Notice: Function _load_textdomain_just_in_time was called incorrectly. Translation loading for the wordpress-seo domain was triggered too early. This is usually an indicator for some code in the plugin or theme running too early. Translations should be loaded at the init action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /home/bcm/src/dev/www/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6121
hustle | Page 2 of 18 | Zikoko!

Quizzes

Stacks

Shows

Podcasts

Newsletters

Naira Life

Love Life

Hustleprint

Love Currency

Sunken Ships

What She Said

My Bro

So You Don’t Have To

Interview With…

Zikoko Memes

Jollof Road

Cholera Outbreak Update

Follow our socials

  • The #NairaLife of a Baker Who’s Tired of Living on Handouts

    The #NairaLife of a Baker Who’s Tired of Living on Handouts

    Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing.

    “Do crypto with Quidax and win from a $60K QDX prize pool!” Bayo, a 28-year-old Lagosian tells Jide, his Ibadan friend seeking the most secure way to trade crypto in Nigeria after a major exchange he trades with announced its plans to leave the country. Find out more here.

    Nairalife #269 bio

    When did you first clock the importance of money?

    When I was about 8 years old, I noticed the kids in my neighbourhood came out to play with their bicycles every evening. I felt out of place because I didn’t have one, and the kids didn’t let me play with them. I asked my mum to buy me one, and she said, “You’ve not even seen money to eat, you’re thinking about a bicycle”. 

    Me, I wanted to play and make friends, and I thought I could only do that when I had money to buy my own bicycle. 

    What was the financial situation at home like?

    My dad was a welder for offshore companies, but the early 2000s Warri Crisis forced some of these companies to leave the country. Then he didn’t get regular jobs anymore. 

    Plus, my dad wasn’t good with money. Whenever he got a temporary offshore job and got paid well, he’d spend it on electronic gadgets rather than follow my mum’s suggestion and invest in a business. I’d come home from school to find a new television when the old one was still working. Or he’d do some repairs on his car or buy a new freezer. So, my parents always fought about money.

    I’m the firstborn, so I noticed how his financial habits contributed to the tension at home.

    How did your family navigate the periods when he didn’t have a job?

    My mum used to be a stay-at-home mum until things got tough.  Then, she tried many things; from selling fabrics and hawking food to taking cleaning jobs, daycare and catering gigs. Her businesses hardly took off because my dad always came to borrow money, but at least she made sure we weren’t homeless and always brought food home whenever she went for catering gigs.

    Watching her try several things for money, coupled with my dad’s financial habits made me think a lot about money. There was a limit to what I could get because of money, and I just wanted to make my own.

    When did you first act on this need to make money?

    In SS 1. My mum used to cook for a neighbour occasionally. One day, she had a small get-together and came looking for my mum to cook for her. My mum wasn’t home, and this lady said I should follow her. She assumed I could cook since my mum was a good cook. I didn’t tell her I’d never cooked in my mother’s house. I followed her home and cooked fried rice. I went from never cooking at all to cooking fried rice at 13 years old.

    Please tell me it ended well

    Surprisingly, it did. My heart was in my mouth when she tasted it, but she said, “This is nice. Your mother taught you well.” She even said I’d cook for her the next time my mum wasn’t around. She paid me ₦3k, which I used to buy foodstuff and cook for my siblings before my mum returned. I was feeling like a small mummy. My mum was pleasantly surprised when I told her what happened.

    Did the cooking gigs become regular?

    Somewhat. My mum started passing down jobs to me during the weekends. All the money I made was for the house: I never really thought of it as mine. Besides, the only thing on my mind was finishing secondary school at 16 and doing what was expected of me: studying medicine so I could become a doctor and turn the family’s fortune around. 

    Nigerian millennials everywhere can relate

    Well, I failed two core subjects in WAEC in 2011 and couldn’t get university admission that year. Even worse, it had taken serious convincing for my dad to add to what my mum had scraped together for my WAEC fees. When I failed, he said I was useless and concluded I’d get married because he had washed his hands off my education.

    Since school wasn’t on the horizon, I got a teaching job at a nearby secondary school.

    How much did it pay?

    ₦4k/month. I did the job for a few months till some family members convinced my parents to let me write NECO and JAMB. I got into university in 2013. It wasn’t medicine sha. 

    But my dad refused to pay my fees, and my mum had to do a lot of running around to raise my fees. He later chipped in, but it was mostly my mum. It was clear from that moment that I’d have to take care of myself in school. They’d settled school fees. Everything else would be on me. 

    How did you manage this?

    I had a stint serving drinks at a bar three times a week for ₦4,500/month. But I stopped after a few months because the male customers kept touching me, and the bar owner was only interested in keeping his customers.

    Then, I worked as an attendant at a fuel station for ₦7k/month. Since I was still in school, I shared a shift with someone else and only worked half days. I hated the job because I had to stand for hours. I left after about three months.

    Also, I had a much older boyfriend —  I was 19, and he was in his 40s — who used to give me ₦10k – ₦15k every other week. He also paid for my hostel accommodation once. 

    My boyfriend kept saying he wanted to marry me. I didn’t mind because he had a two-bedroom apartment, a car, and seemed rich. At least, I’d be comfortable. Anyway, I saved up most of the money he  gave me and began selling beaded items in school.

    Did you make them yourself?

    Yes, I did. I’d make the beads and post them on Facebook. A bead set went for ₦2k – ₦2,500. My profit on each sale was about ₦1k.

    On the side, I was making ₦5k or ₦7k cooking for some Yahoo boys I’d befriended in my apartment building. They liked my food, so the money was regular. 

    While that was going on, the guys noticed I was well-spoken and started asking me to check for typos in the messages they wanted to send to “clients” to confirm there weren’t any typos. Sometimes, I’d edit; other times, I’d help them write the messages. Anytime they got paid, they’d give me between ₦30k – ₦50k as appreciation. The highest I ever got was ₦100k.

    Those were my major income sources between first year and second year of uni. I was making money — approximately ₦40k weekly — and even sending some home. Because of that, I stopped paying attention to school. I hardly attended classes because I couldn’t leave someone calling me to cook for one rubbish class. 

    That must’ve affected your grades

    It did. I had F parallel during the second semester of my 200 level. I had so many carryovers to write. But I was focused on making money. So, I started selling essential oils, too. I was also trying to raise money to start a hair business. The plan was to get hair from a distributor and resell them. It was lucrative at the time, so I saved everything I made so I could invest in it.

    Around this time, my relationship with the older guy had ended, and I met another one online. The new guy was in his 30s and lived in a different city. I think he was the first person who told me he loved me. I told him about my plan to start a hair business and he seemed proud that I was so hardworking. I had saved ₦300k+ by that time.

    A few weeks after I told him about my plan, he called and said he’d been in an accident. Then he ended the call. 

    An accident?

    I was confused too. He was unreachable for the next couple of hours, and I was worried. When he eventually called back, he said he was in the police station. Apparently, he’d hit a woman and her child with his car, and the police held him, asking for about ₦600k. He said his bank app wasn’t working and asked me to lend him the money, promising to pay back as soon as he was released.

    I didn’t stop to think. I just thought, “Well, he’s my boyfriend” and sent him my entire savings. He encouraged me to borrow the remaining ₦200k from people, and I did. After he got the money, I didn’t hear from him again.

    Damn

    I didn’t suspect anything at first. I thought he was still in danger. After three days, I borrowed more money to travel to his city to check on him. I met an empty house, and it was obvious someone had just packed out. I asked a neighbour, and they said they saw him leave a few days ago, and it looked like he was relocating. 

    At that point, my whole world shattered. I have no idea how I returned home that day. I was walking on the road, and tears were falling down my face. How could I have been so stupid?

    I’m so sorry

    I had lost everything I’d ever worked for and was about ₦300k in debt. I couldn’t tell anyone what happened. I stopped attending classes and didn’t even go out. I honestly wanted to die. 

    I started to “borrow from Peter to pay Paul” when my creditors started calling for their money. I’d take new loans to pay my old ones. I even used loan apps to fund a gambling habit I developed.

    RELATED: The #NairaLife of a Pharmacist Who Overcame a Loan App Addiction

    How did you start gambling?

    I picked it up from a neighbour. I desperately needed money and I asked him to teach me how to play but he refused because “babes no dey do this kind thing”. Instead, he suggested I give him money so he’d play for me. If he won anything with my money, he’d take a small percentage and give me the rest. I thought it was a good idea, so I agreed.

    I started giving him ₦500 – ₦1k here and there for him to place bets. I don’t even know if he was placing the bets or using my money to smoke weed. But every time he’d come and say the game “cut”, and I’d give him more money for another “sure game”. I don’t know if it was desperation, but I just believed I’d win big one day and clear all my debts.

    Did you win big?

    I didn’t win anything. I was still getting cooking gigs, but they didn’t come as frequently, and everything I made went into paying loans and feeding. At one point, I dropped out of school completely. I was keeping to myself a lot and my friends just thought I was going through heartbreak. They didn’t know about the loans. I didn’t want to ask for help because I felt like I needed to solve everything myself.

    I became homeless because I couldn’t pay rent. I started moving from one friend’s house to the other. They didn’t know I was homeless. I’d just be like, “I want to come and stay with you for one week,” and then I’d move to the next friend. I ended up staying with some of them for up to a month at a stretch. 

    It was crazy. I sank into a bad depression and was in limbo from 2015 to 2017. In 2017, I had to open up to my friends because the compounding loans were killing me. They pulled funds together, and I started to clear the loans. But then I saw an investment opportunity that promised to triple my money in two weeks.

    Hmmm

    See, I was at the mercy of people giving me ₦10k – ₦20k, and I didn’t want to rely on that. I wanted to make my own money, too. So, I took ₦100k that people had gathered for me and put it in the firm, expecting to make ₦300k. That ended terribly. I never saw one kobo.

    At that point, it felt like there was no end in sight to the series of bad financial decisions I was making.

    Thankfully, my friends helped me clear my debts completely in 2018. That’s also when my parents realised I’d dropped out of school.

    How?

    My mates were already going for NYSC, so they obviously had questions. I told them, and they were so disappointed. I couldn’t even go back home because I was ashamed. By this time, I’d rented another apartment with a friend’s help, so I just stayed back around school. 

    But I didn’t have a job or business. My mates had finished school and moved on with their lives, and I was still there. 

    I had nothing to my name and didn’t even know who I was. I sank into another depressive period that lasted until 2020. This time, it came with suicidal tendencies. I’d constantly overdose on drugs, and my neighbours would break down my door and rush me to the hospital.

    When I wasn’t trying to kill myself, I was just existing. I’d go for days without eating until my friends sent me money. The last time I attempted suicide in 2020, someone told me, “Maybe you should just die so everyone will rest”. 

    Ah

    I think, in the end, it was my friends’ encouragement that restored my will to live. They kept telling me things would get better, and I started to believe them. I was angry at this “things will get better” statement for a long time, though. I mean, I was a uni dropout in my 20s without a job, no relationship, and even my parents weren’t talking to me. Where was the “better”? But my friends didn’t let me give up.

    Towards the end of 2020, I decided to return to cooking. It was the constant in my life, and I thought, if I could go to culinary school, I’d even be able to make a career out of it.

    In early 2021, I got two steady clients. Between the two of them, I was sure of at least ₦100k/month. 

    Things were looking up

    A little. But then my mum became hypertensive and had a stroke, and I had to start chipping in money for drugs. She was no longer with my dad, so I was also supporting my siblings in school. For every ₦100k I made, more than half went to my siblings and mum. So, that didn’t help with planning for my life or even culinary school. 

    What are things like these days?

    Still pretty much the same. One of my siblings is waiting for NYSC and the other one is in final year at uni, and most of my money still goes back home. I really don’t think I’m living for myself. There’s always one need back home, and money is never enough. I have things bookmarked that I’d like to buy, but I can’t even think of buying them. I always think of home first.

    Do you still rely on cooking gigs?

    I learnt how to bake in 2022. Since culinary school wasn’t an option, I paid about ₦300k to learn to make cakes and small chops. 

    My plan was to set up a cute pastry shop, but I quickly realised it was capital intensive, so with the help of my friends again, I got a bigger ₦300k/year apartment with a big kitchen so I could bake in my kitchen and save on rent. It limits the number of cake orders I can get because some orders require storing products, which is a hassle without a freezer. The last time I priced a small freezer, it was ₦185k.

    In a good month, I can earn between ₦100k – ₦150k from baking and cooking gigs. Sometimes, I don’t earn anything and have to rely on the grace and kindness of my friends. My financial life is very up and down.

    You’ve mentioned your friends turning up for you a lot. Do you ever worry about relying on them too much?

    All the time. I struggle with asking for help until things are falling apart. Anytime I have to pick my phone to ask for something, I feel regret and shame. These are my agemates, but I have to depend on them again and again. 

    My friends probably don’t feel the same, but I feel like a nuisance. It’s not great being the broke friend. No matter how kind people are, nothing beats the peace that comes with having my own money. 

    Plus, there’s a way people treat the broke friend. For instance, when my friends do things that piss me off, I can’t react or call them out because what if they choose to be vindictive and ignore me when I need help? It’s like I have to give away little parts of my dignity because I need them. 

    I’m also like the last person they think about for events or get-togethers. Like, why send an invite when I probably don’t even have money to attend? It hurts seeing the people I care about doing fun things and realising I’m the only one not there. But I can’t even be angry because if they invite me, I can’t afford it. 

    How many times will I say, “Sorry, I can’t make it”?

    That’s relatable

    But my friends are really good to me o. If not for them, I probably wouldn’t be alive to talk to you. I met most of them on social media, and they’ve helped my life. I just feel foolish that I can’t reciprocate. I’m the friend who writes long notes on birthdays because I can’t buy a gift. They love the notes, but I want to buy them gifts. I feel inadequate.

    Sorry you feel that way. Let’s break down your monthly expenses

    In a month that I earn ₦100k, my expenses typically go like this:

    Nairalife #269 monthly expenses

    It involves a lot of manoeuvring to make it work. My toiletries are just sanitary pads and deodorant. That my savings figure is a delusional thing I like to do. I remove ₦10k and put it in a savings app, but then I collect it two days later when I need money. All my money goes into black tax and trying to survive. I honestly feel like I’m just existing. 

    How would you describe your relationship with money?

    I always have anxiety no matter how much I have. I feel like there’s one bill coming that’ll take it all, so I always need more. Money is the only safety I know. I don’t want to return to the point I was years ago — gambling and in debt. I want to have so much money to the point where I never have to worry about it again. 

    How have your experiences shaped how you think about money?

    Money gives you human dignity. Not having it can make you less than human. People can disagree and say, “But you can have a good quality of life without money”. It’s a lie. I’ve seen poverty, and I’ve seen how people treat me when they think I have money and when they know I’m completely broke.

    It may be unintentional, but there’s this condescension towards poor people. People are always ready to advise me, like I’m completely clueless. They say, “Oh, why can’t you start a business?”. My darling, it’s money I’ll use to start it. Or “Why not learn a tech skill?” Sweetheart, it’s still money I’ll use to buy a laptop and data. People think I don’t have money because I’m stupid. Like all my problems would disappear if I only listened to their advice. 

    That’s a lot to think about. Are you still pursuing culinary school?

    Oh yes. It’s still a dream. I want to become a chef so I can tell my mum I’ve taken her cooking gigs a step further. When this happens, I can confidently say I have a career. You can ask my friends what they do, and they quickly respond, “Software developer”. But I don’t have one straight answer. I have to start explaining how I bake, cook and write sometimes. That’s why I need this to happen.

