Leadership and personal development experts have urged young Nigerians to build character, competence and other practical skills, describing them as essential for career success and effective leadership.
They said academic qualifications alone do not guarantee success and urged young people to invest in self-development, build meaningful relationships and acquire skills that solve problems and create value.
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The experts spoke on Saturday at the graduation of 15 participants, most of them National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members, who completed a three-month Life School Mentorship Programme at Prescient Court, Kaura District, Abuja.
One of the speakers, Victor Oshadare, a leadership and personal development trainer, described character as the foundation of credibility and trust. He said character, competence, commitment, communication and creativity also determine success in life and at work.
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“When everything has failed, if you still have character, you will still live,” he said, adding, however, that character alone is not enough without the ability to deliver results.
Mr Oshadare described competence as the ability to perform a task. He said knowledge strengthens competence and enables people to provide value that others will pay for. He also identified financial management, emotional intelligence and personal development as practical skills that improve competence.
On commitment, Mr Oshadare said success requires resilience and persistence despite setbacks. He described success as a continuous journey and urged participants to remain focused on solving problems.
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He also advised participants to build purposeful relationships and communicate with people who contribute to their personal and professional growth.
On creativity, Mr Oshadare urged the graduates to embrace continuous improvement and develop skills that create value. He said opportunities come to people who solve problems.
Also, the founder of the Life School Mentorship Programme, Joseph Audam, urged the graduates to treat their service year under the NYSC scheme as a period for self-development, networking and career preparation.
Mr Audam said graduation marked the beginning of a new phase of service and responsibility rather than the end of learning.
“You don’t get ready. You live ready,” he said.
He urged the graduates to explore opportunities, build relevant skills and make deliberate career decisions that align with their long-term goals. He also encouraged them to focus on creating value instead of pursuing money alone. He said meaningful relationships often open doors to future opportunities.
Graduates recount lessons from mentorship
Some graduates told PREMIUM TIMES that the mentorship programme changed how they approached business, careers and personal development.
Rita Akume said she joined the programme after she met Mr Audam during the NYSC orientation camp at a time when her business struggled under the burden of a loan.
She said the mentorship equipped her with practical business skills and renewed her confidence. According to her, the business later repaid the loan in full and recorded more than 20 per cent growth compared with previous years.
Another graduate, Omotoyosi Omole, said the programme taught her the importance of building meaningful relationships and making deliberate career decisions.
She said the lessons helped her secure her first job with a United Kingdom-based social media marketing and branding company through a referral. She later accepted a customer service role with a United States healthcare company.
Ms Omole said the mentorship also strengthened her confidence and communication skills. She added that those skills later helped her secure another position as a Business Support Officer with a United Kingdom-based company.
Dim Shalom, also a corps member and founder of The Brigade Initiative for Boy Child Development, said the mentorship reinforced his leadership skills and introduced him to new insights on honour, integrity, commitment, competence and relationship building.
He said the programme complemented his work of mentoring young boys to become self-aware and purposeful leaders and strengthened values that guide his work.
Background
According to the organisers, the Life School Mentorship Programme is aimed at equipping young people with practical lessons on character, leadership, financial intelligence, relationship management and other life skills that are often absent from formal education.
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The programme was introduced to interested corps members during the NYSC Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) public speaking class. Participants later enrolled in the three-month mentorship programme, which focuses on leadership, character development and practical life skills.
The organisers said the programme has graduated more than 30 participants since its inception, with the latest cohort comprising 15 graduates, most of them NYSC members.
Other graduates included Olawole Emmanuel, Ndidiamaka Ede of PREMIUM TIMES, Naomi Agmada, Immanuel Zever, Mabel Jonas, Divine Abah.
The rest are Nnodum Chinenye, Akande Oluwatosin, Odumodu Chukwunedebem, Adeyemi Damilare, Prenanagha Tamaraye and Michael Felix.
Professionals from different fields, including engineering, coaching, healthcare and business, also attended the graduation ceremony. They urged the young graduates to remain intentional about personal development, career growth and leadership.
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