WHEN HOPE TAKES FLIGHT, WHAT NEXT?

The scriptures say that our young men shall dream dreams and our old men shall see visions. Sadly, the atmosphere for dreaming in Nigeria is fast receding. Our young men have been condemned to have nightmares while our old men have hopelessly relinquished their fiduciary responsibilities.

Many a Nigerian youth go to bed hungry, angry, despondent, disenchanted, sad and bitter. The natural consequence of sleeping in such state is ceaseless nightmares.

It has become so difficult to dream because there are thousands of impediments to the actualisation of those dreams. For starters, when you share you dreams with supposed friends, they make it a point of duty to marshal out compelling reasons why those dreams will not see the light of day, at the end of the day, if your convictions are not cast in stone, you get dissuaded and you let the dreams die.

If you decide to plough on and follow your dreams, realities soon come crashing down on you in an unmitigated cadence. A classic business advice to young entrepreneurs and dreamers is to ask them to put their dreams and visions in writing.

I have been given that advice by mentors in the past when I verbally marshalled my seemingly lofty dreams to them. They smiled knowingly and asked me to go and put it in writing. Even the scriptures implore us to write down revelations, epiphanies and insights that we receive. This enables us to separate the real deal from brain waves. That way, on paper, you can eliminate the obviously inconsistent aspects of the dream and concentrate on the realities.

When these dreams are put together and steps are taken to actualise them, all kinds of obstacles come to the fore. As a young business starter, you require capital to actualise your business plans. How do you go about raising it?

Even before the current Sanusi abracadabra in the banking industry that has made borrowing seem like getting a visa to haven, borrowing was an Olympian climb. Banks require collateral and other forms of security for any loan they are advancing to you. Even if you want them to finance the equipments you require for what you intend to do, they will still require you to put down up to 40% of the cost of the equipment.

Now imagine a scenario, as I know is the majority case, where you go through hell to pay your way through school. You suffer deprivations, borrow from friends and classmates, face the humiliation of being walked out of an exam hall because you are yet to pay your school fees and you somehow manage to hustle your way through school.

Then you emerge with your certificate and join the labour market. After a year, you are yet to find a job. You decide that you want to start up a business. You come up with an idea and start hawking the idea. You approach banks but they politely tell you that they are not a charity organisation. You call friends, relations, remote acquaintances and all manner of associates for them to help you with the initial funds you require to start up the business but no dice. What kind of dream would such a person dream when he goes to bed?

This is a classic Nigerian story. We have Small and Medium Scale Agencies that are supposed to take care of these issues but they are bureaucratic cesspits of corruption. We have Micro-Finance banks but no thank you. We have commercial banks but sorry, we require a security that is worth more than the amount you are asking for.

On the average, any sensible business requires between 5 and 10 Million Naira to start up. Where will a poor average hustling Nigerian youth get collateral worth that amount that he will use to get a loan? You want to know if you have people? Try asking them to meet your need. They’ll suddenly stop picking your calls.
I have a friend whose story is real sad. He finished his first degree, looked for jobs for two years without luck. Then we his friends raised him money to go to the United Kingdom to prosecute his Masters Degree to brighten his chances of getting a job. He went to Aberdeen and finished his Masters and came back to Nigeria armed with a 2.1 First Degree in Chemistry and a Masters Degree in Applied Chemistry.

Friends, our friend is still hawking his C.V as I write. He spent six months in Lagos, no dice, relocated to Port-Harcourt to try the Oil Companies, spent another six months, no show. He has now moved to Abuja and it has gotten to the point where he states in his application that if his Masters Degree will be an impediment, they should ignore it and employ him based on his first Degree!

How will our young men dream dreams under these circumstances?

Ladies and gentlemen, the question is, do we then stop dreaming because dreams are increasingly becoming difficult to actualise? The answer is a capital NO. We can’t give up, we must keep pushing. We must keep knocking until someone opens.

Agreed that opportunities are becoming few and far between in Nigeria but for as long as there are still people who are succeeding, then we can’t give up. I know it seems like we are hoping against hope but what can we do? For as long as we have life, we should never stop dreaming, never stop hoping and never stop pressing towards the mark for weeping may endure for the night but joy will surely come in the morning.

Let us all make our selves ready to answer whenever we are called upon. A friend said that God only dances with people who are already on the stage. Another said that success is opportunity that met preparedness. We must all therefore be prepared to maximise opportunities whenever they come knocking.
If you want to travel abroad, then go get a passport. If you do not have a University Degree, it’s never too late. Take steps to get one today. Bottom line is that when the opportunity does come your way, may you not be the cause why the light will not shine upon you.

Ignore stragglers and loafers, you have no business with them. It’s like someone who is travelling abroad who got to the airport and started gisting with someone who came to see a traveller off. He has no destination so he is okay to gist forever, you on the other hand will be gisting with him and you won’t hear your flight being announced and you’ll end up missing the flight!

Seek like minds and those whose thought processes are higher than yours. Most of my friends are older than me deliberately for I want to know what they know. Seek the company of achievers and positive people. Stay far away from those who always complain and murmur for I assure you, it is contagious.

Lastly, hold steadfastly unto God for he is the author and finisher of our faith. The scriptures say that the race is not to the swift neither is the battle to the strong but it is unto God that showeth mercy upon whom he chooses to show mercy.

Therefore be strong in faith, keep dreaming, keep pushing, keep knocking and keep walking for verily verily I say unto you, your victory is around the corner.

Hoping that this little piece will restore someone’s hope and rekindle someone’s desire to dream again.

Best wishes.