    But culinary school would require me to leave my state, move to Lagos, and spend a couple millions on school fees. I don’t have that yet. I’d also like to return to school one day and get my degree, but that feels like a far-fetched dream.

    How would you rate your financial happiness on a scale of 1 – 10?

    1. I can’t afford a good life. I’m always scraping the bottom. I can’t even afford to lose ₦100 from my account. I’m always anxious, and it’s not a great way to live. I feel like I’m failing at life.

    If you’re interested in talking about your Naira Life story, this is a good place to start.

    Yes, I want to do a Naira Life!

    Find all the past Naira Life stories here.

    Subscribe to the newsletter here.

    [ad]

    Tife Oni

    ,
    , , , , ,

  • The #NairaLife of a Sex Worker Who’s Securing Her Siblings’ Future

    The #NairaLife of a Sex Worker Who’s Securing Her Siblings’ Future

    Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing.

    Nairalife #268 bio

    What’s your earliest memory of money?

    I grew up in a small town and thought I’d attend secondary school in the state capital with my friends. But my mum made it clear that we couldn’t afford it. The school fee was ₦65k, and books and uniforms would’ve added to that. I was 12 years old, and it was the first time it clicked that money makes things happen.

    Tell me more about the financial situation at home

    My parents both worked for the local government — which is the worst government job ever. They’re retired now, and my mum’s monthly pension is just ₦30k, and my dad’s is ₦47k. They spent almost 30 years in service.

    But growing up, it wasn’t obvious things were bad until the secondary school incident. Most people in my small town didn’t have money, either. I settled for the run-down school in town, and when I asked for money to buy books — I love to read — my mum would be so confused. Like, why would I even think of using money to buy books when the money could take me to school or feed me for a week? 

    I’m also the first-born of three children, so I quickly learned to sacrifice my needs so my siblings could have nice things after I realised things weren’t great. For instance, my mum would buy Fanta, and I’d claim not to like it because of cramps, so she could give my siblings. If I said I wanted Fanta too, I knew she’d have to do mental calculations to see how we could afford to buy one more. 

    When was the first time you made money?

    2017. I left my small town for the first time to write JAMB in a neighbouring town that was close to the state capital, and I remember being so excited. I was one step closer to the big city. I started thinking about what to do to make money and finally get to this city my friends had gone to. 

    So, with my mum’s help, I got a job in a small provisions store close to my house. My mum just wanted me to have something to pass time before uni.

    The pay was ₦3k/month. The first time I got paid, I got the money in ₦500 notes, and it felt “bigger” in my hands. I was so excited.

    I can relate

    I used my salary to buy a book — Castles by Julia Garwood. When my mum asked about the money, I had only ₦500 left. My parents beat the shit out of me. After that, my mum collected my salary directly from my boss.

    Well, uni admission didn’t work out, and my parents convinced me to try a polytechnic or college of education. But during Christmas, a friend visited from Abuja. She had a Tecno Android phone and a Facebook account. I didn’t have any of these. 

    She also had a job and lived in a rented apartment. I was fascinated by her stories about Abuja. At that point I was like, “What even is my state capital? I’m going to Abuja!”

    Did your parents agree?

    It took a couple of months and my grandmother to convince them, but they agreed. I told them I could get a job in Abuja and apply to a polytechnic in Nasarawa State. 

    In 2018, I landed in Abuja with ₦12k, moving in with my friend who lived on the outskirts of Abuja. My first culture shock was how expensive things were. What do you mean I had to pay ₦200 for a 10-minute bike ride? At home, ₦200 could take me from one town to another.

    How did the job and school plan work out?

    I focused on making money first. My friend helped me get a waitressing job at a bar. The salary was ₦15k/month. That was big money to me. 

    The male customers often tipped me ₦500 or bought me a plate of pepper soup. Of course, that involved flirting with them and rubbing their heads. One of them gave me ₦5k once, and I finally opened a bank account. In my head, I’d blown. 

    It was during this time I met the person who changed my view on life.

    Who was that?

    A free-spirited and loud fellow waitress at the bar. She encouraged me not to limit myself to the men in the bar who could only tip a maximum of ₦5k. Not when men in town could give me ₦50k.

    At that point, my dad had retired and was dealing with blood pressure issues. My mum was also calling me frequently to complain about their needs and indirectly ask for money. So, I was more than ready to meet the ₦50k guys. If they liked me and wanted to sleep with me, no problem. As long as they brought money.

    I started following this friend to clubs in town. Shortly after, I met a soldier. We started dating, and I quit my job at the bar.

    Was he giving you an allowance?

    Not exactly. But whenever I visited him, he gave me ₦10k – ₦20k. He also paid for my groceries and toiletries. 

    But I met someone else at a club four months after we started dating. The first time we had sex, he gave me ₦50k. He also wanted us to be exclusive because he wasn’t comfortable with me sleeping with other people. I weighed my options and decided soldier man could go. The new guy put me on a ₦50k monthly allowance, and he paid for my first apartment inside town. The rent was ₦105k. He also bought me a mattress and a standing fan.

    Then, in 2019, I got a job at a spa.

    How did that happen?

    I’d become active on Facebook, and that’s how I met this babe who asked me to come be a masseuse at her spa. I hadn’t done it before, but the work schedule was on a one-week-on, one-week-off basis, and I figured I’d still have time to do other things. Plus, she offered ₦70k/month and the option to make more in tips from clients who wanted happy endings.

    What do you mean by “Happy endings”?

    The clients could request hand jobs or sex after the massage session. This brought me tips between ₦15k – ₦20k per client, and I could have up to eight clients in a day. The highest I ever got from one client was ₦50k.

    My madam took a liking to me — maybe because she also came to Abuja to make it on her own. Three months into the job, she asked me to replace the manager, who was stealing and diverting her clients. My salary increased to ₦100k.

    Managing client payments was one of my new duties, and it made me realise just how much the spa made. My madam would charge people ₦150k for a one-hour central massage session, and she was paying the people actually doing the work ₦70k/month. I thought it was unfair, but there was nothing I could do.

    Interestingly, some of the clients continued to request for me even after I became the manager. My madam sent pictures of the girls available to the clients before their sessions, and they’d sometimes say they wanted me rather than the actual masseuses. I only accepted the requests if the tips were at least ₦50k. I was trying to gather as much money as possible.

    Why was that?

    My boyfriend had started dating someone else and misbehaving, so I ignored him. Now, I had to renew my rent myself, and I was saving for that.

    Then, I met a senator at work. He told me he’d pay my salary so I wouldn’t have to work at the spa anymore. He knew about the happy endings and didn’t want me to do that while we were together. Apparently, people could “get to him” through me if I slept with other people.

    The first night we slept together, he gave me $500. That was the first time I held foreign currency in my hand. When I got home that day, I had my bath and told myself I was washing away poverty.

    Mad

    It was a moment of realisation. So, I could earn that kind of money. Around that time, I was planning to leave my neighbourhood because of increased robberies. The senator suggested a place in an upscale part of Abuja, so we wouldn’t just be meeting at hotels. 

    I found an ₦800k apartment and told him the landlord requested a two-year payment upfront. This man sent me ₦4m. When I saw the alert, I just started crying and shouting. Like how? I immediately sent ₦700k to my mum and told her someone who wanted to marry me sent the money so she wouldn’t ask too many questions.

    The COVID lockdown happened immediately after I moved in, but it was an amazing time for me. The senator’s wife was stuck in the UK, and I spent most of the time with him. He gave me ₦300k monthly and would sometimes send more when he wanted me to cook for him. He liked food, so that happened a lot.

    What’s the highest amount of money he gave you?

    ₦9 million. I visited my parents for Christmas in 2020 and didn’t like the state of the house. So, I told him I wanted to build them a house, and he gave me the money a few months later.

    Also, forget that thing he said about me not sleeping with other people. I occasionally had one-night stands with people I met in town or through friends I met at the salon or where I shopped. My friends would tell me about one actor or someone coming to town who needed girls, and those usually brought in $200 or about ₦100k.

    The senator was my stable relationship and income source, though. But things fizzled out between us in 2021 when he started dating my friend.

    Your friend?

    Yeah. We met at a salon and became friends. They both met for the first time at my house. Sometime later, he asked about her and told me he was interested. To be fair, he asked if I didn’t mind, and I honestly didn’t. The girl asked me too, and I was like, “Girl, eat his money”. 

    The guy was married with kids. I wasn’t under any impression the relationship would go any further.

    I think he felt guilty about “dumping” me, though. He sent me money more frequently towards the end of our relationship and even renewed my rent for two years. We still talk today, and I’m friends with both of them.

    Did that affect your income stability?

    There was no longer a particular amount guaranteed to come at the end of the month. So, I focused on getting one-off clients. I’d meet guys in clubs, we’d have sex, and they’d pay me. It wasn’t a great model, though. I didn’t discuss money with them before sleeping with them, and there were situations where I’d ride someone like a bicycle for hours and only get ₦50k after. 

    Why didn’t you talk about payment, though?

    It was an awkward conversation for me. My friends always told me to discuss payment before the deed, but I just expected guys popping bottles in the club to have sense and do the right thing. By this time, my average income was about ₦200k – ₦300k/month.

    I worked with this model for about two years, and it often didn’t turn out well. I even had a pregnancy scare in 2022. Technically, I only found out I was pregnant after I had a miscarriage. My period is never regular, and I’d missed it for about three months when I started getting really bad cramps. I was rushed to the hospital, and that’s how I found out. Ironically, I always use condoms. I got pregnant the one time I didn’t use one. It was crazy.

    I’m sorry you went through that

    Thanks. It’s not even the most unpleasant thing that’s happened to me in this job. One time, I was having sex with a guy, and his friend walked in. Then the guy I was with went, “Well, with the amount I plan to pay you, it makes sense if my friend gets a go, too. It’s the same one night.” 

    I was so pissed. I called my cab guy and left without collecting my money. See, having a cab guy is very necessary in this job. Online cabs don’t work all night, and sometimes I just need someone to come get me.

    Anyway, my job became easier after a pimp approached me in 2023. He’d seen me hang out at a lounge a couple of times. He offered to hook me up with clients for 30% of whatever I make. It sounded good to me and we tried it for some time to see how it’d work. It worked out great and we still work together.

    How does having a pimp make your job better?

    He tells me how much I’d get before I even accept a job. So, I don’t have to worry about doing the work and receiving peanuts later. Also, he doesn’t demand for more money. For instance, we can agree he’d take ₦150k for a ₦500k weekend job. If, for whatever reason, I get paid ₦700k instead, he never asks for more. It also helps that I’m very transparent with him, so we just work well together.

    Earlier this year, he hooked me up with two Arab guys who wanted to do intense BDSM with a black woman. He was clear they were going to beat me, but I’d get $20k. The money wasn’t bad at all, so I agreed to it and the conditions they set — getting tested for STIs.

    I was with them for three days, and it was intense. That thing they did in “Fifty Shades of Grey” isn’t BDSM at all. These guys used real iron handcuffs and beat me ehn. I used a whole week to recover. I’ll never do it again.

    Damn. That’s a lot

    I’ve not done any major job since that time. Right now, I’m just resting and catching my breath. My pimp still hooks me up with ₦200k one-night jobs once in a while, but it’s nowhere close to the weekly jobs I’m used to.

    What was your average weekly income when you were working regularly?

    2023 was a good year for me. I had many clients who came into town because of the general elections. Plus, due to my pimp’s actual job, he was in close contact with a lot of them. Sometimes I could get up to ₦2m in a week. The weekend of democracy day, there was a private party and I went home with $1k. 

    Do you worry about running out of clients at some point?

    I do. It’s why I’m focused on saving for my siblings’ education and my family. I fear becoming old and ugly and suddenly being unable to land clients. Everyone in my family depends on me now, and I subconsciously save almost everything I earn in a month. Before January, I used to save like ₦800k/month.

    I have three savings accounts: one has ₦1.7m in it, and it’s for health bills and emergencies. Another has ₦610k for rent savings — it’s not much because I don’t have to worry about rent for another year — and I have ₦9.6m in the third one for savings sake. It’s usually where the money for groceries, food and flexing comes from. A large part of this money came from the January job. It brought me ₦18m after my pimp got his cut, and I used part of it to get some wigs, pay my rent in advance, got phones for my siblings and a generator for my parents. There were other expenses, too. When I was done, I was left with about ₦10m. But it’s the account I spend from, which is why it’s around ₦9m now.

    Let’s break down these expenses in a typical month

    Nairalife #268 monthly expenses

    My feeding expenses are high because my siblings moved in with me in 2022, and they’re teenagers who eat a lot. I’m glad they’re here, though. Every time I look at them, I’m reminded that I’m on the right track. Nothing I’m doing is in vain. They’re so intelligent, and I’m honestly in awe of them. 

    They’re still in secondary school, and the plan is to send them to the best universities possible. The schools I’m eyeing cost millions, so I need to get my money up. I’ve also thought about returning to school, but I don’t think it’ll work out. It’d be too awkward sitting with small children. So I’ll let my siblings do it.

    You said something about black tax from extended family

    Yes. There’s always one cousin asking me for money or one thing I need to pay for in the village. I just came back from a burial in my village in March because, apparently, it was an important person who died, and if we weren’t involved, they’d look down on my family. I had to buy a goat, crates of beer and even cook for people. I spent like ₦150k on that matter. 

    Just the other day, I got another call that another person died, and we had to buy another goat and crates of beer. As how?

    How would you describe your relationship with money?

    I feel like I’m at a point where I can finally breathe. I’m not tense about money anymore, because I have most of my responsibilities covered. Even if I don’t get a client in a month — which isn’t possible — I’ll be fine. I haven’t worked actively since January, and I still get ₦300k/month at the least.

    Have you considered getting an additional income source?

    The thought of starting a business has crossed my mind. The senator promised to give me money if I ever need to set up anything, but nothing concrete has come to mind yet. 

    I’m very comfortable where I am right now. I earn more than most civil servants, and I never get stranded; my pimp makes sure of that. I even reject clients sometimes when the requests get too bizarre.

    What are some of the bizarre requests you’ve gotten?

    Someone wanted me to eat his shit for ₦10m. Good money but omo, shit? Nah. Another one offered me ₦800k to wear a dildo and peg him, but I wasn’t comfortable with that. Then there are the ones who want to pee on you. People have weird fantasies. Maybe I’d have jumped at these requests in my early days when I was still trying to find my feet. But I’m comfortable enough to reject jobs now.

    What’s one misconception about sex work that you’re tired of hearing?

    People think sex workers always stand on the road. I’ve never had to do that to find a client. They’re also always shocked that I speak so well. It’s usually the first thing new clients say. Stuff like, “You’re so intelligent”. I don’t get it. Should I be stupid?

    How would you rate your financial happiness on a scale of 1 – 10?

    7. It’ll be a complete 10 when I send my siblings to the universities I want them to go to and comfortably cover all their bills. 

    I’m curious. Do you have any financial regrets?

    Yes. I opened a charging centre for a cousin in 2023 because his mum — my mum’s younger sister — came to me crying about how he wasn’t doing anything in the village. It cost me about ₦250k to set up the place and buy a generator. 

    Two months later, he left the shop unattended to go and drink, and all the phones were stolen. I had to pay about ₦450k to the customers who lost their phones and bail him from jail. I’ll never set up a business for a family member again. I’d rather give them money and keep it moving.

