Extrastiv

Content Marketing Specialist | Helping content creators, service providers & businesses grow & monetize online via content | Ghostwriter | Creators Diary 🗞️✍🏿

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

I landed my first gig on Facebook without a portfolio in 2017. It was a ₦5000 ghostwriting gig.

On this episode of Creators Diary, I decided to feature myself @Extrastiv I deserve a spot too.

Extrastiv is a single & handsome graduate of University of Ilorin with a 2nd class upper. He is a content marketing specialist/ghostwriter for busy professionals. He pursued medicine and surgery for years before he finally settled for one of the most “useless” courses in Nigeria, according to how Nigerians see it 😂. I've been writing online since 2015.

Back then I was a very popular writer on Nairaland. I was dropping write-ups every day - news, fiction, gists, stories. If you were active on Nairaland that year, you must have come across my stories because I was always hitting the front page. But I wasn’t making money from it. I was just writing for the love of it. My first official gig came in 2017 on Facebook. It was a 10,000-word ghostwriting project and they paid me ₦5000. Back then Facebook was one of the hottest places to land gigs. You didn’t need a fancy portfolio (many people don't even know the meaning of a PORTFOLIO). Just proof that you could actually write. And I had plenty from all my Nairaland posts. That gig was stressful & crazy, but I was grateful. It changed something in me. I started thinking, “If a stranger can pay me to write for them, then I can do this again. ”Even before that, the signs were there. Back in secondary school I used to write assignments and notes for my mates and they would pay me ₦50 or ₦100, or buy me something. That small thing gave me the quiet conviction that I was good at this. Over the years I've seen platforms come and go. I've tried so many things just to make money online. I did SMM, copywriting, even tried to become a data analyst when things were really rough. Omo, life was crazy mehn. I even picked up coding for a bit but stopped at JavaScript. The wins started coming when I stopped playing small.

In 2023 I came back stronger. I started watching, listening & learning from the top creators in my space. I connected with them. I even paid for courses out of my pocket money, even when some of them were not worth it. I learned what I could and kept going. Between 2023 and late 2024 I sent over 3,000 cold pitches. Most of them were trash, over 90% didn’t get replies. But the few that landed paid my bills. That period taught me the power of volume and consistency. Everything started making sense. I transitioned fully into content marketing & ghostwriting. I've worked with brands I never imagined I would reach a few years ago. I've sold over 1,000 ebook copies. I helped one client hit $10k MRR. Even while I was still figuring things out myself, I coached over 200 freelancers and outsourced gigs to many of my peers. We rise by lifting others. I'm still trying to find my way from the trenches to the peak, but I am grateful I'm not begging on the streets.

But let me tell you the other side too, because the wins didn’t come easy. In 2021 I lost my only client. I went into serious debt and hit rock bottom again. In 2022 I started posting on Twitter but deleted the account out of pure frustration because the gigs were not coming. I've had seasons where I tried everything & nothing worked. I've lost gigs because I neglected my email. I've had to refund clients money too. These things hurt when they happen. Early 2025 was the darkest. I fell into depression so deep I almost took my own life (This was more than just freelancing. I was going through a lot).
Guys, I survived.

And since then, the motion has been crazy in the best way.

Your connections & willingness to keep showing up are what carry you through those periods. Don’t stop talking about what you do. You never know who is watching. Connect with people genuinely. Don’t let pride stop you from asking for help when you need it. The dry days will come, but your network will help you survive them.

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

@boy_director Please what style is this called?

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

@IkonoCatherine Congratulations

[Lime @lime_africa]

@Extrastiv That's what mentors tell mentees most times that makes them just slap amounts even when they are not experienced.

That's why it is in quotes.

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

@lime_africa 💪✍🏿

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

@Blossomaffia 😂

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

@omoalhajaabiola All thanks to God

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

@AlawiyePrecious No😂

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

Some newbies are proud and stubborn😂

You are charging $100 per hour with that your Ikorodu portfolio😂😂

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

@Aikidotcom Know your level😂

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

@I_sell_dreams_ Okay😂

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

@iam_chuksE Why u dey laugh?😂

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

Linkedin is a great platform regardless😂

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

@iambestayomide @freemanayoola @pepsi @Pepsi_Naija 💪

[tba @iambestayomide]

Creative billboard for Pepsi, With the Spirit of Football.

copy: @freemanayoola
Art direction: @iambestayomide
Design: ChatGPT

[Brenda Patrick @Brenda__Patrick]

@Extrastiv Na initial gragra. They must have been told that soft skills will make them rich. So they want to blow overnight.

But they'll learn😅

[Dailycontenthub @JoyAnalaba]

We want to build from the roof😂😂😂😂

[Extrastiv @Extrastiv]

@CynthiaOzumba 😂😂

[Cynthia Ozumba @CynthiaOzumba]

Aren't you wicked??? 😂😂😂😂

[Godwin|Video Editor @god_win001]

@Extrastiv Their idolo motivated them

Not to under charge themselves
😂😂😂
Funny people

[Sheriff | Shopify Website Design |Klaviyo @MrSheriffTaiwo]

@Extrastiv Over taking is allow nah😂

[Kemi @iksly2]

@Extrastiv My G