News
Exemplars of Greatness: Ayo Megbope, The Story of Resilience!
By Tolulope A. Adegoke
“Rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.” – J.K Rowling
Success can sometimes be found in the most unexpected places. It could lurk in the most despised or detested occupations, making it only discoverable by those who have the determination to ignore all the pain and shame that come with the process, and remain focused till they strike gold. This type of success inspires hope in people who run odd businesses or side-hustles and feel they are only spinning in circles, with no hope of real success to eventually come their way. This is why the zero-to-HERO story of Ayo Megbope, a moi-moi (bean cake) seller, who hustled against all odds to eventually grow a successful business with a turnover of over $100,000 a year, is worth exploring!
Megbope was a trained confidential secretary, who worked at Corona Schools, in Lagos, Nigeria, for nine years. After working with Corona for so long, she decided to quit her job to start a playgroup. To achieve this, Megbope signed up for a six-month Montessori programme. However, by the end of the programme, she had lost total interest and was no longer motivated to run a play group, because according to her, it was no longer exciting.
Now without anything to do, Megbope started cooking for her sister-in-law – who ran a restaurant – so she could keep herself busy. She would make all kinds of meals, including soups, stew, and a lot more. Then one day, her sister-in-law visited her, and met her family having a meal of. Megbope had prepared this meal from the last 1,000 naira (roughly $3) that the family had. The sister-in-law was invited to the dinner and she found the moi-moi so tasty that she asked Megbope to start preparing it for her too at her restaurant. Before long, her sister-in-law’s friends and colleagues started placing orders for the moi-moi from Megbope.
Within three months of selling moi-moi to family and friends, Megbope’s monthly turnover was already between 30,000 to 40,000 naira. At this point, she realised she was on to something and had to maximise her profit margins, since the best way to run any business would be to have high turnover. However, finding a place to grow the trade proved to be a bit difficult. After much effort without success, she decided to try her former place of work (the school), to see if she could sell some of her delicacy there.
In an interview she granted to a newspaper, Megbope said; “I would show up in my rickety Peugeot car, with wraps of moi-moi in a cooler. I would stand at the school gate, and begin to call each parent by their first name or their children’s names, and attempt to sell them moi-moi. They were used to seeing me in skirt or trouser suits, but were now seeing me in Ankara outfits. It was a humbling experience. They were like, ‘sebi we told you not to leave Corona but you did, see what you are selling now, moi-moi; this is bad’…but I sold still.”
As she persisted, the people gradually began to patronise her. After confirming that she was a good cook, they started requesting for other delicacies like meats, stews, soups and a lot more. At this point, Megbope could not really account for what she was making because she kept no real records; but she knew her income was growing. Soon after, she read in the newspapers that a United Nations team was coming to Nigeria to invest in women-owned businesses. It was a partnership between Goldman Sachs and the Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) at the Pan-Atlantic University, to empower about 10,000 women entrepreneurs.
Every participant was required to write and submit an essay. Megbope submitted an entry for the moi-moi business and it was accepted. The five-month programme exposed her information she wished she had known a long time ago. It showed her how to structure her business, organise her finances, build great communication skills and improve her customer service experience. By the end of the programme, her business, now called “No Left Over Nigeria Limited”, experienced a major overhaul. Within a short time, she had hired over 50 staff, including temporary workers, and got her accounting right. She went from a one-product business to becoming a full-on catering outfit, servicing over 1,000 people. So much was the patronage that Mogbeope got that her moi-moi sales in one week alone was able to pay all the staff’s salaries in a month. Indeed, within a year from her time at the Goldman Sachs training, she was finally able to purchase a delivery van. Her success was so remarkable that she was invited to the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Goldman Sachs. She was also on the panel of the Turkish Prime Minister’s Global Summit on Entrepreneurship, while equally holding meetings with former America’s first lady, Michelle Obama and former America’s President, Bill Clinton.
Ayo Megbope is truly an inspiration to entrepreneurs, especially those who are just starting out. She has shown that no matter how petty a start-up’s products and services may seem, positioning your business at the right place, with the right price, and constantly improving your knowledge, will set you up for success and emerging a HERO in your life’s calling.