    If you’re interested in talking about your Naira Life story, this is a good place to start.

    Yes, I want to do a Naira Life!

    Find all the past Naira Life stories here.

    Subscribe to the newsletter here.

    [ad]

    Tife Oni

    ,
    , ,

  • #NairaLife: The Researcher Who Had to Start Afresh After Getting Disowned

    #NairaLife: The Researcher Who Had to Start Afresh After Getting Disowned

    Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing.

    “Do crypto with Quidax and win from a $60K QDX prize pool!” Bayo, a 28-year-old Lagosian tells Jide, his Ibadan friend seeking the most secure way to trade crypto in Nigeria after a major exchange he trades with announced its plans to leave the country. Find out more here.

    Nairalife #266 bio

    What’s your earliest memory of money?

    I don’t have a specific money memory apart from spending my pocket money on books and two-for-₦5 sweets. I grew up privileged, so I didn’t have to think about money. It was just there.

    Tell me more about your privilege.

    My dad owned a law firm, and my mum didn’t have to work, so that should give you an idea. My pocket money in secondary school was ₦1,500/week, and my school provided lunch, so I was just spending on books, snacks and whatever else I liked.

    My dad was pretty strict with money, though. I have five siblings, and we used to spend every summer vacation in England. During those six-week trips, my dad would give me a £500 allowance I had to use to shop for outing clothes for the rest of the year. He’d occasionally give the extra £50 for cinema outings or to go on the bus, but I had to run him through everything I planned to do so he’d approve. He had a particular way of doing things, and my siblings and I had to do exactly like he said to remain in his good books.

    Fast forward to 2007, I finished secondary school and went on to do two years of college in the UK — a prerequisite to study medicine at university. After college, my dad said I had to study law like him or return to Nigeria.

    What did you choose?

    Law in the UK. I didn’t want to lose the freedom I had in England. Even if he’d said I should do animal dentistry, I’d have done it. 

    My monthly allowance was £500 in my first year in 2009, which was enough to cover my phone bills, food and transportation. But there was hardly anything left at month’s end because I also liked spending on things that made my life easier — I still do. Small rain would fall, and I’d pick taxis instead of waiting for the bus.

    Then, I’d manage whatever I had left till the month’s end because I couldn’t call home for more money.

    Why not?

    I’d have to explain to my dad where the money went, and I’m uncomfortable asking people for money. Maybe it’s pride, but I’d rather not do it.

    By the time I left uni in 2012, my allowance had increased to £900, but I still had money problems. I’d also developed a taste for retail therapy, so that didn’t help. I returned to Nigeria with zero savings. Then I went to law school and started working for my dad at his law firm during NYSC in 2014. 

    Were you paid a salary at your dad’s firm?

    Oh, yes. My dad treated me like a regular employee. I was paid ₦150k/month — the same amount he paid every entry-level lawyer. He got me a car so I could drive myself to the firm though. 

    The funny thing was that he didn’t show me any favouritism at work but expected so much from me. Other lawyers would go home after regular work hours, and I’d have to stay until 10 p.m. if he was still in the office. When we’d eventually leave, he’d drive with his police escort and leave me to drive alone at night. I didn’t have any free time; I was almost always working. 

    Then, I had to leave the firm in 2016.

    What happened?

    I got pregnant, and my dad wanted me to get an abortion. It wasn’t a teenage pregnancy o — I was 24, and he knew my boyfriend. He just wanted me to do things the way he wanted. He even promised to upgrade my car to an SUV and fully sponsor my wedding if I did as he said.

    But I didn’t want to live like that for the rest of my life; always doing whatever he said. So, I refused, and he disowned me. I lost my job and car and had to leave the house. My dad and I haven’t spoken since. My siblings are also not allowed to contact me.

    Damn. What did that mean for you?

    I moved in with my boyfriend. He worked in construction — still does — but his contracts didn’t come every month. He could get a ₦5m job today and then nothing else for a while. We went through a rough patch because of that. We were also saving every income that came in for me to have the baby in America. I didn’t think the America thing was necessary, but I went with it.

    Also, I was suddenly very aware that I didn’t have money. Money was always there, but now it wasn’t. I was almost always ill during pregnancy, and the electricity supply in his area was terrible. We had to sleep without light multiple times because there was no money to fuel the generator. I wasn’t used to that, and it was tough adapting. It was a depressing period. 

    Sorry you went through that.

    Thank you. My boyfriend and I had a registry wedding, and I travelled to America to have my baby. We had family there, so it worked out. 

    We made the best decision choosing America because my child was born with genetic defects that required surgery. Obamacare was still effective in the state where I had my child, so we got the surgeries and other healthcare benefits for free. We only paid for the birth, and that saved us about $250,000 in medical bills. I stayed in America for about a year before returning to Nigeria in 2017.

    Did you try returning to the workforce?

    Yes. I started job-hunting immediately. But I ran into a couple of issues. Law was my only experience, so I inevitably applied to law firms. But my dad is quite known in legal circles because of some high-profile cases he’d worked on. 

    Once prospective employers connected the dots and realised I was related to him, they were no longer interested. One even said I was coming to spy for my dad. Of course, I couldn’t go around telling everyone he disowned me so they’d trust me. They just couldn’t understand why I’d leave my dad’s firm to work elsewhere. After a while, I told myself that pursuing a law career wasn’t possible. It’s a good thing it wasn’t even my passion.

    That’s wild. What did you do?

    I started looking for “any work”. Anything to put on my CV. In 2018, I got a ₦25k/month business development role at an insurance company. I was promoted within two months to business development manager, and my salary increased to ₦40k. I also had a 7.5% commission on sales, so sometimes I made up to ₦100k in salary and commissions. I left the job after nine months because I didn’t like sales. It’s like walking up to people to beg them to give you money. 

    I feel you.

    In my next job, I worked as a user researcher at a bank for ₦100k/month. My goal was to cross the ₦150k salary I earned while at my dad’s law firm to prove I could earn it on my own. He’d said I wouldn’t survive without him, and I wanted to prove him wrong.

    I figured the quickest way to earn more was by upskilling, so I began to invest in online courses around user experience. I spent almost two years at the bank before I moved to another job in 2021. This one paid ₦189k after taxes, and I used my first two salaries to pay for a ₦200k Udacity course. To me, investing in my career was a better decision than trying to save.

    Why did you think so?

    I wasn’t earning enough to save. If I saved ₦50k/month, for instance, I’d only have ₦600k at the end of the year. It still wouldn’t make sense even if I got a 15% interest. But I can take that same ₦50k to invest in a course and work on getting a new role that pays five times what I was earning. 

    I got that advice from someone on Twitter and ran with it. I got another UX research job in 2022; my salary was ₦350k/month. By the time I left the job in 2023, I’d been promoted a couple of times, and my salary was ₦500k. Between 2022 and 2023, I spent about ₦2m on an education program with an international business school. 

    That’s a long way beyond your ₦150k goal

    I’d have been excited to earn ₦350k in 2012. I mean, that money could take you to Dubai. I should’ve felt like I could finally relax, but the fluctuating exchange rate meant I couldn’t even enjoy the fact that I was earning more. It’s even worse now. 

    It’s the reason I decided to work towards earning in dollars. Towards the end of 2023, I started writing and sharing what I’d learned from my multiple courses on LinkedIn. A content manager reached out, and I got a gig — $350 for every technical article I write for their blog. 

    I’ve written at least one article a month since then. I did two articles in March and hope to keep that up. But I started another full-time job in January, and I’m a mum of two now, so it’s a lot to juggle.

    How much does the new job pay?

    ₦1.5m/month, which is great because I’ve finally started saving. Since January, I’ve saved my dollar earnings in a domiciliary account and one-third of my naira earnings in a fintech savings account. I’ve also considered saving my dollars in a fintech platform to earn interest, but my challenge is having to buy the dollars on their platform. Why can’t I just transfer from my domiciliary account? I might just open a dollar-denominated mutual fund account and leave my savings there. I’m open to suggestions from whoever reads this sha. What should I do with my dollars?

    I’ll be sure to ask them. How much have you saved right now?

    $1,500. I recently took $500 out of it to treat my husband on his birthday. I’m looking to start saving half of my salary monthly, but I’m currently running a part-time Master’s program and eyeing a ₦750k course, so the saving plan is still just a plan.

    Do you have a saving goal?

    I’m saving because spending the whole money wouldn’t make sense. My husband handles most of the bills. If I ever have to save for something big, it’ll probably be buying a house or my kids’ education. 

    Japa might be an option, but my husband’s business is here, so we’ll need to put a lot of thought into it before deciding to leave.

    How would you describe your relationship with money?

    I’m still learning. I want to say I have it all figured out, but I really don’t. I’m not frivolous, but I definitely need better money management skills. For instance, every time I get a salary bump, apart from thinking about courses, I’m also considering what I can do to appreciate the people around me. Like, how do I appreciate my husband? Or make my kids’ lives better? I even increased the salaries of my housekeepers and security guard.

    I want to save more because I might not have a choice with how inflation is going. I can’t confidently say earning ₦1.5m will still be considered a good salary in the next three years. So, I need to improve my savings and investment portfolio even as I try to earn more. Again, I’m open to financial advice.

    Apart from saving, what other lifestyle changes have come with earning more?

    Not much. My kids are still my biggest expense. My husband handles most of the bills; I just pay for food and the random things my kids need. I also have two housekeepers — over 18 — who go to school and some other vocational training, so I give them pocket money and handle expenses like their clothes and hospital bills. My husband pays them salaries, but they save it.

    Can we break down these expenses into a typical month?

    Nairalife #266 monthly expenses

    Most of my black tax expenses are spent on my kids’ teachers, house staff, and in-laws. My husband and I also contribute about ₦30k – ₦50k each to purchase monthly welfare packages (mostly foodstuff) and share with underprivileged people in my neighbourhood. The economy is terrible, and it’s our way of easing other people’s burdens.

    Talking about the economy, I’m always shocked by my food expenses. When I was earning ₦100k, grocery shopping was like ₦50k in a month. Why am I spending more than triple that for almost the same things now?

    Omo. I can’t answer that. What’s an unplanned expense you made recently?

    I renewed my car’s comprehensive insurance and passport in February. The renewal wasn’t unexpected; it was the increased fee, especially for the car insurance. When my husband bought the car two years ago, insurance was around ₦180k. 

    It moved to ₦350k in January 2023, and now it’s ₦430k. Usually, my husband pays, but I offered to do it because I’d just gotten my new salary. The passport renewal was for a 10-year validity period, and I paid to fast-track it. It cost ₦140k.

    What’s an ideal salary you think you should be earning now?

    $5k/month. I see it as something I need to work towards rather than something I’m owed. I’ll be set for life if I can earn a minimum of $5k/month for the next 10 – 20 years. I don’t need to become a billionaire or make it so my kids don’t have to work a day in their lives before I’ll be fulfilled. 

    In fact, I want my kids to work and know the value of money. I want them to enjoy, but they should also know what it takes to get what they enjoy and be responsible contributors to society.   

    Is there anything you want right now but can’t afford?

    A number of things, actually. I want to own my own home someday and have enough money to take a family vacation every two years. I’d also like to be able to afford to put my house keepers through school till university comfortably. Same for my kids as well, preferably outside the country.

    How would you rate your financial happiness on a scale of 1-10?

    6. I can afford my basic needs, but I don’t think there’s enough structure in place yet to give my children and family the life I want for them. There’s promise, though. I just need to keep going the way I am.

    The funny thing is, if you’d asked me how happy I’d be earning ₦1.5m last year when I was still on ₦500k, I’d have said a 10. It’s good to have something else to look forward to, though. 

    I’m curious. Do you think you’ll ever reconcile with your dad?

    A part of me wants us to, but I know he can be quite problematic and controlling, and I don’t want issues. I miss my siblings, but the only way I can have a relationship with them is if I get back on my dad’s good side. Maybe it’s better like this.

    If you’re interested in talking about your Naira Life story, this is a good place to start.

    Yes, I want to do a Naira Life!

    Find all the past Naira Life stories here.

    Subscribe to the newsletter here.

    [ad]

    Tife Oni

    ,
    , , , , ,

  • #NairaLife: This Tech Bro Survived Two Layoffs by Working Multiple Jobs

    #NairaLife: This Tech Bro Survived Two Layoffs by Working Multiple Jobs

    Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing.

    “Do crypto with Quidax and win from a $60K QDX prize pool!” Bayo, a 28-year-old Lagosian tells Jide, his Ibadan friend seeking the most secure way to trade crypto in Nigeria after a major exchange he trades with announced its plans to leave the country. Find out more here.

    Nairalife #265 bio

    What’s your earliest memory of money?

    In Primary 1, I tore my ₦10 lunch money in front of a fellow student. I’m honestly not sure why I did that. Maybe I was trying to prove a point or was just being mischievous. The student was shocked and said I had cursed myself because tearing money equals a lifetime of poverty.

    Ah.

    I remember thinking, “What nonsense is this one saying?” I wasn’t living in poverty, so I wouldn’t just suddenly become poor.

    Tell me more about that “not living in poverty” bit

    My dad worked as an engineer with the ports authority, and my mum worked at a TV station. We weren’t wealthy, but we weren’t poor either. We lived in our own house with a couple of other tenants. I don’t remember us lacking anything even though we were a large family.

    How large?

    My parents have nine children. I’m the last born. My second eldest sister was already in university when I was born.

    What was living with eight siblings like?

    All nine of us were hardly at home at the same time because of the considerable age gap between us, but I had a good relationship with my siblings. I regularly made money from them, too. 

    By billing them?

    Yup, and they were happy to give me money. My eldest sibling paid my secondary school fees and gave me pocket money. I decided I could rotate the billing among my siblings, so I’d collect ₦1k from one brother, then go and meet another sister for more money. Getting money that easily meant I also learnt to spend it quickly on whatever caught my fancy.

    I continued that way when I entered uni in 2010. I didn’t have a monthly allowance, and my parents were retired, but I could always call my siblings for money whenever I needed it. I abused that privilege a lot sha. I remember being disgusted about going to the bank to withdraw anything less than ₦20k. I was always shocked to see people withdraw ₦5k.

    Rich kid

    My siblings caught on to my rotational billing one day. I was still in 100 level, and I think I had ₦16k in my account — which, in my mind, meant I was broke. I called one of my siblings, and she said, “What happened to the money our other sibling gave you?” I didn’t expect that. 

    She asked me to give an account of how I spent the money, and when I couldn’t, she revealed that they’d noticed I had no value for money, was spending anyhow and asking them all for money at the same time. She refused to give me any money, and I felt betrayed. I called another sibling, and that one said the same thing. I was like, do these people hate me?

    Screaming. Did they later give in?

    No. But after a few days, I began to see their point. A friend in class told me he survives on ₦1k weekly, which made me really think about my money habits. I wasn’t spending money on clothes or girls; it was food. To be fair, I was squatting with someone for free and paid 100% of the food expenses to show my gratitude, but it didn’t mean my money management had to be that bad.

    I moved into another hostel the following session, and my new roommates always managed very little money for weeks. They changed the trajectory of my relationship with money. I learnt to save and budget and even began to live on ₦2k – ₦3k weekly like they did. We also contributed money to buy foodstuff and handle other shared expenses on a monthly basis.

    I also changed my billing strategy. Instead of calling all my siblings for money at once, I’d call one this month and another the next, so I never asked the same person for money twice in eight months. Till I finished university in 2014, my siblings believed I no longer billed them.

