This photo shows a new set of “experimental” or “practice” Easter Eggs made by my kids, in our Lagos home, based on a movie we watched, and other learning resources I compiled for them. Our plan is to produce special Easter Eggs to give out during Easter to buyers of cakes, doughnuts and chin chin the kids will make and offer for sale.
We’ve added more products to the range of pineapple peel based cakes baked without an oven, and the drinks also made using the peels, that I began making in Cotonou
I’ve been screaming in my best practice parenting articles and the book (Kukuru Danger – see www.lulu.com/sdaproducts) that parents are BEST positioned to give their kids the balanced EDUCATION they need to succeed in the real world.
It so happens that I diligently and passionately practice what I preach with my own children, and that includes teaching them life skills and more recently academic subjects (maths, english etc) in a formal home schooling arrangement.
Why am I going so out of the way to do all this?
First, it’s because I’ve found that the quality of teaching provided in most conventional schools today, which greatly depends on the quality of available teachers, has dropped waaay beyond the point that I can afford to do otherwise.
And this trend, in most cases, remains the same regardless of the fees paid in each institution. The decay began decades ago, and now the school system is suffering the effects. On top of that the curriculum taught by most conventional schools is increasingly obsolete, and out of sync with the needs of today’s society.
In my audio series titled “A Formula Schools Should Teach But Don’t: Why Brilliant Students Struggle to Succeed In the Real World”…I stated that the “schooling” I got failed me, WHEN I went beyond the controlled environment of paid employment, to become self employed.
That experience, which is not unique to me, confirms what has been said that formal schooling as originally conceived is geared towards preparing its products to enter salaried employment.
To find the success I increasingly enjoy today, I’ve had to DUMP a lot of what I learnt via formal schooling and learn via self tutoring what I discovered to be crucial for achieving reliable long term success in life.
My painful journey to find success made me VOW TO GIVE MY KIDS THE KIND OF BALANCED EDUCATION THAT WOULD PROTECT THEM FROM SUFFERING AFTER SCHOOLING like I did!
That’s why I’m coaching them to learn and operate a complementary set of micro businesses under the umbrella of a FAMILY BUSINESS we will all be a part of.
Look at the teeming numbers of young people who – post formal academic schooling – are walking the streets in search fast vanishing jobs, with certificates in hand today…
Consider the fact that graduates and NYSC members are now being asked to take entrepreneurship classes…
Add to the above, the fact that even employees are now being challenged to think and act entrepreneurial, if they want to retain their jobs…
They all provide definite signs that empowering your kids the way I propose is the best way to really show that you love them.
Sending them to some expensive fancy school alone may not be enough to prepare for reliable lifetime success within or outside paid employment!
Valentine’s day, celebrated TODAY, is about LOVE. If you really LOVE your kids, I urge you to give serious consideration to what I’ve said above, and ACT to give your kids a better chance at success.
A Warning: What I propose is NOT popular, and doing it is likely to make those who know you criticize you at some point. Trying to do things differently from the majority, often causes that to happen.
Here’s something to encourage you:
In the long run, when the POSITIVE benefits begin to accrue from your actions taken with a long term real world relevant vision in mind, the same critics WILL turn round and applaud you.
Trust me…I’ve been there countless times, and I KNOW from personal experience, that this is true.
I learnt a long time ago that one will only be as old as one thinks s/he is. That knowledge makes me very comfortable relating with people of all ages and across social strata, without bothering about their age, color, income class or educational level.
What I look for is a desire for self-improvement, evidence of commitment to a worthy cause (or willingness to do so), and authentic honesty/integrity. I am also a believer is seeing the world through the eyes of a child. I love to wonder openly, and without pretence, at the miracle of new knowledge/insight that I encounter daily.
But I think where I push my luck is that I also expect (STUPIDLY of course!) that other people will behave/think in the same way.
Why do I say this?
Well it’s because I continue to find that much younger people who I choose to engage on an “equal level” (the way people like Sola Olokode – a senior manager & HR departmental head – did for me during my “formative” years in Guinness ‘Nigeria) in order to help them gain insight beyond their years, tend to miss the point.
What Mr. Olokode did for me, gave me the self-confidence to fearlessly pursue the ideas I had, by applying my creative instincts to influence major changes in the Guinness Benin workplace in spite of my relative youth. By the time I was 2 years old in the company (and 26 years old), I was already developing (in my spare time) custom automated spreadsheet solutions adopted by the brewery for official use.
Read my the story in my article titled “Achieve Recognition and Attract Career Advancement Opportunities By Being A Change Agent”.
You do not prove you are older by standing aloof from younger people!
I’ll admit (from painful experience) that there is the danger of abuse – some younger persons may feel they can “disrespect” you because you’ve made yourself familiar to them. But that should only help you “weed” them out of your inner circle of influence, till you find those who value the opportunity for access to wisdom and insight beyond their years, that you offer them as an older person, through your friendship.
So, in spite of this strategy blowing up in my face many times, the successes I have recorded with it continue to encourage me to do it.
I do this because a few have benefitted from my method(I call it Spontaneous Coaching), and expressed appreciation to me, for it.
In essence, I am saying that the reader should (if s/he does not already do so):
1. Forget about being a very young man/woman/girl or younger than another person s/he relates with.
It does not matter – at least it will NOT matter to people who have decent levels of self-esteem. And such people are the ones YOU should aim to relate with, otherwise you will have many frustrating experiences!
2. Never limit yourself because you think you are younger than others who do not know what you know.
Sometimes YOUR awareness is the reason why you have been placed amongst such people – and keeping quiet or looking for audiences comprising people mainly YOUR age would actually be the wrong thing to do!
Imagine if the founder of Facebook had allowed himself to worry that he was too young to initiate the Facebook idea, when older gurus like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs etc were not looking in that direction…
“…You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you…” – Marianne Williamson.
