grab great online deals on perfumes. Purchase an invigorating perfume and make it hard for your crush to resist the attraction.

3. High emotional IQ (EQ)

Being a girl, it is often expected that you will have deep emotions. That doesn’t at all mean that you fill your eyes with tears every time you hear a sad story, though. A woman with a high emotional IQ (also known as EQ) can encourage and inspire her man whenever he needs motivation. She will say the right things at the right time, instead of creating unnecessary drama.

4. Smile a lot (of course, not unnecessarily)

Guys go crazy for a girl’s smile. Your smile should be genuine and sweet. Don’t force a smile- otherwise, your guy may think of you as a freak. Also, when you are with him, give him all your attention and laugh at his jokes. Show him that you are happy with him. He will do the rest.

5. Debate with him and don’t lose it

An attractive, vacuous girl will be interesting only for a few hours. Most men want a girl who possesses knowledge of world affairs and can debate with them logically. Genuine guys actually love it when you show them that you have a high IQ.”

6. Don’t be judgmental

If you don’t like something about your crush, you can share your honest opinion with him. At the same time, don’t insult him for it and don’t make an issue of it. Having an opinion is good but being rude or negative about it is not appreciated.

7. Don’t show him that you are all his

Even if you want him very much, let him work hard for it. Don’t try too hard to please your guy, because otherwise he will take you for granted. Spend time with him and make sure that he starts liking you too before you express your love for him. Knowing how to make a guy chase you works wonders in your favor.

8. You should be passionate about something

Having a hobby and being passionate about it impresses guys. Girls with hobbies such as surfing, golfing, and driving really make men crazy for them. The common belief that says ‘men cultivate hobbies, women cultivate relationships’ is not true anymore.

9. Be kind to others

Needless to say, this is very important. Talk politely to everyone and be warm to others. This is important not just for impressing your guy, but also for the sake of humanity.

Source: Lifehack.org

Africa produces nearly 70% of the world’s cocoa yet the continent is not known for making luxury chocolate. Princess is a woman on a mission to change that. Her company, Kalabari Gecko produces different kind of chocolates in Nigeria, using only Nigerian contents.

Princess had always loved chocolate from as far back as when she was little. This is probably one of the things that motivated the business. In her own words, “there is something very compelling about the visual structure of chocolates and its formation in a box. There is the mystery embedded in the interiors of its inner cavities, and the burst of polyphenols, a reward your brain is always thankful for.”

Another reason she started making chocolates was the fact that whenever she traveled outside Nigeria, she was always asked to come back with chocolate, when there’s so much cocoa in the country. She wanted to change the narrative.

The journey to achieving this has not been easy. Since there were no chocolate making schools or classes in Africa, she had to go to North Europe to learn the art of turning bean to bar.

Her dream is for her factory to produce high quality affordable chocolate for Nigerians and the people they love all over the world.

On how knew how to make chocolate

I have always had this love for chocolate. I think it was as far back as when I was a little girl and being ascribed to as having a chocolate complexion. Also as a child, my sister planted a cocoa tree in front of our house all on her own.

There is something very compelling about the visual structure of chocolates and its formation in a box. There is the mystery embedded in the interiors of its inner cavities, and the burst of polyphenols, a reward your brain is always thankful for.

Whenever I travelled outside Nigeria, people would request I come back with chocolate. That used to get me upset. My response sometimes would be, “But we have cocoa, why don’t we make ours?” It was even sadder when visiting friends or family abroad, I had nothing to offer as gifts from my beloved Nigeria. So, you can say it was a two edged-sword. Thinking about Nigeria and the cocoa we have motivated me to stop talking and start creating.

She wants to make Nigeria the sweetest place in Africa!

 

“I knew that my profession had been invented by men, (…) men force women to sell their bodies at a price, and that the lowest paid body is that of a wife. All women are prostitutes of one kind or another.” – Nawal el Saadawi’s “Woman at Point Zero”.

Prostitution is “engaging in sexual activity with another person in exchange for money or other valuable goods.” Prostitution is sex trade. It is between two parties. Why do we denigrate only one party?
If there were no buyer, would there have been a seller? This goes both ways.

Society grooms girls to see romantic relationships as a source of income while teaching men to see income as a source of romantic relationships. We should not pretend an AVERAGE Nigerian girl does not go into romantic relationships for money.