    When was the first time you made your own money?

    My NYSC service year in 2015. I was posted to a school that didn’t pay an extra allowance, so it was just the ₦19,800 stipend from the government. But I had free corpers’ accommodation at a fellowship house, so I didn’t have to worry about rent.

    I ran into many issues at my PPA, though. It was my first work experience, and I didn’t have the “discipline” required for a workplace. I didn’t see the point of coming to school at 8 a.m. when I only had a 10 a.m. class or waiting till 2 p.m. when I wasn’t doing anything. I also never wrote lesson notes. 

    Thankfully, I befriended someone in the school who always helped me beg the headteacher at month’s end when it was time to sign my voucher.

    It was also during this time that I became interested in a tech career.

    How did that happen?

    There was this ghost corps member in the fellowship house — only came around to sign important stuff — but we connected over finishing from the same university. It was obvious he had money —  he regularly bought fuel and subscribed the cable TV at the fellowship house whenever he was around and regularly took us out to eat. I was always fascinated by him. One day, he told me he was a developer and earned ₦100k/month. I was blown away. I thought earning ₦100k/month was more than enough to solve any problem I’d ever have.

    I immediately became interested in developing, but I studied linguistics in school and thought mathematics was necessary to learn how to code. He insisted I just needed logic. But I still thought it’d be too hard.

    When did you eventually give it a try?

    In 2016, I moved to another sister’s house after NYSC because the one I stayed with wanted me to apply for a Master’s Degree and pursue an academic career. I wasn’t feeling that. 

    I was just sleeping and waking up at the other sister’s house. Her husband even tried to help me get a bank job, but I deliberately failed the test because I wasn’t under any pressure to make money.

    But after three months of doing nothing, I remembered my corper friend who was probably somewhere balling on his ₦100k salary, and I decided to take my life seriously. My sister had a spare laptop, so I applied for Coursera financial aid and began learning HTML, JavaScript, Python and other programming languages online. I did that for about three months and designed a basic web app with Python, which I showed my corper friend. He didn’t believe I’d learned it just by taking courses.

    Did you try to make money from your new skills?

    The same friend reached out to me in 2017, complaining about his hectic workload. He asked if I’d like to join his team to assist him. I said yes, of course. 

    The company he worked for used Angular2+, a web framework I wasn’t familiar with, so I spent two weeks learning it before I attended an interview with his boss in Lagos. I even made a demo application. But the interview was a formality; the man just wanted to see who my friend recommended. I was asked to resume immediately at ₦100k/month.

    You finally got the ₦100k salary

    It was about ₦91k after tax, but I was so excited. My sister said the money was too small and asked me to negotiate for more. In my head, I was like, “Does this one want to pour sand in my garri?” I was too scared to lose the opportunity.

    She was right, though. I became a one-man software department. My friend worked remotely from another city, so I was the on-ground data analyst, web developer, desktop app developer and backend developer. But it was my first real job, and I enjoyed it. 

    I also began to save at least ₦50k/month and made my first big boy purchase after five months — a laptop at ₦250k.

    Neat. Were you spending on anything else?

    Not really. I didn’t have much of a social life — most I did was join tech groups online to network and ask questions. I also didn’t really have responsibilities, so I just went to the office and saved the rest of my money. 

    My salary was increased to ₦105k after a year, and around the same time, the company hired two new guys who changed my perspective on earning.

    How so?

    The new guys were also software engineers, and they once let it slip that they shared a ₦900k/year apartment. I was surprised, to say the least. How could they afford to live like that? I interacted with them and observed that they did a lot of side gigs and religiously hustled to upskill. 

    One of them was also a mobile developer who shared how he charged ₦600k for a gig. My initial reaction was, “This guy is greedy. Why do you need so much?” Me, I was satisfied with earning ₦105k and saving ₦50k for the next 20 years.

    But after observing them some more, I thought it wouldn’t be bad to have the same financial privileges they did, so I decided I’d also learn mobile development.

    What did that involve?

    I procrastinated learning the skill for an entire year, but in 2019, I eventually took courses and began practising. 

    Interestingly, within a week of learning it, someone on a WhatsApp group I was part of mentioned they needed a mobile developer for a ₦200k gig. I reached out and got it. They paid ₦70k upfront. I should’ve asked for a 70% upfront payment because getting the balance became a problem after I delivered the job. It took a year of back and forth to get it.

    Damn

    I decided to still pursue a Master’s Degree in Linguistics in 2019. I was still working in Lagos, but they allowed me to go remote because my school was in Ibadan. Moving to Ibadan meant I somewhat became responsible for myself. I rented a ₦120k/year apartment and handled my fees too.

    In Ibadan, I got an opportunity to take on a ₦600k job. The employer found me in one of the tech groups I belonged to and offered me the role. It was the biggest amount I’d ever been offered in my life. You’d expect that I’d jump at it, right?

    You didn’t?

    I didn’t. I felt I wasn’t good enough, so I recommended someone else — an undergraduate — and he got the job. And I was still earning ₦105k o.

    The same employer offered me a one-time gig sometime later. I guess he felt I did an honourable thing recommending someone else for that job. The gig was to build a fintech app. I charged ₦300k; he said it was too small and he’d pay ₦700k instead. He also paid 70% upfront. 

    I was still so doubtful of my skills that I didn’t touch that 70% until I completed the job, so he wouldn’t use police to arrest me if he didn’t like it. I completed the job in two weeks instead of the stipulated two months. I was that anxious. The guy thought it was because I was extremely fast.

    LMAO

    He recommended me for a job at a telecommunications company. I did the interview, and they gave me a ₦5 million/year offer. But imposter syndrome struck again, and I lied that I couldn’t take the job because of my Master’s Degree.

    Fortunately for me, they couldn’t find anyone else for the role, and they contracted it to the same guy who referred me. That one subcontracted it to me and put me on a ₦600k salary for a five-month contract. I know it doesn’t make sense, but I took the contract position in addition to my regular ₦105k 9-5.

    After the contract ended in 2020, a former co-worker told me about an open mobile engineer position with a UK company. I applied and got employed for a one-year contract. It paid ₦400k/month.

    Did you still juggle this with your 9-5?

    I resigned after getting the UK job. But I didn’t even stay at the job for the complete year. It was so toxic; my boss desperately wanted to be the centre of attention. A 30-minute meeting could last for hours because he’d just keep talking. Plus, I noticed my foreign colleagues were earning as much as $8k/month, and I only got ₦400k. 

    So, I started job hunting again after eight months and got a ₦500k/month mobile developer role at a Nigerian company in 2021. By this time, I’d abandoned my postgraduate studies. The lockdown in 2020 had paused school for too long, and I just got tired.

    [ad]

    How long did you stay at the new job?

    I stayed for about a year and a half. My salary was increased to ₦750k/month at a point. Then I got another opportunity with a US company via LinkedIn. That one paid $35/hour and approximately $3,500 per month, depending on my hours. So, I basically had two incomes from 2021 to 2022.

    I felt financially comfortable enough to get married, so I did in 2022. Fun fact: I interviewed for another job the night before my wedding.

    How did that happen?

    I’d helped some of my friends get jobs at the US company I worked for, and one of them left to join another US company. So, I jokingly said I was open to opportunities at his new job. They were hiring, and I applied. 

    I didn’t even think I’d get the job because I was in my wife’s village the night of the interview, and there was no light. But they gave me a couple of tasks and an offer of employment a month later. They offered $5k, but I negotiated, and we eventually settled for $5,500.

    This is the first time you’ve mentioned negotiating

    Right? I was deliberate about it, too. I’d always been scared to negotiate because I felt I wasn’t good enough and didn’t want to chase people willing to “give me a chance” away. But I had nothing to lose this time. I had two jobs, and I’d become comfortable acknowledging that I was good at what I did.  

    I accepted the offer, quit the Nigerian job and focused on my two US jobs. I felt like the biggest boy in the world. There were some months I earned close to $12k.

    What lifestyle changes came with your increased earnings?

    I still wasn’t much of a social person, so it was just small home and personal changes. I bought my sister’s old car for ₦1m and started regularly sending my parents at least ₦40k/month. My wife and I moved to a new ₦2m/year house in 2022. I paid for two years upfront and made extensive renovations, bringing the total bill to around ₦10m.

    The major change was in how much I saved. I started saving 80% of my monthly income and only lived on 20%. For instance, in the months I earned $12k, I’d leave $10k in my domiciliary account. I get a 6% APY dollar investment from my bank, so it’s my primary savings and investment option.

    However, around September 2022, I got laid off from the company paying me by the hour.

    Oh my. Why?

    Business wasn’t doing great, and my role became obsolete. My income was reduced to $5,500/month, so I reduced my savings to $4k. 

    Something else that helped during that period was my good relationship with the CTO at the company that laid me off. I didn’t tell him I had another job, so he thought I was jobless. I’d also mentioned that my wife was pregnant, so he felt he had to help me find another job.

    And he did. Two months later, he landed me a €40/hour role with a European company. That’s about €4,000/month, depending on hours worked. I didn’t think much of the job because I had another one, but it turned out to be a lifesaver.

    How so?

    I got laid off from my second US job in April 2023 due to clashes with colleagues. I lowkey think a lot of it was racism because the Black staff members were always treated differently, but I sha lost the job.

    Again, having a second job saved me from total unemployment. I’ve been job-hunting since, but it hasn’t been successful. My quality of life hasn’t exactly reduced because I’ve always saved more than I spent. In total, I have saved about $80k so far.

    Do you have a saving goal?

    I’m honestly just saving for saving sake. I might buy a house down the line, but I’m concerned about building a healthy safety net for my family in case anything happens to me. 

    Does the high probability of layoffs in tech bother you?

    Always. There’s huge insecurity in this industry, and it’s always on my mind. But I try to focus on making myself indispensable. Layoffs will always happen. That’s why I’m very interested in upskilling. 

    How would you describe your relationship with money?

    Growing up, I had this laissez-faire attitude to it; it was always there to spend as I liked. Then I got a reality check in university and suddenly became a conservative spender. It’s been like a full-circle journey, and I like that I’m intentional with spending and budgeting. I think I’ve become even more conservative since I became a husband and father. I just want to give my family a good life whether I’m here or not. 

    Let’s break down your typical monthly expenses

    Nairalife #265 monthly expenses

    What was the last thing you bought that significantly improved your quality of life?

    I like being in the kitchen, so a food processor and blender that cost about $500 and a new fridge that cost a little above ₦1m. These purchases have made cooking much faster, and I make smoothies all day. 

    You said something about still looking for opportunities. What’s your ideal salary?

    I’d be thrilled to get a job that pays $10k/month. I’m upskilling in preparation for that. In 2023, I spent about $550 on courses and scrum master certifications.

    What’s something you want right now but can’t afford?

    A house. A good one will cost around ₦60 million, and I wouldn’t want to spend all my savings on one thing, so that’s still a future want.

    How would you rate your financial happiness on a scale of 1 – 10?

    9. I’ve lost income, but it could’ve easily been worse. I’m in a better financial position than most, and I’m grateful for the fact that I can give back to my parents and even siblings, if necessary. I only need to keep upskilling to increase my earning potential.

    If you’re interested in talking about your Naira Life story, this is a good place to start.

    Yes, I want to do a Naira Life!

    Find all the past Naira Life stories here.

    Subscribe to the newsletter here.

    Tife Oni

    ,
    , , ,

  • #NairaLife: The Entrepreneur Recovering From a Failed Business and Millions in Debt

    #NairaLife: The Entrepreneur Recovering From a Failed Business and Millions in Debt

    Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing.

    Nairalife #264 bio

    What’s your earliest memory of money?

    I grew up believing we had money— I never lacked anything — so it was quite shocking for me when, in 300 level, I asked my parents for ₦50k for textbooks and some personal effects, and they said they didn’t have money.

    They’d never turned down a request for money before?

    Nope. It made me realise that money wasn’t something that was just there. It actually took my parents working hard and pulling resources together to cover any financial gaps. 

    My dad was an accountant, and my mum was a lecturer. So, combining their resources meant my siblings and I were well provided for. But at the time of the textbook incident, two of my younger siblings were also at university, so our finances weren’t what they used to be. I’d make a list of school supplies, and my parents would slash the amount by more than half. I understood why that had to happen, but I also realised I couldn’t rely on my parents for all my needs. I had to make my own money.

    What was the first thing you did that fetched you money?

    Dancing. I danced a lot in school, so I started taking occasional gigs with a dance ministry. I  made ₦3k – ₦5k per gig. This was in 2013. 

    I also had a friend in final year who sold jewellery, so we started a reselling arrangement where I marketed her jewellery in my hostel and added between ₦300 – ₦700 to the cost price. The additional cost was my profit after selling. 

    I did that until 400 level when I decided to sell shawarma in school.

    Why shawarma?

    I like cooking for people, and I like to think I have an eye for business opportunities. Shawarma was newly popular in my school in 2014. Every other shawarma stand sold one for ₦500 – ₦1k, and I thought I could make a profit if I took advantage of the demand and sold mine cheaper.

    So, I started learning how to make shawarmas. I watched videos and reached out to a friend who used to sell shawarma before he came to school. I went to his lodge every day for a week, and he taught me what I needed to know.

    The next thing I needed was money. I reached out to a cousin, who used to live with my family, with the business idea, and he agreed to invest. I got a space in my school’s market area, and my cousin paid for the container we used as the kiosk, a fridge and some other equipment. The whole setup cost him about ₦300k. I also had about ₦70k, which I’d saved from an unpaid six-month internship I did just before 400 level.

    How were you able to save from an unpaid internship?

    My internship was at a lab popular among politicians and big men. They’d dash the lab staff money when they came with their girlfriends to run tests before “the show”. The free money came regularly. I lived with a relative during the internship, so I didn’t need money for anything. I just kept depositing my windfall in the bank.

    I eventually used the money to buy two shawarma machines and contributed the rest to set up the space. I wanted my money in the business so we’d be like partners rather than have him pay for everything.

    Did you start making a profit soon like you imagined?

    I can’t say for sure because while the business was immediately lucrative, most of what I made either went to my cousin or back into the business. So, I made between ₦8k – ₦25k in sales every day — The highest amount I ever sold in a day was ₦55k because I sold at one of my school’s all-night events. 

    I sent ₦10k to my cousin weekly as his returns on the business. I was supposed to pay him ₦500k in total for his ₦300k investment. I wasn’t paying myself anything.

    At one point, I spent ₦60k trying to add ice cream to my list of products, but after I bought them, we didn’t have light for the next couple of days and the whole thing spoiled. That’s how that money went.

    Damn. Sorry about that

    Thanks. I graduated in 2015 and had to shut down the business because there was no one else to manage it. I had only paid my cousin about ₦350k out of ₦500k, so he kept the fridge and sold the container for ₦70k. I kept the equipment I bought.

    What did you do next?

    I waited a year before going for service. I lost my dad in 2015 too, so it was a tough time for me. I was hoping to get dance contracts to make money in the meantime, but I stumbled on detergent distribution.

    Stumbled?

    A relative visited our house and came with a very nice-smelling detergent. I asked where he got it from, and he said his brother was a distributor. My mum and I were interested, so I went to the detergent factory in a different town to make enquiries. I got in touch with the CEO and pitched my idea of becoming a distributor in my state. He liked my energy and allowed me to buy a few bags to start. That initial purchase cost around ₦150k.

