The Sad Truth Why So Many Youth Will Remain Poor

So many of our Nigerian youths are poor.

Why?

One may be forced or tempted to argue that the government has caused it because they did not plan for these youths.

That’s okay.

But that’s not really the whole gospel truth.

You see, if one is to go by that statement of blaming the government for the poverty being experienced by so many of our youths, then it is akin to—like my great friend Steve Olorun-Ni of Africabusinessclassroom(ABC) will normally put it—blaming a rapist for not taking your daughter to hospital after raping her, if I should use that graphic example.

10 Reasons Why You Are Still Looking for A Job

Are you still looking for a job? Well, you are not alone. So many people are also in the same boat as you.

But have you ever considered that you could actually be the cause why you have kept on searching with nothing meaningful in sight?

Well, here, let's take a look. These are some of the reasons why your job search has proven to be abortive so far.


You don’t know what a job really is

As funny as this might sound, so many folks out there who deem themselves unemployed actually don’t know what a job is really all about.

You might be one of them.

Generally speaking, so many people think a job is all about having an office and probably, a boss too.

To them a job is simply a place where you dress up and go to every day of the week, spend some time there, perform certain tasks and get paid at the end of the week or month as the case might be.

In their own understanding, if or once you have a place where you can go and do all that, you are not jobless.

But in truth, that's a very narrow minded way of defining a job or what constitutes a job.

Simple as it sounds, that’s not really what a job is all about.

Render Specialized Services

One thing I got from the SpeedWealth is that the more specialized or rare a service you are offering is the money you can make from the business.

So if you are really serious about becoming a millionaire, then you should also be more concerned with learning or acquiring a specialized knowledge and/or skills.

In the eBook, the author T. Harv Eker states that a brain surgeon makes much more than a gas station attendant simply because the ‘value’ of what the brain surgeon is ‘supplying’ is not easily available everywhere. In other words, there are only few people who could be brain surgeons but there are millions and millions of people who could become gas station attendants!

So always bear that in mind as you continue to think of ways to quickly and legally become rich.

In the following discussion, I will try to touch of some of the rare businesses that anyone who has some interest in them could exploit in his quest to become rich.

20 Very Useful Things You Should Be Doing Instead of Watching Big Brother Naija

The debate is on: Big Brother Naija(BBN) reality TV show, to watch or not to watch. What really spurred this debate was that disturbing evidence that it seems like so many folks are already hooked unto the show, albeit secretly.

The naysayers who strongly say people should not watch it have made their point. They argued that the BBN is totally pointless, promotes indecency, teaches nothing… bla… bla… bla… bla…

But the ‘aye aye’ who love the show to bits strongly counters all that by saying, “If you don’t like the show, simply turn your TV off!”

Epic!

Totally!!

I love that!!!

So after listening to both sides of the party and argument, here’s my final verdict.

Sorry guys, but I will go with the naysayers.

Not because of the promotion of immorality point of view of the argument. Me, being somewhat amoralist, I don’t really give an eff whether the show promotes indecency or not, teaches something or not... what else did they say about the show again…?

Yes, I don’t.

So why then would I go with the naysayers?

Okay, listen.

10 Things You MUST Do While Still In School

Listen. I have to tell you the truth. It is the bitter truth. I know it might not go down so well with you but then, it must be told.

So many people didn’t learn about this truth. Today, so many are still suffering as a result of that. I don’t want that to be your portion. Which is why I have decided to say it not minding how unsettling this information might be to you.

So are you ready to hear this truth?

Okay, now listen.

The truth is that: SCHOOL IS WASTING YOUR TIME!

I know that some of us will feel like arguing against this bitter truth. I know some of us will like to come up with points or facts that prove that I am so wrong with this timely ‘revelation’ I just made.

But I am also glad that some of us are already aware of this fact.

Yes, school is wasting your time... our time!

For your own sake, please, don’t try to argue with me or resist this information. In fact, if I were you, instead of trying to argue, I will simply be asking the next question.

Which is: what do you say we do then?

Yes.

Once you recognize a problem, the solution is almost around the corner. So let’s agree that we have now recognized that school is wasting our time.

The next thing on our minds now should be what then do we do?

Setting Your Goals Right

Last time, we talked about setting your goals and its importance towards having a successful future.

Today, I’m going to set you on the path of realizing those goals. I will do this by outlaying the simple process involved starting from setting your own goals to realizing those goals.

So if you are ready, without wasting any more of your time, let’s launch into the process now.

First, for a reminder…

What is a goal?

Let us simply define a goal as something (like a desire) you want to achieve. It can also be said to be at the score that results from doing something.

