Dàré, why are you like this?

Bricklayer 🧱
Sucker for music in the 70s/80s/90s 🎧
@twentyonepilots♥️

[Oreoluwa Bukola, CFA. @BukkyOA]

📌 Rechannel your free hours

[Rufybaba @Rufyb]

First of all, I really like the tone. It sounds accountable. I like that. I also like the admission of the shortfalls.

But sadly, the substance remains rather thin.

MREIF is only accessible to folks who are 42 years and above, and that already cuts off many people (referring to the “hardworking family escaping rent”).

In my opinion, even with the honest admission that the work is unfinished, we don’t write any threads on 2k units, given the shortfall at hand.

And I tried to look for discussions on building costs, land reforms, etc., but didn’t see much.

Nothing in this convo speaks to “affordability.” How much salary do we need to earn to get houses?

[Fabrizio Romano @FabrizioRomano]

🚨 BREAKING: José Mourinho back to Real Madrid, HERE WE GO! 💣🤍

All terms have been verbally agreed between José Mourinho and Real Madrid, waiting to sign all documents.

Plan for initial two year deal, JM to travel to Madrid after Real-Bilbao game.

The Special One is back.

[Michael @OladejiTosin15]

Let me share what I have done in the past as a PmP mapped into the 5 steps from @DrOlaBrown's article.

Quick background so you understand where I'm coming from. During my YCT days, I used to work in some plastic factory hence the reason for my hard palm 😀😅. I also had to borrowed money to pay my first UNILAG school fees. I was visibly pako😀

disclaimer: Me, I’m not trying to be as rich as Dangote or Otedola 😅. far from it.
In fact, I’ve said before that once I hit my personal target of about $2m liquid assets, I’ll probably disappear to Igbotako for community development work and a quieter life.

Also, I am not rich yet. but we thank God

Now, lets see how the steps in the article fit into what I have done ... of course there are other things and steps that help

Step 1: Get into a good university.
I didn't stop at polytechnic. Even at YCT during my ND, I pushed for UNILAG. Finished with First Class in Accounting. BGS in both the department and faculty for both institutions. Over 20 academic awards.

I knew early that my CV has to scream for me given that no one could make the calls for me.

At my Sahara 2016 GMT programme final interview, they projected my CV to the chairman and other board members present at that interview - ND Distinction, First Class, BGS twice, ICAN, ACCA, 20+ awards.

The Chairman and the entire board couldn't even ask me a question. He just said: "Do you have any life? Did you have fun in school?" I can see how impressed and couldnt just say know...I knew I already got the job.

Step 2: Work in financial services.
I moved into consulting, focused on financial services and a very niche complex area (actuarial and quant). And I don't just deliver on client engagements. I want them to see the difference.
Two of the biggest insurance companies CEO in Nigeria wrote to Partner about how exceptional I was on a projects..That actually added more case to a back to back double promotion

I have slept in the office because of client deliverables. not once, not twice as a Senior and as a Manager.
There is no substitute for hard work. I keep telling younger ones this. You cannot shortcut excellence when you don't have connections backing you up.

Step 3: Realise it will take longer.
I play the long game. One reason I stayed back in Nigeria is because I can see the massive opportunities ahead in the space I work in.
The difference in my earnings over the last decade vs now is significant and it's still very far from what's possible.

Today I told some LASU students if they could imagine that some folks earn ₦30m+ per month in this Lagos?
The good thing about the path I chose is that seeing those numbers ahead is always comforting. The ceiling is high. You just have to be patient enough to climb.

Step 4: Grow your network.
Naturally, I am a very shy person. Extremely introverted. But in the last 5 years, I've pushed myself to connect with clients, colleagues, and people outside my comfort zone.
We've won engagements just because of a presentation I did for some years ago.

I make myself available for some pro bono work. My last IFRS 9 video took over 12 hours to produce, even though you all see 4 hours of content.
Some clients call me outside work hours. I focus on how to make them look good with their boss too. Networking is really just giving.

Step 5: Be aggressive about self development.
This is the biggest one for me.
ACCA. ACA. CFA. FRM. SCR. And now actuarial exams IFOA and SOA. Passed 14 papers across both in 3 years. Also failed 10 papers in that same period.
Failing is part of it lol. I'm quite aggressive.

Last December, I was in the office from Dec 26 to 4AM on January 1st writing a 96hour SOA assessment. I actually spent over 80 hours on it.
That means I literally started the new year in the office.
Extreme? Yes. I don't encourage anyone to do that. But that's what it took.

Working your way out of poverty comes with massive tradeoffs. And it's perfectly rational to decide not to do it that way. But if you choose this path, know that momentum compounds.
The early years are the hardest. The loneliest. But every exam, every late night, every relationship you build, it stacks up.