3. Begin to look beyond pushing your thinking about religion or spirituality to people.
Begin to LIVE what you know and believe. And let those who see you/your work, or who read/hear you gradually seek you out, or open up to discovering what makes you tick.
I LIVE this stuff I’m telling you. And it is the smartest way to influence people i.e. using subtlety.
FINAL WORDS:
If you still do not get it, I’ll share this. I recently got a phone SMS from a young man I’ve been trying to “influence” on Facebook, (by making periodic suggestions on posts he made). In the SMS, he asked “So, how do I find paid speaking opportunities here in Lagos?”
THAT unsolicited enquiry from him did not come as a surprise, because I’d periodically referred him to related online resources in
making my “suggestions”. But it is instructive to note that before then, we had never communicated outside the Facebook medium. Note also, that he must have gone out of his way to find my phone number himself (possibly from my profile or website) – because I did not give it to him.
So you see ( and I am sure you will agree) that I have made reasonable progress towards my goal of “influencing him using subtlety”. YOU can do the same, regardless of your age.
NB: This article was first published on 8th November 2011.
Babatunde Raji Fashola has been hailed both locally and internationally, for achieving unprecedented success as Lagos State Governor.
To show how impressive Fashola’s achievements have been, UK based “The Telegraph” (on 24th Oct 2014) did a flattering feature article on him titled “Meet the man who tamed Nigeria’s most lawless city”.
Little wonder Lagosians had no problems voting Fashola in for 2 consecutive terms, with many either wishing he could stay longer as governor, or be supported to contest for election into office as President.
In other climes, that latter option (Fashola contesting for the Presidency) would have been a logical next step
But this is Nigeria, where logic often takes time to sink in, and register.
The above notwithstanding, we have a viable and complementary alternative to Fashola, in the person of General Muhammadu Buhari (GMB). The best part is that Fashola, as well as others who think like him, in and out of government, agree that GMB should be our next President.
Since we already know Fashola is trustworthy, reliable and competent – with good reasoning capabilities to boot – it only makes sense to follow his lead in choosing our next President – especially if we want to see and experience real progress.
In the chequered history of our nation, GMB and the late Tunde Idiagbon set a record for setting clear ambitious goals that they achieved within the short 20 month or so stay they had in office
They were not perfect, but they were effective and the results they got made useful impact in the lives of the masses.
There was aversion for crime, indiscipline, corruption and many other vices. Smart handling of key aspects of the economy also ensured our currency stayed strong. And our debt burden was diligently investigated and reviewed, after which an agreed plan was resolutely followed to reduce it.
Mistakes were made in a few areas, and with a few innocent people. Yes. But they got most of it right, and back then the Nigerian on the street could see, and feel it!
That’s why even though Facebook did not exist back then, most people who experienced that period are still able, over 2 decades later, to speak with specific details about what was achieved by GMB!
Simply put, in his brief tenure as Head of State and Commander In Chief, GMB tamed a wayward Nigeria
If we’re honest with ourselves, we, today, as a people and nation once again need taming. Not all of us, but certainly an unprecedented majority.
I strongly believe the best qualified and best equipped person to tame the wild among us, while simultaneously working to improve our fortunes, without breaking his stride is GMB.
He’s done it before, and everything we’ve heard about his personal conduct since he left office confirm he still has the strength of character to do it again.
And he certainly wants to – this being his 3rd attempt to get elected to do it. Read and feel the passion in his words:
“Allow me prove to you that in your lifetime, you can be proud of this country. Let me make you this promise today: We will protect your children. We will protect your wealth. We will make this country work again. This is why I am running for the office of the president of Nigeria. This is my promise.” – Muhammadu Buhari (GCFR)
Today, we keep seeing Facebook photos and videos from the nation’s goverment, that show progress that has supposedly occurred right where we and our loved ones live and work. Yet we struggle to see, talk less feel, most of it!
That’s “GOVERNMENT MAGIC” (apologies to Fela) – and we must reject it!
I’d rather go for the real thing, not the more you look the less you see. I want real change and tranformation in my life and those of my kids and fellow citizens, not endless promises and rebased achievement numbers that do not impact me positively.
That’s why i’m voting GMB. If you want the same things I’ve stated above, I urge you to vote GMB as wefl, and tell others why they need to do so too!
PS: Don’t be Misled: Check Authentic Information to Satisfy Your Curiousity About GMB
Go to http://buhari.ng/ – the website set up to tell the “facts and history” of GMB to interested persons worldwide.
Use what you find out there, as well as what GMB is saying and doing today, to make up your mind.
Let’s unite and vote for a better Nigeria!
Email tayo at tksola dot com to request a ready-to-print PDF version of this article.
The more I “data-mine” my website mailing LIST of subscribers, and some actually go ahead and buy my products/services (sometimes years after signing up), the more I tell other business owners this:
“The money is IN the LIST”!
Curious to know what I mean? Keep reading then!!
SCROLL DOWN TO READ FULL ISSUE
Publication: Weekly Public Speaking IDEAS Newsletter
Date: Monday 26th January 2015
No:178
Title: To Achieve Marketing Success at Low Cost, You Need a List of Potential Buyers
Author & Publisher: Tayo K. Solagbade [Tel: +234-803-302-1263 (in Nigeria) or +229-66-122-136 (in Benin Republic) ]
NB: This newsletter is published every Monday. Point your browser to www.tayosolagbade.com/sdnuggets to read at least ONE new post added to my SD Nuggets blog on a different category from Tuesday till Saturday (sometimes even Sundays) in line with this publishing schedule
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IMPORTANT NOTE: THIS newsletter is published online on the “reincarnated” version of my Self-Development (SD) Nuggets blog. I continue to put finishing touches to the content. If you encounter ANY bad/dead links, and you can spare the time, email them to me via tayo at tksola dot com. Thanks in advance
No. 178: To Achieve Marketing Success at Low Cost, You Need a List of Potential Buyers
The more I “data-mine” my website mailing LIST of subscribers, and some actually go ahead and buy my products/services (sometimes years after signing up), the more I tell other business owners this:
“The money is IN the LIST”!
