Connectnigeria Articles

As the world waits for the global economy to get back on its feet, more and more people out of work need to find alternative means of sustenance. The situation is particularly grim for Nigerians, considering the ratio of available jobs to the population of graduates. According the coordinating minister for the economy, Dr. Okonjo-Iweala, 5.3 million youths are unemployed, while almost 2 million graduates enter the labour market every year. These are huge numbers, and it shows how stiff competition is for employment in Nigeria. To put these figures into perspective, the National Bureau of Statistics released a report which shows that half a million jobs were created in the first and second quarters of 2014. If over 5 million youths are unemployed, and only half a million manage to get employment in 6 months, what happens to the rest? Being unemployed is no fun, especially as an adult. There are bills to pay and mouths to feed. And while we wait and ‘hope’ for foreign investors and local businesses to create more jobs, university graduates can make their education work for them by proactively seeking ways of starting a business from home. Thanks to technology, working from home is now more common than ever. Big and small corporations are increasingly hiring people who work as independent contractors. I believe running a home business is one of the best way to earn a living if one is struggling to find employment. Rather than sit at home cursing your luck, take advantage of the internet and whatever limited resources that you have, and take these few, easy steps to change your status from job-seeker to CEO. Niche/Passion What skills do you have? What course did you study in the university and what kind of jobs are in that field? What hobby do you do that can be turned into a business? The first step to running a business from home is to identify what it is you would like to do. Take a pen and write down your skills, strengths and hobbies. Say for example, you have an IT-related degree, with web design skills. You can consider setting up as a freelance web designer, webmaster administrator, computer analyst, etc. Market Research Once you have your ideas jotted down, it’s time to do a market survey. You do not want to sell something no one wants to buy. Research your ideas and see what people are saying, what kind of market exists for it, profitability, cost of setting up, competition, etc. The more you read up on an idea, the better you can tell if it will be profitable for you or not. After doing your research, you can eliminate ideas till you have the one you consider best for you. Look around your local community to see what services people will gladly pay for, and if it is not within your list of things you are passionate about or interested in, you can add it. Gather Your Resources During your research you will have found out what tools are necessary to launch your type of business. Now is the time to gather those tools. If you are launching your business on a budget, it is best to find free online resources that can help you in the beginning. Taking the web designer example forward, you can get started with your laptop, Photoshop and a host of software that the IT industry uses. For most home businesses, you do not require an office space before launching your business. You can simply set aside a room in your house as your home office, or at the very least, you can make use of your dining table. As time goes on, if you feel the need for an office outside the house, you can always find shared office spaces, so as to reduce the cost of leasing. Launch So you know what business you want to go into, and you have the resources and market for it. Now is the time to launch. Don’t wait till everything is perfect before going ahead. As you go on, you will learn more and become better. If you are going into web design, get a friend, colleague or your local charity and offer to make them a website for free, or at a reduced price. Use this as a portfolio to market your business online. That is about the easiest and fastest way to start a business from home. As you get more involved, you will learn more about what works in terms of expanding and promoting your business. I am sure you will also enjoy the benefits that come with working whenever and wherever you want, as well as finally earning some money! About the author: Amina Salau is a writer and editor running The Illuminated Pen. You can find her online at www.theilluminatedpen.com and on Twitter (@_Aminah)