Jake and Mike
Pay attention to unconventional details in your life
One wet, Monday, afternoon in July 2019, I shared the back seat of a taxi with two young men.
As I listened to their conversation as the taxi head on the road, I got to gradually know who my fellow passengers were.
The older one (let’s call him Jake) was about 27 years and 6 feet tall, a graduate of Human Kinetics five years earlier than the younger one (let’s call him Mike). Mike was about 24 years old and 5 feet 6.
Jake works as a tax collector for the government of his State of Kwara in Nigeria. Mike, on the other hand, had completed his NYSC.1
Mike had also managed a bar, as a side hustle, while on his national assignment. Now, he was entering the real world, freed from the constraints of the NYSC. He was heading for a job interview.
Jake gave Mike advice on many topics, but one of them got my attention and made me close the book I was reading to listen to him explain his point.
“Listen to this piece of advice from a brother”, Jake said. His eyes were lit up, right palm on Mike’s right thigh as if to stress the wisdom in what he was about to say.
And looking at Mike in the eyes, he said, “God does not answer people’s prayers in Nigeria, instead it is people who answer people’s prayers!”
He noticed the incredulous look on Mike’s face. (Myself I looked at him, shocked at his statement.)
“Remember what I’ve told you”, he reassured him.
He then offered to explain his point using himself as an example.
“Let me tell you how I got my job as a tax collector”, he said.
So, he began his story.
The story
Jake explained how he went to work feeling depressed each day, how the only time he felt happy was 5p.m. (the time he closed from work), or when he had been sneaking out a year before to attend classes for his MBA.
He explained how he lost money to job interviews; how he spent his lean earnings on courier agencies to mail application letters, to buy call credit to his phone and Wi-Fi to stay up-to-date on latest job adverts.
He recalled doing other things, including favors, giving bribes, fasting and praying, and showing up at religious gatherings. That he did all these for more than 4 years.
He then told the story of how he got his job with the tax agency.
“I got this job in the gym”, he said.
"... in the gym".
Jake and his friend used to use this particular gym on weekends and public holidays. Jake’s friend paid the bills, and in return, Jake trained him. Because there were few trainers in the gym, Jake also started training others along with his friend.
He would show them a few simple exercises to do at home and in their offices—in fact, wherever they can find some space and comfort. Because he studies Human Kinetics, this also gave him an edge over some of the trainers.
And in less than 6 months at the gym, he had befriended almost everybody at the gym—including staff and customers. And they were generous to him—the customers especially.
“But the tips the customers and staff were giving me were not regular and meager forme to make a living”, he said.
“After all, I will show up one weekend and not show up till another weekend. And my friend, weekend is when the big boys and girls show up—with their friends, partners, and some their families”, he said.
Because he was not earning enough to make a living from his work in the gym, he had invested most of his tips on his job hunt. According to Jake, he wanted to live the best life possible for himself.
But deep down in his heart he knew he needed a major breakthrough in life to live the life he aspires. Getting a job that promises a fat paycheck seemed the only way out for him. And he was determined to pursue it.
“One day a gym user I had trained asked me why I didn’t show up at the gym for two weekends in a row”, he said.
Jake explained to the fellow that he travelled to attend two job interviews during those weekends.
“Oh! Are you still job hunting, you mean? Or are you looking for greener pastures? Which one of them?” She asked.
“Job hunting”, he said.
“For how long?”
“Four years”.
According to Jake, she rolled her eyes, knowing stories like Jake's are common across the country. But then she asked him if he would like to work with the State’s tax agency.
According to Jake, he is not a native of the State. And he told her the truth.
“That’s not an issue”, she said.
Jake knew that that was a big issue. Tribal and religious sentiments in Nigeria are like racial sentiments in Europe and America, for examples. But he agreed to take a bet on her assurances.
That day, he introduced two new workout drills to celebrate his fortune.
The next Monday, she called him to drop his CV and an application letter with her secretary. A week later he was interviewed and wrote a test on Thursday. The following Tuesday, he started a two-week in-house course. And in April 5th 2018 he signed his first paycheck.
As of the time we met in the taxi, Jake was already bored with his job. He has started his MBA program and a part-time side hustle in a gym he co-own with the lady, and his friend.
Application to strategy
I do not have details of Jake's background and childhood, but can infer from his story that he has been on a mission. He seemed to have had a picture of how he wanted his life to be and mean.
But he had been erratic on how he pursued his life’s work/goal. This was evidenced in the numerous jobs he had applied and interviews he had attended—perhaps in hope that he would start a business from a paid job.
Jake’s story showed that he had been unlucky—or perhaps he was being prepared for something higher.
But the following were the unconventional details that Jake did not pay attention to until later:
First was his apprenticeship at college in Human Kinetics (Yours could be an apprenticeship in a different task entirely--either before, during, or after college.).
Second and most important were: Jake’s relentlessness in the face of misfortune, which showed how far he can be driven and adapt to circumstances.
He was consistent and dependable: He showed up almost every weekend at the gym. He displayed leadership and creativity: He introduced new drills and designed workout exercises every week.
And he was empathetic and strategic—for example, he decided to use his skills to help people for free--and allow his skills to spread from one person to another person through word of mouth (This took time, but he was patient and relentless).
He showed he can be passionate, patient, and adapt to events and life's challenges--without losing focus on the task at hand: for example, though he lived on tips, he could still gave his best to his friends and colleagues at the gym. He was also visionary, using the gym to apprentice as a trainer—and excelling at it.
These qualities of Jake were why he was missed when he was again distracted to miss two weekends at the gym. But, as it turned out, the distraction this time was a blessing.
Finally, all what Jake had experienced in life paved way for him: the employment he wanted so desperately, the MBA he had begun, the gym start-up, and a full-time entrepreneurial career in no distant time.
Like Jake, what are your own unconventional details that you have not given (much) attention to?
As the cab pulled off the road beside Kwara State Internal Revenue Service (Phase 3)—Jake’s office block—, and as I watched him stepped out of the taxi into the afternoon rain and watched as his blue raincoat quickly faded into the gatehouse, I thought about what he must had seen in life that had inspired his self-professed creed: his belief in his circle of people of influence more than his belief in God.
I thought of the millions of people his age in Nigeria and around the world who go through even tougher experiences, yet are steadfast in their faith in God. I thought about those who will dismiss Jake’s views as silly, and those who will learn a few lessons from his story.
Like Jake, you can accomplish much for yourself and your team if you find opportunities to lead and manage people, and you are relentlessly resourceful at what you do.
Good luck, Mike!
The NYSC is a mandatory one year community service scheme designed for Nigerian graduates of universities and polytechnics at home and abroad aged under-30 to render various community services to their country.