BECOMING EMDEE; THE KING OF MOTIVATION.
Today, I intend to find things about you that I won’t find when I type “Emdee Tiamiyu” on Google. ‘Giggles’
Don’t worry, this is a celebration of your evolutions; the tiny steps that brought you this far. Welcome to Share Your Story, Emdee.
Thank you, Liza, it’s a pleasure.
Who are you — when you think of this question, what comes to mind?
I am Emdee Tiamiyu — a technologist by training, a speaker by birth and an inspiration by choice. I think of myself as a mortal on an eternal journey of helping other mortals fulfil their destinies while we are all busy figuring out the mysteries of life.
Tell me about your childhood
Rough! I was born into one of the most-troubled relationships in the world. My parents courted for well above 8 years, got married only to permanently separate after a few weeks. As you can easily guess, I wasn’t absolved of the consequences of the situations that followed that. To give you a hint, I ended up attending seven (7) different primary schools not because I failed any class, but because of so much commotion that preoccupied my childhood.
What was being a teenager like… all those emotions and uncertainty.
Being a teenager for me was filled with both fear and hope. Fear of the key characters in the ‘Game of Supremacy’ surrounding my upbringing who emotionally abused me to score cheap points and get accolades; hope for a future where I believed I would be free from the abuse and be able to overcome my fears and chase my dreams.
Was there a certain period when you just became super sure “this is what I’m going to be doing with my life”?
Not until lately. Growing up, I found joy in talking, reading to the class, debating topics (from religion to science to sports), cracking jokes for the class, engaging in verbal tussles and representing the school in presentations, debates and impromptu speaking contests. I had indescribable moments of bliss engaging in these activities and I was pretty sure I would find fulfilment in careers that involved lots of speaking or acting or both. After lots of self-learning and self-thought, I decided to take Public Speaking as a professional career in 2015.
What do you adore most about your younger self?
He was a seeker. A seeker of himself and new knowledge
If you had a room full of teenagers, their teachers and parents, what would you say to them?
The pursuit of human beings to progressively advance and improve the way of life is what makes us higher than other animals. Our ability to learn from yesterday, do better today while creating new possibilities of a brighter tomorrow is why we lead the rest of all living and non-living things. This is impossible without adequately exploring and developing the power of our minds. One of my teachers, Earl Nightingale, once said that “the only thing in a (wo)man that is a (wo)man is his/her mind; Everything else, you can find a horse or a pig.”
Dear Parents, never underestimate the power of your children’s mind. Children are curious and spontaneous by default; allow them! Answer ALL their questions and feed their quests to know more. It also helps if you get on a journey of personal development yourself. Personal development will help you stay informed and equipped with new knowledge always. In situations when you don’t have answers to your children’s questions, provide an alternative source of accurate answers through digital tools and knowledgeable personnel. If possible, find mentors and pay coaches for your kids to help them with their self-discovery and personal development.
Dear Teachers, you have the most important job in the world. It is a crucial, delicate and life-saving job. I don’t envy you at all. Do everything within your capacity to help your students grab practicable knowledge and chase their dreams. You have the rare opportunity of building solid foundations for our collective future and keeping your name in the good books of history. Thank you for choosing to do this tasking job on behalf of the population.
Dear Teenagers, do not let fear stop you from chasing your dreams — you have a right to be motivated!
Tell me about Emdee at University — what were you like?
Not a regular student. I was entrepreneurial, I had to be. In my first week in school as a fresher, I had a crisis from home that pushed me to source for income that could pay for my academic and personal needs. It was my umpteenth crisis, but that particular one got me so shattered and depressed that I had to switch off my phone for an entire week so no one from home would be able to reach me. While I realized that switching off my phone and becoming incommunicado would only help me hide from my oppressor and heal temporarily, I knew it wouldn’t pay the bills looming in front of me. So, I had to come up with an income generation plan — no matter how small. First things first, I resolved to stop receiving funds from my dad because it came with lots of humiliation and an unexplainable emotional abuse that still rings in my head. Luckily for me that weekend, I got an opportunity to trade. With zero capital or funds, I managed to convince the publisher of a new “Past Examination Questions & Answers Guide” brand to give me 30 copies to go sell to my classmates. The condition was that I, like any other salesperson, would sell at 150 Naira (about 1.25 USD at the time) and remit 120 Naira. Hence, my profit was 30 Naira for each copy sold.
I wasn’t the only student (even in my Hall) who got copies of that particular Past Questions to sell, but without a doubt, I was the most determined to make money. I had a financial emergency — buying materials and manuals for upcoming laboratory tests — to meet that week and a resolution to not collect or receive money from home. While others took only 5–10 copies of the Past Questions Book to sell, I took 30 copies. With the little knowledge of marketing I had learned from my mentor back at home and instinctive guidance, I pulled a stunt on my classmates, got their attention and sold 25 copies of the Past Question in a single day. It was a super glorious day for me. I had learned a very critical life lesson that once you resolve to burn your bridges and move away from your comfort zone, you can ACHIEVE ANYTHING. Not so much of a profit, but it was a defining activity for me.