    My mum was also part of the business, and we went from carrying a few bags per time to filling 14-seater buses with bags of soap — We did at least one bus-filled consignment monthly. We made payments to the factory only after selling the product. We’d sell to supermarkets and retailers for three weeks, then make payment by the fourth week. We made between ₦150k – ₦200k profit on each bus trip.

    It was all going well until I introduced the person I was dating at the time to the business.

    What happened? 

    He lived in another state where the detergent wasn’t being sold. I thought it’d be a way to help him get extra money, so I gave him goods worth ₦150k with the promise that he’d pay back the capital after he sold the goods. I even paid for the bus delivery of the detergents to his state.

    That’s how this guy started telling me story when it was time to pay. I had to scrap my savings together to pay back the debt to the company. I couldn’t even tell my mum because it was so embarrassing after what happened the last time.

    What do you mean?

    I’d loaned him ₦300k a year before — basically an investment. He was into movie production and said he needed it for a movie. I borrowed the money through an ajo contribution I was doing with my friends. 

    When he defaulted, my friends started disturbing me about it, and I had to involve my mum. She was the one who helped me settle the money. So, I couldn’t even tell her when he did the same thing again.

    Yikes. Did he ever repay any of the debts?

    Never. The relationship ended shortly after — not because of the money; I just realised he was malicious. He’s tried to beg me from afar, but anytime I see him, he’ll enter prison until he pays me back every kobo.

    The soap debt affected the business because it took a while for me to pay the company back, and it almost became an issue. Fortunately, NYSC came right after, and I left my state for service in 2016.

    What was your service year like?

    I was posted to a rural area, but the main town had a dance studio. I worked at the studio during the weekends, teaching dance workout classes. I was paid on a commission basis — ₦5k per every person who signed up for my class at the end of the month.

    I still continued taking the classes after my service year ended. I also had a stint managing the studio’s social media and organising dance festivals. I loved the work and dancing, but I couldn’t live on commissions for the rest of my life. Plus, my mum didn’t think dancing was a real job. You know how Nigerian mums are.

    Oh. I do. So, what did you do?

    In 2018, I got a brand activation gig — Those ones where you follow the truck around and try to get stores to buy — with a noodle brand. It paid ₦17k/month, which wasn’t much of an upgrade. I also did small social media management for them.

    I stopped after four months because the job stressed me out. Imagine jumping up and down from trucks all day. The constant body pain was terrible. I returned to dancing for a bit till a friend helped me land a ₦150k/month business development job at a company in Lagos in 2019. It was even the same friend who sent me the ₦15k I used as transport fare to relocate to Lagos. 

    I squatted with some people for a month until I rented a room and parlour apartment for ₦350k/year. The full rent package was around ₦550k, and I took a salary advance from work to settle it.

    Sounds like things were looking up

    I wish. The job was on the Island, and I lived on the mainland. I woke up at 4 a.m. and returned at 11 p.m every weekday. There was a time when I got home at 12.30 a.m. because of terrible traffic, slept for three hours and went right back to the road. I was so frustrated. I’d get to work most mornings, enter the toilet and cry. 

    I didn’t stay at the job for longer than six months. I couldn’t deal. Within that time, I entered one-chance buses twice and had my office laptop stolen. I had to pay ₦190k for that laptop from my salary. 

    Fortunately, I got another business development role at an agricultural firm almost immediately. The salary here was also ₦150k. But six months later, COVID hit, and I was laid off. They didn’t mind that I’d raised ₦10m for the company in that short time. 

    Damn

    I was also in another relationship then, and my partner had moved in with me. We were living on the little savings I had left. I’d gotten experience working at the agric firm, and decided I could focus on building my own. 

    My plan was to deal with grains. So, I’d work with farmers and northern traders to grow and supply corn, rice, beans, soya beans and millet to production companies. I made my partner a co-owner even though she brought in zero capital and wasn’t business-inclined. She handled the admin front, though.

    Did you bring in all the capital? How much was it?

    I needed ₦10m to start, which I didn’t have. So, I pitched to five investors and raised the money through them. We started in late 2020, and that period was crazy. I did 90% of the heavy lifting and interfaced with the farmers and clients.

    I made a mistake, though. I agreed to pay the investors 70% of the monthly profit for six months. Looking back now, that was too much to promise for a new business. My partner and I shared 10% and put the remaining 20% back into the business. In a good month, I made between ₦70k – ₦100k.

    Why was the 70% plan a mistake?

    It should have been spread over a year, rather than monthly. I could only afford to pay them for four months. The business started to fall apart; the 20% we were putting back in wasn’t enough to cover the logistics cost. So, I paused the investor payments and started brainstorming ways to revive a dying business. 

    Around the same time, my partner began complaining that she didn’t feel like a part of the business, that sharing 10% was nothing, and that she only held a ceremonial position. I was baffled, but I briefly increased her percentage to 40% to satisfy them.

    [ad]

    How did the investors react to the suspended payments?

    I tried to explain the situation, but it definitely caused a strain. Some of them were known people, and there was just a period of long silence. I was still trying to make small payments here and there, but it wasn’t regular. My focus was on making the business work. I also stopped paying me and my partner a salary.

    I was able to stretch the business till 2022 by getting grains on credit and paying later, but the economy became too unfavourable. The grain merchants refused to sell on credit, and it just wasn’t working anymore. By then, the investors had gotten back their capital, and it was just about ₦13m in profits and ROI left.

    But some of them grew tired of waiting and arrested me. I slept in the cell for a day before my family came to release me. They had to pay ₦1m to one investor so they’d let me go. My partner didn’t contribute anything financially. I felt bad, but she said her family asked her not to get involved.

    That’s a lot. Sorry you went through that

    Thank you. I had to pause the business and take up random dancing and script-writing gigs to make money so I could repay the debt. So far, I’ve settled about ₦7m out of the ₦13m. That also included support from my family. 

    Around this time, my partner started making plans to japa. To support her, I gave her ₦90k to add to what was needed for a passport.

    Were you bothered that she wasn’t there for you during the arrest, though?

    I was bothered, but I believed that she did everything she could at the time. I didn’t use that as a yardstick to withdraw support for her travel plans. But then she relocated in 2023 and broke up with me after a few months, leaving me to handle the debt.

    Omo…

    I should mention that I couldn’t renew my house rent when the debt and arrest issue happened in 2022. My landlord was kind and allowed me to stay for free for a whole year. After my partner left in 2023, the landlord asked me to leave. He actually tried for me, waiting that long. That’s how I became homeless in 2023.

    Damn. That’s a string of bad things happening all at once

    It was a lot. I sold most of my properties and for five months, I was moving between the houses of multiple friends. I held onto my sanity by attending dance workshops. 

    In October 2023, I eventually got a job as a personal assistant. My salary was ₦120k/month.

    Phew. How did that feel?

    It felt like a lifeline. Landing that job after an uncertain five months was a relief. Though I wanted ₦250k because of the workload, I had to take what I was offered. 

    By November, I’d moved into my own apartment. I unexpectedly got ₦500k as a birthday gift from a friend, and it went into getting a place. Things were starting to take shape again. But I left the job in February 2024.

    Why?

    The work environment became toxic, and my workload was what four people should ideally have to share. It wasn’t worth it, so I left.

    Before I left, I’d already begun to take my art seriously and had started to paint commercially.

    Wait, when did art come into the picture?

    I was introduced to painting in secondary school, but then I stopped to face adulting. I took it up again briefly during the pandemic. I’m mostly self-taught, really.  

    How do you make money as an artist?

    Mostly through commissions. People reach out to me to paint them something. Other times, I paint and sell. I’m somewhat active on social media, and there’s also word-of-mouth marketing. In a really good month, I can make between ₦50k – ₦100k, but clients’ budgets aren’t fixed, so that figure changes a lot. If I can get more people to commission me for paintings, I’ll honestly have nothing to worry about again.

    Fingers crossed. How have your experiences impacted your perspective of money?

    Money comes and goes. Even when I don’t have physical cash, I tell myself I have everything in me to create cash. Going through what I did and coming out of them has convinced me of that.

    I also think saving is crucial. My savings have helped me out a good number of times, and if I weren’t trying to set up a home studio, I’d be setting aside 30% of whatever I make into a savings account.

    You’re setting up a studio?

    Yes, for my painting. I deliberately rented an apartment with space for a future studio, so I’m working on that now. I’ve spent about ₦250k designing murals, painting and construction work. I do most of the manual labour myself.

    Let’s break down your typical monthly expenses

    Nairalife #264 monthly expenses

    What’s the last thing you bought that significantly improved your quality of life

    ₦40k worth of art materials. That’s how I stay away from depression. If I can find Arolake’s money bag now, the quality of my life will skyrocket sharp-sharp.

    How are you thinking of future plans?

    I hope to own a creative haven for artists one day; where they can stay away from the hustle and bustle of the city and just create. I also hope to raise capital to revive my agric business. With the state of the economy now, I’ll probably need like ₦50m – ₦100m to even consider rice, but it’s a lucrative business. I believe I’ve gotten the business experience I need to not repeat the mistakes I made again.

    How would you rate your financial happiness on a scale of 1-10?

    4. I’m literally rebuilding from scratch, but I know it will get better. If I hadn’t experienced all I have, I wouldn’t have the confidence and tenacity I have now to try new things and just keep going even when they don’t work out.

    If you’re interested in talking about your Naira Life story, this is a good place to start.

    Yes, I want to do a Naira Life

    Find all the past Naira Life stories here.

    Tife Oni

    ,
    , ,

  • The #NairaLife of an Advertising Exec Who Went From Resenting Black Tax to Accepting It

    The #NairaLife of an Advertising Exec Who Went From Resenting Black Tax to Accepting It

    Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing.

    Nairalife #263 bio

    What’s your earliest memory of money?

    When I was in primary six, there was this woman who regularly sold snacks in my class during break time. I’d heard that her doughnuts were really good, but they cost around ₦10 – ₦20, which I couldn’t afford with my ₦5 lunch money, so my friends — who also brought ₦5 to school — and I never bought her snacks.

    One day, she came into the class as usual. Then, some of my classmates formed a queue, and she gave each of them a snack — even my fellow ₦5-lunch-money classmates. I thought she was giving the snacks away, so I also queued and collected doughnuts and meat pie without asking questions. When I finished eating, the woman started asking me for money.

    LOL. What did you do?

    I told her I thought it was free, and she changed it for me. She made a scene and my classmates laughed at me. Apparently, the “giveaway” was meant for some pupils as directed by a teacher, and I wasn’t among them. 

    I couldn’t tell my parents, so I had to pay for the ₦30 worth of snacks I ate using my lunch money for the next six days. I didn’t eat anything during break time for those six days.

    Why couldn’t you tell your parents?

    My parents were disciplinarians, so I didn’t know what to expect. They’d either flog me silly or pay for it. 

    Plus, money wasn’t always great at home. My dad worked in construction and had frequent periods when there were no projects.

    My mum, a nurse, helped out during those dry spells by working double shifts and treating people in the neighbourhood for extra cash. But there were still times when I got sent home from school for not paying fees on time. 

    Those experiences sort of made me grow up early. By the time I turned 9 years old, I’d realised my mum couldn’t always be home because of work. I started cooking at that age, too. I’m the third of four children, but the cooking responsibility fell on me because my elder brothers were in boarding school.

    How early did you start making money?

    Not until I finished secondary school in 2003. I hit a delay with university because I wanted to study medicine, but JAMB kept jamming me. So I started typing at cyber cafes. It was still the early days of the internet, and I was curious about it. I stole ₦100 from my mum to pay for 30 minutes on the computer and tinker around. That’s how I stumbled on the Mavis Beacon typing tutorial and got good at it really fast. 

    The other guys at the cafe noticed and began asking me to help them send emails and stuff so they could buy less time on the computers, and I charged each person ₦50. 

    I had a regular customer who was trying to travel abroad and so was in constant communication with embassies. He usually paid me ₦200 per day. He’d come to pick me up from my house at 6 a.m. because browsing was cheaper till 9 a.m. at a particular cyber cafe.

    I saved most of what I made from the typing gigs — My mum was big on saving and made sure we all did it. I think most of the money went into Christmas clothes.

    How long did the typing gigs last?

    About three years. I wrote JAMB every year during those three years, but I didn’t get medicine. I also learnt graphic design during that time — it was called desktop publishing then — at a computer school. The graphic design lessons lasted three months, but the cafe kept me around to help them type when they noticed I learned fast. I left after six months when I noticed they had no plans of paying me. 

    I applied to another computer school and got a job as an instructor for ₦2,500/month. This was in 2005. I’d also taken a break from seeking university admission because I was tired.

    So you were fully working class

    Yes. In 2006, I became curious about how publishers get books and magazines to look so much better and glossier, and I took an interest in printing. I found a printing school and applied for a two-year programme. It was subsidised because I applied through a Christian fellowship and paid ₦20k for the full programme. 

    I was juggling the programme with work. The classes were held in a training centre, so I used their computers to take on typing, design and any other gigs I got. All of this was bringing in around ₦10k- ₦15k in monthly income.

    Then, in 2008, an uncle advised me to apply for a university’s distance learning program. I did, and got an admission offer to study Psychology.

    I didn’t work for my first two years in school and relied solely on my parents because I wanted to make a first class. But in 300 level, I found a job opportunity and decided to let first class rest small.

    What job opportunity was that?

    Art director — what you’d call a graphic designer — at an advertising agency in Lagos. The salary offer was ₦65k/month. 

    The only thing was school was in Ibadan, and I’d have to go to Lagos for the job. But I had a hunch that the job could be my big break, so I took it. It was my introduction to advertising, and I don’t regret taking the job even though it was stressful shuttling between both cities. My grades suffered, but I graduated with a 2-1, so nothing spoil.

    In 2015, I moved to another agency for a ₦100k/month salary. At this point, I was largely responsible for myself, even though I lived with an uncle in Lagos. Nine months after joining the agency, I was promoted to head the creative department because of my printing knowledge, and my salary jumped to ₦150k. I moved out of my uncle’s place to a ₦350k/year mini flat to start my life as a semi-big Lagos boy. 

    What was that like?

    Things were good. The economy wasn’t as terrible as it is now, and I could easily provide for myself. In 2017, I became bored of agency life. Also, tech startups were beginning to gain ground, and I decided a tech job was going to be my next challenge. I applied and got a brand lead role with a tech startup and took a salary cut to ₦120k/month. As expected with startups, I did more than branding. My role quickly morphed into product and digital marketing. 

    Sadly, the startup went belly up after a year because the founders couldn’t raise funding. By the time I left in 2018, they were owing me three months’ salary. Fortunately for me, I had a steady stream of side gigs — from printing to graphic design and even taking small small gigs from my previous agency — which brought my income to between ₦150k – ₦400k monthly, so I didn’t go broke while unemployed.

    [ad]

    How many months did you spend unemployed?

    Two months. My previous agency offered me ₦250k/month to return to lead the creative department. One thing about me, I don’t skimp on accommodation. I know a lot of my productivity and even job opportunities are tied to how close I am to the commercial parts of Lagos.

    So, I got a bigger two-bedroom apartment at ₦800k/year — which was just one quick Uber away from work. I should mention I regularly had friends staying with me at different points, so it made sense to get a bigger place. But I didn’t last long at the job.

    Why?

    The higher salary came with more responsibilities than I thought. The CEO took a backseat, and I was acting as the COO, even managing the agency’s profit and loss statements. I was also designing and managing designers. It was too much, so I left towards the end of 2018. I didn’t have another job lined up, but I had my side gigs to fall back on.

