From Tumultuous to Terrific: my 2017 review

This was no joke.

I couldn’t find my laptop. My baby.

After inspecting the windows and doors for a breakage, it was obvious this was an inside job. My laptop had been stolen from…… Well, this is why my 2017 review will take a slightly different dimension thanks to this wicked, annoying, freaking lesson-full plot twist and I cannot wait to share the inside story of how my 2017 went from Tumultuous to Terrific.

First of all, introduction:

Every year, for the past 4 years, I have written a comprehensive review of my year (2016, 2015, 2014, 2013). It serves the dual purpose of inspiring you to join me in touching lives, making a difference and smashing records while highlighting my thoughts/contributions to nation building and entrepreneurship.

It’s 2017 baby!

From becoming a Tony Elumelu fellow to organizing Africa (and perhaps the world’s) biggest orphanage outreach and from becoming an international Facebook Trainer to graduating from the Enterprise Development Centre of Pan Atlantic University, it’s safe to say I had a phenomenal 2017. Like your 2017, I had my highs and lows too and here is how a seemingly tumultuous year switched to airplane mode:

Awards, Nominations, International platforms & more!

Fellow, Tony Elumelu foundation

One weekend in March, I was at home with my Sister in Festac after a very tough week. My account was red, business was dull and I tried taking up a job in a bitter-sweet experiment that lasted one week.

I knew the Tony Elumelu foundation was going to announce the list of the selected 1,000 entrepreneurs for the fellowship (which includes training via Accenture & up to $10,000 in grant) but I didn’t take it seriously because I had applied in 2016 with nothing to show for it.

I mindlessly scrolled down the list only to see ‘Ogunbowale Olugbenga’. I had been selected as 1 of the 1,000 Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurs whose ideas will shape Africa! My sister & I screamed & jumped.

It paid off…..the sleepless nights working on my business plan and my TEF application.

The TEF selection was the pat on the back and the shot in the arm I desperately needed to get back on my feet and make business work.

Fast forward to October and I participated in the TEF Forum, rubbing shoulders with 999 other TEF entrepreneurs from across Africa and of course, the most exceptional business leaders ranging from Dangote to Oba Otudeko.

The picture you are seeing did not happen by chance.

Every year, TEF uses a particular picture in all major communications and I definitely wanted to be in the 2017 official picture of Tony Elumelu with fellows. So, I stayed woke.

When David, the official photographer announced that we would be taking pictures with Tony, so many people were nonchalant but I went straight to the spot. A lady came to stand where Tony would eventually stay.

Other fellows just walked by to take selfies with Tony. When the time came, Tony took his place, and even though the lady in front of me tried to block me, I tiptoed and got the picture of my life!

If you’re applying for the 2018 cohort, drop your email as a comment and I’ll send you an audio recording of the GET Funded training, for free!

International trainer, Facebook + She Leads Africa

Sometime in March, I applied as a trainer for Facebook & She Leads Africa. I had put in a powerful application and the Google Hangout interview was straightforward for me: I was confident and gave concrete examples. Immediately Mensimah asked if I would be available for the ‘Train the trainer’, I knew I was in. I was very excited to have made the final list of 15!

The train the trainer held at British Council Lagos. The Accra training also held at British Council.

I had a great time in Accra, and I will never forget the exclusive La Tante DC 10 restaurant!

My first ever flight was to Kaduna to facilitate a Facebook training. And it felt very special (village boy don fly o!)

Even though I have flown multiple times since then, I will never forget my first flight. I had to ask Henry, my neighbor, how to strap the seat belt (which was different from those of a car).

My first flight outside Nigeria was also courtesy Facebook & She Leads Africa. I facilitated international digital marketing classes in Accra, my first time of teaching a class that had Africans, Europeans and Asians. And as you can imagine, it was all expenses paid. 5 star hotel, personal driver etc

My first train ride was from Kaduna to Abuja to catch a flight, also courtesy Facebook.

The Ibadan training was epic too! I met Ronke Giwa (OAP at Splash fm) and Mr Bajo (a regional director at MTN) during one of those classes and that particular meeting has led to multiple appearances on Splash fm and a collaboration with MTN.

Associate Fellow, Royal Commonwealth-Society UK

On the 12th of April, I was recognized as an exceptional young leader in the Commonwealth by the Royal Commonwealth-Society UK. It felt so good to be recognized for touching lives.

