From my experiences, it is not unusual to wake up one random morning and discover that in one break of dawn all the self-confidence, pride and enthusiasm, one took great joy in building up had just flown out the window, without giving the slightest of signs. You will wonder how the low self-esteem, fear and doubts gushing out of you had crept in.

‘Where are they from?’

As if enough has not happened already, you will also be low on steam and the motivation to keep pushing and working at your business idea.

You recall all the days that have gone by and you are still far away from where you want to be.

If you are among the few who were lucky to launch their business ideas with a deep pocket, chances are that the money hammer you have been wielding tactically on your  obstacles hasn’t begun to yield results on your bottom line at this time.

Your revenue is still a light year away from the projections you made during your planning.

The sales channel you have fashioned, molded and pruned to perfection will now appear in a new light, bearing many loopholes. You didn’t put them, nobody did either.

Everyone else around you is moving. They all seem to be getting far ahead of you, while it seems life has hit your pause button.

The other business ideas you jumped to choose your current business will begin to hold more attraction and make more sense to you.

It is not an isolated experience peculiar to you.   While we pursue success with a straight and clear-cut focus, success itself runs along a winding road, full of bumps with no warning signs; and leaves emotional tantrums and mood swings in its wake.

The life experiences of an entrepreneur come strangely to new entrants with faint hearts.Your key supplier could have stopped taking your calls for the second day running. He is probably attending to bigger clients with bigger cash to spend or grappling with his own eventualities. But the timing could coincide with one of these bad-mood days and reinforce the evidence compelling you to call it quits.

A fresher in a business is always a generalist at first; doing the customer service, delivery, marketing, accounting, handling inventory and doing whatever is necessary to stay afloat. The fatigue and other side effects of these daily grinds and multi-tasks could catch a fresher off guard and put them in off mode. And that is where every step of the way could begin to fall apart and your goals begin to lose their luster.

In summary you are convinced it is time to ditch the unproductive idea and try something else.

This is only a phase in the life of an entrepreneur. Like everything that is in phases, it will pass and make way for the next phase.

Beyond the severe bashing your ego has taken, and the bitter feeling that you are stuck and have wasted your time and money, there is a success waiting for you to take it. That is only if you keep pushing forward.

Waiting sucks more when there is not an end in sight. You might not see immediate results, but as long as you are in the right track every small step and efforts you make counts. Don’t discard them.

Watch your words, even the most silent of them are powerful. How you feel about your situation will be determined by the way you think about it, and the kind of words you speak out about it.

If today you are in this phase, keep the fire burning and don’t give up.  This phase will pass, certainly.

Don’t worry, I am going to be rich than them, he told his wife. I overheard this conversation between a couple and I thought within myself, what is the reason behind the man’s motive to be rich.

Was this motive for success right or wrong, I asked myself. Everyone has different drives for success. In his blog on To have a more successful life…, Joshua Kennon wrote, “Almost every action someone takes is driven by an underlying motivation. This can be social rank, reputation, envy, power, love of work, self- preservation, service, security, escape ,fear, thrill,or a host of other alternatives. To understand the world, it is important you develop the ability to recognize the motivation that drives a person.”

For instance, we are often advised not to start a business based on profit alone but based on a genuine passion for whatever products or services we offer. The reality of this is, most business don’t make their first millions on their first year of operation but takes times, maybe like five years,ten years or more depending on the planning, financial backing and genuine passion of the entrepreneur towards the products or services offered.

Our motives affect our decision making, starting with the right motives helps us build the required momentum to sustain our success. Having the right motives gives us a better chance of succeeding. So, how do we start out with the right motive.

Examine your motive

Before starting out that goal or business , ask yourself what is the reason behind the goal. Give some thoughts to it … is it based on a positive or negative emotion? Examining our motive will help start the right course of action in achieving success.

Weigh the impact of your motive

Going back to the conversation between the couple – weighing the impact of such motive could either bring a positive or negative result.

The man might end up becoming rich than his peers or the opposite might happen. And when such opposite happens (him not becoming rich), he might be tempted to fake his own success. Then he begins to live a borrowed lifestyle, possibly exposing his family to ruins.