Curious to know what I mean? Keep reading then!!
Incidentally, I first read that phrase (“The money is in the list”) above 10 years ago, in an article written by an American Internet Marketing expert (his name misses me now), who pointed out the importance of channelling ALL of one’s marketing efforts towards BUILDING a list of potential buyers.
Even with established brands, sales rarely happen instantaneously!
It’s funny how some business owners, when they have to buy from others, act the exact same way their own target audience do, and yet, they forget to THINK the same way when they want to sell.
Let me explain.
I suffered the same affliction for years as a start-up. To find a way out, I read widely, and paid attention to what I was doing, based on what I read, until I identified where I was going wrong.
In trying to sell a service or product, the typical business owner, confident that s/he offers “good quality” simply announces to a potential buyer, that it’s available, (wrongly) expecting the other part to readily believe him/her!
Imagine a public speaking training service provider, who starts posting Facebok page status updates of his products descriptions and prices, with little or no other details to help prospects make up their mind(like the example below):
E.g. “Attend my 2 day workshop of Public Speaking –and become a Star Speaker earning 6 figure speaking fees in no time. Pay <amount> to <bank account number>. Then Send SMS to <phone number> with your bank teller details.”
The question is why should anyone believe s/he can do this for them?
Except a prior relationship exists, most people would have difficulty BELIEVING such a promise, especially when there are others who offer something similar (and there are countless others who offer public speaking training with promises of all sorts)!
Even if he publishes a list of events at which he has spoken, along with raving reviews/testimonials from attendees at his speaking events, it may not be enough to win majority of the target audience over.
In fact, he could publish a lot of testimonials with photos, to support his claims that may still NOT convince majority to take him up on your offer.
Why?
Well, it’s because many others who offer similar solutions do the same thing…and the prospect has limited means to verify their claims!
Don’t get me wrong though. The above listed steps could make some people come forward to contact you and even enrol for his program.
However, they may do so with a tentative disposition – to give him a try and see how it goes…
In other words, they may not come in with a readiness to confidently invest in what he offers, based on a firm conviction that he can solve their problem (which could mean fewer sales for him).
To make potential buyers take a full leap of faith to trust you, and make big purchases, FIRST “build a relationship” with them!
That’s the key to selling profitably in any field.
Trust is crucial for making sales, as well as for earning repeat business, and word of mouth recommendations.
The process of building relationships helps to EARN trust in the minds of potential buyers.
That’s why my experience based recommendation is that you minimize giving “come and buy” invitations, and instead focus on putting out information and education, likely to be considered VALUABLE by your target audience via as many channels as possible!
Your WMS will make those who encounter your work, over time, “feel” pulled to reach out to you. If properly setup, the WMS will ensure such people rarely leave without dropping their contact details with you, with permission for you to reach out to them in the future.
Every time that happens, you add to your list of potential buyers, and will then be able to take the relationship to the next level, by following up with more useful information, laced with attractive sales offers.
Over time, if you deliver good quality in the content you send out to those on the list, they will come to see you as a valued/trust advisor, indeed an authority, at what you do. For each person, the process will happen at different rates – they will NOT all arrive at that reckoning at the same time. This is not batch production of beer or poultry!
What is however certain is that once they arrive at that stage of conviction, about you, they will be more willing to BELIEVE you can deliver on ANY promise you make to them.
This is why, for those of us who have mailing lists of prequalified prospects (or potential buyers) selling tends to be a most fulfilling experience for both parties
Today, I’m growing membership of my Inner Circle by making special offers to subscribers on my mailing list (within and outside Nigeria/Africa) and it’s been exciting to have them say YES.
Many of those subscribers will get THIS issue of my newsletter, and read what I’ve said above.
Some of them run their own businesses part time, while still in paid employment. Others are still in full time employment. A few a 100% self-employed.
Final Words: If you run a business, you CAN get the same benefits of selling more via YOUR own mailing list!
We all know it’s EASIER to sell to people who already know you.
But that does not mean you should go chasing down you friends and relatives…
Indeed, many times, you’ll find that few of them fit your target audience profile, and most would NOT make good clients!
That’s why I recommend, in this article, that you cost-effectively make potential buyers who often start as strangers, get to KNOW you well, till they can confidently buy from you.
If you need help putting the ideas shared above to use, let me know HERE.
In this offer, Burt Dubin promises to show you how to generate PASSIVE incomes streams WHETHER YOU SPEAK OR NOT.
Plus, you learn a proven shortcut to top level speaking business success across corporate markets.
So, with diligent persistent application of what you learn you’ll start (as Burt says)…”bringing home high speaking fees”…whether you speak or not…in a matter of weeks….
Sooner than later you’ll find you’re ready to go for Burt’s mentoring at Diamond or higher Inner Circle membership level.
The best part is: every cent of your fee to purchase this product counts toward your membership in Burt’s Inner Circle.
In other words, you effectively get to eat your cake and still have it!
Tayo K. Solagbade is a Location Independent Performance Improvement Specialist and Multipreneur (i.e. a highly versatile/multi-skilled entrepreneur), with a bias for delivering Best Practice solutions to
In May 2012 he was the Guest Speaker at the Centre for Entrepreneurship Development’s Annual Semester Entrepreneurial Lecture at Yaba College of Technology in Lagos.
On 1st April 2013, Tayo (who reads, write and speaks the French language) relocated to Cotonou, Benin Republic to begin slowly traveling across the West African region.
His key purpose is to deliver talks, seminars
and workshops on his key areas of focus and interest to interested audiences (Email tayo at tksola dot com for details).