May be when I buy my AMG G 63😎, I will come back and confirm that yes it's possible. for now lets keep trusting the process.

I'm not even rich yet. But I'm always thankful for how far I've come. Grateful for everyone that has been part of my joinery...friends, family, colleagues , scholarships companies, bosses etc

TBT to my 2020 birthday...one clown had to remind me how I be pako for undergrate

[Michael @OladejiTosin15]

How did we get to this point 😡

For context, in 2019 my monthly spend on car fuel was 13k. By 2022 (just before this regime), it moved to 25k.

Now, I spend approx 300k/month on fuel. Today, I literally thought the attendant made mistake when 80k couldn’t fill up the tank, until I noticed another increase in the pump price😖😖

This’s not sustainable. We are literally drowning and we can’t normalize what’s happening….

As we Dey face am for Fuel, we Dey face am for housing cost, face am for food…how do we expect the average Nigerian to cope….having this kind of cost of living crisis is too bad

[Dàré, why are you like this? @TheonlyDMF]

Unlocked a core memory 🔓

[FC Bayern München @FCBayern]

"You are challenged by Atalanta!" 🆚⚔️

#UCLdraw #Pokemon #Pokemon30

[gst @wearegst]

Lagos salaried workers paid ₦705.41 billion in taxes in 2024. In return, they got potholes, insecurity, and zero safety nets.

The government took that money and bought luxury cars and furniture.

[Bremen @Rxbremen]

“I should have bought more”

— an investor in profit.

[Mustapha Sa'eed @MustapherSaeed]

Nobody wants to talk about SCUML certificate and the issues around the procedure for obtaining it. The EFCC website says that it's free but we have got agents claiming to be helping people process it. These are some of the tiny details that encourage cynicism in Nigeria.

[Ekaji @ekajiibe]

People are looking for many things; prophecies, impartations, special prayers from big name MoGs, portals and realms, angelic visitations …

Your Christianity begins the day you realize that the word of God is sufficient to lead you to all that God desires for you all your life.

[T.J. Moe @TJMoe28]

I’m reading Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis, and I came across a fascinating idea I’ve never heard presented before.

Lewis doesn’t state it directly—only its implication—but for his conclusion to hold, it must be inferred.

It appears in the chapter “The Cardinal Virtues,” on the final two pages.

Lewis distinguishes between performing a just or temperate act and actually being a just or temperate person. A poor tennis player might hit a great shot occasionally, but that doesn’t make him a good player. We all agree on that. Therefore, isolated acts of obedience don’t make one virtuous, character is revealed in consistency.

From there, Lewis argues that God wants more than mere obedience. Obedience matters, but God cares far more about our character. He wants us to become people who naturally produce obedient behavior.

Then comes the part I've been contemplating for the last few days.

Lewis notes that we might assume virtues are needed only for this life, because in heaven there will be nothing to quarrel about (so no need for justice) and no danger (so no need for courage). But he adds that while God won’t refuse entry to heaven for lacking certain qualities, heaven offers no further opportunity to develop them. As a result, we will never attain the “deep, strong, unshakable kind of happiness” God intends.

The inference that struck me is this: we may have only our time on earth to become the people God intends us to be. This life forms our capacity for joy, virtue, and glory. Heaven fulfills it but does not expand it through suffering.

In heaven there are no trials to forge bravery, self-control, patience, humility, resilience, integrity, gratitude, or joy in the midst of hardship. Those qualities are shaped here, not there.

So here's the unsettling question: once we die and enter eternity, is our development finished? Is this life our only chance to become the best version of ourselves?

If so, it’s sobering. All the time wasted scrolling Instagram reels or behaving poorly without seeking growth would carry eternal consequences.

I should live each day with urgency, taking massive strides toward becoming the man God intends. The day I die, the work ends. My capacity for joy and virtue can no longer grow.

I’m not sure if this idea is theologically sound. Maybe it's not. I’d love some insight from theologians who could explain why it might not hold.

But if this life truly is our only training ground, delay is far more dangerous than I ever realized.

That thought alone makes me want to live with far greater urgency than yesterday.

[Leke Alder @LekeAlder]

Some people listen to a sermon as if they're going to re-preach it, rather than concentrating on the principles. Application is what matters. Learn to learn.

[Leke Alder @LekeAlder]

Forget all those religious stuff that deny realism. Don't marry someone who doesn't love you or who you don't love.

[Thrive Camps Africa @thrivecampsaf]

It’s the season of joy, celebrations, and gift-giving! And, yes, Christmas came early at Thrive Camps Africa. Yesterday at our meetings, Coat of Many Colours (an organisation) came to donate clothes to our beautiful teenagers.

