I recently wrote the article below for Nigeria Magazine. Nigeria Magazine is a leading Nigerian magazine which is distributed across Africa and Europe. Please use http://nigeriamag.com/ or nigeriamag.com for more information about the magazine.

As a UK based entrepreneur and speaker, I’ve realised that 2013 for many is the year of opportunities and milestones or a year of obstacles and millstones. What do I mean? Never before has there been opportunities for individuals to fulfill their visions and become a reference point and a blessing to their generation. For me, Africa and in particular Nigeria is a country of opportunities where one can achieve major milestones and help to build the nation but unfortunately, many are only seeing problems wearing the millstone of impossible around their neck. To see and achieve visions of excellence which will in turn make you a leader and change agent, you have to become an entrepreneur. There have been many definitions of who an entrepreneur is, some good and some great. Earlier this year I penned the following ‘an entrepreneur is a leader of excellence, trailblazer and pioneer who constantly brings change to their generation. Nigeria is at a pivotal time in her history and for her to become a respected and recognised voice on the global playing field, visionary leaders who have an entrepreneurial spirit need to rise. Over the last two years I have been to many seminars and conferences where Nigeria’s future has been debated, discussed and dissected. It’s great, important and vital to do but I believe now is the time for you to become an entrepreneur and bring positive change to Nigeria.

It has been stated many times that Nigeria’s greatest asset is oil with figures suggesting 2 million barrels are produced every day but for me, Nigeria’s greatest asset is her people and young people in particular, why? With more than 60% of the population of Nigeria under the age of 35, the next generation have to understand and be taught what becoming an entrepreneur is and what it actually means for Nigeria. With many youth in Nigeria and really around the world crying out for positive role models, the time is now for you to rise up as an entrepreneur of distinction and bring a much needed change to Nigeria and her people. As mentioned earlier, an entrepreneur is a leader of excellence, trailblazer and pioneer who constantly brings change to their generation and now is the time for you to do so. The issue across Africa and Nigeria is the lack of visionary leadership and for you to really become the change agent Nigeria desperately needs will mean you have to step out of your comfort zone. I have self published two books, written eight and in my sixth book, I wrote ‘your comfort zone is not that comfortable’. I explained the comfort in your comfort zone is actually others discomfort but once you step out of your comfort zone and accomplish your vision, you can then inspire, challenge and empower others around you to step out of their comfort zone and accomplish their vision as well. Once this happens, you actually become a leader because leadership is not about position but rather, it is about the movement of others towards their desired goal.

Working in the personal development industry, I see many calling themselves leaders, which is great but not many are leading with the baton called excellence. No matter what business you are in, it is vital that everything about your business is excellent. Excellent website, excellent products, excellent service, excellent customer relations, excellent time management in fact, as an entrepreneur everything about you has to be excellent, that way, the people you are leading can enter new realms of excellence rather than becoming stagnant in the the zone of mediocrity. What Nigeria and in fact Africa need as a whole are leaders of excellence who can create new paths for others to step in and are innovate as well. If you are going to sell tomatoes in Enugu or you want to sell material in Lagos Island, make sure your work is so great and creative that others will be inspired to sell tomatoes or material as well. After all, nobody really likes to buy a poor original let alone a cheap copy. As an entrepreneur, not only should you ‘think out of the box’, you should permanently remove the box as well, why? That creative idea you will give birth to can actually inspire an entire generation and make you a reference point of excellence in your village, city, town and nation. Nigeria desperately needs change agents who are ready to wake up, stand up and rise to new levels of excellence knowing talk is cheap but the future of Nigeria is expensive.

As mentioned earlier, Nigeria is at a pivotal time in her history and I believe reading this article, you have understood what it means to become an entrepreneur so with the truth in hand you won’t settle for anything less than excellence, knowing your innovate leadership can and will empower, inspire and challenge a generation of Nigerians, young and old to see the possibilities in Nigeria and with this, I believe you will become the change agent which can make Nigeria a respected and recognised voice on the global playing field. In 1961, John F Kennedy, an ex-president of America said, “My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country”. In 2013, I am saying “My fellow Nigerians, don’t ask permission from Nigeria to be excellent, but rather, permit the excellence from Nigeria to be permitted”.