As Nigeria goes through a challenging season of economic paralysis, I want you to remember that nations rarely kaput. I introduce two men I study – Carlos Slim (Mexican billionaire) and Franklin Templeton (stock picker of the 20th century). These men demonstrated tenacity at a time their respective nations were under stress. Yes, even in the miry clay, they saw an unbounded future – and they won.
Franklin Templeton began a firm in 1947, against all odds, at the ruins of World War II. Mr Slim bought anything in his sight at one of the lowest points in Mexican history – the peso was down and markets in ruins. Templeton trusted the human race and bought “useless” stocks. Slim’s father told him that countries do not fail; they always come back.
Uber was founded during a great recession. Airbnb was founded during a great recession. If both had been conceived during a time of abundance, both would have failed. Becoming successful in life is not about being busy; it is about understanding things and making sense of them, more meaningfully. There are acres of diamond in Nigeria today, across many areas. Look for them. If you do not believe in humans and the aspirational spirits in communities, it is unlikely you can see opportunities in life.
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This current moment will go and like the cryolite, the beautiful gems out of periwinkle, new moments will emerge. Unless you crack the periwinkle, the cryolite rarely emerges. Do not lose confidence because abundance remains in the future. The key is productive exploration of opportunities. Think and thrive; Nigeria has acres of “diamond” you can mine.
At Tekedia Capital, we want to invest in companies which can thrive even in a time of recession or economic stress. Yes, the Ubers and Airbnbs of Nigeria. We #believe.
As Nigeria goes through a challenging season of economic paralysis, I want you to remember that nations rarely kaput. I introduce two men – Carlos Slim (Mexican billionaire) and Franklin Templeton (stock picker of the 20th century). These men demonstrated tenacity at a time their… pic.twitter.com/3CiH9mM87P
— Ndubuisi Ekekwe (@ndekekwe) February 28, 2024
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If things are very good, what can you do? If things are very bad, what can you do? Having sound answers to both questions shows preparedness. Things will not always be good, and things will not always be bad; so if you become numbed in bad times, it means that you will still underperform in good times as well.
It’s wars that make generals, and not how many years you spend in the military. Again, no one lays claim to leadership when everything is good and stable but missing when things are bad, such person cannot be a great leader.
Good or bad, you will still be judged by what you are able to do with what you have, no excuses are valid.