Chika Jonah Writes

Tag: lifestyle

  • How I left NYSC with a whooping sum of money

    This post is the answer to majority of the questions I got from the last post “How in Gods name did I make such an amount during NYSC?

    So sit tight and ride along with me.

    After my hunger experience which I shared with y’all in my last post I made a decision never to go hungry.

    And for that to happen I needed money.

    I went from company to company, I had nothing but zeal and desire. No experience no relations no connections. Just me in an unknown state.

    After days of searching I walked into a construction company far from my house and told them I was a copper and I needed a job.

    I was fortunate enough to meet the Owner of the business. He asked me a lot of questions about myself. Which I answered with a smile on my face.

    Y’all know my smile is contagious laughs

    He then went further to ask me, since I was a copper how was I going to properly deliver here. I replied that I only go to my PPA three times a week during the morning hours so by 12 noon I should be at work and the remaining days I’d also resume at the usual time.

    I left with the “we’ll get back to you” statement which made me feel less hopeful.

    I still went to a mall that day but they said they were full.

    The next morning I woke up with a phone call “Come to work now!”. And the call ended.

    “Are you kidding me, what kind of person gives someone a job on the phone and asks the person to resume immediately the call ends”. I complained. Obviously irritated.

    I rushed out. I can’t remember if I even had my bath that morning haha. I just wanted to find out if it was real or just a prank.

    I went and lo and behold it was real.

    I had a job.

    But…

    I never knew it was going to be a very stressful one with…of course, a lot of benefits.

    Salary was Ten thousand naira monthly as a copper. Then I was to be given 500 everyday for lunch. And some days I and my colleaque were provided with lunch and much more to eat. My boss was Igbo but the northerners were very hospitable.

    I know you’re wondering how it came to a whooping sum of three hundred thousand naira with bills to pay, transport and feeding.

    Let me indulge you

    I was receiving NYSC allowance of Nineteen thousand, eight hundred niara. Also my salary was Ten thousand niara. For the remaining ten months I never touched my salary and my allowance. So how did I survive?

    On my 500 daily lunch money and tips.

    I worked under the scorching sun supervising general merchandise. I spent time climbing trucks counting goods. I was always inside the warehouse during offloading and onloading of goods. And if the laborers weren’t around. I did their job and mine. It was gruesome, hard and unimaginable.

    No one believed I’ll do the work of a man. But I did it perfectly well. Clients saw this and constantly blessed me. My boss saw this and blessed me once in a while, even though he could be very annoying hahaha Aren’t all bosses that way?

    At the end of each day I left work with nothing less than One thousand five hundred, that is if few clients come in. Most days it was between three to five thousand. And it was that money I lived on. It was more than enough and I even had extra change. Do the maths.

    I enjoyed myself. There’s nothing sweeter than spending money you worked hard for. So I spent it well. Food was excess. I fed my student once a week. I never lacked my basic amenities. Helped in church. Had fun once in a while since I was a private person. Cooked to my hearts content. I was constantly sending bags of yam and fish to Portharcourt. Life was okay. I saved almost everything I could.

    If there’s anything to take home from this story its;

    Have multiple streams of income

    If I had only depended on allowance I would have left NYSC with nothing. And how would I have survived at home while job hunting?

    Word of mouth

    Word of mouth is still the most effective form of marketing. Understand your potential and spread the word.

    Save to start up, don’t borrow

    Save. If you don’t know how to. Learn. Its not as difficult as it seems. Work with a savings calendar. Have an achievable goal. Fix the duration. Fix the amount. No amount is too small. Hundred naira every day for one year can get you two bags of rice for Christmas. One thousand naira every day for a year can get you half plot of land in some cities. Don’t underestimate the power of 1.

    Writing this story and reliving its memiries now, has inspired me to rekindle that work fire I once had. Because its clear I’ve lost it. I seriously want to ignite that hustling spirit in me once again and build the kind of life I truly desire.

    How was NYSC for you? Are you still serving? what are your thoughts on this post? What have you decided to do positively from now on? What lessons did you learn? Share them in the comments below

  • The Singing Wheelbarrow; She danced in return.

    That faithful day on my way home, all I could think of was just coming home to relax and maybe prepare something quick for dinner because I felt so tired and sore, but that couldn’t just happen. I was met with something that could ruin my perfectly planned evening and leave me more sore than before.

    The minute I walked in I was welcomed with piles of ceiling board scattered everywhere. I was glad the repairs we were waiting for was finally done until I realized I’d be the one to clean up all the mess which made me frown. That thought hadn’t sank in when I heard mummy’s voice.

    “Drop your bag and quickly dispose those”. She said.

    “Dispose what?”, my eyes grew wide the minute I looked and saw how enormous it was, “Jesus! This plenty thing”.I exclaimed.

    “Is it this small thing that you’re calling plenty?. She replied staring at me in a typical African mother style.

    “But mummy we can give it to the scrap dealers, they’d find it useful”. I suggested still trying to dodge the chore.

    “Chika are you listening to yourself ? Have you ever heard of someone using an already used ceiling board? Its as good as useless so you’ll have to throw them away.