The key question is, what have you learnt from all these inspirational narrations and experiences so far? And what will you do about it?
Exemplars of Greatness Series continues next week…
Watch out for the Book titled: “The Power of an Empowered Zero” (From Zero to HERO) by Tolulope A. Adegoke. Foreword by Dr Yomi Garnett (CEO/Chancellor, Royal Biographical Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania U.S.A., U.K., Abuja, Nigeria.) Edited by Ola Aboderin.
News
After Calling CAN ‘Conflict Entrepreneurs’, Police Make U-turn, Confirm Mass Abduction of Kaduna Churchgoers
Bare 24 hours after denying reports of the abduction of worshippers from three churches in Kurmin Wali community, Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State, the police have reversed their position, admitting that the attack “did occur” and many people were kidnapped.
The police admitted the incident in a Tuesday night statement issued by their spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin. This followed a public condemnation of the police’s initial stance.
Recall that terrorists, loosely referred to as “bandits,” invaded the area on Sunday, 18 January, kidnapping over 160 worshippers.
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) told this newspaper that 172 people were initially abducted but nine escaped and the remaining were marched into a nearby forest.
The statement signed by its spokesperson, Reuben Buhari, listed the affected churches to include the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Albarka Cherubim and Seraphim 1 and Haske Cherubim and Seraphim 2.
Both the Kaduna State government and the police disagreed with CAN, challenging it to present evidence that there was an abduction.
Addressing reporters on Monday after a security meeting with state authorities, the police commissioner in Kaduna, Muhammad Rabiu, described the incident as a “falsehood which is being peddled by conflict entrepreneurs who want to cause chaos in Kaduna State.”
Also the chairperson of Kajuru Local Government, Dauda Madaki, denied the attack, citing local authorities in the area.
But in the Tuesday night statement, the police said their new position on the incident followed subsequent verification from operational units and intelligence sources.
The Police said efforts were underway to “safely” rescue the victims and restore normalcy to the area.
The Police said the incident generated widespread fear and anxiety, leading the Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, to convene a meeting of the State Security Council at the Government House in Kaduna.
During the meeting, some individuals from the affected local government reportedly disputed earlier reports of the abduction, describing them as false, a development the police said created uncertainty and necessitated further verification.
According to the statement, the abduction had earlier been confirmed by the police, but the conflicting accounts led security agencies to exercise caution before making “conclusive” public statements.
The police explained that comments made by the Commissioner of Police in Kaduna were aimed at preventing “unnecessary panic” while investigations were ongoing.
The remarks, the police added, were not a denial but a response pending confirmation of details, such as the identities and number of those affected.
According to the statement, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, has ordered the deployment of additional operational and intelligence assets to the area.
The Police said the response includes the deployment of tactical units, intensified patrols, and targeted search-and-rescue operations.
The Police appealed to the public and the media to rely on official communications for verified information, warning that sensational reporting could “jeopardise ongoing operations or heighten public anxiety.”
Premium Times
The Nigerian Army has dismissed as false and misleading an online report alleging threats of mutiny by soldiers over salaries and allowances, describing the claim as sensational and detrimental to national security.
The acting Director, Army Public Relations, Col. Appolonia Anele, said there has been no threat of mutiny within the Nigerian Army.
Anele said that such conduct is alien to its ethos, discipline and professionalism.
She said mutiny is a grave offence under military law and incompatible with the loyalty of Nigerian Army personnel to the Constitution and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
Anele explained that the report relied on anonymous and unverifiable claims circulated through non-official channels, which did not reflect the views or disposition of officers and soldiers who were trained to address grievances through established military procedures.
Anele clarified that promotion increments is only one component of military pay and should not be misrepresented as total earnings.
According to her, military remuneration includes consolidated salaries, rank-based allowances, operational, field and hardship allowances, as well as other entitlements that vary based on deployment, qualifications and responsibilities.
She said the Nigerian Army, in collaboration with the Armed Forces of Nigeria and relevant government authorities, is implementing structured welfare reforms, including periodic reviews of salaries and allowances, enhanced operational incentives, improved accommodation, medical care and insurance packages for troops and their families.
