In addition to these, Tayo Fagbule furnished us with a riveting article penned by Morgan Housel, titled Betting on Things That Never Change. The article unveils one of Jeff Bezos's strategies that has been the crux of Amazon's success: putting a lot of energy into things that never change.
Finding opportunities in economic turmoil was the title of the intriguing get-together that unfolded with Tayo Fagbule, the seasoned editor at Business Day Nigeria. It was nothing short of captivating.
To our astonishment, Mr. Fagbule commenced by dispelling the notion that the present economic turmoil is new. This revelation was surprising for many of the young students in the room. He skillfully took us down history lane, tracing back to the 1980s, when a similar economic tempest birthed a renaissance in the creative industry, giving rise to today's juggernauts of Nollywood, music, and fashion.
Mr. Fagbule drew our attention to a significant demographic change happening at the moment where the estimated change in the working-age population (16-64) from 2021 to 2050 indicated that Nigeria's working-age population is poised to rise by 111% in that period. In stark contrast to some European and Asian nations that are destined to witness a working-age demographic decline.
This shift in labour force is poised to cause a corresponding shift in economies, as the dynamics of labour strength is a crucial factor for production and therefore economic success of any nation. This brings a range of prospects for skilled Nigerians, even as the wave of brain drain of young people leaving the country for more opportunities continues its surge.
What specific skills should Nigerians cultivate to take advantage of the shift in working-age demographics? To answer this question, Mr. Fagbule insists that learning to write and communicate ideas clearly is a necessary condiment in order to gain the opportunity to be seen and heard.
In addition to these, Tayo Fagbule furnished us with a riveting article penned by Morgan Housel, titled "Betting on Things That Never Change". The article unveils one of Jeff Bezos's strategies that has been the crux of Amazon's success: putting a lot of energy into things that never change.
This paradoxical strategy encourages us to place our bets on the unchanging, rather than the volatile. These include competitive advantages like lower prices (that’s how China became the manufacturing capital of the world), more choices (a cornerstone of Amazon's empire), entertainment/curiosity (epitomized by Nollywood and the music industry), faster solutions to problems, added comfort, deeper human interactions, etc.
The essence is to craft new value offerings that adopt these timeless principles of competitive advantage, as a guarantee of unending relevance.
As the get-together drew to a close, a palpable uplifting message permeated the audience—Hope is not all lost. The world needs skilled people to work. Are you prepared?