My name is Sola Adesakin, a Chartered Accountant by profession and a Financial Literacy Enthusiast by passion. I started out my career as an Accountant and got a headstart with many opportunities and good jobs that provided me a decent salary. Being a Chartered Accountant did not make any difference, however, because I was always broke and my personal finances were untidy still.
I was always in debt, had no savings and was always agitated. The consequences of my financial illiteracy soon showed up and I bore them shamefacedly.
After I left school and became a Chartered Accountant, I still had a lot of struggles managing my personal finances. I was earning very well. In spite of that, I was always broke. I made a lot of wrong money decisions and had to bear the consequences. Then it hit me!
The formal education system does not equip one with what it takes to manage and multiply money. Financial literacy isn’t acquired merely by attending school. Winning with your money is a different ball game entirely.
The good thing is that it is achievable. Again, it takes personal responsibility and people need to come to this realization early in life.
Then I read a book that simplified money management and emphasized the need to have the right money mindset. So, I began to take my finances more seriously. I embraced financial literacy, discipline and budgeting full blast. For the first time since I began earning, I was able to save in seven digits and earn seven-digit returns on my investments, as well.
Financial literacy at an individual level provides the mindset, knowledge, and skills to maximize one’s financial resources. When we have individuals who have gotten a hang of their own finances running an enterprise, the result is an enterprise that thrives in the face of limited or non-existent resources. Financial management skills are a major determinant of the success or otherwise of an enterprise. And success on the personal level usually can predict the success of the enterprise run by such an individual.
Emboldened by my results, I began to teach others around me. This effort is what has metamorphosed into Smart Stewards, a tech-enabled Financial Literacy organization that currently provides financial literacy courses, communities, content and coaching to people in over 30 countries.
The highlight of my career began about 3 years ago and I didn’t even begin to come to terms with it until recently. It was the setup of the Smart Investment Club. With many Africans seeking to practicalize their financial literacy learnings from the Smart Stewards Academy, the call was made to provide them a safe, easily understood and affordable way of multiplying their money. Many also wanted to invest outside the shores of their country of residence. So, we set up the Smart Investment Club to cater to this need. Thinking back now, that was a major feat as it empowered many first-time domestic and foreign investors to maximize their existing resources and seek to earn more, too. Catalyzing this process is something I find very fulfilling.
In only 3 years of existence of The Smart Investment Club, our circa 8,000-member community of professionals have now been able to invest in local and global opportunities in millions of dollars. I have also published eight (8) books to teach financial literacy to people at different levels and in all age brackets. Our work has been featured on Print and TV Media in Nigeria and around Africa.
There remains a high percentage of financially excluded people – in my home country, Nigeria, and around the world, too. A 2015 Nigerian financial survey, for example, establishes some key factors about the level of financial illiteracy in Nigeria:
Financial illiteracy: 31.1% in urban areas and 68.5% in rural areas.
Financial illiteracy among men: 48.5% of men in urban areas and 50.3% of men in rural areas.
Gratefully, though, technology makes teaching financial literacy and reaching a lot more people easier. Therefore, we will continue to help Africans around the world acquire financial literacy and gain access to viable investment opportunities – in their home countries and around the world. These opportunities are in all asset classes: Real Estate, Venture Capital, Startup Businesses, Equity, Venture Capital and more. At a business level, we continue on our quest to bridge the gap by providing access for business owners around the world to showcase their products and services, acquire and serve global clients, as well as leverage investment opportunities for themselves.
“I believe in process. I believe in four seasons. I believe that winter’s tough, but spring’s coming. I believe that there’s a growing season. And I think that you realize that in life, you grow. You get better.” – Steve Southerland
From time to time, life will place higher demands on you. Your capabilities will be stretched. Your talents and skills will be tasked. It’s not usually pleasant, but it always would be purposeful and productive. There are great seasons where your momentum is undeniably fast and smooth, but there are also times where you struggle and when things seem slow. When those seasons show up, don’t retreat. Keep giving your best and moving ahead. The Universe always rewards momentum.