The Law of Speed

Speed has become an important element of strategy.     
Regis McKenna

I got there as they were opening the door at 8am yesterday Friday. I wanted to send copies of my books to @Rovingheights at Surulere.

Angry Letter To The Nigerian Youth (2)- There Is Opportunity In Adversity

My dear Nigerian Youth,

I'm still on your case. I'm not about to relent so soon because you represent immense potential and you sit on a gold mine yet you know it not.

You account for at least 43 percent of Nigeria's population. You are over 72 million strong. Unfortunately, what is a blessing is turning to be a curse. Your situation brings a scripture to mind: man that is in honour, and understands not, is like the beasts that perish.

You still wonder why I'm miffed? I sat across one of you- a young lady- today and listened to her tale. She had spent 2 years living in Dubai and slaved away for a real estate company. After 2 years, she's back to Nigeria- broken and penniless.

She regaled me with stories of how more than 75 percent of her income went to rent and she couldn't even afford a decent accommodation. She had to 'collabo' with two other ladies to rent a studio apartment. But now she couldn't stay in Nigeria anymore.

She complained so much about the road and heat that I wondered if she was born in Dubai! She also complained of lack of capital when I asked why she couldn't settle down to do something in Nigeria. I told her no one has 'capital' problems but what people have is 'idea' problem.

Leadership: Think Of How You Can Add Value & Other Lessons 

Exactly 5 years ago, it was my last day at work at my former organization and I sent out a valedictory mail to my team. It was a truly emotional experience.

I hereby share that mail I sent 5 years ago. How time flies.

My dear South West 1 Team,

This is a very emotional moment for me as I know goodbyes are not easy. I want to take this time out to sincerely appreciate each and every one for your support during my brief sojourn leading the team.

I call it a sojourn because life is a journey and not a destination. We will all never 'arrive' in the real sense of it and people must move on at certain periods in their lives. That is exactly what I'm doing. You've all been part of my life just like I have been part of yours.

I'm particularly delighted and it is my sincere joy to note that together, we have made some progress. We are not exactly where we want to be but then we are no longer where we were when I assumed leadership of this Region a short while ago.

So, let me leave you with a few 'take-aways' as I take my bow:

1. MYTHS ARE MEANT TO BE SHATTERED

When I resumed in the South West, the fashionable reason for the poor performance was the excuse that the State Governments were owing salaries.

The Law of The Stretch

I had become dissatisfied with my career at that point. Having started my career in Ibadan and having lived there all my life, I felt there was more. I remember how I felt there was a void within. Outwardly, things looked okay but inwardly, I was a mess.

I knew that if I wasn’t careful, I would just settle into a comfortable zone and that may just be the end of my career. Everyone loved Ibadan- the cost of living was low and I had almost everything, at least compared to those within my immediate space.

One of the greatest mistakes you can make is to benchmark your life by those within your immediate space or circle of influence. You will think you’re making progress until you get out and see others who will challenge you. And that was what I decided to do.

I saw a vacancy for a role in Lagos and I applied. Up till then, I had never worked in Lagos- save for a few trainings, attachments and banking school.

When I got the role, it was a major stretch for me. I didn’t have a place to stay so I had to ‘squat’ with a friend for 6 months until I could pull resources together to get a studio apartment.

How Reading Helped My Career

 In 2013, a joint venture Israeli/South African company was looking to make a foray into Nigeria. They wanted to set up an outlet in Lagos after conducting their feasibility studies and they needed a Nigerian financial institution to partner with.

Somehow, i was given their contacts and we agreed to meet with our teams from both sides at Victoria Island. 

I got my team together- about 8 of them- people in e-business, IT and other units that I know will have one thing or the other to do with this company.

I wanted to conclude in just one meeting. As the South African MD and his Israeli partner walked into my office where we were all seated and I stood up to exchange pleasantries with both of them, his eye went to the book on my table. 'Oh, you're reading Tipping Point?', he asked.

I was reading Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell that week and I had the book on my desk in the office. I usually have the books I'm reading either in my car or on my desk. I replied in the affirmative.

He asked for other books of Malcolm Gladwell that I've read and I mentioned Outliers-The Story of Success and What The Dog Saw. He asked for my best among the books and I mentioned Outliers. His best was Tipping Point.