Some guy once tweeted about a girl he asked on a date. It turned out the girl asked for “hair money” before the date.

“I’m broke,” a girl says.

“Don’t you have a boyfriend?” her friend asks and goes on to say, “My boyfriend does not miss it. He sends me 40k every month.”

How did having a boyfriend become an occupation? As I often say, Prostitution, like blue, has several hues.

Having sex with my boyfriend, a man that pays for my weaves and all that, does not make me different from that woman that sleeps with different men to get money to pay for her weaves and all that. Is it because she sleeps with different men? (Are humans naturally monogamous? If you are bringing in religion into this, aren’t we all fornicating? Is it not the same eternal damnation?  People that claimed they went to school still believe “the vagina gets loose” after “too much sex”. Really, they should read and re-educate themselves.)

Most men believe it is their duty to cater to their ADULT girlfriends and wives. I am yet to understand why a physically fit adult has to cater to another physically fit adult. I could easily decide to get married this year – I’d call any of the men that think they are in love with me and I’d say I’m now interested in getting married and become a trophy wife. Does a boy, my age mate, have the same choice? Would he not face ridicule for being a trophy husband? I live in a society where a girl tweets, What is your role as a boyfriend if you can’t provide everything your girl wants? Do we hold girls to the same standard?

One of the foci of gender equality, a.k.a feminism, is getting rid of double standards in all aspects of human life. People, regardless of their sexes, should be held to the same standards in ALL aspects of life. Until we get rid of the double standards in respect to how the sexes view romantic relationships, I am afraid female sexuality would remain a currency.

Women should stop feeling entitled to men’s money – we should stop viewing romantic relationships as moneymaking ventures.

Men should stop feeling responsible for women. They should stop seeing money as a way to “find love”.

There is no point getting sanctimonious in the presence of sex workers if we believe men are obligated to cater to women while women are to be catered to. That would make us hypocrites.

P.S.
I love you… but you are a prostitute if your main aim in that romantic relationship is to make money off your “bae”.

You enable prostitution if you feel you NEED money to get love, affection, and sex from a woman in the guise of “romantic relationship”. “I need money to impress her…” Bro, swerve!

P.P.S.
The Functionalist School of Thought in sociology believes prostitution is beneficial to society. You could read that up on your own. Often, I ask myself what makes prostitution different from plumbing. They both render services. Is it because of sex? What is this thing about sex?

P.P.P. S.
Do you look down on sex workers because “it is morally and spiritually wrong”?  Do you realise you have a habit that is “morally and spiritually wrong”? It could be that you’re signing into the office at the wrong time. A lie is a lie even when coated with white. So, calm down. If sex workers want to go to hell, let them go to hell in peace. Are they affecting you negatively in any way?

P.P.P.P.S.
I am in awe of women that have put a price on themselves – they have not let people put a price on them. Cheers to every woman that has understood society has made our sexuality a currency. Do you think it is easy sharing yourself with people? All that courage! At times, I wish I could bend myself in a way I would not mind trading my sexuality with a man for money. Men seem to have more money. Cher Dieu, mais pourquoi! Those of us not trading our sexuality for money should start asking ourselves if we lack business acumen.

Photo Credit: Jason Stitt | Dreamstime.com

Cisi Eze

About Cisi Eze

Cisi is a freelance writer and 2D animator. To kill boredom, she reads anything and everything in sight. Cisi wants to bring positive social change in Nigeria by provoking people to rethink and reconsider certain beliefs they have clutched to their chests like it were a medal. She aims to do this through every form of art at her disposal. Cisi lives in Lagos, Nigeria

Source: Bellanaija

Helen Oyeyemi has won the PEN America OPEN BOOK Award 2017.

The PEN Open Book Award was created by PEN American Center’s Open Book Committee, a group committed to racial and ethnic diversity within the literary and publishing communities.

Helen won the cash prize of $5,000 for the category of the “Exceptional Book-Length Work of Literature By An Author of Color Published In 2016” for her collection of short stories “What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours”.

In 2010, she received the Somerset Maughan Award, and was named as one of Granta’s ‘Best of Young British Novelists’ in 2013.