In a previous life, before leaving to become self-employed, Tayo served for seven years as a high performing manager in Guinness Nigeria. He rose from Shift Brewer, to Training & Technical Development Manager, and then later acted in senior management roles as Production Manager and Technical Manager.
He is an Associate Member of the UK Institute & Guild of Brewing, a 1997 National Finalist of the Nigerian Institute of Management’s(NIM) Young Managers’ competition, a Certified Psychometric Test Administrator for Psytech UK, innovator of Spontaneous Coaching for Self-Development™ (SCfS-D™), and Founder of the Self-Development Academy Limited.
Visit Tayo Solagbade Dot Com, to download over over 10 performance improvement resources to boost your personal and work related productivity.
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[IMPORTANT NOTE:====
On 4th May 2014, Tayo’s 9 year old domain (Spontaneousdevelopment dot com), which hosted his website, was taken over by Aplus.net.
Within a few days however, Tayo used his advanced self-taught web development skills to build a SUPERIOR “reincarnation” of it the website http://www.tayosolagbade.com.
But updates are still ongoing to URLs bearing the old domain name in most of the over 1,000 web pages, and blog posts
he’s published.
If you experience any difficulties finding a page or document, email Tayo at tksola dot com.
Burt Dubin works with people who want to be speakers, and with speakers who want to be masters. Click here to visit his website NOW and submit a contact form message telling him what challenges you’re facing, and how you’d like him to help you. Tell him I sent you, and you’ll get a pleasant surprise offer from him.
This is the product to own if you can own only one. Why? Because in it you discover principles of platform mastership available to you nowhere else at any price.
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With its Money back if not delighted Guarantee hardly any are returned.
A live example, including a complete audio recording of a program Burt created from scratch–on a topic he knew nothing about and never, ever presented before! See how you, guided by your personal Learning Guide, (Presentation Magic), can do this too and thrill audiences as often as you want.
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No copy of this 2 CD program and 50 page Learning Guide has ever been returned.
“(Tayo Solagbade) is amazing and I think he is going to produce some impressive results online…” – click here to read full comment by Patrick Meninga (US based 6 figure income blogger who gained fame for building a $2,000 per month adsense website and selling it for $200,000).
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“Tayo, I honestly believe you are one of those who will succeed at anything he does. Your commitment and effort has been outstanding….Thanks for all your hard work since I’ve been here – you will be sorely missed. I don’t need to wish you good luck, you have the ability to make your own luck. – Andy”(R. Jones)*
*Operations Manager, Guinness Nigeria Plc Benin Brewery, December 2001 (Handwritten comments in farewell/xmas cards sent to Tayo Solagbade following his resignation to start his own business).
In February 2001, about 4 months after I got promoted out of my shift-based Brewer position, to become the Guinness Nigeria Plc Benin Brewery Technical Training & Development Manager, I came to the conclusion that I needed to fast-track my plans to quit paid employment and start my own business.

I had been plotting my exit from the company since 2 years before, in collaboration with a close friend and confidant of mine who – unlike me – worked in a different department.
He knew of my many frustrations with not being able to pursue my passions – and especially my desire to be free to explore new ideas I had.
In the process of preparing for my exit, having made the final decision, I wrote out on the back of a computer printout, key steps I intended to carryout to achieve my goal of succeeding in starting up my own business.
Recently, I stumbled on that sheet of paper, and from reading through/looking back over the past 8 years, it occurred to me that I had actually followed those steps to get this far.
I now reproduce that list below, with brief explanations, in the hope that they might be of some use to others who may be contemplating doing something similar:
Begin acquiring new knowledge/skills that will facilitate turning my dreams of independence into reality:
I intensified researching possible types of business ventures to start.
I then attended, where possible, relevant training seminars or talks that provided needed information. Subsequently, I tried as hard as possible to put into use what I had learnt.
For instance, I actually used my annual leave periods to try my hands at certain ventures on a micro scale (e.g T-Shirts transfer printing for sale)
2. Remove my fear of getting started:
I sought out others who had quit paid employment to start their own businesses, and listened to their narrations of what it was like. I asked them questions about how I could go about implementing my own plans.
In certain cases I paid money to gain access to their knowledge and insight via consultation sessions. What I learnt from them, and from reading various books/publications by competent authors helped me build reasonable confidence to continue.
3. Make my small business grow and prosper:
By the time I had operated for the first year, the reality had dawned on me that it was not going to be an easy task. Over time, I forced myself to LEARN from the experiences I was having, how to develop alternative ways to GROW my business, regardless of market place variations or even competition.
I actively subscribed to newsletters published by experienced entrepreneurs (mostly foreign/American) and I used my knowledge of my local business environment to adapt their ideas to work for me.
Today, this has helped me reach a point, where I can actually claim that I do not have any direct competitors in the markets I operate in – boosting my ability to get hired and paid profitably.
4. Find/use insightful tips that will eliminate trial and error from doing business:
Again I did this by reading widely, especially publications by other entrepreneurs (e.g. Jeffery Meyer), and then applying their ideas, tweaking them where necessary.
But I also experimented using my own ideas, and over time have tested and found some of them quite effective.
One example: I find I am often able to get clients to hire me readily, if I offer them a barter exchange payment option of up to 50% of my total fee; or by giving them a discount if they agree to provide power supply, Internet access on their premises for my work (a great saving for me in terms of time, effort and costs required to do them).
5. Do noble deeds:
As I continued my work, I soon discovered that there were many people who needed help finding meaning/purpose in their lives. Following chance encounters with some of such people, I realised that I could actually help them do so, by sharing my own experiences and discoveries.
So, I decided to start writing – articles, reports, books – and speaking. Later on, it occurred to me that I could use these same resources (my written stuff) to market myself and the products/services I offered.
That process led me to start employing web marketing in my work. As the opportunity presented itself, I shared what I discovered from doing this, with others who indicated interest.
