Last weekend, Ms. Mariam Mohammed, the founder of Maktoub Media, rallied hundreds of young people and encouraged them to persevere in their goals in the face of growing challenges.
One of the main components of Mohammed’s annual birthday celebration was her speech at the 2024 Maktoub Youth Forum (MYF) in Abuja, which had as its subject “Ignite, Inspire, Impact.”
The forum’s purpose, according to Mohammed, who acknowledged the large turnout, was to encourage young people to strive for leadership, emotional intelligence, job advancement, personal development, and assisting aspirational youth in creating a career roadmap.
She clarified that it was an exhortation to young people in Nigeria to follow their ambitions with the necessary fervor.
But in order to succeed in life, she emphasized that individuals must be prepared to deal with the drawbacks and challenges that accompany personal development, noting that one of the program’s goals was to assist minimize these pitfalls.
“Everything has drawbacks, you know that. This kind of programming has the drawback of reopening long-suppressed wounds. People consider running a mentorship program to be ostentatious. However, it’s not. Holding this program requires you to share your journey, therefore you’re really a test subject.
“I’m not kidding when I say that those stories aren’t very good most of the time. You often cry while sharing those stories, not because you’re weak, but rather because you’re in shock that you’ve come this far. You would comprehend it if we were all had to stand here and share our tales of how we arrived at our current position.
You recall instances when you gave up and surrendered. It even reaches the point of wanting to end everything at times. We host events like these to let you know that we are your test subjects, allowing you to avoid the mistakes we made in life and to overcome obstacles—perhaps not completely, but sufficiently to get by. This is because you will encounter setbacks in life.
“These programs help you understand that those upper cuts will heal and that you will be fine with just a few teachers here and there,” she said to the youth.
The young people were also warned by Aisha Mohammed, an Assistant Controller of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), that while social media may still be a tool for good in many ways, it can also be used to cause harm.
She cautioned the participants against believing everything they see online and advised them not to be duped by what they see on social media.
Although social media has ingrained itself into our daily lives, it is crucial to recognize the difference between the two. On social media, there is always a disconnect between who we are and how we present ourselves to the public. Numerous social, political, spiritual, and financial crises in the broader community are caused by this disparity.
Social media is about intentional programming, perception, and projection. The temptation to project a flawless online persona can induce feelings of inadequacy and dissatisfaction since you constantly compare yourself to what other people are displaying, which isn’t the case. We all know that things aren’t real.
When someone posts on social media that they just had a fantastic meal, even when they are famished, someone else may see it and decide they must do something. It’s untrue when someone posts something like, “I just got a Rolls Royce, I just got a Range Rover.” Perhaps the individual simply visited a car-selling location, took a photo, and uploaded it to the internet.
In order to educate young people that not everything they see online is true, we try to get their attention. Even while there are instances of people killing themselves via social media, cyberbullying, and, as I previously stated, sexual assault, discovering who you are makes you feel unworthy of life,” she emphasized.
She challenged the youth to embrace who they are and refrain from comparing their accomplishments or themselves to those of others.
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In her speech, public health professional Fatima Mamman-Daura encouraged the young people to develop and pursue their passions and to not harbor bitterness when they feel they are falling short.
“Having passion makes pursuing your goals easier, more pleasurable, and morally sound. Be aware of your onions. Let your greatest asset be your brain. This is, in my opinion, the most crucial time in your early career to learn as much as you can about the subject and develop as many talents as you can.
When you have technical talents, you gain recognition and advance in your work. Make work of outstanding quality. Take the extra step. Make sure you have all the Ts and Is crossed. “Don’t be lazy,” she said.
In addition, she highlighted the importance of developing soft skills, emotional intelligence, and people management, emphasizing that as individuals advance from managers to leaders, they will require fewer technical skills and more conceptual abilities.
According to her, “you will need things like communication, problem solving, team building, conflict resolution, mobilizing resources, crisis management, critical thinking, etc.”
Seun Okinbaloye, a Channels TV presenter who talked on the subject of “Unbroken: Transforming Personal Pain into Springboards for Success,” and Seyi Tinubu, the president’s son, were among the other attendees.
The yearly event inspires young people to overcome all obstacles and realize their inherent potential in order to build a brighter future for themselves.