Her books include: What Is Not Yours is Not Yours (2016); Boy, Snow, Bird (2014); Mr. Fox (2011); White For Witching (2009); The Opposite House (2007); The Icarus Girl (2005), and Juniper’s Whitening and Victimese (2005).

Source: Woman.ng

Being a female leader in the modern day comes with its own unique set of challenges. Many of the challenges come from other people, the society and female leaders themselves – how we navigate through these issues is very important in a modern world

Being ‘too’ aware of gender: Most female leaders walk into leadership positions being overly aware of their gender as a barrier. I dare say there are great leaders- period. Gender is not a pre-requisite to great leadership. Female leaders need to embrace their knowledge, skills, diversity and just lead.  No apologies for being great individual.

Society Definition of Success: There is an enormous pressure to perform well while in a leadership position because of the societal pressure that suggests that everything the female leader does is representative of the female gender.  The pressure also implies that the female leaders’ actions determines how much opportunity other women get.

Clare Booth Luce once said ‘If I fail, no one will say she doesn’t have what it takes. ‘They will say, ‘Women don’t have what it takes. Society needs to start accepting women as capable to accomplish anything. Success should not be dependent on what gender you are.

Reality of Other Responsibilities – Work versus Family: Female leaders wear multiple hats: the wife hat, motherly hat, the sister, the child and so on. Dealing with the pressure of raising kids and having a stable career is a real issue female leader’s face. Women arguably have greater demands outside of work competing for their attention. Generally, women tend to compete better at the junior levels. However, as they progress to middle levels with heavier work demands and higher travel frequency, they tend to leave to focus on family or pursue part-time work or other endeavors. Another challenge is the ability to get attractive career opportunities inspite of maternity breaks. The effect is that the pool of female leaders for top jobs gets smaller.

Stereotyping and Leadership Style: Female leaders are often referred to as stereotyped. They can be accused of being / called emotional when it may just be being passionate and on the other hand a risk of being perceived as being overly controlling and confrontational. As Forbes recently noted, “Studies show that assertive women are more likely to be perceived as aggressive and that women usually don’t ask for what they deserve. When they do, they risk being branded as domineering or, worse even, “ambitious.”

Being Authentic – in a different element: In a predominantly male environment, female leaders are faced with male dominated discussions that makes them feel odd and may lead to being treated differently. There is a lot of distractions to make female leaders dwell on what makes them different meanwhile everyone is judged by their results. Female leaders are however still faced with the need to stretch their experience from a functional background to a broader base.

Limited access to Female Role Models and Female Leadership Groups: Many people prefer to have mentors of the same gender because they tend to understand the challenges most commonly faced. Sometimes, the needs of women from their mentors also tend to differ from the needs of men. There is a need for more encouragement, a role model to follow, and someone who have faced similar challenges to talk. Also female strong social networks also represent a tremendous, untapped opportunity that can be leveraged on.

Globalization: Mobility is very key in a modern world. Female leaders are faced with challenges that comes with relocation as they move higher. Globalization presents many new barriers for women.

The reality is that, historically, men have been the ones to define ambition and leadership in the business world but women have come a long way into being represented in top leadership. What make a female leader strong will remain the natural abilities that is brought into leadership — a concerted/collaborative style, ability to multi-tasks, a talent for listening, and a natural ability to manage interpersonal relationships – what will keep it going on top of this skills will remain the ability to being authentic to oneself.

Supports Leadership Programs can provide:

Platform for Leadership Coaching

Bringing out the authentic side in leadership.

Navigate through adjusting into a new culture with my move to the UK from Africa.

Staying ahead despite multiples roles at home and at work.

Abimbola Siyanbola is a Director with a Global Multinational FMCG. She is very passionate about transformation initiatives that will support young leaders build confidence and leadership capabilities to succeed in a dynamic world. Abimbola likes to write, travel, watch a boxing or a football match.

Source: Mrsceonaija

 

 

 

 

 

Stella Duru is the first female partner in the Energy Practice Group at Banwo & Ighodalo law firm. Her rise to the top will definitely motivate you. It is a story of passion, commitment and the resolute belief that no challenge is too difficult to overcome. Because of her grit, many women have found themselves leading the pack in the area of oil and gas in the legal field.