Final Words
As I said earlier, looking back, I have actually carried out the above steps over the years, and I truly believe that the progress I have made today is due, in no small measure, to that.
Therefore, if you are planning to start out in business, the ideas offered above should hopefully prove helpful.
Good luck!
NB: This article was first published online on July 30, 2010
Download this PDF ebook to read the true story of how I literally single-handedly created a market for my Excel-Visual Basic solutions development service in Nigeria/Africa.
Since 2004, I’ve helped individuals and businesses in Nigeria/Africa (in recent years Asia/America as well) get MORE productivity boosting value out of the Microsoft Excel® on their PCs, at a fraction of what it would cost them if they purchased an off-the-shelf software application.
When I began, NO MARKET existed for solutions of the kind I now sell so readily today. I’ve had to single handedly build demand for them using creativity and persisistence, over the past decade…
My Story: From early 2002 until mid 2004, I continuously marketed my Excel VB Spreadsheet Solutions Development Services to individuals and organisations.
I kept doing this even as I pursued other income generation opportunities.
Despite all the effort I put into creating different flyers, sending our letters, creating case studies to demonstrate the potential benefit of spreadsheet automation, I never got more than one or two invitations for discussion after which I was never called back!
It was in late 2004 – more than two(2) years later that I first found a client willing to consider – and PAY for! – this service.
This gentleman engaged me to build a menu-driven e-version of a 314 page paper-based Department of Petroleum Resources document(Environmental Guidelines And Standards for the Petroleum Industry in Nigeria – EGASPIN), for a client company in the Oil & Gas Industry.
I had previously built a website for his company, during which time I had told him about my Excel VB Solutions Development Services.
He would later offer me the DPR project, and even though it wasn’t my idea of how ExcelVB could be best applied, I felt it was at least a start.
Since then, I’ve developed other applications to demonstrate the various uses to which Excel VB solutions can be applied if off-the-shelf commercial software are not flexible enough or are too expensive for their purchase to be justified.
My first breed of applications were not meant for direct sale.
Instead I used them to show prospects (via demonstration) what could be done for them, should they have a need to get more out of Excel.
But since those early years, I have used feed back from various clients to develop a range of time tested apps that I now sell, with on-demand customization to clients in various markets.
You may be wondering how convinced that first Excel VB client was, that I could deliver what he wanted?
Well, if you go by the fact that he paid N100,000(One Hundred Thousand Naira) 100% up front(I can supply FULL evidence to back up this claim), I guess one could say he was quite convinced that it would be worth it.
And I did not disappoint.
That project was completed within ten (10) days, because I got him to specify exactly what he wanted up front. That way I was able to progress without having “scope” changes introduced by him subsequently based on after-thoughts etc.
Today, I have his completed/signed copy of my Job Completion/Feedback Form (which I would be willing to make available to any interested persons to see) indicating that what he got was indeed to his satisfaction.
Not long after I finished that first project, I visited Ghana, to explore opportunities for business partnerships/collaboration, but was unable to make much headway from meetings I had, during my 2 week stay.
Upon returning(mid-July 2005) from thao Ghana, I started a spreadsheet automation project for a restaurant and bar operation in Lagos.
Basically, the owner realised the business had grown too big for paper-based recording and analysis of daily sales and expenses to be adequate for performance monitoring and measurement.
Also, whilst trying to source funding to expand the business, from his bankers, he found they wanted certain detailed historical records of the operations over a period, which were not exactly obtainable in an easily retrievable format in the paper based records.
I successfully completed that project, and later created demos to promote my work to other clients, based on it. As the years passed, I won more complex projects that challenged me to take my work to the next level.
At a point, I realized I had to find ways to add to what I knew, so as to deliver more robust solutions. Eventually, following weeks of research online, apart from useful websites and discussions I learnt from, I purchased the excellent book titled “Professional Excel Development”.
It came with a CD containing very useful workbook examples based on the book’s contents. And they all had their Visual Basic modules accessible.
In no time, I began using what I learnt to build a superior breed of applications. And that has enabled me deliver better value to buyers of my apps, for much greater remuneration.
Over The Years, I’ve Had to Deal With Doubting Thomases of All Kinds
From people in developed societies and even amongst my own countrymen, a seeming stereotype has periodically surfaced in the feedback I’ve gotten.
After browsing through my Excel Heaven website, watching demo videos and downloading sample apps I offered…
1. A Singaporean gentleman (also an ExcelVB developert) wrote me from saying the degree of sophistication of my apps made him doubt that I could be based in Nigeria, as stated on the contact page.
It took calling him from my mobile phone, to convince him it was true. We’ve been online friends since 2007, and even shared ideas on client projects we’ve had to handle over the years.
2. A Pakistani inquirer challenged me to chat with him on Skype, if I was sure my Poulry Farm Manager app existed.
Within 10 minutes of responding to his questions, including posting some screenshots, he post: “Wow. It is good to see something like this coming out of Africa”.
I found that quite amusing.
3. A Nigerian business owner wanted to know if I did my coding myself, or whether I just (like so many do) represent a foreign software development firm, who do all the work, based on specs I send them, and send me the finished apps.
I told him how I began building spreadsheet software using self taught skills from back when I was a trainee brewer in Guinness.
I did it in my spare time. It was not my job. But over time my apps got adopted for formal brewery level reporting, and I enjoyed company wide recognition and rapid career advancement for my efforts.
It is instructive to note here, that I began buiding spreadsheet apps by writing macro programs in Lotus 1-2-3 in 1995, as a Graduate Management Trainee in Guinness.
I only began using MS Excel VB when the company moved from Lotus Smartsuite to MS Office. So, I have been doing this for quite a while – 2 decades to be specific. Hopefully that explains how I am able to turn the quality of apps people see, and use, all by myself.
