In-love With Start-ups

Between the heat, humidity and traffic I did not fall for Lagos as many of my friends predicted I will. In fact a former Lagosian told me, “all you need is three weeks and it will be difficult for you to live anywhere else” and I asked him, “why are you in Abuja then?” and I got a self-implicating smile. I must say housing is cheap here in Lagos but everything else is just plain exorbitant.

I have been working as a business developer/consultant in a company for the last 2 months and I have got 1 month left on my contract. I have enjoyed doing what I love but then there are always issues with working with start-ups especially when they are owned by absentee CEO’s. Here I am putting in my best because in a month’s time I will be done and I will need a recommendation for my next job and then my ‘boss’ is more absent than present. The stories of working in this company have been many and though we get to laugh afterwards it is a tedious time during the actual experience.


This prompted me to review my career/ambitious life. I love working with start-ups because they are usually so passionate and driven and are ready to work. I need to mention that I do not feel this way at the moment where I am but it is still a start-up so I see endless opportunities. I absolutely believe that entrepreneurship and the private sector is the future of Nigeria and the more successful they are the brighter the future of Nigeria will be even in the face of corruption and bad governance. My definition of Entrepreneurship here is simply, “the innovative ideas/concepts that generate income and may provide platforms for companies/businesses and generate job opportunities for people.” Having a great idea is not an end in itself but working that idea until it can survive without you is the beginning of its unending success.

These and more I have tried to tell my present client because he seems satisfied with the fact that he has a brilliant idea and strong partners and affiliates, and neglects the much needed office/internal process of staff motivation, attention to detail, decision making, prompt responses to needs, and mentorship. This is my premature verdict (every business developer/content provider has 1 about every business he/she handles) the company will exist for a long time but may lack staff loyalty and business process management and may revert back to being a one-man business. Staff disloyalty is caused by 2 major things; lack of motivation and no opportunities to grow or for personal development. A staff told me a few days ago that, “there is nothing for me here, I have to find a place where I would better myself and be mentored or at least pushed to become a better version of me” I completely agreed with her but I just smiled and came up with random stuff for her to do to distract her from her disillusionment at that moment. I tried to talk to the CEO about this and he could only come up with, “I am not like you” to my utter surprise. In as many words as I could come up with, I talked to him about owning a company and leading people; about the need to use clarity and precision in dealing with staff and attention to detail but like I suspected he just smiled and said, “I have heard you” That was the moment I came up with my premature verdict on the future of the company and also decided to write down my experiences from working with start ups.

I am in love with start-ups and the idea of enterprise development and a few worrisome experiences would not deter me. I get drawn into an idea just from the passion I hear in the voice or see in the eyes of the one carrying it but when I become more passionate about the process than the owner I begin to sever my attachment to it because that is a sure sign of the longevity or effectiveness of the company/organisation/idea.

I will continue my campaign for the private sector (as the public sector for now is sure to break my heart or drive me nuts) but I will also begin to put in more energy into my company and ideas trusting that all my learning’s (and un-learning) will be a plus.



***in need of a business manager who can calm the constant riotous churning of ideas which is me