On Writing

‘No one wants to read me’. That’s one of the key sentiment that stops a lot of people from writing publicly — the belief that no one wants to read what they have to say. However, in my case, I write like no one is reading.

I scribble to capture the moment. Or clarify my thoughts. Or share my opinions. I sometimes put things in writing when I’m happy, sad confident, uncertain, etc. In short, I write without thinking if anyone gives a damn about what I have to say. I just write.

My approach is quite simple — stay true to myself — while touching on a different spectrum of topics which fall within my competency range. So what have I deemed myself ‘competent’? Judging from 2017, the following:

PrognoStore: I wrote a fair bit about PrognoStore this year. Not so much externally, but a lot internally. For instance, I’ve been writing a fairly consistent internal weekly newsletter called the Monday Digest. I approach the Monday Digest as my primary brain dump of what’s happening, and others need to know about. Topics veer from sprint releases, hiring plans, a celebration of milestones, etc.

As our ambitions (& remote team) steadily grows (if you’re Java developer — we’re still looking for you — check us out), the need to communicate on where the ship is heading continues to be critical to attaining our goals.

Nigerian Startups Ecosystem: There’s so much going on in the Nigerian tech startups world. One way I’ve stayed plugged in is by curating an interview series — Quality Time — where I get to speak to founders, and they share their stories. I plan to do more of this in 2018 as part of BTNG work. I will also continue to write on various topics that intersect between Finance and leadership.

BTNG: Speaking of BTNG, I volunteer as one of the co-organisers of this fast growing community. It’s been an incredible experience helping to shape a community of Nigerians in London who happen to be tech nerds. I definitely enjoyed writing this piece for Bellanaija audience back in October about my experiences.

If you’re in London, you definitely should sign up to be notified of future events.

Family: True confession; I started this blog because I wanted to write about my family. I wanted a place to capture the moments. For example, I wrote about my daughter recently. Weirdly enough, I’ve not written about my dad who happens to be the person who gave me the courage ( 2x published author) to write and is the most brillant, yet most humble man I know.

Small Business Owners: I usually write a lot for business owners but for some reason, stepped off the gas in 2017. But, 2018 promises to be exciting for us at PrognoStore (hard work finally paying off), so I have a lot to share for the benefit of businesses.

So what does 2018 hold? Of course, I don’t know the specifics. But I intend to hone my writing craft. I want to be better. I’m not taking chances — I’ve signed up for a Faber Academy course. I want to have more words to capture how I feel or what I’m witnessing. Whatever happens, I will keep on writing like you’re not reading – so thanks for reading 😀!