I work with no one. No partners. I work alone writing my code, designing my spreadsheet and graphic user interfaces to meet clients needs and specifications.
Watch screen shot demonstration video of the Excel-Visual Basic Driven Poultry Farm Manager I build from scratch, or customize/scale down to suit the needs of different farm business sizes.
It allows users make daily entries of farm production/operating data.
And it instantly generates Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), like Mortality Rates, Feeding rate, Feed to egg conversion ratios, Hen Day Production Percentage (HDP) %, and other parameters.
VIDEO 1: Tayo Solagbade demonstrates how to use the newly introduced “Extra Ingred!” button on the main floating data entry form of his popular Excel VB driven Ration Formulator
Clicking it loads a smaller drop menu driven data entry form that can be used to add up to 7 extra feed ingredients to a ration.
You are now able to formulate rations with 19 ingredients instead of 12 as used to be the case.
All past buyers get it free. Just get in touch via tayo at tksola dot com
Many People Don’t Know Excel’s Amazing Capabilities
It was challenging going through the repeat rejections from those I approached with this service for 2 years. But not once was I discouraged. For one thing I knew what I was offering had enabled me achieve phenomenal success as a process manager – over a 7 year period – in the fast-pace corporate multinational I worked in.
I KNEW the response was poor due to the fact that those I spoke to, did not really understand what I was telling them I could do
Back in Guinness, it started like that, until I developed applications that helped individuals finish weekly/monthly reports in a fraction of the time it used to take them – and with more accuracy and reliability. In no time at all, four of my applications were adopted for brewery level reporting. When I entered into business, I knew I only had to continue showing prospects what could be done till someone developed enough interest.
I also tried approaching many IT Training organisations that I noticed offered training in Excel(especially advanced Excel).
But I found repeatedly to my surprise that either the person in charge of the Training had never heard of Excel VB, or s/he believed there could be no value to be had from teaching employees how to automate Excel using VBA, so they could develop in-house solutions cheaply(th way I did as an employee).
In most cases, these IT training persons insisted that developing executable applications using the standalone Visual Basic programming language, and other more conventional coding languages was “better”.
A Microsoft Certified Expert Explains Why Excel-VB is a Smarter Way to Achieve Rapid Custom Solutions Development
What they failed to realise was the truth stated by a Microsoft Certified Professional, Pierre Leclerc, who runs a widely recognised and successful Excel Spreadsheet automation business (http://www.excel-vba.com).
“Let’s say that VB is for programmers and VBA is for users (or developers). Personally, I took hundreds of hours of training in VB but I do all my work in VBA (Excel and Access). You don’t need to learn VB to be good at VBA. I adopted VBA because most of the functions I need to organize and analyse data are pre-programmed in Excel and Access. It costs a lot less to develop financial and management applications in Excel and Access than to re-invent the wheel and do everything in VB.”
By the way, if you’re still wondering what the difference is between Excel VBA and Visual Basic, click here for an explanation.
Fela Anikulapo Kuti’s legend has spread globally, decades after he passed on, because he practised what he preached i.e being a mentally emancipated, proud black African (free from what he termed “Colonial Mentality”).
His story is as compelling as the Afrobeat music he invented, and used to preach his messages.
Fela stood unapologetically, for the rights of the oppressed Nigerian masses, despite suffering repeated physical abuse at the hands of corrupt government regimes that he relentlessy challenged on behalf of the people.
And that’s why people all over the world recognize him today.
If you want people to buy into you, then you need to first SHOW them that YOU are already sold on yourself. That you are the number ONE fan of yourself. Not just by saying, but also – and much more importantly thinking and acting it – ANYWHERE you go, in relating with ANYONE you meet.
Your choice of name, hair style, food, clothes, language(s) etc that you invest in, will speak loudest to those around you about how well you’ve bought into yourself, and it will determine how willing others will be, to buy into you.
Fela Anikulapo Kuti, in an interview I once listened to, said:
“No, no, no, no. English is not expression. Expression is in all other languages all over Nigeria.”
And to prove his point, he asked the interviewer to translate “E ku ile” the common Yoruba greeting to English. The latter could not.
All his life Fela tried to help us embrace our Africanness with pride.
The Lyrics of his 1976 hit song, “Upside Down” reproduced below are very instructive in this regard (Source: http://becomingpeople.tumblr.com/post/19172536132/lyrics-that-make-sense-upside-down-by-fela-kuti)
=starts=
UPSIDE DOWN
Open that book dem call dictionary
…..OPEN AM MAKE YOU SEE*** (After every line)
I said, Open that book dem call dictionary
Upside down na there dey proper
Dem recognize the word for sure, yes
Because him get him meaning too
…..HEAD FOR DOWN, YANSH* FOR UP [CHORUS After every line] *(ass)
Because him get him meaning too
Upside down get him meaning too
Upside down get him meaning too
I don* travel, I don see *(do)
Like any professor* for this land *(teacher)
The thing wey I see, I go talk
About upside up, and down-side down
For overseas, where I see:
Communication Organize
….PATA PATA* [CHORUS After every line] *Totally
Agriculture Organize
Electric Organize
Dem system Organize
Dem people Organize
Dem people Organize
Englishman get English name
American man get American name
German man get German name
Russian man get Russian name
Chinese man get Chinese name
For Africa man house, I don’t see
Like any professor for this land
I no have to travel anywhere
Everything der under my nose
For Africa man house, I don’t see
Village boku* road no der (there) *(plenty)[there are not many villages]
Land boku food no der [there isn’t much good food]
Area boku house no der [there are not many city houses]
People no give their African name
People no dey think African style
People no know Africa way
For Africa man house, I don’t see
Communication Disorganize
….PATA PATA* [CHORUS After every line] *(Totally)
Agriculture Disorganize
Electric Disorganize
Everything is Upside Down
Everything is Upside Down
…Disorganize
…Disorganize
Everything Upside Down
Everything Upside Down
…Disorganize
…Disorganize
Everything Upside Down
Everything Upside Down
[REPEAT LAST 4 LINES// Horns enter]
=Ends=
I am a proud student of Fela’s philosophy of Proud African Consciousness: In fact, WE should all be!