    What did you do next?

    I became interested in brand and marketing strategy, so I used the free time to take online courses. I decided I wanted to transition to that, so I started joining Strategy communities and connecting with people on LinkedIn. 

    Meanwhile, I was also applying to several jobs. I got a couple of offers, but I was either unhappy about the proposed salary or the distance from my house. This went on for about a year.

    How were you surviving?

    I had about ₦2m saved up from my side gigs in a money market account with an asset management company. It’s like a savings account that gives between 14% – 17% interest yearly, so I just left all my savings there.

    Plus, my brother introduced me to a business opportunity. We went around Lagos secondary schools printing yearbooks for them. We made as much as ₦1.5m in profits per yearbook project. We put back half of our earnings into our running costs and split the rest.

    In 2019, I finally got a strategy job that paid ₦300k/month. It was an agency job, but I enjoyed speaking to several brands to proffer solutions — I wasn’t just a designer.

    During this time, I was the only one in my family with a stable income. My dad had passed, my elder brothers were struggling with their careers, and my younger brother was in uni, so black tax fell on me.

    Tell me more about that

    I was 100% responsible for my younger brother, who was in 300 level, paying his university tuition and hostel accommodation fees. I also started sending my mum ₦40k monthly and regularly loaned my elder brothers money to get by.

    I can look back and say now that I was looking out for my family and building them up because I was in the position to do so, but it was crazy. I was working, but I couldn’t see any evidence of my hard work. All my colleagues had cars, but I couldn’t afford one because of black tax. 

    In a way, it taught me delayed gratification. But in the moment, I lowkey resented it. There were times I’d call my mum or siblings, and we’d scream at each other, but at the end of the day, I had to provide for them. At one point in 2021, I took a ₦1.5m loan from a microfinance bank for my brother, but he defaulted on repayment. I had to complete it with my salary. 

    Damn

    Thankfully, I also got a better-paying job in 2021. It paid ₦400k/month, and things started looking up from there. I moved to a senior management role at another agency the following year, and my income increased to ₦700k/month. The job also came with an official car. 

    In 2023, I switched jobs again and got my current role, which also came with an official car. My salary also doubled to ₦1.5m/month. 

    I’m more stable financially now. My younger brother is done with uni, and one of my elder brothers has relocated abroad, so the load has slightly reduced. But there’s still black tax, especially since I’m married now.

    When did you get married?

    Right when I was in the thick of family responsibilities in 2020. I had like ₦3m in my money market account, so I emptied the account and divided the money into two. Half went into my wedding expenses, and the other half went into renting and setting up our new home. One helpful thing I did was to pay for most things in advance. So, I bought food and paid for electricity and internet to last us three months. Lockdown happened right after the wedding, so that helped.

    How would you describe your relationship with money now?

    Money and I were in a situationship before, but now I can say money has put a ring on my finger, and we’re heading to the altar. It’s a stable relationship. I can make plans now and know what I need to make those plans happen. It’s just that inflation puts us at odds sometimes. I earn far more now than I ever did, but I can’t make major lifestyle changes.

    Why’s that?

    Everything is so expensive. I should be living a good life with what I earn, but I don’t. For one, I’d like to move to areas like Ogudu GRA, but I can’t even think of that even though I earn an additional ₦750k – ₦1m monthly from side gigs.

    I’d love to travel, but I can only afford to visit African countries. I visited Ghana last year with a tour guide, and the five-day trip cost ₦1.2m. I’d also like to buy my dream car — a Toyota Venza — but last I checked, a Tokunbo 2018 model cost ₦19m. I can’t afford that, and I should be able to.

    Let’s break down your monthly expenses

    Nairalife #263 monthly expenses

    Right now, I have about ₦7m in savings, but I regret not saving most of it in dollars. If I’d started saving in dollars earlier, I’d be in a better financial position. Now, I try to buy $100 every now and then. I have $400 in my domiciliary account.

    Do you have a savings goal?  

    My wife and I are considering relocating to Canada, so the savings will come in handy whenever we decide.

    If ₦1.5m isn’t giving you a good life, how much will?

    At least ₦5m/month. I’m currently studying for an MBA to improve my career and earning opportunities. Hopefully, I’ll transition to a Chief Marketing Officer role soon. The MBA has cost me about ₦900k so far, but I see it as investing in my career.

    I’d also like to be able to provide more for my extended family. I haven’t always been happy with black tax, but I see it as a responsibility now. There are cultural nuances to it, so I can’t shy away from the fact that it’s my duty to my mum, in-laws and people I consider family. It’s just something I owe them to help them get by. If I’m able to help my brothers become even more financially stable, everyone gets to do their part in caring for our mum. 

    I know young people today like to ignore black tax, but a family raised you to the point where you are currently. I think that same family deserves your support, too. If anything ever happens to me, it’s still my family I’ll run back to. So why not build them up?

    Makes sense. How would you rate your financial happiness on a scale of 1-10?

    6.5. I’m okay, but I can’t upgrade my life the way I want to. Inflation is really spoiling things.

    If you’re interested in talking about your Naira Life story, this is a good place to start.

    Yes, I want to do a Naira Life

    Find all the past Naira Life stories here.

    Tife Oni

    ,
    , ,

  • “We Make Do With Our Imagination” — 7 Nigerians on How Inflation Affects Their Relationships

    “We Make Do With Our Imagination” — 7 Nigerians on How Inflation Affects Their Relationships

    Nigeria’s annual inflation rate has climbed to 29.9%, its highest in almost 28 years. The cost of living is choking the living, and it’s touching every aspect of our lives, including relationships.

    I spoke to some Nigerians about how inflation has changed their relationship dynamic, and here’s what they said.

    Rotimi, 27

    My friends and I have this weekly tradition. We hang out at bars every Friday to drink and just talk about our week. We also rotate payment, so if I pay for the whole group’s drinks this week, someone else will do it next week.

    When I paid for the group in December 2023, it cost me about ₦80k. That was even with Detty December price hikes. But when it was my turn in February 2024, it was over ₦100k for the same drinks and chops for five people. I’ve avoided the last two hangouts because spending that kind of money isn’t sustainable on a ₦350k salary. I still have bills. 

    My friends are considerably richer, so they probably haven’t noticed how sick the increase is. But I intend to tell them soon that I can’t keep up. We’ll have to consider other ways to hang out.

    Chioma, 31

    Since the first time my best friend and I went on a girl’s trip in January 2022, it’s been like an unofficial rule to do it every year. We went again in January 2023. Things are typically cheaper in January. 

    But we didn’t even talk about a girl’s trip this year. We sent a couple Instagram links of resort locations to each other, but we didn’t discuss logistics because we knew we couldn’t afford it. Between local flight costs — because the roads are too dangerous to even consider — accommodation and feeding, you’re already budgeting ₦500k. We’ll just make do with our imagination for now.

    Tobi, 26

    I used to fill my boyfriend’s car tank once a month to show love. But what used to cost me ₦40k increased to over ₦100k when the fuel subsidy was removed in 2023. I still sent the ₦40k monthly for a while because at all at all na im bad pass. 

    But now, I only send ₦20k occasionally because I have other bills, and things double in price every day. He understands and even sends me money occasionally. It’s just sad that I can’t be as intentional as I want to.

    ALSO READ: “It’s Shameful to Just Be Collecting” – 7 Nigerians Talk About the Struggle to Gift Their Abroad Friends

    Ayomide, 23

    My siblings and I always go all out for my mum’s birthday. Our father is dead, so we do everything to make sure she doesn’t feel lonely on that day. In 2023, we contributed ₦150k to pay her shop rent and do a small celebration. 

    Her 2024 birthday is a few weeks away, but my siblings haven’t mentioned anything about contribution. We’ve talked about birthday plans but haven’t billed ourselves yet. I understand because everywhere is dry. 

    We want to get her a phone, but it costs over ₦200k. Something that was just about ₦100k in 2023. It’s just somehow.

    Femi, 27

    My girlfriend likes receiving flowers, but she specifically told me not to buy her flowers on Valentine’s Day 2024. She said I should send her the money or buy something else. I fully understand her point. Flowers used to cost ₦15k – ₦18k, but now, you hear ₦30k – ₦50k for the smallest bouquet. When it’s not like the flower will live forever.

    Glory, 32

    My husband and I go on fancy dates every weekend to spend time together away from the children. This typically costs ₦20k maximum, but inflation has made restaurants charge higher. When we considered the increased cost of fuel and foodstuff, we had to think twice about spending up to ₦35k on dates. 

    We’ve reduced the frequency to once per month since late 2023. Sometimes sef, we do indoor dates to save money. It does the same work.

    Iyanu, 28

    I’ve made it a habit to bring bags of foodstuff with me when I visit my mum because she always has family members staying with her. But I haven’t been able to meet up with that since 2023. When I visited her last month with only five tubers of yam and a paint bucket of garri, she called me aside to ask if all was well. It won’t be well with this government. 

    NEXT READ: 7 Nigerian Millennials Share Hacks for Living Through Inflation

    [ad]

    Tife Oni

    ,
    , , , , ,

  • #NairaLife: She Endured Financial Abuse for 7 Years. Now She Earns ₦700k+/Month

    #NairaLife: She Endured Financial Abuse for 7 Years. Now She Earns ₦700k+/Month

    Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing.

    Nairalife #262 bio

    What’s your earliest memory of money?

    One morning, when I was five years old, my family and I returned home from church, and there was no money or food to eat. I asked my mum what we’d eat, and she said, “Jesus will provide”. 

    Then, she told my siblings and I to dance and praise God. We did that, and she went out and came back with food. I really thought an angel dropped the money for the food on our doorstep, and I was so excited that my prayers worked. Money was a frequent topic in our house, and situations like this food incident were regular.

    Why was money a frequent topic?

    We didn’t always have the money we needed, so we used a scale of preference approach to spending. Whatever wasn’t important had to wait until there was money to spare. My late dad was a lecturer, my mum was an accountant — she built a school later on — and with five children, money was never enough. 

    Inevitably, I grew up believing that money could never be enough, which manifested as a constant urge to make money.

    When was the first time you acted on this urge?

    2009. I was in my second year in uni when I started taking ushering gigs. The first one I ever did paid ₦5k instead of the ₦10k I was promised. I didn’t even mind. The organisers had covered our transportation, so I had nothing to lose. 

    I also did some market promotion gigs for a beer brand trying to re-enter the market. I’d never been in a bar before because of my background, but the ₦30k/month was pay I couldn’t pass up. 

    I should mention that I had a monthly allowance of ₦10k, and I augmented this with the ushering and market promotion gigs. In my third year in uni, I decided I could take a break from pursuing money.

    What happened?

    Three of my siblings graduated from uni, easing the financial pressure at home. It was just my younger brother and I in school. Plus, my eldest sister got a job at a bank immediately. She also started helping out with the occasional pocket money.

    The improved financial situation gave me time to pursue other interests. I’d realised I didn’t want to practise my engineering course. I only studied it because my family decided I’d be an engineer since I was good at maths. But I didn’t like it and couldn’t drop out. 

    Thankfully, I found a lifeline when I discovered AIESEC on campus. I finally found something I was interested in, and I focused on the activities: conference planning, talent management and marketing. It wasn’t bringing me money, though, at least not while I was still in school.

    What about after school?

    I landed a three-month AIESEC internship with an entertainment company in Nairobi in 2014 — a year after I left uni. The salary was 140,000 Kenyan shillings, which was about ₦70k then. 

    I returned to Nigeria after the internship and got another six-month internship through AIESEC at a logistics company. This time, it was a ₦90k/month role. At that point, I wasn’t sure what I wanted with my career. I was just working to earn money. Then, I got married four months into the internship. I was 24 years old.

    How did that happen?

    I still ask myself the same question. My mum regularly sent my sisters and me broadcast messages about the qualities of a good wife, and I subconsciously felt I had to get married. It felt like the next logical step.

    So, when I started hanging out with a long-time friend who returned to Nigeria from the UK and he brought up marriage, I went with it too. We got married in 2014.

    What did that mean for your career?

    I got pregnant almost immediately, and I quit my job because it seemed too stressful to juggle with a pregnancy. Also, I married into a rich family that didn’t shy away from spending money, and I thought I didn’t have to bother about making money anymore. 

    Before we go on, is being married to a man from a rich family anything like Nollywood depicts?

    We lived in my husband’s family home with his mother and siblings. Let me explain how the house worked: my husband and his siblings all dropped an amount with their mother for our monthly needs: from food to toiletries and my child’s diapers. I didn’t even know how much a cup of rice cost. It meant I never had cash for anything. 

    Some months into my marriage, I became uncomfortable with depending on someone else for money. I felt strange having to ask for small things like money to do my hair or get toiletries. So, immediately after I had my child in 2015, I started job-hunting and got a ₦30k/month teaching job the following year. My child was barely a year old.

    What was that like? Juggling childcare with a job?

    My mother-in-law helped look after my child. My husband and in-laws didn’t understand why I had to work, though. They thought I just wanted to stress myself. But I wanted to have control of my finances.

    My ₦30k salary was only enough for transporting myself to work. I even trekked sometimes so the salary would last a month. I didn’t get any financial support, but I didn’t care.

    How long did this go on for?

    I taught at the school for two years before I left to help my mother-in-law manage her new school. That was a mistake; I never should’ve done that.

    Hmm. Why?

    I served as the school’s administrator for four years and didn’t get paid once. The funny thing is, people thought I was living my best life. Like, “Wow, she married a rich man. They set up a school for her, and she even has a driver.” 

    But I was truly broke. I couldn’t buy anything for myself or my mum during those four years. I gave my mum excuses about how we were still trying to get the school functional. In reality, I was being used, and I couldn’t leave without causing family issues, so I took it as an opportunity to gain work experience and build myself.

    Did you try to do other things to earn money?

    I tried my hands at tailoring when I noticed I wasn’t going to get paid. I’d learnt the craft during my first school job. I took some savings I’d gathered when I had a salary and used it to buy tailoring materials. I had two sewing machines — my wedding gifts — and I set them up in an abandoned store belonging to my in-law’s family. 

    Since I didn’t pay rent, they made it look as if it was their way of paying me for my work at the school. But I was barely making anything from the shop because I didn’t have a steady clientele due to my spending long hours at the school.

    In 2019, I finally found an opportunity to leave the school. I was pregnant, and we’d moved out of the family house because we wanted space — my mother-in-law had issues with my husband spending late nights, and it led to a few arguments. The school was far from our new place, so I took the opportunity to leave.

    What did you do next?

    After I had my second child, I began paying more attention to my business. Leaving the family house opened my eyes to the fact that we didn’t really have money, and I couldn’t afford to be financially dependent. 

    I also registered for NYSC that year because I thought no one would employ me without a certificate. The government started paying corps members ₦33k in my second month of service. It was like heaven to me. I’d worked for so long and didn’t even know what it was like to have ₦33k.

    Damn. What was running a business while serving like?

    I served in the state I lived in, so it worked. I got two commission-based assistants and included fabric sales and home-based tailoring classes in my list of services. The latter was a hit. Most people interested in my classes were middle-aged housewives who didn’t want to attend fashion schools. I made ₦50k monthly from the business on average, but most of it went back to the business.

    I should mention I still didn’t have my husband’s support. He wanted to keep the illusion of us being wealthy, and my working meant he didn’t have money to take care of his home. He actually didn’t have money but didn’t want people to know. I was supposed to get glammed and look the role of an “odogwu’s wife” when, in reality, I was taking care of most of the home’s expenses.

