Once upon a time, I went for a job interview. When I got there, I met three others who were interviewing for the same job. We all struck a conversation and I found out that two of them schooled abroad, and one attended Covenant University. Fam, that was when I began to wonder whether to carry my bag and just go home. After all, who wants to be told no, why wait for them to slam the door in my face?
The thing is, I had my University education in a state school in Eastern Nigeria, in fact one of those state schools that you don’t bother mentioning in detail because no one really knows the place, and no one really applies there. So, you see, when compared with these other people with their international qualifications, my mind was already conjuring my rejection letter. #Sigh.
While I was waiting for my turn and still low key pretending to gist with the other candidates, I texted my elder brother and told him I might as well just return home. And then, he said something that changed the game. Till today I still hold on to that sentence. It was nothing exceptional, to be honest; just a string of encouraging words: “Don’t count yourself out for any reason. See it through.” Then he reminded me that I was smart and had the experience for the job. At the end, just like he said, I got the job based on my previous professional experience.
To me, the winning part of that statement was the last part: see it through. We can believe in our journeys and surround ourselves with people who give us necessary pep talks, but at the end of the day, what sets us in the cause of our desired outcome is that ability to stay in the race, to keep our dog, as they say, in the fight. Yes, even when it looks like we are not winning, or like in my case earlier, like we are not qualified.
I remember when I was in University, I had a friend who wanted to be a model. She was lean and pretty, but she just wasn’t tall enough. Her height didn’t deter her though, she went for audition after audition. One time, she saw a call and by the time she got there, she realized there was a minimum height requirement. Instead of packing her bags to save time and avoid embarrassment, she figured that since she was already there, she might as well see it through. Omo! The rest is history o. The agency took her and made her a face model. Her face is on cosmetic products in Nigeria.
So, let me lend you the words my brother gave me many years ago. Don’t count yourself out. See things through. So many times, we give up prematurely because of fear or intimidation or because we think that the people in the position we want have certain privileges that we don’t and could never have. We say we won’t apply for jobs because we don’t meet all the requirements. We cannot start businesses because we don’t have wealthy parents or relatives. We didn’t attend the right schools etc. etc. There will always be excuses to hold you back. But there can be no reward without risk. Sis, please, put yourself out there. apply, go for interviews, reach out to professionals in that field and ask questions. If you think you don’t have the skills, learn on YouTube. There are also free courses on Coursera and other avenues to learn and improve on your knowledge. If you can dream it, then the probability that you can do it is very high. Go for it. Don’t count yourself out of opportunities!