Ugo's Story

Ugo had had it up to the tip of his longest hair strand. He could not take it anymore. He was highly frustrated. This was his fourth year after secondary school, and he had written the JAMB exams every year since finishing from secondary school in 2005. In 2005, he applied for the course of his dreams, Medicine, to set him on the path to a career he had been destined for right from the beginning of time. There was no changing his mind. It was Medicine or nothing. He will usually say “I am not one of those who succumb to failure or setback”. However, these failures were now getting to him. He was the head boy in secondary school and lots of his mates were already in their third year in the university. In fact, those in private universities were already in their fourth year with graduation in view. The utter shame he was facing or at least so he thought. The disappointment his parents had in him. The poor example he was setting for his younger brother. His kid cousins were already nearing the end of their secondary schooling and if he didn’t make it into school this time he would be writing the next JAMB exam with them, probably at the same centre. These are younger cousins that would have been calling him “brother Ugo” if they were from the Yoruba tribe.

His academics was not the only screwed aspect of his existence. His social life was in coma. If it were human, it will be on life support at the ICU in a hospital. Suffice to say he had no social life so there really isn’t much to be said in this regard. Interestingly, he was on Facebook but at a point he stopped responding to messages from his secondary school mates because he knew the end point of the conversation was going to be about school.  Those conversations always ended like this, “so where are you now?” That question had nothing to do with his current location. Absolutely not! It had another connotation. It was an innuendo for “which school are you in now?” As a matter of fact, an insolent annoying jerk of a former classmate called him once in the middle of the night (free call o) and the nonsense boy didn’t even have the regards or courtesy to call with actual airtime. No! He calls in the dead of the night when sane people are sleeping including Ugo and asks, “how are you?” Then follows up with which school are you now? Ugo took a couple of seconds pause with various thoughts going through his mind; “I go curse this guy o”, “should I lie about being in school? I no dey like lie o”. Then he answers, I am not yet in school. The guy then says “ok. Alright, goodnight, I just say make I call you”. Seriously! I hope you get strangled in your sleep tonight, Ugo wished.

As if all these other issues he was facing were not enough, he noticed he had become the errand boy at home. This was the height. He could not take it anymore. Something had to be done. There had to be a way out and he was determined to find it.

Well, jump a couple of years into the future. This present year, 2014. Ugo is no longer that frustrated lad. On the contrary, he is quite happy. He recently graduated from one of Nigeria’s topmost Universities where he studied History. Yes, History, not Medicine. He discovered himself and his talents. He excelled in the course. Though, he didn’t finish with a first class, the course was like a walk in the park. He just flowed. He was having fun while many other students were complaining. He realized that he has a passion for Nigeria and he figured a way of transforming Nigeria through her history.  Don’t ask me how but Ugo knows. Bottom line is that a frustrated young man who thought Medicine was the only way for him, decided to look into himself and found that there was more to his life than a need to puncture people’s asses while wearing a white lab coat and having the two magic letters “Dr.” before his name.

It is this same quest that Ugo embarked on some years ago that we want to take you through this month. It is going to be fun and a bit tedious too. But you will be better for it. Note that, self-discovery is important for every aspect of your life. It affects every decision you make. From career to marriage, from opinions to decisions. Everything that is important that concerns you can be made better when you know yourself. So this month, do yourself a favour- MEET YOU AND KNOW YOU BETTER.

Check this blog same time next week for the steps to knowing you. We will continue with the steps and some “know yourself” assignments the following week and then on the last week, we will be making some recommendations to help you on this quest. In the mean time, ponder on this thought. Ask yourself, “who am I?” See you soon.