    That must have been tough

    It was. I kept hustling because my kids had to eat. While I was still serving, I applied for a social media manager role at an NGO. I was a 30-year-old dragging social media work with 22-year-olds. But I got the job. 

    The salary was ₦90k/month. My job also included scheduling therapy appointments, and I enjoyed what I did. It didn’t mean I wasn’t applying for other jobs and looking for money, sha.

    LOL. Did the job search yield results?

    It did. I got another school administrator role for ₦45k/month towards the end of 2020. I juggled this with the social media job and my business. 

    My marriage began to nosedive during this period. My husband started leaving home for days. I told him plainly that I couldn’t leave my work to be chasing him around because I had children to feed. 

    I knew the whole thing would crash soon, and I focused on becoming financially independent. 

    How were you managing three jobs?

    I had been without money for too long, and I couldn’t return to that. It was a swim-or-sink situation. I’d return from school and stay up at night to do my social media job. My assistants mostly handled my tailoring business.

    It was a stressful period, but I was looking ahead. If I left my husband, I’d have to sort out rent and school fees myself, and I needed something sustainable. I mean, I was already suffering, but this time, I had a goal.

    Did you leave?

    I left in 2021 when he became violent. I moved back with my children to my family house, and we stayed there for six months.

    In 2022, I left the school and got an office admin job, which also paid ₦45k. The plan was to gather admin experience to work in a standard organisation. 

    To sort out accommodation, I took a housing loan from work to rent a ₦300k/year one-bedroom apartment and moved in with my kids. Then, I quit my social media role to focus on the admin job. It paid more, but it wasn’t my desired career path. I also closed down my business because my ex kept going there to cause a scene. It was too much.

    Sorry about that. You went from three income sources to one. What did that mean for you?

    I think I walked everywhere I went in 2022. I lost so much weight that my mum had to intervene. She took my kids for three months to give me time and space to get a grip on myself. I struggled with that because I used my children as a shield to grieve the end of my marriage. You can’t cry with kids around. They don’t give you room to be depressed. 

    Being alone meant I had to confront my emotions and go through all the phases of grief. After I was done with that, I took pen to paper to map out my career. I’d gotten admin experience already. The next thing to do was get a better-paying job.

    How did that go?

    I enrolled in a bunch of free online admin and Excel courses to upskill, and I applied to jobs like someone was pursuing me. I must have applied to 500 jobs in two months. I’d also been “promoted” to admin team lead at my workplace by this time. There was no salary increase — just the fancy name change.

    In September 2022, I eventually landed my current job as an admin officer in an oil company. The funny thing is, I didn’t exactly apply for it. A recruitment agency contacted me on LinkedIn to ask if I was interested in the role. I shared my CV and did the interviews. In my head, if they asked about salary expectations, I’d say ₦150k, so I could afford to save ₦50k monthly. 

    I got the offer via a phone call, and the recruiter said my salary would be about ₦700k — ₦500k basic salary plus allowances.

    Wow. Paint me a picture of how you reacted to this

    I was speechless for a full minute. The recruiter kept asking if I was there. I thought, “How is this possible? Will I have to kill people at this company to earn that much?” 

    A colleague was with me at the office when the call came in, and I put the phone on speaker so they could confirm I wasn’t hearing things. Who goes from ₦45k to ₦700k just like that? 

    My mum thought I was being scammed and couldn’t be convinced otherwise till I received my first salary. I cried the day I got that alert. I was so overwhelmed. It was just God.

    That kind of income jump probably came with some lifestyle changes as well

    Not immediately. I stayed in my one-bedroom apartment for another full year, but I renovated my family house and gave my mum ₦1m to expand her school. She was there for me through my marriage wahala, and it felt so good to finally be able to give back to her.

    I wasn’t in a hurry to make major lifestyle changes. I didn’t change my children’s school until I noticed I could pay two terms’ fees at once. I moved to a ₦500k/year two-bedroom apartment in September 2023 and got a car for ₦2.7m in December because the new apartment is quite a distance from my workplace.

    How’s your savings goal going?

    I can definitely save more than ₦50k monthly now. Specifically, I save ₦200k/month now. I’ve also built a ₦3m emergency fund. Owning land is another future investment option I’m considering.  

    Let’s do a breakdown of your typical monthly expenses

    Nairalife #262 monthly expenses

    I get sizable allowances from work every two months, which I use for major expenses. For instance, I get a ₦2.4m housing allowance every January, and it sorts my children’s school fees and rent for the year.

    How would you describe your relationship with money now?

    I’m learning how to relax. I’ve had an “I need to get money” mindset for so long, and it’s a conscious effort to remind myself I’m not broke anymore. I can afford to buy ₦200k hair, but it still feels like an outrageous expense. Like, ₦200k hair when that kind of money can help ten other people? 

    I think I also internalised some of the things my ex said. He often accused me of being extravagant because I wanted to have my own money and not depend on him. So, maybe I’ve been subconsciously trying to prove him wrong. I thought if I bought a new bag, people would say, “Oh, no wonder she left. She probably has someone else”. But I’m deliberately moving on from that. 

    I want to get to a point where I don’t overthink spending on myself. Oh, I’m also finally processing my divorce.

    What’s that like?

    When I began the divorce proceedings in October 2023, we’d been separated for two years. My lawyer advised me to wait for two years post-separation so the courts wouldn’t delay the process by trying to give us time to sort out our differences. I’m paying ₦200k in legal fees and another ₦15k to my lawyer every time we appear in court. I’ve been in court every month since then, and it’s been quite messy. But hopefully, it’ll be sorted soon. 

    Rooting for you. What do you think the future looks like for you?

    I’m currently studying for an MBA in Human Resources. I’m in my second semester (out of five) and have spent ₦400k on it so far.

    I’d also like to take classes to become a licensed therapist in the next four years. It’s why I chose an HR-focused MBA because I’ll need to know how to understand people to help them. I needed therapy during my separation, but I couldn’t afford it. You’d hear therapists charge ₦100k per hour. I want to be able to provide affordable therapy for divorced and abused women and children. 

    In addition, I hope to build something like a healing shelter in the long term. I keep thinking about what would’ve happened to me if I didn’t have my family house to run to when things went south. Housing is a major reason why people stay in abusive situations. 

    How would you rate your financial happiness on a scale of 1-10?

    8. I’m happy with my finances and even happier with the person I am right now. I know where I’m going, and I’m willing to do the work to get there. I could lose the ₦3m in my account and still be happy. I’m no longer afraid of not having money or starting over. The worst has happened, and I came out of it. 

    What would make that number a 10?

    When I eventually become a therapist and build a shelter. I like my job — it pays my bills — but it’s not what I want to do for the rest of my life. 

    Is there anything else you’d like to add that I haven’t asked?

    I’d just like my fellow women to know that we do ourselves a disservice when we don’t have anything that brings us money. Having your own money is better than being perceived to be rich. It’s good to get free ₦500k, but earning ₦500k will boost your confidence — knowing you can produce value. When the chips are down, that’s what you can call your own.

    If you’re interested in talking about your Naira Life story, this is a good place to start.

    Yes, I want to do a Naira Life

    Find all the past Naira Life stories here.

    [ad]

    Tife Oni

    ,
    , , , ,

  • #NairaLife: The Software Developer Picking Himself Up After Losing $500K in Seven Months

    #NairaLife: The Software Developer Picking Himself Up After Losing $500K in Seven Months

    Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing.

    Nairalife #261 bio

    What’s your earliest memory of money?

    I started getting pocket money in JSS 1. It was the early 90s, so I don’t remember the exact amount now. I always gave the money to my uncle — who was in SSS 3 — for safekeeping because the students in my boarding school were notorious for stealing. 

    But my uncle was the one I should’ve been careful of. He started spending my money and would lie to me that it had finished. Somehow, I believed I spent it all.

    How did you find out?

    My dad noticed I was constantly writing to him for more money every few days. He asked, “Why is your money always finishing?” And I responded, “My uncle said the money has finished.” My dad figured he was tampering with the money and asked him. My uncle was mad at me for not covering him. 

    I changed schools in JSS 2 when I kept getting bullied for my accent and started keeping my pocket money myself.

    What accent?

    I spent some of my early years in the UK with my parents, who were studying for postgraduate degrees. I was in primary two when they were done, and we moved back to Nigeria in 1991. I remember because my parents were really disturbed by the fact that a dollar exchanged at ₦14 on the black market.

    If only they knew now

    When we returned to Nigeria, my dad worked in agribusiness for a bit with the company that sent him to the UK while my mum found work as a teacher. There was a bit more money, and I was the boy with comic books in primary school. I had them all — Superman, Batman, Guardians of the Galaxy, you name it.

    But my dad left his job to become a missionary around the time I entered secondary school, and we had to tighten our belts. No more comic books, and we moved to a smaller town.

    What did your mum think about your dad’s decision?

    If there was any pushback, my siblings and I weren’t aware. My parents always presented a united front, and they cushioned us from whatever our financial situation was as best as they could.

    I entered university in 2001, and they placed me on a ₦20k/month allowance, which was a reasonably good amount. Unfortunately, I didn’t know how to handle money, so I spent it on music CDs and books and was always broke before the next allowance came in.

    We’ve all been there. When was the first time you made your own money?

    2002. I was studying engineering in school but didn’t like the course. So, I put my energy into learning programming. I found this book called “Teach Yourself C++ in 21 Days” and another called  “Cryptonomicon” by Neal Stephenson and decided I wanted to be a cryptologist. But I started with programming. I spent hours in the library learning how to code on the computers.

    My first gig was to build a website for a church, and they were supposed to pay me ₦10k, but I never got anything. In fact, I didn’t get paid for the first three gigs I did. One was even my dad’s friend who promised ₦50k for a website gig but never paid. Funny enough, he saw me regularly after that and always said, “I have a job for you to help me do.” Yeah, right.

    LOL

    I quit engineering and moved to Ghana in 2004 to start my first degree afresh. I had started getting depressed because I wasn’t doing great academically, and I desperately wanted to move to the US to study. However, my parents couldn’t afford the tuition, and scholarships didn’t work out, so I settled for Ghana to study mathematics because of my cryptologist goal.

    Did you get more gigs while in Ghana?

    Yes, but they were mostly from Nigeria. At one point, I worked with about four companies simultaneously, which meant I was in Nigeria almost every weekend. The clients paid for my flights to Nigeria on Friday and then back on Sunday. I had so many airline miles I was giving it out. 

    How much were you making from the gigs, though?

    Anything between ₦100k to $5k per project, depending on what I was working on. Some clients — mostly the big ones — also didn’t complete payment. But I was making money. I also had a friend from a freelance agency who regularly threw work my way.

    In my second year in Ghana, I became responsible for myself and stopped calling home for money. My parents had also gone full-time into the ministry, which affected the family’s finances, so I occasionally supported my siblings too. I didn’t really spend on anything else apart from books and music. By the time I finished school in 2009, I had saved about €20k.

    That’s huge. Were you saving towards a particular goal?

    Yes, a postgraduate degree. I got admitted to an English-speaking German university to study for a one-year Master’s degree in Computational Mathematics. About €15k from my savings went into covering my fees, rent and living expenses for the year.

    After one year in Germany, I moved to India in 2010 for another Master’s degree in Computer Science. I chose India because it was cheaper. It only cost me $2k to cover fees and living expenses for the one-year program. 

    I’m curious. Why the double Master’s degrees?

    I just wanted to expand my knowledge. I’ve wanted to get a PhD since I was seven; I consider it one of the highest intellectual awards one could get. It’s not even to become a professor; I’m not one to teach. But that PhD? I still plan to have it before I die. Even if it means doing it at 70 with my grandkids.

    Did you do anything for money while in these countries?

    I lived on my savings for the most part. My student visa didn’t allow me to work in India. The only job I managed to do in Germany was to assist at a local food mart, where I sat behind a register. This paid like €10 or €15 per hour. It was good money for almost no work, but it wasn’t my thing.

    I also did a website for one hair salon lady for €100. I also tried bartending, but I was more interested in drinking than actually serving the drinks. 

    I left India after my Master’s and returned to Nigeria. Then, I tried to go to Poland for my PhD, but it didn’t work out. So, I decided to stay back and work for a year before returning to school. It wasn’t that easy.

    What happened?

    Applying to jobs in Nigeria with two Master’s degrees on my CV was destroying my chances. Recruiters said they couldn’t afford to pay me. So, I drafted two CVs: one with all my degrees for foreign jobs and the other without them for local jobs.

    Did that help?

    It did. I got a ₦150k/month job at a web development studio, but I only stayed for seven months because my boss was more interested in politics than paying us for our work. At the point I left, I was being owed two months’ salary.

    After that, I worked freelance between 2012 and 2013. I didn’t get as many exciting gigs as I did in university, but it paid the bills. That said, the thing about freelancing is that you can make ₦3 million today and make nothing for the next couple of months. It wasn’t sustainable.

    Plus, my tastes had changed. As a uni student, I didn’t need to spend much. But as an upwardly mobile tech bro, I started hanging out with other tech bros, and my expenses increased. At some point, I reduced how frequently I hung out because I couldn’t always afford the drinks. When your friend buys you drinks twice, by the third time, it’s already looking awkward.

    Real. Did you try applying for 9-5 jobs again?

    Yes. Fortunately, I landed a ₦200k/month job towards the end of 2013. I stayed there for only a few months before moving to another role that paid three times more. After nine months, I also left the new job because I got bored and returned to freelancing. Nine months is the longest I’ve spent at a job.

    In 2017, I returned to 9-5 for ₦450k/month and quit after four months — the boss was terrible. Shortly after, I took up another ₦300k/month job with one of the early Nigerian blockchain companies, but they crashed around March or April 2018. 

    I then moved to Maiduguri to work with an NGO. It was almost like I did it for charity because the job was below my skills and only paid ₦130k. But after two or three incidents where I ran from Boko Haram attacks, I decided I was done. ₦130k wasn’t enough for that.

    What did you do next?

    I did another four-month stint at a company I later discovered scammed its customers. They paid their developers, though, and my $500/month salary was never delayed. I left the job for another that paid me $1k/month. I was just moving like that and increasing my income.

    My savings increased with my salary too. By the time I started earning $3k/month in 2020, I was saving and investing 80% of it. Mostly because I was living with my parents and had side gigs that brought money in occasionally.

    [ad]

    What were some of the things you invested in?

    Stocks: tech, pharmaceutical, and metals through foreign investment platforms. I invested in Tesla when it was $30 per stock. When I sold most of it in 2022, it had grown to $290. 

    I also had 50 Bitcoins, which I got as a gift in 2012 when it was still around $12. I tried to access them in 2018 and realised I’d forgotten my private key to the wallet.

    Excuse me. WHAT?

    Yeah. I haven’t been able to crack it since, even though I’ve been doing blockchain bounty hunting since 2021.

    What does that mean?

    I go around different blockchain projects to find security bugs or build something for them. Bounty hunting is all in — you either make so much money or nothing at all. I once lost an $80k reward because I stepped out in the middle of solving the problem to grab drinks with a friend. By the time I returned, someone else had submitted a solution.

    Damn.

    I landed a more stable job to handle a project’s developer relations shortly after, though. It paid $7k/month with bonuses up to $5k. I did that for about four months. During that time, I took a small break from working on multiple blockchain projects to focus on the job. 

    I saved and invested aggressively, living only on $1k/month. This time, my savings goal was to get a Golden Visa.

