Day 11 – Entrepreneurship and Side Hustles: Risks, Resilience, and Rewards
Entrepreneurship and side hustles have always been part of me.
From learning to make shoes and selling them in school when I resumed 200 level, to selling shea butter 😅 (anything for my customers, abeg). I just always wanted to have something on the side—something that could bring in cash here and there. Because honestly, the lifestyle I want to live… only like 7 streams of income can sustain it 🤲🏾😮💨😫🌚
I’ve drifted between a lot of businesses over time, but if there’s one thing I’ve come to learn through it all, it’s this: life will test your consistency, your resilience, and your ability to bounce back from setbacks.
There was a time I was deep into designing and printing T-shirts. I was running that whole venture at a loss, but one thing that kept me going was how much value I was giving to my customers. I delivered shirts across Sokoto, Abuja, Mubi—sometimes I’d pause and just ask myself, “How did these people even come to trust me like this?” And honestly, that trust meant more to me than the profit. I was proud that I could deliver on my word.
But then, there was that one order that broke me.
So, I usually buy plain tees from a retailer who gets from a wholesaler in Benue (if my Jalingo plug doesn’t have my specs). Once the order lands, I take it to the printer with my design structure. After printing, I either pick up or have it sent directly to the customer.
This one time, I got a shirt that had been sitting in storage for what must’ve been months—maybe even years. It looked fine on the outside, so I didn’t think much of it. The printer did his job, packed it up nicely, and we sent it to the customer.
The shirt kept tearing as she was putting it on.
She sent pictures. I was heartbroken. She was furious. She demanded a full refund. And honestly, I couldn’t even blame her. That single incident crushed my motivation for that business. I told myself, “Until I have my own print shop where I can control everything from fabric to final delivery, I’m not doing this again.” And I stopped.
But that wasn’t the end of my side hustle journey.
I’ve done a bit of everything—video editing, photography, graphic design, fixing PCs. And most recently, my Zobo drink brand (which is currently in stasis, but not forgotten 👀).
Looking back at all these ventures, I’ve come to understand a few core truths:
You won’t always win.
Mistakes will happen.
But the real reward is growth.
It’s not always about the money. Sometimes, it’s about the lessons you learn. About building character. About gaining skills you didn’t even know you were acquiring. Every hustle, every attempt, every fail and win has been building me into someone who’s learning to create, adapt, and evolve.
Entrepreneurship isn’t always flashy. Sometimes it’s heartbreak in form of a shredded T-shirt. But if you stick with it long enough, you start to see the rewards—not just in cash, but in confidence, capacity, and clarity.
#becoming #30daysofreflection
#journeysofar
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