Let your motive drive you

Based on the right emotion, our motive can help us thrive during hard times.

“Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm “~Abraham Lincoln.

Being sure of our motive to achieve success will help us to stand firm even when we have no support from anyone; we become our own source of inspiration.

When we chase our goal with the right motive that matches up with our activities, our results become compelling and satisfying.

Side hustle has become a necessity. In fact, in Nigeria today, side hustle is one of the keys to financial independence. Most people already know its importance, but there are some who are yet to understand why they should have a secondary source of income. Among the people in this latter group are the civil servants. Though Nigerian Civil Service discourages civil servants from having secondary sources of income, except subsistence agriculture, there are, however, jobs and businesses that people can go into that will not affect their performance in their main job, nor make them compromise their positions in offices.

Several reasons abound why side hustle is important. One is that you won’t have to worry about when the next salary ‘alert’ will enter. Secondly, you can use the fund from the side hustle for the day to day running of your home and use the salary for major expenditures or investments. Thirdly, income from side hustles can be invested in your self-development (I love this part), which will in turn bring more wealth because you have the necessary skills and certificates that will bring better jobs or positions in the office. Besides, with side hustles, you don’t have to disturb your neighbours and ‘customers’ in the market because you want to borrow money or buy things on credit hoping to pay back when the next salary comes (this can bring down someone’s self image). And also, the country will benefit if civil servants have their side hustles because they will be happier workers and will not continue agitating for salary increase.

There are things you need to put into consideration before venturing into any side hustle. They are:

a. Time: You don’t have to go into something that will affect your office hour. So, target things you can do comfortably when you come back from work or during the weekends, depending on the type of work you do.

b. Space: Whatever you are going into should be managed within the space you have. I mean, you don’t have to rent a space for your side hustle. At least, not until you have established very well.

c. Capital: The things I am going to list do not require much capital. You know, civil servants aren’t rich, so it won’t be wise to invest your little savings, and maybe a loan, into something you are just starting. Besides, this is a side hustle for now.

d. Interest: Even if you don’t enjoy your main job, your side hustle should give you joy. So, I’ll say here, “Turn your hobby into a money machine”. Go for that thing you love doing. That way, there won’t be much pressure on you. So, if you choose one side hustle and you don’t enjoy it, drop it and pick another one (don’t worry about how much you make from it).

e. The 3Es: These are Effectiveness (should be able to solve a problem), Efficiency (you can do it very, very well) and Ease (you can do it without much stress, that is you can do it easily).

f. Problem Solving: Whatever you are going into should be the solution to an existing problem. Remember, people want solutions to their problems, not the descriptions of the problem.

Ok, so let’s look at some of the side hustles I know. These jobs I will list here are the ones I’ve had direct contact with those doing it. These people have their primary jobs and very busy work schedules, but they still make out time for these and they do very well. I’ll explain what I know about them. But if you have interest in any of them, you should carry out further research before venturing in.

1. Farming: Farming here isn’t about having a large expanse of land and planting different crops. It’s about going into things like vegetable gardens (that they maintain all year round), snail rearing, fishery and poultry. Of course those going into these will have enough space at their backyard or somewhere close by.

2. Digital Marketing: A lot of people shiver at this name but it is a very simple thing to do. In fact the one I have seen people do is so easy. All they needed were a large network of contacts, a good phone or camera and a good marketing skill. So, what they do is meet with business owners (say a fashion house, supermarket, school, etc.), strike deals with them (maybe percentage commission for each sales that comes through them), take captivating pictures of the business premises or wares, and then post them on social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp and others that they believe will attract sales. They will be contacted for details on the goods and maybe purchases. There are other forms of digital marketing, but if you have interest in this simple type, ask around and learn the intricacies of the job.

3. Estate Agents: These people usually liaise with the main agents and get their cuts for customers that come through them. So all you have to do is take down the phone numbers on the “To Let” or “To Sell” signs you see around your area and discuss with the principal agent. But, be careful about fraudsters who rent and sell people’s properties without the knowledge of the owners. So, take time to make enquiries before you get yourself involved.

