I’ve not written anything in a while, it’s not easy getting into the vibe of writing when several life issues are playing out in quick succession. It’s been a roller coaster of events till this moment. I had initially scheduled this newsletter to go out earlier but other things get in the way. Anyway, here we are.
The year of bold risks
2021 if I will say is the year I have taken the biggest risk of my life yet in every area of life. At the beginning of the year, there was a clear plan business-wise, investment, and even up to marital life. I knew the things I wanted to take out of the year and even planned my finances and projection to the letter. Everything was perfect on my excel sheet and all actions were well planned. I would say nothing outside of those events or activities that I took last year was out of the blues.
So let’s get it.
We plan, Allah plans and Allah is the best of planners. -Quran 8: 30
On business
I had planned to put a better structure to my commodity, finance, and trading business. CAC registration was done and checked, while business partners were on lockdown. I had my major highlight; raising almost 50 million Naira from friends and family for the businesses. Everything was checked and we are on course, till Nigeria happened and the ruthless nature of doing business with people crawled out. It was a tough lesson on the need for strong risk management.
In doing business, having a risk appetite is second to developing trust. Your risk appetite is useless if you can’t trust another party to execute their end of the bargain. I seek people that have a lot to lose than I do when doing business because they will go out of their way to ensure things move smoothly. In the event that life happens, it will be clearer to all parties that we couldn’t have done otherwise and lessons will be learned.
Being able to return everybody's capital plus little gains is a big plus for me - save for the Naira decline in value which hurt most of my folks that needed their returns in dollars. One of my prayers this year is for the rate to remain stable so projections can be in order. I can rest peacefully at night and have an army of folks I can make capital calls to. I didn’t make anything for myself in the end, in quite a number of instances; I paid from my pocket, but I made a name I can be proud of and built relationships that will thrive for years. I also learned several lessons on how to manage a heavy cash flow business to ensure profitability.
Risk and losses
There are losses only known to a few inner circle folks because it’s hard to face. I took solace in the fact that money can always be recovered as long as we are in good health. It helps me check myself and not overthink anything. When investing, having a long-term orientation and risk appetite helps to manage the downside. While most people focus on the rewards, it is equally important to pay very good attention to risks involves. Seeking asymmetric opportunities can be highly rewarding. It pays to play to your risk appetite and capability. What can you afford to lose if this doesn’t go as planned? FX or Crypto traders would call it Stop Loss (Pardon me if I misused the word). Are you really sure you got that diamond hand?
I wish I could perfectly not worry about things
When I received my last L of the year, I had a financial obligation that got me worried. I personally find it difficult to make a financial request for personal effect. It’s 10x easier to raise funds for business purposes because you pitch what is in it for people. I worried about how it will affect every other thing I had planned out for the period and where support would come. Thanks to my group of confidants who Allah used to ease a decent part of the worries. Those moments clarified what I had always known about tawakul and taking things one after the other. As Muslims, we are nothing without total trust in Allah as the one in charge of our affairs
I am glad for the little wins, gifts of my partner, friends, family, and you - the readers of my newsletter. You all made the year worthwhile and I am truly honored to have you in my corner.
What I wish I had done earlier
I know we preach defer enjoyment, defer this and that. Save this and invest that. See, the event of the last 2 years, the pandemic, and all have shown that we really don’t have control of the future and it is important to take this life as a journey and immerse ourselves in its full experience. A lot of people have deferred many things only to be snatched away by travel restrictions, scammers, and pandemics.
Do I have any grand plans for 2022?
Nothing grand, except taking a leap of faith and tying the nuptial knot. Send funds and dua 😎. This year, my goal is simple, to do deep work in my career path, go for that travel you can afford, buy those items, and nurture my relationship with friends and family. Don’t wait till you hit certain milestones because it’s an endless race of milestones. Put enjoyment in your plan because you've earned it.
Thank you all for sticking by. It’s going to be a great year.
Allahuma baarik