Next week, we will be having Food Drive 3.0!

[plant a tree 🌱 @MHopeMK]

Standard Chartered Bank Zambia CEO surprises his driver Mr Miti by being his driver and taking him home afterwards.

Mr Miti has driven different CEO at the bank for more than 20 years.

It was the driver's birthday. 🙌🏾🙏🏾

[Dàré, why are you like this? @TheonlyDMF]

@__Jsquare Finish the job please

[Michael @OladejiTosin15]

Be patient with yourself while staying ambitious
One thing I always tell younger folks (and I’m still very young myself) is this: Be ambitious, but be patient with yourself.

We live in a world that only amplifies results, not effort.
During the working phase, nobody claps for you. Nobody sees the long nights, the stress, the confusion, the disappointment, or the moments you were not sure of anything.

As one MIT review once put “If you’re so smart, why aren’t you rich?” because the world doesn’t reward effort, it rewards outcome.

The problem with this is that we often forget the journey. We discard the struggles and assume everyone else had it easy.

These days, you see polished LinkedIn profiles, great job titles, and success stories and it’s easy to think, “This person must have had a smooth ride.” But that’s rarely true.

Let me speak from experience.
As smart as people thought I was as a First Class grad, 2 BGS awards, ACCA, ICAN, over 20 academic awards
after graduation , I still didn’t have clarity at the start.

Most young professionals don’t. And that’s okay.
I didn’t immediately know what I really wanted.
I didn’t even imagine I would eventually transitioned to actuarial field. I was just trying everything possible

It took me over 5 years before transitioning. But one thing I never did was become complacent.
Wherever I found myself, I gave 1000% learning new skills, building emotional intelligence, industry knowledge, technical depth, everything.

I didn’t know VBA would matter; I learnt it anyway.
I didn’t know my quantitative skills would return, I kept sharpening them.

Eventually, after about 5 years of career, everything aligned and I found the path that felt like the perfect fit. It was the result of all the skills, experiences, and lessons gathered along the way.

Wrote about this on LinkedIn last year https://t.co/6AgD92SMCF

The journey wasn’t straight.
It wasn’t smooth.
But it was worth it.

So to every young person reading this and who is still figuring things out:
Be patient with yourself.
Keep being ambitious.
Keep learning.
Keep improving.
Your clarity will meet you on the way and probably not at the start.
Your journey is unfolding, even when it doesn’t look like it.

[Ekaji @ekajiibe]

The evils of pornography are not talked about enough, yet the media and everything around us subtly seeks to normalize what has many people in bondage.

You cannot desire freedom if you have accepted your chains as a necessary part of life. Everything around us is engineered to kill any urgency or desire for sexual purity.

The very nature of pornography is an affront to all that God esteems, a gross perversion of divine covenant, and complicity in the objectification of people made in God’s image.

It also fuels darker realities such as sex trafficking and other crimes tied to the porn industry. Every click and view further strengthens that system of exploitation and darkness.

As with every besetting sin, the Christian must recognize what is truly at stake. Constant exposure to this filth dulls the soul’s desire for what is pure and holy.

The danger lies not only in the act itself but in what it does to your appetite. It does not merely open the door to perversion; it reshapes your perception of intimacy and reorients your mind to always gratify its pleasures, no matter how destructive they may be.

Over time, what once grieved your heart becomes casual. What once convicted you now feels normal. That is how sin enslaves, through slow desensitization rather than force.

Freedom begins when you see it for what it truly is: rebellion against God, not just a private struggle. It is not something to manage but something to mortify.

There is no halfway purity. Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” You cannot see clearly when your heart is clouded with what grieves Him.

But there is hope, and it is not in your willpower, but in Christ. Seek support from a godly community who will hold you accountable as you behold Christ until your heart finds Him more satisfying than the sin that once enslaved you.

[Chibuzor @ChibuOnwurah]

Our TV broke in December, and it changed our family.

We decided not to replace it for 6 months. Best decision ever.

Without a TV, the kids read more, play together, and spend evenings outside with friends. As a family, we talk more, laugh more, cook together, play games, and actually hang out.

On Saturday, we hosted our own family sip & paint with homemade meat pie, chicken wings, and puff puff. The whole day turned into laughter and connection instead of everyone behind screens.

It’s now 10 months, and we’ll likely end the year without a TV. Screentime is way down, family time is way up.

Best family experiment of all time.

[-valar morghulis- @eldivine]

When we were kids Nollywood used to make films about end time churches that basically trafficked in entertainment.

Didn’t think I’d see it so soon into my lifetime.