4. Pastry Making and Catering: I know some people that use their weekends to prepare chinchin, peanuts, roasted groundnuts, roasted cashew nuts, cakes and so on. They package them beautifully and use their spare time during the week to supply them to shops. Those interested here should make their pastries unique so as to beat their competitors.

5. Event Management: A friend of mine into this said that what she does is get the contract and then use different vendors to supply the things for the event. Her job merely to supervise them. Another friend of mine partners with an established event planner to do hers – she gets the contract and the event planner manages the event while my friend gets a commission. So all you need here is a list of good vendors (such as caterers, bakers, rentals and so on) and the ability to deliver something unique. However, if you are good in any of the things for the event (e.g. baking), you can take it up while you sublet the others.

6. Tutorial and Part-Time Teaching or Lecturing: This one is not necessarily for teachers and lecturers alone. Only thing there is that the person must have the basic academic certificate and needs to be conversant with the subject area. A lot of teachers I know in Abuja use their income from tutorials to buy cars and pay their rents.

7. Content Writing: Those that love to write and have good writing skills can go into this. But you need to know what you love writing about – fashion, politics, hi-tech, education, gossip and so on. Look for blogs and websites that require your skill and start contributing to them.

8. Hair Dressing and Cutting: Men and women are known to engage in hair plaiting and cutting, so you can choose the one you like. You can either attach yourself to a salon, use your home or visit people’s homes for these services. I will also add wig making here. This is in high demand now.

9. Beauty Make-Over: There is need for you to go for some trainings before going into this. You can make fortune from this by dressing people up for weddings, birthdays, house warming, and so many other occasions. You can also attach yourself to photo studios so that you will be contacted when the need for your services arises. Aside these, you can organise training on beauty make-over. One thing that is so good about this job is that you don’t need space to set it up.

10. Dress Making/Tailoring: If you are a trained tailor and you love to sew, all you need is a sewing machine, a sewing kit and your expertise. You can use a corner in your house as your workshop. To get customers, wear your designs and be quick to tell people that you made them whenever they ask. That way, you may not have to pay someone to advertise for you. You can also make use of the internet to market yourself. A lot of workers are now into this.

11. Master of Ceremony (MC): This work doesn’t need any space, tool or training. All you need here is just you and your wits. If you are good in this and are wondering where to start, go to schools and sell yourself. You can also meet event planners and DJs to team up with them. Remember to bring down your price so as to make your offer attractive. Trust me, one good outing is all you need to sell. But remember that each occasion requires a different approach.

12. Mini Shop at Home: This is one area Nigerian civil servants are professionals (aside selling things in the office – I don’t really encourage this). You can have a mini business outlet in your house. Some have mini supermarkets in their home verandas (lol), but it is a good training ground for mega trading. You can sell household things like food items, snacks, kerosene, drinks and others. I don’t think it is wise for you to rent a shop for this type of business considering that you make sales only on weekends, before leaving for work in the morning and when you get back from work in the evening. But you need to be careful so your home doesn’t become a nuisance to neighbours and a target for hoodlums.

13. Consultancy and Repair: When people see that you are good in what you do they will consult you for your expertise at a given fee. You can also add repair charge if you are going to do that. I know people in the medical line benefit a lot from this side hustle but others can too. You can repair computers, cars, furniture and things you are good in.

14. Cab Driving: You can go into this if you have a car. If your car is good enough for Uber, register with them. If not, do the usual kabu-kabu. I trust Abuja residents for this. See, there is no shame in doing something that will bring better life for you and your dependents, so don’t believe that cab driving is too low for you.

15. Jewellery Making: Those that know how to make beaded jewellery are always making sales. This business can even turn you into an exporter if you know your way around. You can sell your wares to fashion shops or display them on the internet, or ask around for agents that will export them for you.

