Advertising czar and chairman, Troyka Holdings, Dr. Biodun Shobanjo, has charged Nigerian youth to take their fate in their own hands.
He made the call in Lagos recently at the public presentation of his biography, The Will To Win: The Story of Biodun Shobanjo, written by journalist and public relations practitioner, Dotun Adekanmbi.
According to Shobanjo, it’s delusional for the youth to continue to hope that government would provide employment or solve all their problems. “I want our young people to believe in themselves because to continue to hope that government would provide employment or solve all their problems is not reality. People must learn to take their fate in their own hands,” he stated.
The advertising guru said the story of his life was illustrative of the benefits of starting out early regardless of the obstacles that often tend to derail even the most carefully laid out plans, saying, “My biography written by Dotun Adekanmbi essentially captures where I am coming from, and what God has enabled me to prove with what I have done in the management of enterprise over the last 50 years.”
He said he was able to achieve all that was chronicled in the book, because apart from hard work and diligence, he was lucky to have interacted with destiny helpers who believed in his dream. In particular, he commended his partner of over 40 years, Mr. Jimi Awosika, whom he described as the ‘last man standing’ in the league of the co-founders of the enterprise that has grown to become Troyka Holdings, a leading player in corporate Nigeria.
Shobanjo explained that with proper guidance and support, the young people of Nigeria have a lot to contribute. “I believe that young people will find nuggets in The Will To Win: The Story of Biodun Shobanjo that will serve as motivation for them to go out there and do things for themselves; for me, that is the thrust of the whole thing. People who have worked with me and have equally become successful in their own rights are proof positive that people can do wonders for themselves,” he stressed.
On what motivated him to write the book, Adekanmbi said he found Shobanjo’s personality and professional accomplishments quite intriguing, particularly because he (Shobanjo) evokes diverse passions in players in his industry.
The book’s reviewer, veteran journalist, Mr. Ray Ekpu, commended the author for going the extra mile to present a business biography in a lucid and reader-friendly manner. “The Will To Win: The Story of Biodun Shobanjo is a business biography, which generally, is difficult to write in an interesting manner because the language of business is stiff and stilted, but Adekanmbi has rendered it interesting without the lollipop credentials of supermarket literature. It is written with candour and conviction and I am satisfied with the quality of the writing. It matches the performance of the man about whom the book is written,” he declared.
The Managing Director of Havilah Books, publishers of the biography, Lanre Adesuyi, recommended the book to young entrepreneurs who need to learn how to navigate Nigeria’s uncertain business environment.