My life never went back to what it used to be before that. I kept up the energy and sold the remaining 5 copies the next day and continued to sell like that. This angered other salespersons who had the same merchandize (Past Examination Questions & Answers Guide) to sell in my class (Engineering Hall) and other halls but haven’t been able to sell the few copies with them. They were even angrier because I had reduced the selling price for my merchandize by 5 Naira. I sold to most folks (our classmates) at 145 Naira instead of the stipulated 150 Naira. Turned out that most of my customers didn’t’ mind me keeping the change — usually because 5 Naira notes weren’t very available and because they could afford to leave it for this poor trader boy (me). I used price differentiation and emphasis on the need to attract my classmates and turned hostile strangers to paying customers. It worked! Although I later got funds for the laboratory test from home (my dad) I couldn’t get back to the older version of me again. That one week of staying off connection had destroyed my old fearful self and birthed a new me. It was therapeutic!
From there I engaged in lots of other business ventures including selling groceries (students’ stationery and day-to-day needs) in the hostel and hawked them in school. I processed (sand-fried), packaged and sold groundnuts while in school to raise funds for myself and put to practice all I had learned about entrepreneurship. I did these things not because I lacked a source of money, but because I was trying to break free. I was largely successful but dumped all my petty business to start a tutorial business. It was a foundational training centre for pre-degree students who were seeking admission through a special one-year program that prepped them, tested them and placed them into courses in the university based on their performance. This tutorial business flourished well as it was in tune with my core calling; teaching. After a series of hard work and perseverance, it soon became one of the biggest three (3) and most popular tutorial centres in LAUTECH Ogbomoso back then. With my tutorial business, I became an employer of labour. We usually had over 400 students in one stream sometimes, so we had to engage tutors most of whom were graduates and working-class teachers with experience. To give maximum time and attention to my business, I missed classes on purpose particularly from my third year (300 Level) through my final year (500 Level). I knew I was smart enough to catch up with whatever I missed in class. It was a tough decision but turned out to be the right one.
In 2017, there was a case of police brutality against you. What inspired you to keep fighting for justice even though you could have let it slide?
Injustice is one of the things I dislike the most. I can’t hold on or watch on in the face of oppression and injustice, I just can’t. Against the popular opinions and assertions that justice is difficult, almost impossible to get in Nigeria, I decided to fight for my civil rights. After multiple attempts, flaws in the legal, security and accountability systems became obvious to me, and I eventually saw sense in the general opinion that this isn’t a country for justice seekers. The systems failed me, as they were designed to — I had to let things slide. I wrote a thread on the entire case using #Justice4Emdee on Twitter.
Can you call yourself an assertive person? If yes, how did you become assertive because being assertive is not something school or society just gifts to you?
I wouldn’t say I am completely assertive in the full sense of the word. By dictionary definition, an assertive person wouldn’t upset others. In my opinion, that’s tough to achieve especially in today’s world where people get offended for almost everything — including you having an opinion. I would fairly describe myself as a confident person and I think I grew to be that from all of the years of bullying and emotional abuse I have had to endure.
Do you ever have stage frights?
Nope! The stage is where I come alive. I am in tune with the stage. I live for moments on the stage. Why should I be frightened? I love to speak and to act (Performing Arts). I still want to be a part of a theatre group performing live to audiences. While I am conscious of the role of preparation in presentations and careful of not being over-confident, I am never afraid of the stage or the crowd around it.
I know you make work look fun but bro… King of motivation, Public Speaker, Vlogger, Global Shaper, Toast Master, Girong … let me just stop… How do you hold all these? It’s like you never have the struggle the rest of us have (laughs)
Simple dear. Live one day at a time. There are times when these things clash. So you have to choose which one to commit to per time. I don’t have it all sorted out, but if you have long-term goals and you are committed to growth, you will find direction to what best worths your time and energy per time and hopefully it would all make sense in the end. We live life forward, we understand it backwards. So, I wouldn’t describe myself as smart yet. Let’s keep pushing and see what life brings.
You spend a lot of time speaking. How did you get into technology such as Virtual Reality and all its accomplices?
Well, I studied Computer Science (by accident), so I have a first degree in technology. Spent a lot of my early university days trying to cross-over to medical school all to no avail. I eventually talked myself into appreciating my “accidental” course and ended up finding the essential importance of tech in the scheme of things and how it enables all other fields of life and sectors of business. If you add that discovery to me being an explorer and you multiply it by my openness to new knowledge, you will get what makes up the journey with Virtual Reality and other new tech frontiers.
What is the secret recipe young professional should have?
Stay true to your dreams. Hustle, not just to get money but to feed your dreams.
Are there days when you just want to throw in the towel? What are those moments like?
Everyone has those. Bad days exist so we can appreciate good days. Sad days exist so we can appreciate happy days. We all have to learn to enjoy this salad called life.
How have you managed to power up through all that overwhelm?
- Taking time off. Sometimes bad days are indications we need to relax, reflect and rejuvenate.
- Speaking to friends and family members who care: opening up to the right individuals about the situations you are going through. They may not have the right answers to your problems, but their ability to listen may be all the therapy you need.
Was there any major event that changed the direction of your life? If yes, how did you survive?
The moments during the week I started my entrepreneurial journey as a freshman in the university, as explained earlier, were defining moments for me. I would go into trance-like meditation sessions and sometimes be woken up by the horns of a car. Alas, I was thinking right on the road!
Mention 3 books that have refined your person.
- “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie
- “Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Original Version” by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen & Sharon J. Wohlmuth
- “Life in Half a Second” by Mathew Michalewicz
This is a room full of youngsters like us. Say something we should never forget to us.
Regardless of what life and people turn themselves to, you have a right to be motivated.
Social Media: @EmdeeTiamiyu (everywhere)
Youtube: youtube.com/c/emdeetiamiyu