16. Airtime and Data Selling: These days, airtimes and data can be bought from individuals who buy in bulk from the service providers and then sell in bits to customers. When your customers pay you through bank transactions, you send data or airtime to them through the ‘Share and Sell’ services. So all you need here is your phone, initial capital and good marketing skill. Of course your integrity will also be considered because Nigerians are not yet comfortable with this business. But a lot of people are discovering about it. In fact, I have been buying data through this medium for more than three years now.

17. Arts and Crafts: People good in these are encouraged to go into them. Whether it is functional or aesthetic art that you can do, start up something. Art works are necessary these days – carving, sculpturing, cabinet work, graphics, clothe designing, bag making and design, sandals and shoes, you name it. I always believe that when you show interest in something and start looking for how to obtain it, you will find it. So, start now to find where your talents can be used and think of how to make fortune out of it. Allow your talents to pay your bills.

18. Gym Instruction and Sports Coaching: Those into sports can take up these jobs. A lot of gyms are springing up by the day and they need instructors. Schools also need coaches for their students during sports activities. The fortunate thing about coaches is that schools look for civil servants from ministry of sports or PHE teachers in public schools. So, here you go.

19. Joining Multilevel Marketing Companies: I have seen people going into things like Longrich, Forever Living Products, GNLD, and even Nigerian local multilevel marketing companies. Please, beware of Ponzi scheme as that will only end up giving you a heart break. However, find out the intricacies of this type of business before going into it. Then, obtain customers’ feedbacks about the company of interest before investing your money with them.

20. Trading: I didn’t want to include this one but I don’t have a choice because that is what most people have gone into. If this is what interests you, I’ll suggest that you look for something that is important but is lacking in the area. Find a reliable and affordable place that will supply you the goods. Then, package and sell. You can let your colleagues in the office know that you have those goods but, please, sell it to them after office hour. Or, better, make home deliveries. Things I’ve noticed that sell much in this type of business include food items (such as stockfish, crayfish, palm oil), clothing, and jewellery. These are things that people need.

Ok, so you have seen some of the things you can do as side hustles. There are so many other ones (such as statistical analysis, web developing, blogging and so on), but these ones are the ones I am so sure that can easily be done by workers in Nigeria, especially the civil servants, because they require less capital and space. Besides, they are jobs and businesses that have recorded great patronage. You can choose two or more of them as your side hustles, but be careful so that they don’t disrupt your major source of income.

Few weeks ago, I went to the market to get some tools for my church technical department.  I went straight to the store that I had been patronizing for over a year. After making inquiry of a new product, I was told the price, and to my utmost surprise, it was three times the price I bought on a normal day elsewhere.

Before you even wonder what it could be, it was a pair of battery. On a normal day, I bought it for just five hundred naira around my location. In the store I had patronized, it was told one thousand five hundred naira.

At first, I thought the salesman was joking until I realized he was serious; I felt so stupid. I mean what kind of joke is this? I looked at the battery and it was exactly the same battery I have been buying for over a year.

The salesman later said he would give me the battery for eight hundred naira and this got me more furious. I mean what do you take me for? A dunce? I bellowed and told him out-rightly that it wasn’t a stupid decision on his part to go that high just because he wanted to make profit. Then, I left without purchasing anything, and immediately switched to another store where I would be purchasing things.

If there’s anything customers are ever concerned about in this age, it is the value they are getting from their products which is why as business persons, you have to be careful about transparency in business.

Nobody is saying don’t make huge products but the sales price must be equal to the value you are offering. The disadvantage you have as a business person at this time is that the market is saturated with so many sellers, giving the buyers control over the market, and this extends to their purchase decisions.

Two things you should be aware of in this era is information travels faster than any other thing. It spreads like clouds of fire. What this implies is that it is easy for a customer to be aware of a thousand sellers of a product because there’s a chain of connection in the information world. So cheating on your customer makes you a second option instantly.

The second thing is that customers do not have extra seconds to spare over a product because there are a wide range of choices for them, so you make a mistake, they are already in the next store.

Now am I saying you should not have good profit? No! Matter of fact, selling the battery at one thousand five hundred naira would not get me infuriated if there was another value attached to the battery, and he had just five seconds to convince me of the value. He failed and lost a customer.