Firsts Baba Isa Business/Entrepreneurship award

In December, I was nominated for the Firsts Baba Isa Entrepreneurship/Business award.

President/Graduand BET6, Enterprise Development Center, Pan Atlantic University

In an election that threatened to tear the class apart, I navigated the murky political waters to win by 3 votes. A particular coalition had decided I was not going to win and I was not about to give up. After watching all the seasons of House of Cards and some seasons of Scandal, I was determined to activate the ‘Politician’ in me. First, I appointed Hannah Bassey as my campaign chairman, brought in Umar Dansadau as my chief strategist and lobbied every single person who didn’t want a candidate forced upon them. Like I saw in the movies, we counted votes and did’t bother reaching out to the tiny coalition that badly disliked my candidacy. We focused on keeping those on our side and convincing the undecided to port to our side. It worked.

On the 30th of January 30, I was elected as the President of BET6 to lead a class of the top 50 emerging entrepreneurs in Nigeria.

Building Entrepreneurs Today (BET) is an initiative of Diamond Bank and the Enterprise Development Center of the Pan Atlantic University.

On the 8th of December, I graduated with a certificate in Entrepreneurial Management. As the class president, I delivered a valedictory speech and we took tons of pictures courtesy the world famous TIA Photography.

The journey was an amazing one as we were taught by world class instructors, enjoyed free food and implemented the lessons in our businesses.

On the 24th of December, the class Vice President and a perfect gentleman, Dr Desmond, passed on after a brief illness.

I still can’t believe He is gone. Rest in peace bro. I will always love you.

IB Photo Tour

TIA Photography conceived a brilliant idea and subsequently partnered with Epower to bring street Photography to life.

Instead of just sitting at home watching some annoying broadcast, we brought together professional and aspiring photographers and stormed the streets of Ibadan to take lovely pictures.

Media Appearance

Apparently, thousands listened to my Splash fm interview where I shared on Entrepreneurship and personal development.

I had participated in several radio interviews but this was special. Hundreds bombarded me with Whatsapp messages and phone calls.

One of those people, Prince, turned out to be a TEF alumnus and He linked me up with another Alumnus who invited me to Metro Fm. I was live on Metro Fm 97.7 Lagos on Friday 1st Dec as a Tony Elumelu fellow and I shared my vision on food security for orphans and how December to Remember would empower 10,000 orphans across Africa.

Right after my return to Ibadan, I was interviewed at BCOS on Saturday Special. I shared my views on using technology to conquer unemployment.

I was very passionate on screen and used my script to a devastating effect. It’s true what they say: proper preparation precedes peak performance. I also met super cool panelists and got rave reviews after.

Sahara Group, via her CSR arm featured me in the maiden #XtrapreneursSeries. It was pretty explosive as I shared practical steps on growing a startup, especially keeping expenses under wraps and delivering tangible value.

Epower opened her doors!

It’s been a long time coming and finally, it happened. Epower opened her doors to the world in May. The Chief Operating Officer of Epower, Rasheed Ridwan played a huge role in getting our act together and with the support of our incredible team, we keep delighting our clients with digital marketing that works, connecting them with their preferred target audience using graphics, video, web and social media. In less than 7 months of launching our physical office, our revenue moved from thousands to millions. Our office has been described as ‘Aso Rock’. You definitely should come around anytime you’re in the beautiful city of Ibadan. Chops & drinks on us!

My sparking (or rather, Speaking) Engagements!

Disclaimer: I am a graduate of Obafemi Awolowo University so don’t be shocked at the list below.

On the 18th of January, I spoke at Junior Chamber International (OAU) entrepreneurship outreach to secondary school kids. I inspired over 300 kids to unleash their potentials.

On the 18th of February, I Spoke to Christ Ambassadors Student Outreach (CASOR) OAU Final Year Students on how to package their CV and land their dream job. Some 80 youths were present.

On the 4th of March, I spoke to the Final Year Students of Economics department, OAU on entrepreneurship. Over 300 students were fired up for the future.

On the very day I returned from Accra, I went straight to Ibadan at LivingSpring Chapel to inspire about 300 kids at ‘Subscribed’.

I shared my stories and fired them up to read their books and smash records.

On the 11th of October, I spoke at Youth Capacity SUMMIT at conference center OAU.

