The Trumpet Newspaper Issue 537 (January 27 - February 9 2021)
Medics and Police appeal to public to Stay At Home.
Medics and Police appeal to public to Stay At Home.
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Page10 <strong>The</strong><strong>Trumpet</strong> JANUARY <strong>27</strong> - FEBRUARY 9 2020<br />
Opinion<br />
Be bold and cut out entitlement, no<br />
one owes us anything<br />
By NJ Ayuk<br />
In <strong>2021</strong>, most opportunities in the<br />
energy sector and in business in general<br />
will go to those who show up and<br />
negotiate better deals and get involved in<br />
making African resources work for us.<br />
Forget handouts, foreign aid and<br />
government handouts.<br />
As I wrote in the second edition of<br />
Billions at Play: <strong>The</strong> Future of African<br />
Energy and Doing Deals, in <strong>2021</strong>, young<br />
African dealmakers, negotiators and<br />
lawyers will have to embrace a new<br />
mindset to win. <strong>The</strong>y will have to mobilize<br />
their resources and advocate for important<br />
principles of personal responsibility,<br />
smaller government, lower taxes, free<br />
markets, personal liberty, and the rule of<br />
law.<br />
In <strong>2021</strong>, African gas projects are going<br />
to be in the news. Companies will push to<br />
get them going, from Mozambique to<br />
Nigeria and from Equatorial Guinea to<br />
Tanzania.<br />
If some extremists have their way, none<br />
of these projects should happen and our<br />
people should be left in the dark. Question<br />
we must also ask is how Africans are going<br />
to participate when it comes to jobs and<br />
contracts. In <strong>2021</strong>, we cannot be<br />
bystanders. We all can’t afford to.<br />
Africa’s economic recovery from<br />
Covid-19 and our global significance in the<br />
era of energy transition and attacks on our<br />
energy sector must be driven by the talent<br />
and entrepreneurship of its people.<br />
Our continent is still struggling when it<br />
comes to establishing democratic and trade<br />
institutions, we must push for more<br />
democracy. Democracy isn’t perfect but it<br />
is the best of all political practices and we<br />
must embrace it.<br />
I have a few words of advice for this<br />
generation, for Africa’s young attorneys,<br />
entrepreneurs, rising stars and dealmakers:<br />
Never lose sight of the significance of<br />
your work.<br />
By negotiating effectively for African<br />
businesses and governments, you can play<br />
a huge role in transforming the lives of<br />
hundreds of thousands of Africans. Few<br />
things in life are more satisfying.<br />
I am proud of the law group I have<br />
built, but I consider the work I have done to<br />
get justice for and empower African<br />
individuals, businesses, and communities<br />
among my greatest successes.<br />
I am the first to advise many young<br />
people to avoid feeling entitled to anything.<br />
No one owes you or us anything. We have<br />
to earn it. Our approach and success in oil<br />
and gas negotiations stem from our deep<br />
preparation and mindset. More of that is<br />
needed in <strong>2021</strong>.<br />
I have stated many times: you succeed<br />
when you look for mentors and let them<br />
mentor you. It’s important to have<br />
someone who is promoting you when you<br />
Advice to next generation of Africans - Be bold and cut out entitlement<br />
are not in the room. Next, be stubbornly<br />
loyal. Don’t try to pull a fast one because<br />
you know more than others! Further,<br />
embrace your trials and shortcomings for<br />
they teach you to be a better person and<br />
lawyer.<br />
I have seen too many young lawyers or<br />
rising stars who get a chance to be on a<br />
podium, and then tend to spend more time<br />
being celebrities than being around<br />
colleagues or supervisors.<br />
Many so-called celebrities have not<br />
earned a deal and completed one, so avoid<br />
having a big head. For me, if you have not<br />
closed a deal and are not making money,<br />
you need to keep your philosophies to<br />
yourself. It is crucial to have a strong focus<br />
on building your skills because clients and<br />
business partners really want you to be<br />
good at what you do. Your writing, critical<br />
thinking, commercial mindset and in-depth<br />
industry skills cannot hurt you. Most<br />
clients want to know who is working on<br />
their deals, and they do not care about your<br />
race or nationality. <strong>The</strong>y want to know you<br />
are qualified and can get the job done.<br />
When you finally get a deal done and<br />
you get your first bonus or check, do not<br />
fall in the trap of buying that fancy car or<br />
getting into fast life. You will get broke so<br />
quickly. Spend wisely even when you think<br />
you have arrived where you need to be.<br />
Always think there is more and stay<br />
hungry. Look at the Texas oil boys, they are<br />
always hungry. <strong>The</strong>y wear their cowboy<br />
boots and continue searching for the next<br />
big discovery.<br />
Hashtags do not pay the bills. Get off<br />
your phone.<br />
Get offline, social media is nice but it<br />
isn’t everything, we have seen people who<br />
prefer to sit on their phone even during<br />
business meetings rather than engage on<br />
real business. How do want a deal when<br />
you are busy on your whatsapp group<br />
chats? Why have a meeting with someone<br />
when you will be on your phone while they<br />
are talking? Get out of the room and take<br />
the call or send a message. If you decide to<br />
work on your Instagram while talking to<br />
me, I walk you out of my office or end the<br />
meeting. When you don’t get the job or the<br />
contract, don’t be so quick on blaming the<br />
“White Man” or Racism.<br />
I know this will get the young<br />
generation annoyed, but its real. We need<br />
to start having a post-covid mindset and<br />
know we will have to engage again. I am<br />
not crazy about Zoom meetings, but we<br />
have to do it. Business is not about who<br />
had the best tweet two hours ago or who<br />
does the best hooting and hollering. Get<br />
down on the ground and make money. Do<br />
not believe those who tell you money is<br />
bad. We know it is bad being broke and we<br />
hate being broke. You should never<br />
apologise for working hard and making<br />
money. To do that, you must be focused<br />
and yes, get off your phone.<br />
Commit to work. Pay your dues.<br />
Your time to shine will come.<br />
Always ask yourself, “Am I adding value<br />
to the firm or the company?” Don’t think<br />
you are in the firm to be the Labour Union<br />
representative or the head of diversity.<br />
Do not walk around the firm or even a<br />
negotiation with arrogance or give off a<br />
sense that you are entitled, or that your<br />
opinion matters on every subject. You are<br />
not owed anything. It is important not to<br />
cry over discrimination on every issue,<br />
whether it is sexism, racism, or<br />
xenophobia.<br />
You beat them with excellence and<br />
success. We see it every day and you will<br />
be surprised it comes from the same<br />
liberals who claim to love all humans and<br />
want to save the world. <strong>The</strong>y will love to<br />
Continued on Page 11<<br />
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