Meet Stella 
I am a partner in the EPG practice, (specialising in energy and power) in the Nigerian law firm of Banwo & Ighodalo. I come from a happy, close knit and large family of six children. I am the fourth of six children and the second daughter with two older brothers, an older sister and two younger sisters. My mom and dad are the best parents in the world.

I am from a little village called “Alike” in a slightly bigger town called “Umunumo,” which is located in the Ehime-Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State. My parents are retired. My dad was a banker, while my mum was a teacher.

I am proud to say that I am “home grown…made in Nigeria”, as all of my education was in Nigeria. I attended St. Mary’s Private School, Lagos State, and then went on to Queen’s College, Yaba, also in Lagos State. I had my undergraduate studies at the University of Lagos.

I was called to the Bar in 2001 and I have been working at Banwo & Ighodalo since then. I love travelling and when I find the time, I absolutely love to cook.

 Decision to pursue a legal career?
My love for intrigue and righting wrongs. Though cliché-ish, but the late Nelson Mandela unknowingly played a larger than life role in my pursuit of a legal career.

Rising   ranks in your career
A very green horn, I started my career as a Youth Corper in Banwo & Ighodalo. I am happy to note that I was retained at B&I, following the completion of my 12 months as a Youth Corper.

For the first three to six years of my career, as is usual with any young lawyer trying to decipher what area of law to build a career in, I juggled litigation, general corporate commercial and energy (oil, gas and power) transactions. However, by the fifth year, it had become clear that I had fallen in love with everything, oil, gas and power and my career took off at that point. At that time, I had become involved in advising oil and gas companies, negotiating industry specific contracts, and if I recall clearly, I had been drafted as part of the team diligencing the vertically integrated government-owned power utility, known as National Electric Power Authority. Nigeria was deeply on a reform path then. Indeed, the Electric Power Sector Reform Act was passed into law in March 2005.

By my sixth year in B&I, I had started to lead teams in relation to certain oil, gas and power transactions, and in recognition of my commitment to client satisfaction and quality delivery, I was officially elevated to the role of substantive team leader in the Energy Practice Group (EPG) and promoted to Senior Associate/Counsel and subsequently, Senior Counsel under the Firm’s former hierarchical structure.

This elevation to the position of team leader came shortly after I returned home, following a successful nine-week Africa visiting lawyers’ internship programme in the law firm of EdwardNathan (as it then was), in Johannesburg, South Africa. It is important to note that during my stint at EdwardNathan, I published an article on the Nigerian power sector in the Business Law Review of the BusinessDay in July 2005. Thus, you would see my continuing relationship with the power sector whilst the oil and gas sector continued, ever so often to woo me.

I was admitted to partnership, 11 odd years later in recognition of my loyalty, commitment and continuing push/tenacity for “bettering my best”. In a nutshell, I rose through the ranks by remaining focused, committed, passionate, tenacious and never losing sight of the fact that clients’ satisfaction remains paramount. I also hold dear the principle that a lawyer is only as good as what she knows and how she uses what she knows in solving her clients’ problems.

Being the only female partner at Banwo & Ighodalo
I am actually not the only female partner in B&I. Our firm prides itself on being inclusive and have as many women as men, smashing glass ceilings in their areas of specialisation.

However, I am the only female partner in the EPG of the firm, which houses our oil, gas, power and mining deals/transactions.
ven the very technical nature of deals and transactions in this area of law, female lawyers have traditionally shied away from playing in thisspace. However, I love challenges and the ability to be a pacesetter and that helped in directing me into this area of law practice.

How do you ensure that your impact is felt in an environment that is male dominated?
I get younger lawyers, especially younger female lawyers, to see that a woman can succeed anywhere, provided she remains true to what she believes in and does her homework smartly and with grit. I think too much emphasis is placed on male dominance, and not too much time is given to actually doing the hard and smart work required for the job.

So, I make time to deliver presentations to the oil and gas club in the University of Lagos (my alma mater) and also give talks during the Career Fair at the same University. I usually punctuate my talks with pep talks on how the world seemingly dominated by men; can be conquered by any focused, driven and intelligent lady.