Customer retention is key –  he has lost me and will never get my money anymore. Most business owners do not focus on customer retention which I believe is the heart of a business.

Why is it the heart of a business? It’s simple; nobody told me to journey down all the way from my location to board a cab down to purchase a lot of products from this same store. Customers that you retain are your real customers. They are the ones who visit you without you sponsoring any new ad to remind them.

You have built a brand or an impression in their minds. Your store or business is the first they consider when they want to shop or get a service.

Now, I will just give two secrets to customer retention:

1. Transparency: You must be transparent with your customers or consumers. Talking about transparency, it doesn’t necessarily mean you tell the exact profit you make but you must be sincere and honest. Customers are not blind people; that is one of the key things they seek. Talking about customers, we are all customers to a brand or product.
2. Under promising and over delivering: This is another key tool that works every time. If you are a fashion designer, an artist, or you sell yam or even watches, once a service is needed, give a date that you know you would be able to complete the job a week before. Give a promise to deliver at a speed when you know you can deliver twice the speed. You tell the customer that this product will last for a year when you know that it will last for a year and half. This is better than failing. This builds trust; this builds confidence; that you would not fail. Yes, that your product is the best.

What products do you sell, what service do you offer?

That question is a very important question you need to ask yourself in whatever field or business you’re in. The reason is simple: is customer retention for you?

Now let me break it down so that you would understand where I’m coming from. There are two duties you need to do when it comes to clients or customers. The first is called customer attraction and the second is called retention. Customer attraction is what you do to win a stranger or a friend to become your client or customer.

Customer Attraction

For example, if you sell shoes, there are some things you do to get customers to start buying your shoes. Things like opening a shop or running ads online or telling friends one after the other.

Remember the first thing I asked was that you identify the business you are doing. At this point, I would say that not all businesses need consumer retention but most businesses do.

If your product or service is a one-time service or a lifetime need, then you do not need to focus on consumer retention. For example, if you are a company producing the most expensive car in the world, you do not need to focus on consumer retention because chances are your customers would only get the most expensive car once and not come back the second time even if the car spoils. They would prefer to get a more expensive car if they even want to purchase another expensive car.

Customer Retention

Now everyone, let’s take a practical example and let us use Christopher as an example. He is an artist. Also, we have Mama Kemi who sells foodstuffs. Now, I would put myself in their heads; so flow along. 

First thing first, as a seller or someone who has a service to offer, the key step is to make sure your product is good or your service is very good. If you are still learning or you don’t have a quality service to offer, then I would suggest that you go back and make better plans.

The reason is simple: in this age, only products that are remarkable win, only services that matters win. Seeing the long line competitors you’ve got, you have to make sure you have a good product or service. 

So, I’m a very good artist, I have few clients monthly, let’s say two or three. The big question to ask at first, if you want to consider customer retention, is how often do they need my service?

The reason is quite simple: if such product or service is something your customers need often, let’s say monthly, you need to plan. Note I said such product, I didn’t say your product. The more you are aware that you have competitors, the more you take your execution seriously. How do you ensure that your customers come back to you? By visiting them daily? 

For foodstuff seller, it is important you ask yourself how you make your customers come back to you to buy more foodstuffs since you are certain there’s no way your customer would not need food. At this point, you should see the solution already. I mentioned some key points the last time in the last post that you need transparency, and that you need to under promise and over deliver. 

However, there’s no way this can perfectly work if there’s no customer relationship, and there’s no proper value system built. There should be at least one value system built which could range from weekly texts, fortnight calls, Whatsapp chats, or even to the point of offering opportunity to pay instalmentally. Those are value chains.

Value chains are like bridges and they are the bridges your customers cross to return to you when they want to return. If there are no bridges, it gets more difficult for them and this can discourage them from crossing. If you have none, you are simply saying goodbye to them.

So back to where I stopped, remember we are talking about consumer retention and I am still using an example. Don’t forget. In this scenario, if your customer needs your product or service very often, then pay attention to your customer retention even while you’re figuring out customer attraction because it’s still important till you reach a point where customers don’t seem to be coming. By then, you’d totally rely on your retained customers.