May 2018

The Spark | Ignite/Connect/Achieve www.thesparkng.com www.thesparkng.com The Spark | Ignite/Connect/Achieve
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FastForward
Saving the World
but Losing Yourself
It is commendable to desire to save the world and we
should celebrate it. However, even the world saviours
need to take a breather every now and then; that is what
keeps you going.
- By Simi Olusola
I
was at an event in April, 2018 and when the attendees were
asked why they want to be rich, the first thing almost everyone
said was that so they could help the poor and disadvantaged
people. A good number of us have this mind-set and while it is a
good way to think, it could also be dangerous if you do not help
yourself as well.
In the bid to create that solution that will change everyone’s life
radically, we sometimes forget that we also need help. We neglect
ourselves and end up becoming burnt out. How do you ensure
that you and your social enterprise are both thriving? Here are
a few ways you can save the world without ending up as one of
those to be saved especially in your first years of starting out.
1. Know When To Rest
Because we are young and full of energy, we tend to treat our
bodies with less care than it deserves. We are always multitasking,
always working and always on the move. When you do not have a
task you’re on, you feel like you are wasting time or you feel guilty.
You need to step away from it all occasionally, take a break and
rest. You need to set aside time, perhaps one weekend every
quarter where you just become deaf, dumb and blind to the work.
Sleep, eat, and hang out with friends. Just do something else out
of your daily routine that will help you relax.
Now do not work yourself to death every quarter with the plan to
take just that weekend off. Nah, it does not work like that. You
need to rest well consistently. Pace yourself well, do not lump
together all your tasks. Pace yourself.
2. Have A Side Hustle
This is super important. In the first few years of starting your social
enterprise, you are likely to be short on personal cash most of
the time. This is even truer for those whose social enterprises are
totally not-for-profit. Getting the money to fuel your vision is hard
to come by, so do not just expect people to drop cash into your
laps because you are saving the world.
To keep body and soul together and
to keep you from dipping your
hands into the organisation’s funds,
have something else that brings you
an income.
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Therefore, to keep body and soul together and to keep you from dipping
your hands into the organisation’s funds, have something else that brings
you an income. What this means is that you will have to run two jobs.
Remember what I said in Point 1 above; do not burn the candle at both
ends because of your two jobs. If you have to increase the timeframe for
hitting your milestones so that you have a better work pace, please do so.
Some of the side hustles you can have include:
• Writing: You can write content for online and offline publications
and get paid. You have many things you can do in this space. You can
write people’s books, thesis, blogposts, product reviews and a whole
lot more.
• Freelancing: You can sign up with Fiverr, Upwork and the likes as a
freelancer and offer your services for a fee. The advantages of this
includes being able to pick what you want to work on and the flexible
timing.
• Consulting: You have probably put in a lot of effort into your social
enterprise and you definitely have gained some knowledge and
experience as a result. You probably even have the academic
knowledge to back it up. Why not offer to share what you know
with others in form of consulting packages? What have you learnt
so far that you think the market really needs? Share it with others.
As a consultant you can help troubleshoot and fix, train, monitor &
evaluate, develop models and designs and help others improve their
ventures.
• Remote part time employment: You do not want anything where
you have to be the one providing direction since you already do this
with your enterprise. I can relate to that feeling very well. Sometimes
you just do not want to be the person that the buck stops with or the
one responsible for high level decision making. You can find a junior
or associate remote role in a company anywhere in the world.
3. Know How And When To Delegate
Do not be caught in the ‘if I do not do it myself, it will not be done well’
trap. Except you are a one-man team, spread your tasks across your team
evenly. The earlier you start this, the better, so your team will not think you
suddenly decided to offload all your work on them. If you have not been
delegating before, I will advise that you phase your delegation. Do not just
dump twelve tasks on a person that is used to having three tasks per week.
Scale it up gradually.
Anything that does not HAVE to be done by you, feel free to give it to
someone else while you focus on other things. Do not let the fear of them
not doing it well stop you. If they do not do it well, help them go over it and
do it better on the next try. It might take longer but do not obsess over
that fact. Trust your team.
4. Collaborate
A true social entrepreneur is more concerned about the impact he/she is
making than about who will get the glory. Many people, in a bid to keep
spotlight on themselves, have lost the many advantages that collaboration
brings. Do not ‘tighten the world to your chest’. Come together with
organisation(s) that have complementary goals, put your skills and
resources together and make larger impact.
This way, you will be achieving more by doing less. A note of caution;
whatever form of collaboration you enter into must be guided and
guarded by the right documentation. All the parties involved should spell
out, agree to the terms and conditions, and append their signatures to it.
Everyone must be covered in the case of any eventualities.
We have enough cases of social entrepreneurs losing themselves in the
course of the work. You are important too. So remember to always
celebrate yourself and your little victories. Even if it is one person you
were able to impact, celebrate it. It is worth celebrating. Do not make light
of the great work you are doing. Keep at it!
This piece is dedicated to the late Samson Abioye of Pass.ng.
Pro Bono
The Law and Social Entrepreneurship
It might be a social enterprise but legal issues cut across all and every entity established within
a geopolitical space. That is why it is a matter of necessity to understand the legalities involved
before starting a social enterprise.
“
As the brain behind a
social enterprise,
you are accountable
to a wide range
of stakeholders,
including the local
community in which
the organization
operates.
- By Aderinsola Fagbure
As I go about, I hear people talk about their desires to give back to the society. This is not strange
because studies show that millennials are not only interested in posting profits, they are passionate
about purpose. Many of such people, particularly young ones say things like “Oh I have a strong
urge to give back, a mission to empower and mentor young ladies”, “I want to devote some time to teach
at schools and feed children and where possible carry out some medical outreach activities”.
I am excited hearing all this and I always have a few legal tips to offer such people. Generally, it is
important that the motive behind social entrepreneurship must be altruistic. The desire to contribute to
societal development should be driven by passion and nothing else. It should never be about being like
the Jones’s. Yes, I am aware that your mentor has a foundation. You do not necessarily have to set up
your own, you may opt to volunteer and assist others in their mission to make the world a better place.
Anyone who sees himself or herself as a social entrepreneur would do well to have a look at the tips
below. However, please note that the tips below do not in any way constitute legal advice.
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