Entrepreneurship is hot. It is exciting. Many want to be entrepreneurs immediately upon graduation from schools. I have a word for you: NO. Yes, you are not likely to thrive in Nigeria if you start any business immediately upon graduation. Besides capabilities, you need to learn, build networks and test the waters to find your navigation path.

While you can hire people as you grow a business, it is very likely you would do most things at the beginning. So, it makes sense to learn how to do some of those things while working for another person.

Entrepreneurship is a high intensity call – it is not a vacation. If you decide the school-CEO path, in Nigeria, you will likely run a “small business” and not a “startup”. But no matter what, good luck even as I tell you to search for a job and learn how things work before you become the boss! Yes, work for someone and get a decent level of experience before you open that shop!

Of course, that does not mean that you cannot move from a college dorm straight to running your own business. Possibly, some might have done it in Nigeria. Yet, life is largely a statistics – there are more successful business people who worked for others than those who jumped into the Founder/CEO role immediately upon graduation.

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Comment 1: Thanks for this insight, Prof Ekekwe. This your view is consistent with your earlier evaluation of the success of Igbo Apprenticeship System(IAS) otherwise known as stakeholder capitalism in your groundbreaking article in HBR. Speaking of IAS as fertile ground for Founder/CEO training, I imagine that the system could provide entrepreneurial immersive experience for our young graduates going into business in Nigeria. Not every student will land a job in oil industry or Broad street (the usual suspects and every graduate’s dream) upon graduation, and such experience could easily prepare these outliers as future job creators than job seekers, thereby mitigating the mounting and scary underemployment and unemployment ratio in Nigeria. This experience is even crucial because Nigerian formal sector is not formal. Successful managers often combine practical training with patience and some street smartness, which IAS provides in abundance. My point is that time has come to make IAS module a requirement in our schools all the way from high school to graduate level bridge the gap. I need to go back and read that article again, lol.

My Response: The principle works in religion, trading, and all domains of business. You cannot run a church on day one. Most times, someone has to pastor you before you break out,.

It is said, when your intentions are clean and your approach is fair, your enemies and your battles shall be your greatest resources and the cornerstone of your elevation. This word (and rule) of life had been perfected before the creation of men, its actors and subjects.

For every law there is a reversal law; for every principle, there is a lower or higher principle; for every motion, there is an opposing motion or reaction, etc. This is a universal dialectic though it it has different naming in different climes.

Stability is the center of life; it is the state of balance between acceleration and friction. The counteraction of these two forces keeps us at the center of life and prevents the world from losing its bearing and center of gravity.

The life of Joseph present a great lesson. Joseph needed more than beauty and the gift of vision to become a king. He needed frictions to unleash and enliven his capacity for acceleration. So he was plotted against by his brothers who snared him out of his comfort zone and father’s protection and sold him into slavery and servitude in Egypt. In Egypt, Joseph suffered another scheme and betrayal from the wife of his master which got him into prison.

However, it transpired that all of these experiences were the stepping stones Joseph needed to reach his destination. His turning point came when he interpreted the dream of his fellow inmate who rose to become the King’s cupbearer.

As a destined divine ruler and arbitrator, Joseph needed to experience hatred to understand the importance of love, he needed to understand evil to be able to contrast it to virtue and holiness.

The rule of life did not just play out in Joseph’s life, he used to his advantage. Even when he recognized that his enemies have been brought back to his course, he never succumbed to the urge of seeking revenge. That is sweet wisdom that could only have come from bitter experiences.

What is that friction you are experiencing today in your life, home, business, work, and relationships?

Providence is never rash. The mills of God grind slowly but it grinds exceedingly small. Never lose hope in trying periods. It is a time to intensify your acceleration and let providence takes its course. In adversity, rather than constantly fantasizing about a happy ending, deal with the situation and embrace the moment with alacrity.