    Why did you want a golden visa?

    I want to travel the world, which isn’t the easiest thing to do with a Nigerian passport. I wanted a passport that’d give me access to pretty much everywhere. So, I learned about the golden visa, and the most affordable option I found was the Portugal Golden Visa. It cost €350k and involved buying property, which would give me a five-year residency. Last last, I could rent out the property and make money from it. I only needed to visit Portugal for one week every year for those five years, after which I’d get citizenship.

    Plus, they don’t pay tax on crypto-based earnings in Portugal, they speak a lot of English, and there’s a relatively big Black community there. It was the perfect option, and I was going to get it. But then I lost all my savings — over $500k in total.

    Wait. How did that happen?

    I’d invested about $80k in Terra in 2021. By April 2022, it had grown to $150k. Then the Luna/Terra coin crash happened, and took my money with it. Honestly, I should’ve known the returns were too good to be true, but shit happens. It was painful, but I still had about $400k in other savings and investments. So, it was like, “Damn, I lost money. Well, I still have money.” 

    I just fell to my knees 

    The plan was to finalise my Golden Visa in November 2022. So, I liquidated the rest of my crypto and stocks in late October and put it all — about $380k — in a crypto exchange, FTX. I didn’t put the money in the bank because I didn’t want anyone asking too many questions or forcing me to fill out forms. 

    It was supposed to be there for a week. Unfortunately, FTX crashed on November 2. I didn’t even know until November 9 because I was busy with work and was ignoring my emails. By the time I found out, my money was gone. If I had heard the news earlier, I could’ve withdrawn some of it.

    Oh my God. I’m so sorry

    I was devastated. I couldn’t take a bath, eat or step outside for a whole week. My security guard even came into the house to make sure I wasn’t dead. I usually struggle with depressive episodes. I’m very sure that if I’d been in one of my low periods when this happened, I’d have killed myself.

    It wasn’t exactly the money I lost that bothered me; it was the freedom it was supposed to bring.

    Ironically, I’d quit my job earlier that year to start my own software development company in February 2022. I was supposed to get a $200k investment grant but got $50k in funding. I also only got 30% of the $50k upfront. The rest was going to come only after we delivered a particular project, so I had to put much of my money into the startup. We had more than 20 staff, and I had to pay almost ₦10m in salaries and other expenditure every month. 

    By the time I lost my savings, we’d already depleted our initial funds, and I had to take a ₦20m loan to pay salaries in November and December. We finished the funding-backed project in December, and I had to tell my staff we were taking an indefinite break till we got back on our feet. 

    Phew. That’s a lot. How did you pay back the loan?

    The 70% balance came in, and fortunately for me, the naira had fallen against the dollar. It was now about ₦700 to $1 from about ₦300 at the beginning of the year. It meant the naira value I got was far more than when we got the first 30%. I was able to use the money to settle the loans I took and still had about ₦26m. 

    I still have a few freelance developers on the payroll for another major project we’re working on, but progress is slow — we haven’t gotten to the point where we have paying customers. Maybe if the investment grant had come in and I hadn’t lost my money, we’d have a working product in the market now.

    What are you up to now?

    I’m definitely more broke than I was in 2022, and I pay more attention to how I spend money. After moping around for months, I went back to bounty hunting for a bit in 2023. Another way I make money now is by participating in crypto communities on Discord.

    How does that work?

    Once you show you’re active by helping to solve problems in the group, the owners reach out and offer you a stipend to continue giving value.

    One group pays me $1k/month. Another group gave me some Joystream coins because I was an early member, and I can always sell them if I absolutely need money. I explore communities to see where I can pitch in and make random $2k occasionally. 

    Usually, I’m sure of earning $1,800 – $2,500 monthly from bounty hunting and the crypto communities. It’s often higher. I’ve made about $8k once. The only downside is that if something goes wrong in the communities, you’re the first person people will yell at since you’re the one answering their questions.

    Out of interest, did you tell friends and family about the money you lost?

    I told my family and some close friends, but weirdly, it didn’t stop people from asking me for money. I’m usually the first person people think about when they need money, and it’s gotten worse since September 2023. Maybe I’ll blame Tinubu for it, but everyone suddenly became broke. 

    In a day, I’d get like 2-3 calls from people seeking financial assistance. It got so bad I had to change my number. I gave a few friends the new number, and now I’m even considering changing it again. Almost every day, someone asks for ₦20k or a ₦100k loan.

    What are your monthly expenses like?

    Nairalife #261 monthly expenses

    I still save 50% – 70% of my earnings monthly. Most of the crypto I got from the community is vested and worth about $40k today, but it’s imaginary money. I can’t access it yet, and crypto prices fluctuate wildly to say this is the definite amount I have. I should have access to it in 2025, and I plan to take 50% out to invest in stocks and metals. I’ll also probably invest in local property.

    You’ve been on quite a financial journey. How have your experiences impacted your perspective on money?

    It’s a two-way thing. On one hand, I’m trying to spend more conservatively. I haven’t changed my iPhone in almost two years, and I love having the latest gadgets.

    On the other hand, I’m very aware of how fickle money is. It’s like, I better enjoy this money now because it may not be there tomorrow. I feel like I didn’t enjoy my money the first time around. So, I find myself constantly trying to strike a balance. I still intend to travel the world, so that’s still on my bucket list.

    What do you imagine the next few years might look like for you?

    My current target is a startup visa to Portugal, France or Denmark. People aren’t really going through the golden visa route anymore, and this is one of the best ways to get a stronger passport as an entrepreneur. It means I’ll need to pay more attention to building my startup. I plan to do that with the help of accelerator programs later this year, provided I remember to apply before the deadlines.

    How would you rate your financial happiness on a scale of 1 – 10?

    4. I need to get to the point where I’m making a million dollars a month. You know, to be able to buy things and travel without worrying about how to fund it or get stopped because of my passport. I’d also like to set up education trust funds for my nieces and nephews.

    Have you considered where the $1 million/month would come from?

    Income from work projects and investments, plus savings. I’m also talking to several business partners, and I’m hoping that the law of averages alone will ensure at least a few of the projects go my way.

    I’ll be able to diversify my investments once my startup starts making money. I believe that’ll happen soon because I’m serving a growing market and offering solutions for a need that has been underutilised. I’m also looking to become an angel investor for startups or maybe even venture capital within the next three to five years. 

    Interesting

    Earning $1 million isn’t just for spending sake, though. It’ll be a great financial security for me and my family, but I’m also looking to invest in lessening the effects of climate change and food and water insecurity. 

    I believe we’re on the brink of a major food and environmental problem in Africa. If Niger or Mali decide to block River Niger, our water supply is cut off. We must figure out ways to trap water from the environment, reforest our semi-arid areas and even consider renewable energy. I’m interested in these issues, and making that kind of money would mean I can contribute to solving them.

    If you’re interested in talking about your Naira Life story, this is a good place to start.

    Yes, I want to do a Naira Life

    Find all the past Naira Life stories here.

    Tife Oni

    ,
    , , , , ,

  • The #NairaLife of a Traditional Couple Running a One-Income Household

    The #NairaLife of a Traditional Couple Running a One-Income Household

    Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing.

    Nairalife #260 Bio

    What was the first money conversation you both had?

    Phoebe: Three months after we started dating in 2011, he asked me to come over to cook coconut rice and chicken for four friends he was hosting that weekend. He’d boasted about my coconut rice. When he asked how much I needed for the foodstuff, I said ₦20k, and he got angry. 

    Joe: Yes na. When it wasn’t like I was throwing a party. I immediately started having second thoughts about her — ₦20k was a big chunk of my ₦70k office manager salary, and spending it on that small amount of food seemed wasteful to me. We had a big disagreement and didn’t talk to each other for two days. Of course, the cooking didn’t happen again.

    How did you get past that?

    Phoebe: He came and begged me when I didn’t reach out. We talked through it, and he understood that I wasn’t just calling one amount for the sake of it. I’d planned to cook one more dish so the food could carry him into the following week. Plus, I don’t like to manage things. If I’m doing something, I want to do it well.

    Joe:  You should be able to tell that she was the child of a rich man already. Not like us who were born with wooden spoons.

    Were you really a rich kid, Phoebe? 

    Phoebe: I won’t say rich. We were comfortable, though. My dad worked with Nigeria Airways when it was still in operation, and we lived in our own house and had some cars. My mum didn’t even have to work.

    I had an allowance in secondary school, although I can’t remember how much it was now. It increased to ₦15k/month when I entered uni in 2005. The money didn’t see the end of the month, sha. I constantly spent it on food, clothes and make-up.

    I guess growing up was different for you, Joe?

    Joe: It was. We struggled a lot financially due to my dad’s poor financial habits. He was a furniture maker who loved gambling. Whenever he gambled away his money — which was often — he’d collect money from my mum’s provisions business. She had to close the business to take up a cleaning job when I was 10 because the business wasn’t going anywhere. 

    I’m the first child, so I had front-row access to the whole thing — the days when my mum had to hide money under my bed so we could afford food the next day. Or when she’d beg a neighbour to allow their kid “lap” me on the bus to school, so I wouldn’t have to pay for transport. 

    I think seeing that taught me financial responsibility, even though I didn’t see it like that then. I just always thought, “Why must this man always spend money like this?” I didn’t want to be like him, so I subconsciously learnt to keep any little money that came my way right from childhood.

    Let’s talk about you guys. Where were you financially when you met?

    Phoebe: I’d just left a toxic HR intern job and was very broke. It’s not like the ₦50k/month salary they paid did anything, but it was nice to have something at the end of the month. Thankfully, my family and siblings were always there to support me financially. I think it was even the money that one of them sent me I went to withdraw the day I met Joe at the ATM.

    Joe: It was an instant attraction, at least on my part. I had to drop all the “toasting” lyrics in my arsenal that day before she gave me her number. I was at the ₦70k job at the time, and I felt I’d gotten to the point where I could afford a relationship.

    What do you mean by “afford”?

    Joe: I believe finances play a big role in relationships, especially as a man. I should be able to take care of my woman to a reasonable degree. My mum wouldn’t have had to go through all that if my dad had done his duty. It’s why I didn’t really pursue long-term relationships when I was in uni. I had the boldness to pursue Phoebe because I had a fairly good job and lived in a modest ₦150k/year apartment. I wasn’t doing too badly.

    So only one of you had an income. What was that like?

    Phoebe: We had some clashes in the beginning. He always insisted on paying during dates and encouraged me to come to him when I needed money, but then he’d complain that I was spending too much or getting too much of everything on dates. 

    Joe: We didn’t see eye to eye on money matters. Every other aspect of the relationship was fine, except that. I was torn between wanting to provide and this madam trying to choke me with expenses.

    Did you both have conversations about this?

    Phoebe: We did, several times. But I only started to fully understand his issues with my spending when we moved in together in 2012. 

    What changed?

    Phoebe: Living together made our financial situation more transparent — I knew what he had in his account. Since that was essentially what we lived on, I learnt to manage my expectations and spending. 

    We also started a system where he had to approve financial decisions. We agreed that he was better with money, so it made sense for him to manage it. I couldn’t just use the money he gave me to cook to buy bags. Plus, he’d even see it sef.

    Joe: As if that always stopped you. 

    Screaming. Did this approval dynamic continue after marriage?

    Joe: Yes. We dated for two years and got married in 2013. Our alignment on money matters helped make the decision to start a family much easier, so we just continued that way. 

    Phoebe: I worked as a school administrator for two years after we got married. During that time, we agreed that I’d be sending my ₦75k salary to his account for transparency. I resigned from the job when I got pregnant because I kept falling sick. I haven’t worked at a 9-5 since then. We have two kids now, and I take care of them full-time.

    What’s a one-income household like?

    Joe: It is a lot of planning and transparency. She knows what I earn, and she also helps me to manage it. I currently earn ₦250k, and 90% of that goes into the home. I give her a ₦90k monthly allowance that covers feeding, the kids’ clothing and any home emergencies and ₦30k for her personal needs. Then I pay for things like fuel and electricity and save ₦50k monthly with ajo contributions to cover the children’s school fees and our ₦300k/year rent.

    Nairalife #260 monthly expenses

    Phoebe: I almost always go back to him for feeding money before month’s end because of how expensive things have gotten. It usually lasts three weeks max. Can you imagine that the feeding allowance was ₦50k in 2019, and I hardly spent it all in a month? If you think about it too much, you’ll just start crying.

    I feel you. What’s the most difficult thing about a one-income household?

    Joe: Definitely the flow of money. It won’t hurt to have extra income. We’ve been considering business ideas for her that could help but also not take her attention away from the home too much. 

    Phoebe: We’ve actually agreed on wholesaling and retailing bags online, but I’ll need like ₦150k to start. We don’t have that kind of disposable income right now, so we’re just making do with what we have.

    Joe, you mentioned you’re a first child. What’s black tax like?

    Joe: Phoebe, oya answer. You’re the one always promising money to our family members.

    Phoebe: Fortunately, our families don’t ask for money like that, and there’s no monthly obligation. But I think it’s our responsibility to also offer financial help sometimes, especially during joint events which don’t even happen often. The only other expenses are random ₦10ks here and there. Do you want them to think I’m the only one spending your money?

    How would you describe each other’s relationship with money? 

    Joe: She’s clearly the spender, but it’s interesting how she’s evolved from almost reckless spending to weighing the importance of things before spending on them. She also allows me to lead in everything, especially money, and I appreciate that.

    Phoebe: I owe my improved spending habits to his insistence on transparency. He’s very open and analytical about his finances, and I have no choice but to be the same. He’s also very big on providing. I can’t relate to all those Facebook and Twitter discussions that keep asking what women bring to the table. My man doesn’t care. He’s thinking about how to fill the table.

    Energy. What’s one thing you want that’d make your relationship even better?

    Joe: A house and a better job. If I had a ₦500k/month salary and didn’t have to think about rent, we’d have some extra income to do some of the things she likes. She’s been complaining about how we never go on dates anymore. Plus, our children will enter secondary school in the next three years. So, even more school fees to think about.

    Phoebe: Money to start a business. If not for anything, but to have some cash to surprise him once in a while. It’s difficult to surprise him with gifts because he knows how much I have at every point, and if the money reduces, he can immediately tell I’m planning something. 

    Out of interest, would you ever go back to the 9-5 life?

    Phoebe: I want to say maybe when my kids are older, but let’s face it. Young graduates hardly get jobs. What chances would a mother with more than a decade-long career gap have?

    Joe: Honestly, I don’t want her to have to worry about that. Let her just be chopping my money.

    God, when? Is there anything you wish you could be better at financially?

    Joe: Side hustles. Nigeria is too expensive to have one income source. I’m already into real estate on the side — I work as a part-time agent, facilitating land sales with a family friend’s real estate company — but I haven’t made much in commissions from it because I haven’t had time to go for site visits and network with potential clients. But I plan to be more intentional this year.

    Phoebe: I think I just want to be better at contributing something to our income. Anything.

    How would you rate your financial happiness on a scale of 1-10?

    Joe: 5. We can only afford the necessities right now. I dread the day an emergency comes and wipes out everything we have.
    Phoebe: God forbid, please. Mine is also 5. We aren’t begging, but we need to earn more to be able to afford a reasonably good life for our kids.

    If you’re interested in talking about your Naira Life story, this is a good place to start.

    Yes, I want to do a Naira Life

    Find all the past Naira Life stories here.

    [ad]

    Tife Oni

    ,
    , , , ,