June 8, 2022
5 Things You’d Be Grateful You Did During the ASUU Strike
Article, Productivity
5 things I did during the ASUU strike in 2020 that changed my life. How you can do them too.
If you’re currently a student of a federal university in Nigeria, then this is for you!
We’ve been through a lot, haven’t we? Lol. But guess what? Even though we have no idea when we’ll get to go back to school, the situation doesn’t have to be completely hopeless. We have full control over our time and therefore, we can put it to good use while ASUU and the FGN have their cute little misunderstanding (which, unfortunately, does not have a cute effect on us). I’m pretty sure you’ve thought about ways to put your time to good use, but just in case you haven’t, or maybe you’re finding it hard to come up with something, here are 5 things I can assure you that you’d be grateful you did during the ASUU strike.
1. Read Books
Books are so underrated these days. Imagine having 10 to 30 years of wisdom crammed into a few hundred pages at your disposal. Whatever or whoever you hope to be, trust me, someone else already lives that reality and has written a book about it. Therefore, instead of going down the same path they did (making all of the mistakes they did), you can get to that point faster and more efficiently by simply reading a book or two about it, and applying the knowledge gained. I have been able to avoid so many setbacks in my life so far, thanks to one piece of advice or the other I gained while reading a book.
If you struggle with reading then try these tips. Start reading a book and tell yourself you’re only going to do it for 5 minutes. Don’t start out making commitments you know you can’t go through with. Just make up your mind to read for 5 minutes. The chances are that within that first five minutes, you’ll be caught up enough to continue reading, and if you aren’t, then maybe try a different book. If you’re trying to cultivate a habit of reading, then you should start with the most interesting books you can find. Another tip is to try audiobooks. You can listen while doing other things. Audio doesn’t extract from the quality of information gained.
Also, reading is not limited to books alone. You can read blogs and articles that interest you and add some kind of value to your life.
Here are 3 books and a blog I recommend. These books have contributed to shaping my mindset about life, finance, and career:
- The Four-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris
- Show Your Work by Austin Kleon
- Atomic Habits by James Clear
I also get so much value from Ali Abdaal’s Productivity blog
2. Build your network
They say the people you surround yourself with matter a lot, and I totally agree. I know you do too. I’m not giving you a push to do away with your friends, please. No, this isn’t that post. But you see that person that you wish you had a connection with? (I’m also not talking about a romantic connection). That person that you kind of look up to, but they’re out of your reach? Make an effort to build a connection with them. You could write them an email. Don’t go asking them for opportunities, they won’t respond to you.
Instead, find a way you can be of help to them, volunteer your time/service. It’s not like you were doing anything better now, if you were you wouldn’t be reading this. Lol! But seriously, even if you don’t want to commit, volunteer for a while, and during that time, put your best into whatever it is you’re doing, not hoping for anything in return other than learning from them. Trust me, you’ll be grateful for the experience and exposure you gain. It can even serve as work experience for your resume. In the future, it just might be the link you need to land something hooge.
Also make effort to connect with people who have the same vibe (interest, zeal, goals, e.t.c) as yourself. You can easily find them in WhatsApp/Telegram groups (e.g a graphic design group if you are interested in graphic design), by participating in social events or through other people you know. These people can be seen as your tribe. Go out there and find your tribe> No one has ever regretted doing so , and hopefully you won’t be the first.
3. Put your work out there (show your work)
Whatever it is you’re currently doing, put it out there. I have a couple of friends who make custom handbags, some are into music and there’s just a lot you could be doing, even if you’re teaching, don’t keep it to yourself. Show off your craft on social media, and talk about it in friendly conversations. This is the easiest way to get discovered.
It’s is one amazing piece of life advice that I got from reading the book Show Your Work by Austin Kleon. It’s something I’ve struggled with for the longest time because I very much prefer to live a quiet life. In fact, I used to dislike social media (especially Instagram) until I became a social media manager a couple of years back. then I had to get comfortable with it because my paycheck depended on it). But after reading this book, I could clearly see how the “quiet life” and my goals and ambitions cannot coexist. I’m therefore choosing my goals and ambitions over the former, hence, my decision to start writing this blog and to start teaching my skills.
Note that there’s a huge difference between a “private life” and a “quiet life”. You can still very much have a private life and still put your work out there. You don’t have to put your personal life on social media, but you should definitely show off your work (craft, music, talent, creativity e.t.c)
Also, ask people what they’re up to. Don’t just shove your work in people’s faces, it’s a two-way thing. Inquire about their work too. You could learn a thing or two by simply listening to their answer. Putting your work out there will make it much easier for you to find and connect with your tribe. I recently participated in a graphic design competition simply because I wanted people to see my work. They did and they loved it and I made 2 new friends who I have common interests with. Cool huh? You can do that too! Just show off your work. It’s scary, but you’ll be glad you did!
4. Learn a digital skill
This is probably the most important of all the things I’ve stated in this post. Why should you learn a skill? Well, because you can, and the benefits are endless. If you’re skilled, you’re useful to yourself as well as others, Also, if you’re a student (and you most likely are if you’re reading this), then having a skill is the only sure way to increase your net worth.
We’re all interested in making money, and as I always say to my little brother, nobody will pay you to do nothing. Skill up and you’ll be able to use your skill to earn a living for yourself. Trust me, I’ve tried so many ways to make money offline and online (I even got scammed once), the only legitimate ways to make a reasonable, consistent income (without some academic qualification) require you to be skilled at something. You don’t have to be a pro, just know your way around a skill.
Now, learning a digital skill will put you at an advantage as there are a lot more opportunities in the digital space than anywhere else today. Digital skills are very high in demand, so if you want to triple your earning potential, learn one.
I’ve got a freebie for you for reading up to this point. At the end of this post, you’ll find a link that gives you one whole month’s subscription to SkillShare for free. If you don’t already know what SkillShare is, it’s a platform that offers thousands of online courses by experts who teach their skills. This means that for a whole month you have access to learn any skill at all, for free. If after a month, you choose not to continue the subscription then all you have to do is cancel the subscription before the end of 30 days and you will not be charged a dime. I have a recurring subscription to SkillShare, and I must say that it’s one of the platforms that I’m super grateful to have found early enough.
5. Don’t forget your studies
I feel like such a hypocrite writing this paragraph because I’ve completely forgotten about school. But I also feel like if I don’t include it, then someone in, say, their first year of school might be misguided and think that it’s okay to throw their studies in the trash while pursuing all I’ve stated above. It’s not okay! Read your textbooks, please. I try to study sometimes but these days I get carried away after like 5 minutes. If you’re a study guru reading this, I’d really appreciate any tips you can give me. You can comment below or send me an email via [email protected] I don’t want to feel like a stranger to my course when school is back in session.
If you’ve read this far, great! I hope you read the next post. Here’s one month free of SkillShare as promised. See ya in the next post!
Post Tags :
Article, Productivity
11 thoughts on “5 Things You’d Be Grateful You Did During the ASUU Strike”
Itís hard to find well-informed people on this subject, but you seem like you know what youíre talking about! Thanks
Thank you for the feedback! 🙏🏾
Thanks for your blog, nice to read. Do not stop.
I appreciate your feedback. 🙏🏾
In all your gettings, get wisdom.
Viki J, highly productive and always on point, keep the growth and growing others
Thank you Josiah. This is really encouraging. 🤗
Whats up! I just want to give an enormous thumbs up for the nice info you’ve gotten right here on this post. I shall be coming back to your blog for extra soon.
WONDERFUL Post.thanks for share..more wait .. ?
This was very helpful
Happy to hear that.