My Goal as An Undergraduate

Setting goals is a very effective way of getting ahead in life. Realizing those goals makes one feel alive. In every human endeavor, goals are very important because they serve as checks and balances towards our success and achievement as humans.

Sadly, so many people don’t realize this importance of setting goals. They just ‘go with the flow’ without any form of planning while forgetting that he who fails to plan plans to fail.

As an undergraduate, it is sad to find out to so many of my colleagues do not have any well defined set goals which they are working towards. It's disheartening when you discover that most of us, think that the only reason why we are in school is jut to make good grades and maybe hopefully, get a good job after graduation but the way I see it, it goes much beyond that.

Questions for Undergraduates

In our today’s world, there is something going on in our country (and in so many other countries around the world too) that is very chilling. Something is very wrong somewhere. And very scary too. It has something to do with undergraduates, majorly…

What could this thing be? Any ideas anyone…?

Of course, don’t look far. It is the fact that more and more undergraduates are finding it very difficult to get a job once they graduate.

Unemployment is the problem. A very big problem. It is very scary but it is the reality.

So what could actually be the problem? Why is it that so many of our youths are unemployed?

Does it mean that our undergraduates are not skilled or qualified enough? Or does it mean that there are no jobs at all to satisfy the needs of millions of graduates who are dumped into the labor market year in year out? Or does it mean that our government has completely lost it and has ran out of ideas on what to do and the necessary or right steps to take to arrest this cumbersome and worrisome development?

Thoughts like this have been bothering me for quite some time and it is the same thought that has spurred me into taking up my pen to write my inner thoughts down.

I knew I had to do this because it was kind of shocking to me when I realized that a greater part of the problem lies with the individual himself.

Try to deny this as much as you want.

How To Develop A Very Good Memory

The importance of developing a powerful memory cannot be overemphasized. It might seem as if students in schools are the ones that should benefit more from developing their memory because of their academic activities but it goes further than that because in reality everyone, and I mean everyone, should develop a powerful memory.

Why?

Good question. Just think about it, everything you have today, everything you know, your family members and loved ones, everything you are today, what you are doing now, where you want to go, the things that brings you happiness and joy, the money in your bank account, the things that make you cry,  all the things that make you who you are today are just a function of your memory!

How to Read and Understand

One of the greatest challenges any student might face is how to read and understand. It is very necessary that a student masters how to do such a thing very well because most of his or her academic work involves mainly reading and reading can only become meaningful and useful, if and only if, the study do understand what s/he has read.

In fact, for any student who wants to really score high in all his academic endeavors, I am fully of the opinion that reading and understanding is a MUST!

In this piece, I am going to throw more light and clarify the various methods which I have used from my own experience that can make reading and understanding not only worthwhile but enjoyable.

Be Original

The greatest fear people have is that of being themselves. They want to be 50 Cent or someone else. They do what everyone else does even if it doesn't fit where and who they are. But you get nowhere that way; your energy is weak and no one pays attention to you. You’re running away from the one thing that you own— what makes you different. I lost that fear. And once I felt the power that I had by showing the world I didn't care about being like other people, I could never go back.

-50 Cent (50th Law)

Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s own opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.

                                   -Oscar Wilde

At some point in your life as a student during school or when you must have graduated from school, you may start having this feeling of being (a little bit) frustrated. You notice that everything you are doing or everything you represent is actually someone’s idea. You start hating the idea of imitating others because you have realized that imitation is bad.

You will start seeking originality because at this point, you might have finally discovered for yourself that it is originality that can separate you from all men.

Congratulations if you have finally made it to this point. Now, I am going to offer you a little push with hope that you might seek and be glad that you are now seeking originality.

I am going to give you now some of the reasons why I say that becoming original is one of the best things that will ever happen to you.

It makes you unique

Oh yes. It is one of the ways of separating yourself from the herd.

How to Become A Star Student

There is always that student or students in the class whom we all envy. We just want to be like him or her. Somehow, we have come to recognize this particular student as a star. We also want to be such a star too but we find out that it seems that we can’t be like this person no matter what we do.

Sometimes the reason why it seems so impossible to be like this star student is simply because of our own inhibitions. There are things that we already believe in, things we think we can or cannot do which in one way or the other is blocking or interfering with our ability of becoming a star student.

In this discussion that will follow, I will try to identify some of the simplest ways through which any student can easily become a star student. As you will soon find out, they are really so simple and very very easy to do.

Are you with me? Okay, let’s go. These are some of the ways through which you can become a star student.

Starting out as an entrepreneur

Contrary to what you have or have not been told, starting life as an entrepreneur is not and has never been a bed of roses.

There are challenges that you must overcome to become one. Many people have tried and so many people who couldn't cope had to give way and settle for something much less difficult.

