The Spark Magazine (May 2018)

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Hello Social Entrepreneur
Here’s a letter to every social entrepreneur and those aspiring to be one.
Think you’re ready to get started? Read this first.
- By Damilola Oyewusi
5 Opportunities for
Social Entrepreneurs
Sometimes, what we see as problems are simply
opportunities that we can harness to move our country
forward and make some money while at it.
By Ayandola Ayanleke
Dear Aspiring Social Entrepreneur on a 9-5 job,
The world is a mess and you want to do something about it. At
least that’s how the thoughts started ... until you started
counting the cost. So for years, you’ve been waking up every
morning, grudgingly lifting yourself out of bed and allowing
your responsibilities lead you to the company you work. There
are days you just want to quit. But you need that alert at the
end of the month. Don’t feel bad. Money is important. And that
security of a monthly cheque is probably the security you need
to get started on turning your world-changing desires into a
reality. Here are a few things you can do while waiting for the
day you can say goodbye to your boss with the excited smile that
confidently hides your true feelings of trepidation.
Get specific about the social problem you want to solve.
For people with a desire to change the world or make an impact,
it is sometimes easy to sound nice and passionate without an
actual focus on a particular problem. Take this time to properly
evaluate the problems you would like to invest a solution in.
Too often, social entrepreneurs are too optimistic about solving
many problems at the same time. This is one of the fastest
ways to burn out. Don’t let that happen to you. Take your time
to evaluate the sector you would like to work with, and hone it
down to one problem.
You need a network. You need a community.
Dear brilliant mind, you cannot do this alone. Make relevant
friends on the job and find the right community of people
to mingle with on the weekends. This is why places like Co-
Creation Hub and Wennovation Hub exist. Creative co-working
spaces are springing up in different parts of the country, join
one. And if there is no one around you, use the power of social
media to find like minds and get together for brainstorming
sessions, or just for drinks.
Finally,
Stop waiting till it’s all perfect before you start. Take one step at
a time and focus on what is important. Not everyone has to
know what you’re doing all at once. Don’t spend your time
and energy on building hype and brand awareness to reach
thousands or millions. Know your target audience and build all
you do around them.
There is so much more you will learn as you go along. And while
you should not remain in your comfort zone, take this time
as an opportunity to build something that really works while
enjoying the security your paid job affords. The founders of
Warby Parker can tell you something about this. On the flipside,
it is easier to deliver on the demands of a day job when you
have an exit strategy and you take action on it daily.
Nigeria is a very rich and beautiful country and I say that
without bias. It is an obvious fact to quite a number of
Nigerians and so much more to foreigners. Little wonder
they come in droves to maximise the opportunities that abound
in the country. For years, the country has been plagued with bad
leadership whose forte is more in the area of mismanagement
than actual leadership. Due to this, the wealth of the country
is not as obvious as should be and what we have in lieu are
different problems.
Based on the wealth – both natural and human – of the nation,
Nigeria should be a force to reckon with in the international
circle. Unfortunately, we are rated as one of the poorest countries
in the world. That being said, there is actually light at the end of
the tunnel and as mentioned earlier, many foreigners can see it.
Yes, we have a right to bemoan our situation because we expect
better but the existence of the problems in Nigeria are simply
opportunities that should be tapped into. The global economy
has tilted towards entrepreneurship. And for many, the issue
is not willingness to be entrepreneurial but lack of ideas. The
solution is not in head racking but in looking at the problems in
the country that you can solve and Nigerians will be grateful for.
This resource is here to help you get started.
1. Electricity
The obvious solution to this would be creating employment
through entrepreneurship. But that is just one side of the
coin; there is also the issue with employability. The Nigerian
educational system does not prepare students for the labour
market and many Nigerians do not have a self-improvement
culture. A possible solution would be a course or programme
where students will be taught for a few months how their course
of study is relevant to the labour market, what to expect and
what not to. You can take it further by partnering with companies
or organisations to employ some of the best students at the end
of the programme.
3. Education
The Nigerian educational system, to say the least, has gotten
worse. When we hear stories of the conditions under which the
older generation were educated, we will weep for the nation.
What we have today is still just a system where students are fed
with text books written by our parents’ generation.
Test your ideas
You get tons of them in a week. They keep flying through your
mind. Excitedly, you write them down, storing them for that ‘oh
so wonderful day’ when you get to live your dreams. Maybe you
get one that you hold on to. But the truth is that you can’t tell
how it would pan out if all you have is a picture in your mind of
what you want it to look like. Start by doing research on people
doing similar things across the world. Put your idea through a
pressure test. There’s a great exercise in a book called ‘The Social
Entrepreneur’s Playbook’ from Wharton Business School. The
soft copy is less than $15.
Understand what Social Entrepreneurship is and
what it isn’t.
You do want to make an impact but not as a charity organization.
This means you must have a business plan, develop a revenue
model and understand how your business will run. People will
not patronize your product or use your service just because you
have a good heart. You need to have a quality offering in terms
of your product or service and have a go-to-market strategy
that positions what you offer as a must-have solution. There is
information available on the internet and it is mostly free. Take
a free course on any of the numerous learning platforms. Take
advantage of the internet.
Remember, there are people waiting for your success.
All the best,
Someone like you
“
Too often, social entrepreneurs
are too optimistic about
solving many problems at the
same time. This is one of the
fastest ways to burn out.
“
One of the major problems of Nigeria today is lack of electricity.
I personally believe that if the problem of electricity can be
solved effectively in Nigeria, 50% of our problems would have
been solved. Let us look at it this way; Nigerians are very
resourceful and resilient people. Even with the epileptic power
supply, look around you at the number of small and medium
enterprises we have in the country who have managed a certain
level of productivity by relying simply on generators and other
alternative sources of power.
This might look like an insurmountable problem but it is an
opportunity for people to research alternative and more
affordable mediums of generating power. The Nigerian
government have failed in successfully using hydro and for
whatever reason, refused to resort to sunlight as well which we
have in abundance. But that does not necessarily need to stop
anybody with a better idea. If it can generate constant light and
it is affordable, people will come in droves to get it.
2. Unemployment
Unemployment is one issue that is seriously plaguing Nigeria.
But to be fair, many of the world’s developed countries still
battle with unemployment. According to CIA World Factbook,
unemployment rate in Nigeria in 2017 was at 13.4%, U.S. had
4.4%, France 9.5% and United Kingdom 4.4%. However, that is
not an excuse, because Nigeria’s percentage of unemployment
seems to increase each year with the number of new graduates
across the country.
For many who can afford education, they will be willing to pay for
good standard. So, if you are an educator who is ready to do
research and learn more outside of the Nigerian culture, you can
solve this problem by establishing a school that is actually more
interested in producing students who can stand at par with their
counterparts anywhere in the world.
And for the middle and lower class, who cannot afford education
at schools with expensive fees, there is still a solution. The school
might not have the luxury that the school above has, but it can
still focus on producing quality students. You can use recycled
materials, second hand text books and remodelled chairs made
from wood that may have been previously trashed. And for a
little price, you can give the right education to students who
don’t come from privileged homes. Scholarships would be a
great idea.
4. Health
Health is one of the most critical areas in this country, with
Nigeria having one of the highest mortality rates in the world.
According to a UNICEF report in 2017, Nigeria has the third
highest infant mortality rate in the world. Government hospitals
are usually nothing to write home about with little or no
equipment while private hospitals are very expensive.
As a doctor or health worker, establishing health care that even
the poor can access or a ‘doctors without boundaries’ initiative
will go a long way in touching many lives. Another idea is having
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