Instructively, during my time in Houston negotiating the Brass LNG suite of contracts, I had an all female team and we were dubbed the “B&I Angels,” as we were unrelenting in meeting our deadlines and beating down on the men at the negotiation table! So, I would think I have been able to impact quite a few ladies, who now have blossoming careers in oil, gas and power sectors.

Values
Hard, smart work, integrity, be inclusive, go the extra mile, be different, do different, and have fun whilst you can. All of these values I learnt from my parents. They remain my main motivating factor and influencers. It is also important to note that my parents ensured equal opportunities for the girls, as well as the boys in the family.

As mentioned above, I am from the Eastern part of Nigeria and traditionally, it was not the norm to educate the females, at least not up to high school and university levels in the family, as the men were considered the breadwinners, since the women will most likely be married off.So my parents went the extra mile and they did differently from their peers and I can proudly state that all their children, even the daughters, are accomplished professionals today!

Do you think women are well represented in the legal field?
Oh yes! Nigerian women in the legal field have been smashing class ceilings!

What  it take to have a successful career as a lawyer?
Passion, without which you will not hunger for knowledge and will be unable to successfully improve yourself. A lawyer that is not knowledgeable cannot solve problems, and if you cannot solve problems, then you can be chalked as having wasted the fees you paid for school, especially law school.

It is also important to dominate your skills, by getting better at what you do. There are other values like commitment and loyalty, nurturing and maintaining relationships, as well as remaining relevant by continually updating your knowledge base.

How did you develop the interest in the area of renewable energy?
My interest in power generally was linked to when a distant relation died on the operating table, because of power outage and no back-up generator in the hospital. That sort of shaped my continuing interest in the energy space, especially the link between gas and power. I hold strongly to the view that once we fix the power sector, then quite a huge chunk of our ills as a nation will slowly, but surely be fixed.

What would you say is your most significant achievement so far?
Being able to convince one of our biggest clients that there was no requirement for international counsel on one of our deals and that we as a Nigerian firm could successfully negotiate the relevant contracts at cheaper rates, thus helping with the cost profile of the company with the same, if not better quality than our international colleagues.

I am happy that we delivered on that deal and excellently, too. And the accolades from the chairman/managing director/general counsel of the company were deeply satisfying. Also linked to this deal was my deep satisfaction that the ladies, who were part of my team, went on to become top-notch negotiators/lawyers at the companies they joined after working with out firm. Being invited as a speaker/panelist at the Women in Energy Breakfast, as well as the Africa Power Roundtable all the way in South Africa, between January 31 and February 2, 2017 is indeed a great feat.

What are some of the challenges you have faced in your career and how did you overcome?
Being able to overcome the narrative that, for certain type of deals, local counsels are not “good enough”. With such narrative, your only option is to continually give your very best at all times. You don’t overcome a challenge by talking about it. You continue to do and then you find that the challenge doesn’t exist any longer!

How do you juggle home and work?
I think it all boils down to being diligent and efficient. Also, timing is important. You have to be very deliberate about what you want for you and ultimately find your happiness. It can be tough, but I can say I see more and more women successfully managing these two roles. Some may have health challenges because of a lack of sleep, but they seem to be managing it quite well.
Most importantly, you must find a supportive spouse, who is interested in seeing you succeed at both roles – as a mother and as that successful professional. Your success is his, ultimately.

How do you relax?
I go to the movies, watch series, go to the spa, read or write fiction and cook.

Where do you see yourself in the next five years?
First female Minister of Power? Minister of Petroleum? Who knows?

What is your advice for younger women wanting to strike the right balance between career and family?
Love what you do and find time for family. Career cannot take the place of family and if you are all for family and cannot bring bread to the table by what you do, then you may not have a family after all.

So, find the right balance. Ask God for guidance, when it gets overwhelming and frustrating. Take a deep breath at such times and then very quickly, get back to the grind. Don’t forget to find time for you though, because without you, there is no career and simply, a memory in the family.

 

Source: Guardian.ng

No one is perfect says the world but some vices are more bothersome than the others. Many men can relate with this topic. I wonder if men talk about how much their wives love to spend on hair- whether braids, wigs or natural replenishment. Better still, if they talk about our bags, watches, lotions, spas, dresses, perfumes. What of our vacations? And our constant shopping of toys for the kids!! Oh women!