So in this piece, I am going to make an effort in informing you on the basic lessons that you must know and always bear in mind when you finally decide to become an entrepreneur because I believe that with such knowledge, you can only but excel and whenever trouble steers you in the face, you will know how not to quit!

But before we begin, I think it will be in our best interest to remind us of the importance of why we need to become entrepreneurs - why we need to become our own boss!

The importance of making friends

The key to getting anyone to cooperate with you or help you do something is to make that person your friend. People find it easier to help those who they know than those who they don't. Don't doubt it. It is just a human thing.

When you need money, who do you normally go to? Is it someone you already know or do you just ask any stranger you meet on the road? When you want someone to teach you something or clarify some things for you, who will you go to - a friend or that guy or girl you just met?

So as a common sense student who recognizes the importance of getting other people's help, your first step is to learn how to make friends. You need to learn how to connect with him or her so as to achieve his or her maximum cooperation whenever you need it.

This strategy is quite simple. First, make these people to come to like you. Then you can be able to influence them. And only then can you be able to get that much needed help from them!

Now one thing you must have in mind is that making friends comes easily to some people while some other people find it to be something very hard to do. If you are in the second group, and you honestly want to do something about it, all you have to do is to listen to me now, let me tell you the basic human psychology which you can always harness to get people to like you almost instantly almost all the time!

Organized mind: The first step towards self improvement

One of the best things you could do for yourself is to acquire an organized mind. The obtainable power therein is quite immense.

Think about it, when you talk about developed nations, one thing that you normally associate with those countries is usually the high level of organization that is witnessed there. Everything seems to work just fine as if on clockwork. No wonder those people there are also described as civilized.

Similarly, when you attend any well organized ceremony or occasion, you will surely agree with me that the difference between any organized function and a haphazard one is always so easy to spot.

From the seating arrangement, to the serving of foods, down to the closing moments, you will notice one thing: systemization. Everything looks easy and works as if it has already been pre-planned leaving you with a yearning feeling for a repeat performance quite unlike what is obtainable in an unorganized function where your only wish could be for the time to fly so that you will just go!

Systemization is the keyword. An organized mind is a systemized one and having an organized mind is actually your first step towards any desire for self improvement

.

Why is this so?

Always be Prepared

This is one of the biggest advice you might ever get in this life and because it is a very important life lesson or principle, permit me to presume that you already know that you should always be prepared. If you recall, it is the motto of the Boy Scouts: Be Prepared. But then the big question will always be: do we really know what it means to be prepared? If you do, how ready and willing are you in applying this very important lifesaving principle?

And that is usually where all our problems start to manifest!

Improving Your Intelligence the Simple Ways

There is a great need for us as people to increase or improve our intelligence. Intelligence here is simply defined as the ability to acquire and apply knowledge so you can imagine a world filled with intelligent people i.e. a world where intelligence rules! The benefits will be too much for us to enjoy. Efficiency and productivity will become the new order of the day both in our individual lives and workplaces too. Technological advancement will be achieved within a small space of time.

Now, becoming more intelligent is a function of exercising the brain. It involves the daily or constant challenging of the brain. To increase your intelligence, you have to challenge your brain by doing old routines in new ways. The ability of improving our memory is also a greater part of improving our general intelligence. According to medical researches and studies, exercising your brain can improve memory and reduce the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

But the big question is how can one actually increase his/her intelligence? Are there some simple ways through which it can be done?

Examination malpractice: the silent but dangerous killer!

Examination malpractice is one of the worst problems facing academics in our world today. We see it everywhere as it is gradually becoming a norm and usual thing as more and more candidates continue to embrace and accept it as the only way [viable?] to succeed in their various examination.

But exam malpractice should not be treated with kid gloves. It is a very dangerous but silent killer which is threatening our whole academic establishments world over.

The following are some of the silent but dangerous things which examination malpractice is always doing to us as students.

How to recognize a serious University student

All that glitters is not gold. Similarly, a popular Igbo proverb says that because all lizards lie on their stomach, you will never know the one(s) that have running stomach. I wonder if lizards do have running stomach but that’s just by the way.

What’s my point?

OK. There are so many students in schools but then, there are students and there are students…

It could also be hard as well as confusing to identify those who are really qualified to bear honorable status of student i.e. those who are really the serious and those who aren't.

What spurred me into this direction?

How to score high in Post JAMB

You have really come a long way. You have written that terrible JAMB and you have passed.

I hope you passed, huh?

Okay. But something else remains. There is still one more road to cross - the Post UTME, of course!

Of course, you still have to scale through in that Post UTME, or post JAMB as many prefer to call it before you finally get admitted into your choice tertiary institution.

And that is where all your troubles start to manifest once more.