Kehinde Awosusi kept tracking me and in the end, it was awesome sharing the stage with other heavyweights and inspiring over 100 youths.

I also spoke at RCCG Christ Covenant Parish, Lagos on ‘growing your idea into a business’ to over 50 youths.

I facilitated at GET Funded in Ibadan with over 150 youths in attendance.

I was invited to speak on the same subject at Start up Labs, Osun state. Via both platforms, I shared extensively on how young entrepreneurs can prepare a bulletproof application for the Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship program.

For several months, Gbenga Asaolu & I spoke on Lead City 89.1fm via Pacesetters Inspirational Series, inspiring people daily on leadership, business & branding via 5 mins messages.

On the 30th of July, Pacesetters Leadership Club pulled off Ibadan’s biggest youth conference: Game Changer.

For the first time, I saw myself on a billboard…such was the scale of the publicity. As expected, the hall was filled up.

I spoke alongside inspiring speakers like Dele Aina and panelists like Gbenga Asaolu & Moses Amupitan. It was a wonderful experience. I made so many new friends and took loads of pictures. I have a weakness for pictures, if you don’t already know. I can snap for Africa.

At Activate Youth Camp 2017 (themed ‘divergent’), I could only spend 2 days our of 7 because of my international Facebook engagement but the 2 days were fun!

I taught graphics and inspired kids. Pastor Kikelomo Omooba’s vision of equipping 250 teens yearly with leadership skills is laudable and I will continue to support this vision in my own little way.

The Spectator to Spectacular Conference rocked.

It’s how I celebrate my birthday every September and give back to the community. By the way, I have started receiving gifts for September 8, 2018! Back to the Spec2Spec conference: Gbenga Asaolu & I lit up the stage with insightful presentations ranging from how to build your career to starting a business.

In July, I spoke at LifeFount Foundation leadership & business summit in Ilorin. Dr Yemisi Adeyeye treated me, alongside other heavyweight speakers to the finest hospitality possible, even the towel had my name on it!

The food was both delicious and palacious. Back to the summit: I taught over 200 business owners how to use digital marketing to grow their businesses and that particular summit led to multiple business deals for Epower. I’m glad I went with more than enough business cards because I barely met the demand.

Needless to say, Speaking at conferences or appearing on TV/radio is a win-win for everyone.

You share for free, actionable insight, incredible value, even inspire people, and in return, you get massive publicity while clients/partners come chasing after you.

There was a self-con

One of my key goals for the year was to move to a self-con in an estate around Akobo, Ibadan. I definitely wanted to forgo the pleasure of free food and the massive space my parents afforded for some privacy and real bachelorhood (as a single brother…lol) . In the first week of December, I moved, renovated the place to my taste with speed but barely 5 days after moving in, my laptop went missing.

I had just returned from Start Up Labs in Ile-Ife where I guided over 30 entrepreneurs on how to apply for the 2018 TEF application.

Of course, it felt unreal. This was no joke though. I couldn’t find my laptop.

After inspecting the windows and doors for a breakage, it was obvious this was an inside job. My laptop had been stolen from within the compound!

As it turned out, it was indeed my neighbor who somehow accessed a spare key that decided I didn’t need my laptop. The police did their work and arrested the exact person I suspected but there was still no concrete evidence. Barely 24 hrs later, Rasheed Ridwan asked me to take a look at my laptop via a whatsapp chat. Of course, I thought He was pranking me but this was for real.

Apparently, a sale had gone down and the buyer had requested to wipe the content of the laptop but He was unfortunate to pick the exact place where Rasheed’s brother was learning Computer Engineering.

Rasheed had mentioned to his brother that my laptop was missing and his brother had visited him at the office before so He had seen my laptop before. Immediately, we swung into action and the police helped make an arrest. Some arrests later and the case was linked to our prime suspect. I was glad to have my laptop back but sad to have lost a ton of files (recovery software could only do so much).

Movies/Shows

I cannot recollect all the movies I saw as my diary got wiped out alongside other vital documents in the laptop theft saga. Here are the exceptional ones:

The Apprentice:

Entrepreneurs scrambled to meet deadlines and literally built businesses from the scratch. I saw strategy & leadership in action. Donald Trump bossed the board room. If you don’t deliver, You’re fired!

Wedding Party 1!

Banky W and Adesuwa really delivered. Hilarious movie. Nice story. So glad they married each other in real life.