Ok, now that we have satisfied the men, let us share some of the ache of the ladies. Does your man spend a lot on TGIF! A drink here and there, designer belts, designer ties and shirts- all the same color (white and blue). God bless the women that their spouses love games too! What of the man that likes to loan everyone in the office?

Spending is part of life. Some will argue, what is the point of earning money and stashing it. What is the point of investment? If not to spend it later. There is a popular Ebenezer Obey song that says ‘olowo majeye, eyin lomo, awon to laye lana da, won ti ku won ti lo’. It means rich man/woman that doesn’t want to spend and enjoy life, na you sabi. those that were alive yesterday are dead and gone.

I agree to an extent. It sucks to be stingy. It sucks to have money and live like a pauper. However, there are limits.

A spendaholic is someone that spends arbitrarily. This means irrational, not planned, not needed spending. Spending for the sake of spending. Spending as if he/she did not work hard to earn the money. Spending on any and everything. Buying everything in sight. This is not cool.

Here are tips to handle.

1.Show the problem. First step is to show the spender that there is a problem. Most spenders have different reasons for their habits. Some will say ‘ how much is this bag sef, sebi it is just N20,000. What can I do with that money anyway. It cannot buy me land, cannot buy me a car. So let me enjoy’. Educate the person that N50,000 set aside monthly for 10 years is N6,000,000. Even without any interests. Go through the person’s bank statement and add up all the little costs here and there and it will amaze you how much it adds up to.

2.Proffer alternatives but don’t create a bondage. No one wants to feel like a child being monitored, so allow flexibility. An easy way to do this is to create 3 accounts: one for yourself, one for spouse and one for joint projects. Agree with your spouse an amount on projects and investment and focus your energy on that. Example, we try to do 30%- 40% on investments and dedicate that to the joint project account. Then, each person can manage his/her personal pocket money as they like. They secret here is to take as much as possible for projects so that spouse has just enough for life! (Wink) and a few luxuries. Also, ensure both of you are aligned to the project or dream. Do not impose your dreams on your spouse. This is a NO- NO! and NO!

3. Link loans to spouses account or set up alternative systems. A clean way to block money with a shopaholic is to link project loans to the account. Whether we like it or not, the debit alert for loans happen ‘gbagaun’ automatically monthly. So link this and you won’t have to worry about ‘lau lau’ spending. However, ensure that loans are taken for productive ventures that can pay itself and the interests on capital.

a.Alternatively, set up recurring bank instructions. You can instruct the bank to move some money out of your account into a savings account as soon as allowy/salary lands at month end.

4. Have a budget and financial goals. This is key. Every year, I set financial goals. E.g.

a.I want to build a commercial property

b.I want to build up cash up to XX amount

c.I want to pay off loans

d.I want to invest in children’s education trust fund

e.I want to set up a community CSR fund pot.

f.I want to set up children’s university savings

g.I want to establish my younger one’s business

h.I want to take a vacation.

Let us be clear. This is not about me. So replace ‘I’ in above sentences with your name. This is about you. Make a list of your financial goals for 2017 now. Draw up a budget too. What % of your income will you spend on accommodation, feeding, education, children’s school fees, beauty, tithe, giving back, transport, savings, investment, gadgets etc?

5. Keep some fun money aside. All work and no play makes Adunni a dull girl. So remember Obey’s song. Spend some money on things you love, things that make you happy so you can live long enough to spend the savings. Remember, no one was born a shopaholic. With a lot of love, support and education, your spouse will be a financial guru in no time. At the same time, don’t victimize your spouse in the name of financial training. Everyone is different and your spouse may never get to the level of discipline you have.

What do you think?

By: MrsCeo Naija

Pic Credit: shutterstock.com

 

Are you a Beauty Business Owner who is looking at challenging the status-quo and raising the bar in the Nigeria Beauty Industry?

Register to attend F.A.B.B Business class with Veteran Makeup artist Lola Maja- Okojevoh, Business start-upper and Finance expert Femi Darabidan and IT guru Steph Obi.

And learn:

* How to structure your business for growth in Nigeria Business Climate

* How to get access to capital for your startup

* How to access grants and loan for business expansion

* Documentation and accounting

* Business branding techniques

* Latest tricks in makeup artistry

* How to do 21st century beauty business.