    “That means I’ll have to use a wheelbarrow”, because I knew there was no way in the world I’d be able to carry them with my tiny hands. I said slowly already dreading the experience.

    “Yes. There’s no other way Chika. You can’t avoid pushing the wheelbarrow today, so start now”.She said finally and walked inside. While I stood there dreading my fate, almost near tears.

    Where would I start from? How would i carry this all the way to the highway? What if i take the wrong step and the whole thing falls to the ground? I began grumbling and murmuring as I packed them inside the wheelbarrow.

    I began to question everything that could go wrong. Automatically my mind saw how big the problem was and blocked every opportunity of ever seeing how little it could turn out to be.

    I had accepted to push the wheelbarrow but would I reach my destination? Who knew?

    I held the handle firmly and lifted it up ready to move and the weight of the barrow broke my resolve yet again.

    I just pushed forward till suddenly the wheelbarrow started making sounds and I almost cried,”Oh God! This too”. I whispered.

    Someone even shouted “Chika this your wheelbarrow na case oh”.I almost opened the ground to enter (laughs).

    I knew the noise was due to its rusted nuts and being kept for years without been used.

    I continued pushing faster and faster and after some time suddenly, the sounds became hilarious, the sounds began forming a ridiculous rhythm.

    I was no longer frowning. I started dancing, not only that, I began laughing and humming to the sound it made (it was just so crazy). After that I formed a chorus and started singing and everyone thought I had gone mad. They laughed at me, waved and moved on. It felt nice.

    I did that till i saw my neighbor and he was going in the same direction so we walked side by side and engaged in an amazing conversation; reminiscing about my childhood and how I used to sit inside an empty wheelbarrow and tell my uncles (every tall man was an uncle to us) to push me while I jumped inside – laughs.

    As a child in the streets, a wheel barrow was like a mini car to me then, and we burst into laughter that before I realized it, i was home.


    I couldn’t believe it. I was happy. I leaped for joy at how easy it was. The next question that popped into my head was; why then did I think it was so difficult and so big to carry in the first place?

    Because I made my mind to think so. Because my mind thought so, I believed so and acted accordingly.

    The only good thing was that I didn’t ignore it. I did not run away like I wanted to. I did not procrastinate. I faced it head on. I pushed and I conquered. If I had looked away, if I hadn’t said yes, I wouldn’t have realized that I could do it and that it was not as difficult as it presented itself to be.

    Whether we like it or not problems would always be there. Resistant forces there to prevent you from successfully completing your goal. The reason why we hate them is because they make things so difficult. They get in the way of our plans. But like what you just read from the story. Don’t run. They can be conquered and you can’t know that until you walk through it.

    While you walk through it have fun in the process.

    Just like I had fun laughing at my silliness and singing together with my wheelbarrow. Have fun as you climb that mountain because a mountain that is easy to walk up is not fun to climb.

    Enjoy the challenge

    Whether its business, marriage, relationship or health challenge, bring God into it and you’ll find joy in the success.
    “Nothing in life is really fun unless you have something to laugh about”

    How has this story related to you? What decision would you make after reading this story? I would love to hear from you. Let’s talk in the comment section. Love and hugs ❤ xoxo.

  • 5 things you would never know about me

    1) I hate it when my nails break

    I got natural clean nails from my dad. Since I’m used to having them long since I’ve never cut them before, it really pisses me off when they get cracked and eventually break. It ruins my mood.

    2) I sleep this way almost every night

    Funny right? Don’t blame me. Since I’m looking like a big lady, rubbing powder all over my face before going to bed makes me feel like a child. And I sleep more comfortably sleeping that way. I also forgot to add that the smell of powder fills my nostrils with calm and peace.

    3) I haven’t fixed a hair in two years cuz I hate them.

    I hate the fact that I have to comb and comb and oil and knot and do all this stuff just to get one hair ready. I’m impatient so I end up ruining my hair. And I hate the heat, weavons give me unbearable heat and makes me scratch my neck all the time. So I dumped it and focused on carrying braids.

    4) I don’t like jean pants

    They make me look really cool and sexy but I don’t like them because they make me sweat all the time. And anything that makes me sweat is a no no for me. Wearing them can draining at times. You have to push in your legs and drag and drag till they eventually reach your waist. Ain’t got no strength for that.

    5) I sleep on the ground 350 nights out of 365 nights of the year.

    Not because I don’t like my bed but because I feel more comfortable on the floor. The floor is always cold, it’s hard and it’s more wider and limitless which makes it all the more sweet. Plus I’ve gotten used to it, since I slept on the floor as a child.

    I’m sharing this not because I want to share my inner happenings with the world but because I want you to think differently about yourself and people.

    When you meet people or friends don’t see the perfection they display in front of them. You should realize there’s a lot of mess in their lives that make that outer look so perfect.

    Including you too

    Who said those weird excesses you have ain’t cute. They are. They may seem awkward and strange to the world but they make you comfortable and calm so indulge in them. Embrace your silliness and childishness.

    In the same light share those strange/bizarre habits you have that no one knows about by dropping a comment and let’s have fun.

    P/S – Keep praying and stay safe.