The army spokesperson added that the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Waidi Shaibu, had, since assuming office, initiated constructive engagements with relevant authorities on troop welfare, with positive outcomes already emerging.
Anele reaffirmed that the Federal government, under President Bola Tinubu, remains committed to the welfare and operational effectiveness of the Armed Forces amid evolving security challenges.
She urged the public to disregard unfounded reports and rely on official communication channels for accurate information on the Nigerian Army.
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
To survive, everyone must work irrespective of creed or cadre. Work defines an individual, and sets them apart.
Working as a human being is however, relative. A student’s main work is to read and pass examination. A parent’s main work is to train their children. An employee’s main work is do the job they have been paid to do. A pastor’s job is to preach the gospel of Christ in addition to leading people to God. An athlete’s main work is to train and compete at global events in addition to winning laurels. The list is endless.
It’s the job every living being does that attracts opportunities to them, and so, staying docile and expecting opportunities to come your way is another way of encouraging poverty, lack and want in your life. In fact, docile people derive a certain level of joy from begging. Some even love freebies, free lunch and introduction for job opportunities just because they think they have the connection to make it work without them necessarily doing the corresponding work or have the requisite skill.
I personally believe it’s only lazy minds, who think that way. Life doesn’t work that way. I have since discovered that the more work one does the more doors and opportunities that come his way.
Speaking from experience, I have observed that some of the opportunities and favours I am currently receiving and enjoying are consequences of the foundation I laid many years ago. One might be wondering how that works. Let me explain a little, the day you sow a seed is not the day you will reap the fruits. Let me be more direct, as an author, it wasn’t an easy feat writing, researching, editing, doing the layout, publishing and printing the manuscript. It was lots of work, and I didn’t know my book would connect me to resourceful persons today.
In addition, the book generated royalties that humbled me to say the least. The moral of this analysis lies in the fact that when I was spending hours doing the work, I didn’t know it would attract the kind of global attention and news interviews that came to me. Now, you see why it’s good to work. Even the Bible states in Luke 10:7, that every laborer deserves fair compensation.
Did you know that if anyone wants to bless you, they will bless you with the work you do. That’s why the book of life states; God will bless the works of your hands. Nobody likes to give out free money. They like their money to work for them. It’s sad and very unfortunate to see people who pray for opportunities, favours, and blessings without doing any work. These lesser minds think money and opportunities will fall from heaven; they fail to realize that it is their work that heaven is waiting to use to bless them.
Did you know that there are things which God has enabled us to do for ourselves, and there are things we need to depend on Him to assist us. Let me explain further; if all your prayer requests are things men can provide, why are you really praying? Isn’t prayer meant for things you can’t do yourself? You pray to pass an exam that your friend read to pass. You pray to get a job that your friend got on merit. You appeal to God for a car that your friend worked for. It looks as if you are abusing prayer, and you want God to give you the things He has equipped you to provide for yourself. It is high time we understood that prayer is not the solution to laziness.
My late dad, Chief Lazarus Ukazu, advised my siblings and I to always work. As a matter of fact, each time he feels we are oversleeping, he’ll wake us up and say we have many years to sleep in the grave when we die, but as we are alive, we must work.
This instructive advice has been one of the best inspirational lessons I have received in my life. That advice made me feel like setting another goal each time I accomplish a major feat.
The importance of working cannot be overemphasized. The difference between high achievers and docile people is the work they do. While high achievers are very intentional with their life, docile people live by chance. While high achievers are determined to break records, and set new records, docile people are always comfortable living in their comfort zone.
In our contemporary society, we literally have no reason to fail because there’s the availability technology and social media to boost the work we do. It’s easy for one to know what we represent by just surfing the internet. So, imagine when frivolities are seen on your page, it will greatly affect you. Then contrast it with when good information is seen of you on the internet. Like I always say, why be local when we can be global?
Did you know that working is like taking a risk, the more work and risk someone engages in, the more opportunities and experience come their way.
In summary, if you are asked, what’s your work or what project are you working on, what will be your response?
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the founder of Gloemi. He’s a Transformative Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate, creative writer and author of Design Your Destiny Design and Unleash Your Destiny . He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