Limited spaces are available. Make reservation for a seat now, text: Name, location and email address to; 090- 75555- 054, 0816- 7454- 617 or 0903-0044- 009.

The F.A.B.B Business Class is powered by The Trillionbucks Company.

Our hashtag is FABB2017 and social handle is: F_art_shion on IG and

Twitter, Fartshion on instagram.

Most people toy with the idea of becoming entrepreneurs at least once in their life. I mean who wouldn’t? Especially after coming across a very successful one. Yeah, I know that feeling. But frankly speaking, entrepreneurship is not as rosy as it seems. So don’t just run into it because your cousin did so, and he seems to be doing well.

Personally I took that leap of faith that made me a die-hard entrepreneur sometime in 2013, and since then I have not looked back. I have had my fair share of challenges, but rather than deter me, they propel me for greater heights. And if given the opportunity again, I will still opt for entrepreneurship over and over again.

What about you? Have you ever toyed with the idea of being your own boss? Have you ever wondered if starting and running a business is your thing?

Don’t look too far. The clues below will help you make that decision. Of course, it is not exhaustive, but don’t hesitate to raise your hands and shout Hallelujah if I make a point that kinda hits close to home.

Let’s walk…

You wanna be Independent
Earlier this month, I visited an old friend of mine in Warri. And even though we have been in touch to an extent, I was really shocked and excited to see how well he was doing for himself. We had a lot of catch-up time, and I just couldn’t resist asking him what prompted him to quit his job when he did.

I mean, I remember when he was working in Enugu. And before I knew what was happening I heard he quit and started his own business. His main reason? Independence.

You see that life where you call the shots on how you spend your day, where you go, what you do, when you work or not, and most especially, how much you earn, it cannot be quantified.

For me, my eureka moment was when I told myself that even if I was selling zobo and puff-puff, I would make much more than I was being offered in the last place I worked. And when I got to that point, there was no stopping me.

Your job doesn’t give you fulfillment
I know what it means to work at a job that doesn’t give fulfillment. I mean you wake up in the morning happy, only to get sad at the thought of going to work.

Yeah, used to happen to me a lot when I was working with an Insurance company in Lagos.

Truth is that everyone wants to be fulfilled. And if your job doesn’t offer you that, it’s time you thought seriously about creating a job that could give you just that. If working at that crazy million dollar idea of yours smells fulfillment to you…that’s a sign right there.

You don’t want to compromise on your life Goals
Sometime in 2009 I wrote down a list of things I hoped to do before I die. One of them was what drove me to go for what became my first swimming experience. Apart from that, I equally wrote a lot of things that had to do with starting and running a couple of businesses.

But I didn’t just write these goals down; I got committed to pursuing them. I knew that a goal I don’t pursue will never get actualized.

If your job is not helping you achieve your life goals and you’re no longer comfortable with that, it is time to consider moving from employee to entrepreneurship. Nothing should matter more than achieving your life goals. That should form the very essence of your daily activities. So look at your job again, is it servicing your life goals?

Recurrent ideas
Don’t quit your regular job because of one idea that just flashed your mind. Ask every successful entrepreneur, it really has to be an idea that keeps coming to you. In my own case, the thoughts kept me awake at night, and gave me daydreams during the day.

So don’t be deaf. Take note of those ideas that keeps coming to you. The more recurrent, the clearer it becomes. These recurrent ideas come with an unusual surge of energy. If that is you, then entrepreneurship is for you.

An idea is the first milestone in building a successful business. Tweet that!

Your passion
Passion fuels inspiration. If your inspiration is fueled by a passion for something outside your regular 9-5 job, then please consider following your passion.

Find something you are passionate about and do it passionately. If you love the social media a lot, Instagram for instance, then let your passion drive you to seek out how to monetize that Instagram account.

But note that passion, not money, should guide your decision to become an entrepreneur. If you are genuinely passionate about providing a solution, then you are surely going to do well as an entrepreneur.

The hallmark of entrepreneurs is their passion for providing solutions other than just the prospect of a better paycheck. (Quote me)

So, what’s your story? Has the thought of starting your own business been giving you sleepless nights? What’s been keeping you from taking that leap of faith, even if it’s a side-hustle? What are you waiting for?

 

Source: Bellanaija.com