As a little kid, whenever anyone asks me what career I want to pursue when I grow-up, I tell them that I want to be a Managing Director. My cousin gets embarrassed whenever he hears this and scolds me that there is no such career! Well, that was what I wanted. At the back of my mind I wanted to occupy a big office and sit on a big executive swivel chair issuing instruction to subordinates! Funny enough, I never bother to think about what I was going to be managing (a hospital or a blog, lol). I was only focussed on, the big title, big office, big executive desk and swivel chair and subordinates standing at attention while I issue commands. Pretty childish, but I held unto it until I did a course in the University, Entrepreneurship Development. It was then I was forced to think about what service I will be rendering to the consumers!
Unfortunately, an average would-be Nigerian Entrepreneur is still having that faulty frame of mind. If you ask an average Nigerian, he will tell you “I want to do business” meaning I want to be my own boss, I want to be a “Chairman Managing Director”, an entrepreneur. The phrase Managing Director is regarded as a status symbol, not a job designation for an Entrepreneur (If you listen to some folktale-musicians in Nigeria, you will understand better what I mean). I get really bothered when I read posts in Nigerian Forums that shows that even some of the educated ones are still reasoning along that line. (more…)