The Law of Trust

“I’m not upset that you lied to me. I’m upset that from now on I can’t believe in you”- Friedrich Nietzsche

Sometimes in October, I received a call from a former client who had been out of the country for almost a year.

He is not a Nigerian but had just secured an appointment with a company. His first statement was “Bayo, I need to pick your brain on this because with you I know where I stand. I know you’ll not deceive me”.

After our discussion, he told me he had already informed his Chairman that their banking relationship had to come to me. I’ve signed it on since.

I’ve had cause to reflect over his statement many times since then. Here was a man whom sometimes I had very difficult conversations with. I’ve had to tell him no when I knew his requests were not possible. Sometimes, the relationship was stormy.

I never fail to tell my colleagues that the major currency for transaction is integrity and this will only be sustained in an atmosphere of trust. Never lie to customers in order to make a sale.

The Calvin and Hobbes comic strip ended 25 years ago, so let’s celebrate a New Years treat by analyzing it! Awhile back I had a students annotate structures in every C&H strip, so we have data on the whole thing. As Calvin says: let’s go exploring! 1/ https://t.co/GAm45Ni1m5

An interesting feature of this strip is that Watterson took a few sabbaticals during its run, and came back with more artistic freedom. So, I’ll focus here on how a few aspects of the strip change over time. Here’s what every panel per strip looks like (all 14,712 panels!) 2/

Let’s start with storytelling. Overall, the strip shifts to becoming more visual and multimodality balanced in meaning over time. In this graph, higher numbers mean more meaning carried by pictures than words (0=balanced) 3/

You can also see this in the overall increase of wordless panels across strips. Interestingly, you see the same trends for both daily and Sunday strips, suggesting broader shifts in Watterson’s storytelling inclinations 4/

The amount of words also changed. The strip steadily got more wordy in the first half of its run, but then started decreasing again as it shifted to visual meanings 5/

In the shadowy corners of the shortwave spectrum lurk the Numbers Stations: strange radio broadcasts of mysterious blocks of numbers in creepy monotone voices!

It's actually an old form of spycraft which is still in use today. And as it's #WorldRadioDay let's take a listen...

A Numbers Station is a type of one-way voice link for sending information to spies in foreign countries.

Operating on Short Wave radio bands they transmit a secret code of spoken numbers. Use of Numbers Stations peaked during the Cold War, but some are still operating today.

Numbers Stations are operated by various national intelligence agencies. At set times on a pre-arranged frequency a musical tone is played, followed by a speech synthesised voice reading out blocks of numbers. To most listeners it sounds both creepy and meaningless.

However to spies it can be vital. The numbers can be decoded to reveal a message, provided the spy has the right One Time Pad (OTP) - a random number key that is only used once before it is destroyed. OTP encryption is impossible to break if done correctly.

Why broadcast your secret message on Short Wave? Because it can be picked up across the globe. All a spy needs is a shop bought SW radio, a pencil, and the correct One Time Pad and they - and only they - can decipher the message. No complex kit is required.

What do you think folks, shall we do some bad book covers today?

I think we should...

"I have made some bad decisions in my life..."

Dressed Up For Murder, by Gary Brander. Fastback, 1986.

"It's not you Mr Darcy, it's me..."

Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen. Bestseller Library, 1966.

Move along Twitter, nothing to see here...

The Star Fox, by Poul Anderson. Panther Books 1968. Cover by Bob Haberfield.

Fangs For The Mammaries, edited by Esther Friesner. Baen Books 2010. Art by Clyde Caldwell.

I see what you did there Clyde...

I don't often promote myself on here, but I should. I have done some things that I am proud of. So here is a thread of episodes from @OurTurnPodcast that I contributed a segment and/or co-hosted. #RPG #podcast

Here is one of my very first contributions, a segment about one of my favorite RPGs of all time: 13th Age. @13thAge I still love it, and I have hacked the system to run other genres (ex. Star Wars: The Old Republic). Give it a try

One the one-year anniversary of @OurTurnPodcast, I did a segment about Session Zero for RPGs. I love being a part of Session Zero in any #RPG, both as a GM and