The song “Upside Down”was released by Fela in 1976.
I was 6 years old then, and it’s message really resonated with me.
Note what he said about us not bearing African names. Way back then, over half a century ago…
Isn’t it sad that today, we’re even worse off?
We love what is ours even less than was the case in the 70s!
But all hope is not lost
We can individually infuence a reorientation in society, by starting with ourselves.
For instance, in my home, my wife, Nkechi, who hails from Obosi in Anambra state, has always communicated daily with our kids in her native Igbo language. As a result, the kids are gradually speaking it to her, and to themselves.
I have been trying to do same with the kids (when I’m home), in Yoruba, my native language (which my wife also speaks proficiently). But I have not been able to do it as often as she does.
To pick up the slack at my end, I’ve recently begun creating quick start learning resources, based on Yoruba proverbs, which I discuss with kids, and publish for use by others.
I chose this approach to overcome the limitation arising from my work related travels, which forces me to employ unconventional (e.g remote) parenting/coaching strategies to better connect with my kids.
Let each person search him/herself and make needed changes, at least for the sake of our offspring, and our African heritage.
Traveling helps one gain useful perspectives and insights, making one broad minded. My travels have taught me that one does need to be rich, or make big money to enjoy great QUALITY of life.
In well managed societies, even the poor can afford a decent existence devoid of avoidable annoyances.
The story I share below illustrates a glaring contrast in the conditions under which people running the same type of business have to operate in their respective countries – which share a common border.
In Cotonou, most Cafe’s I use open as early as 8a.m, and I sometimes work in Cafe’s well past midnight.
I once arrived from Lagos about 15 minutes to Midnight and got a bike rider to take me around till I found a Cafe still open (and many users in it), where I was able to quickly publish my blog post for the day.
But no matter how late it was, I never had problems getting home. Within minutes of stepping out on the sidewalk, I would flag down a commercial bike rider, who I would confidently allow to take me home.
Whenever I’m in Lagos however, things get very complicated.
Cafes here open as late as 9.30 to 10a.m. The owner of the one close to my home told me his staff lives 2 hours away in another state (Ogun) and the traffic makes it hard to get in earlier.
So I’m usually waiting till 10a.m before I can start work. My attempts to use other cafes had taught me few promised good value for money and time. This one does. But unlike the Cotonou cafes, it closes, almost unfailingly at 9p.m(sometimes 8p.m, if the boss is away as the staff needs to leave for home early)..
I asked why, and the guy explained that staying open longer would expose them to thugs or robbers coming in to hold up the place, which had happened before, and the loss was painful.
Compare the guy in Cotonou with my man in Lagos, and it becomes obvious the latter has to battle daily to be profitable.
A. Starts 2 hours later
B. Stops 3 hours earlier
C. Incurs high generator fueling and repair costs due to poor public power supply
D. Yet he charges approximately the same rate per hour, as the Cotonou guy.
This means the Lagos cafe retains considerably less profits compared to the one in Cotonou, despite doing more work.
The above makes me empathize greatly with cafe owners here in Lagos, indeed Nigeria in general.
And that’s why I did not get upset when I had to miss achieving a goal I set to publish my new book on Yoruba proverbs on Thurs 8th Jan 2015, due to the unavoidable closure of the cafe at 9p.m as usual.
I had so much client work to do, and had been there from 10.30a.m till 6.50p.m, then went out to get a bite to eat and buy some groceries for the kids.
By the time I returned, it was 8.40p.m and I knew there would not be enough time to setup the book in the online store.
Pity.
That’s why my operational base for building my brand via passive income generating products creation is Cotonou.
Over there, I would have easily returned to the cafe and finished publishing the new book.
Generally, when I come to Nigeria I get much less creating done and focus more on promoting what is already created for sale.
But you probably wonder why I don’t use my own private Internet USB stick?
The answer is that I used to, both in Lagos and Cotonou.
However, being the heavy duty user that I am, I discovered that option rarely gave me value for money. The bandwith assigned either ran out too fast or poor connectivity forced me to keep shuttling to the cafes to get important client work done.
That made no sense, especially since one made a hefty payment for it.
In contrast, the bulk time purchase I make in Cotonou cafes especially, can be paused when the connection is slow. And the best part is that it never expires!
Hopefully this disparity will be rectified when a government that can deliver steady power and security of lives and properties comes into power in Nigeria this year.
UPDATE: Good news. Apart from 65%discount on ALL my products/services, every member of my InnerCircle now gets ONE of my products of his/her choice FREE(e.g my Poultry Farm Manages, Ration Formulator, Payslip Generator etc). Read the updated offer pdf click here and let me know which product you want. Tayo K. Solagbade
“Join MY Inner Circle at www.tayosolagbade.com for $160 USD per year and Get custom Farm Business Software, Business Plans, Information Products, Freelance Writing, plus Web Marketing, & Software Development Services – ALL at 65% off for LIFE! ” – Tayo K. Solagbade
NB: Those who pay $200 will get lifetime membership. Such persons won’t need to renew their membership annually and they still get 65% Discount Off EVERYTHING I offer for Life!
Every Inner Circle member gets a PERSONAL login username and password access to benefits.
I recorded this video in his office (on 8th Dec. 2014) and DELIBERATELY left it unedited, as you’ll hear us…
Below: Verbatim text transcript of video testimonial by Mr. Simeon Afolabi, Clinical Audiologist, BSA Hearing & Speech Centre, Lagos/Abuja – Nigeria
===Starts===
(Tayo Solagbade’s voice in Yoruba) “E duro, e duro. Oya” (i.e Yoruba for “Wait, wait. Okay”)
“Mr. (Tayo) Solagbade is a very industrious person. Very very committed to his work. He’s always full of ideas and solutions to problems, and for me, he is somebody that can give some great ideas to a business person that is facing some difficulties in any field you may think you are.
