Youth and Unemployment in Africa: A Panacea
by Unemployment has been a perennial problem in Nigeria and Africa at large. Every regime promises to address the issue of unemployment but in the end we see that the problem keeps on increasing.
Some are looking for job in banks, companies, firms, etc. Have you asked yourself: who founded those banks, companies and firms? Are they superior beings? If they are human beings like you, then why can you not found one? The rich dad in Robert Kiyosaki’s ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad’ will always advise his son to put his brain to work. That is all you need. If those people who are not graduates can be making it on their own, what about you? Use you brain. Think of what you can do – a service you can render and people will be happy to part with their money in return. That is it. You have something you know how to do best. You have talents, potentials in you. Do not allow them to rust where you are looking and desiring to work in the ‘brain child’ of others. I may not wish to tell you the disappointments and frustrations that follow job seekers as well as employees. You may have known them already but let me tell you that there is fulfillment in self employment. There is freedom and there is prestige in being independent.
Right mentality leads to right attitude. The worst thing that can happen to a man is self rejection. Dependency mentality has elements of self rejection in it. It makes you not to believe in your abilities to create jobs. So you resign your happiness to whims and caprices of government, who as it appears, has rejected your service. That is too bad.
Obstacle to self employment is not lack of money as some have believed. It is lack of good ideals/goals and pride. Most unemployed youths have no plan of working for themselves. First of all, set goals for your life, meditate on them, and I tell you, where there is a will there is a way. Goal setting is the starting point of every achievement and not money. Another obstacle is pride. Many believe that because they are graduates they cannot start small. It is a lie. You have to start from somewhere. Before you become a graduate you passed through nursery/primary school. That is how the journey is. Bury your pride (what is your pride when you have no job and are without money). According to Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich, the world has the habit of making room for the man whose actions show that he knows where he is going. It is not where you start from that matters but where you are going. Therefore develop good ideals/goals for your life and start from somewhere so that you can actualize your goals.
Your generation is looking up to you. So think and create a job for yourself and others or sit and wait until government gives you a job. The choice is yours!
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