Kung Fu Panda Secrets of the Scroll

It was about courage and most importantly, recognizing supposed accidents as exciting destiny opportunities. Simply put, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade

Dr Strange

Discipline, Focus and most importantly, an insatiable quest for knowledge made manifest by a voracious reading of books and application of insight accelerated Dr Strange’s learning curve into a superhuman.

Boyka undisputed

The inspiring story of a legendary boxer who accidentally killed another boxer in the ring and travelled to Russia to meet the boxer’s wife (despite being a wanted man as an escaped convict in Russia and an invite to a mega tournament He had prepared for all his life) in search of redemption. Wonderful story.

Complete season 1, Designated Survivor

When a devastating attack on the night of the State of the Union address claims the lives of the president and most of the Cabinet, the Housing and Urban Development secretary (Keifer Sutherland) finds himself promoted to leader of the free world. Our Jack Bauer returned with a bang! Crazy suspense. This is not for the faint of heart. You have been warned.

December to Remember

Picture this: nearly 1,000 volunteers mobilized from across Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Uganda, Sierra Leone, Kenya, Namibia, UK, UAE & Tanzania with one goal: Empower 10,000 orphans with free medical care, 1 month of food supply and throw Africa’s biggest party for orphans.

It happened! Yes, we just delivered Africa (and perhaps the worlds) biggest orphanage outreach.

On 30th of December, we stormed orphanages across Africa. But, it wasn’t always this big.

Last year when I conceived the dream, I spoke with Hannah Bassey (currently the International coordinator) and Mololuwa Popoola (currently Nigeria’s coordinator), and together, we worked with 5 more coordinators and roughly 15 volunteers to reach nearly 300 orphans across 7 states in Nigeria.

This year, we raised the bar big time.

Heroes like Ifeoluwa Adeoti, our international medical director, Onyinye Daniel, our director of donations, Rasheed Ridwan, our international director of logistics, Mayor Smith our international director of social media, Kesinro Bukola our international director of media, other excos and all state coordinators toiled day & night, defied the odds and pulled out all the stops to make December to Remember a reality.

To all our partners and supporters: Bella Naija, Tribune, Wfm, Splash fm, Metro Fm, Breez fm, NTA, Safiya TV, Oodua fm, Kwara State Broadcasting Corporation, Ashdamsolar, Epower, Charles Wears, SEAP microfinance, Mr Bamidele AM stores & others: your support made it possible to reach thousands of orphans and millions of kind hearted Africans via the media.

Let’s do it bigger in 2018.

To all our donors across Africa, thank you for your generosity. Your kindness just guaranteed a hunger free January, improved health and a wonderful 2018 for thousands of orphans across Africa. 2017 is only a tip of the iceberg. This 2018, we will make the Guinness World Record official by delivering the world’s biggest orphanage outreach. Orphans, rejoice!

FINALLY…

I learnt a brutal lesson in backing up key stuff the hard way and I am now the biggest ambassador of Google Drive. Don’t wait till you lose stuff! Sync & back up now!

2017 also taught me the power of relationships. What you know is not enough. Who you know can open doors that would otherwise be shut. You also want to be on top of your game every single time. My relationships, exceptional delivery in conferences, seminars and media appearances kept opening doors for me. Our absolutely phenomenal creativity at Epower kept bringing us referrals.

While I may not have a badass breakdown of the number of movies I saw, books I read, or the ridiculous stunts I pulled, it was a great year for me and I do hope you have learnt a thing or two. I could not have achieved any of these without the incredible support of family & friends.

To my parents, Pastor & Deaconess Ogunbowale, thank you so much for your love. I love you to the moon and back. To my sister, Mrs Ovonlen Tomi for being a solid rock in 2017, may the good lord bless you real good. To the Epower team, we are only just getting started, we are taking over! I love you all like kilode. To Epower clients, thank you for your exceptional patronage. You are the reason we open our doors.

To the Pacesetter’s Leadership Club family, you keep me fresh & inspired, let’s go inspire Africa! To the December to Remember Family, let’s make the world record official. It’s time to make life better for hundreds of thousands of orphans across the world.

Let me end with a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson, ‘Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail’.

You are the chief architect of your future. Go make your 2018 amazing.

I love you. See you in 2019!

To learn more about Ogunbowale Olugbenga, click here

To learn more about Epower, Click here