I’m in a clinical setting and he has been offering some great solutions to problems we face everyday. I listen to his relations with many of his clients. Some are into Agricultural sector, some are into legal sector, and he has been helping them to improve their practice, and to do better business.
He has a very good customer relationship. He knows how to relate with people, how to talk with people, how to flow with people.
And he’s somebody that when you enter into conversation with him, you ke(ep) on talking without having to end it. (Tayo’s slight laughter in background). He’s good. Good (laughs).”
===Ends===
Click here to give me a date/time you want to call me about joining my Inner Circle.
PDF membership certificates will be issued to members.
Quarterly ($40 USD) & 6 Monthly ($80 USD) memberships available, but 50% off, not 65%.
You can pay:
a. in cash or b. by purchasing paperback books from my online store equivalent to $160 USD.
After working on it all through December 2014, I’m excited to announce this new learning tool, originally created for my kids, will go LIVE at www.lulu.com/sdaproducts tomorrow night!
Title: Ten (10) ‘Storyfied’ Yoruba Proverbs for Children
Sub title: Ten popular Yoruba proverbs with contextual translations and story-based examples of their use, in daily life, for young children & and learners in general
For those who wonder, this is the first in what will be a series.
My motivation to do this is MAINLY to empower my kids to communicate proficiently using Yoruba.
It is also to enable them appreciate the beauty of the language – which can best be enjoyed when knows how to use and interpret proverbs and wise sayings appropriately.
I did not have the benefit, during my youth, of deliberate effort being made by adults to FORMALLY expose me to Yoruba
But I was lucky that my Dad firmly insisted, during our teenage years, that we read OUT the Yoruba bible during the daily bible study sessions we had.
That left me with the ability to actually READ the language despite being raised in Lagos city, and speaking English most of the time.
On my own, I went further as I grew older, to learn the phonetic aspects of speaking and writing Yoruba. But not in any structured way. It was all haphazard.
For instance, during my 5 year stay in Ibadan’s University of Ibadan, I was blessed to share a room with 2 guys from my home town Abeokuta, who grew up there and obviously spent most of their years with adults who had superb grasp of the language.
Almost every day my room mates mocked me about my lack of dexterity in the use of Yoruba. I was teased for speaking “Lagos Yoruba”. And they were right!
Rather than resent them, my habit of relentlessly pursuing self-improvement, made me ask them to share their knowledge with me, and by the time I left campus, even though I was nowhere near them, I had picked up enough to build on.
Over time I have consolidated that foundation, and today I have a growing library of learning resources, that I am now using to prepare coaching content for my own kids.
It goes without saying that despite the above, I am NOT in any way, an authority on reading, writing or speaking the Yoruba lanuage today.
However, what I have, I KNOW, can benefit MY kids and lots of others who lack it.
As such, I choose to focus on sharing THAT with them – and where I find others with superior proficiency, I will expose my kids to them as well!
Experience has taught me that one can teach successfully, by INVOLVING the intended learners in the process of creating the learning resources.
That way, the get exposed to it earlier, and come away with deeper understanding in the process.
That’s why the proverbs featured in my book are those that I have already discussed with my kids, and I even got them to create the MP3 audio clips with me – helping to say the proverbs in Yoruba and/or in English.
I initially planned to make it 25 proverbs per issue (click here to read details I gave in a preview)…
Below is a screenshot from the first proverb’s slide.
My “Storyfied” model is designed to facilitate contextual comprehension of proverbs by persons with limited proficiency.
My tight work schedule all through Christmas right into the New Year, has however made me settle for a 10 proverb per issue volume.
This way I can get them out with some regularity. Even if I have to churn out smaller volumes.
This is a project VERY close to my heart.
One that I am simply too passionate about and too determined to ever stop doing UNTIL I complete it (that’s talking thousands of proverbs – so maybe with time I’ll step back up to 25 or more per issue).
In case you’re wondering, my kids understand Yoruba, but they do not speak it so well.
That’s why I want to use my “Storyfied” Proverbs to break them in faster.
The stories will boost their comprehension of the proverbs, and since opportunities to use them will occur in life, they will over time learn to express themselves using proverbs.
The prestige that will result from demonstrating that ability will cause them to pay greater attention to learning MORE proverbs, and in the process they will learn MORE of the Yoruba language and culture itself. ( The language and the culture cannot be separated you see!)
The more contact you have with, and conscious attention you pay to a language, the more you internalize it.
Eventually at a point, you will achieve critical point where you become proficient.
Having said that, I realize there will be others who desire the same for their own kids, but who may not have the time and training to create a resource lik this for them.
This is why I continue to publish various resources I create in a manner that enables interested others purchase, and adapt them for their own use.
Final Words: This Storyfied language book project won’t end with Yoruba however…
Each day I see my kids, taking instructions from and communicating in Igbo language with their mother(who is from Obosi inNigeria’s Anambra state), I tell myself I need to do the same thing (i.e create a Storyfied proverbs book) for them with the IGBO language, which also has a rich store of proverbs.
And I already have material I can start with – from a 2002 paid 3 month IGBO language course that I attended in a coaching school at Allen Avenue. But it goes without saying that – as I am doing with the Yoruba version – I will also visit persons proficient in use of the language to LEARN and get guidance to ensure I do a good job of it.
All contributors names will be acknowledged in the publication – as has been done with this Yoruba book.
It was based on my experiences learning to read, write and speak the French Language, within 3 months in 1999 (traveling to stay in Cameroon to improve my fluency).
…a multi-disciplinary blog for people passionate about reaching their goals!
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