MSME DIGEST With Kola Owolabi
Yes! We certainly have a job vacancy for you. In fact, not just for you, but for everyone genuinely looking for work, regardless of how many people are unemployed.
You may be wondering how this is possible when governments and private companies keep announcing layoffs and unemployment figures continue to rise. The answer is simple: we do not recruit for an organisation; we recruit for the market. And the market never runs out of job vacancies.
Every day, billions of people wake up with needs that must be satisfied. They need food, clothing, transportation, healthcare, housing, education, entertainment, security, financial services and thousands of other products and services. Every unmet need is a job waiting to be filled. The market therefore has enough vacancies for every willing and productive person on earth.
However, there is one condition. Unlike conventional employment where an employer prepares your job description before employing you, the market expects you to create your own job description. In simple terms, you create your own job by starting a business that solves a problem people are willing to pay for.
That is the beauty of entrepreneurship. You are no longer waiting for someone to employ you; you become valuable by creating value for others.
But do not misunderstand this opportunity. The market is probably the toughest employer you will ever work for.
In paid employment, your employer expects you to generate value that exceeds your salary. A good employee is expected to produce several times more value than the wages received. Businesses survive because employees contribute more than they cost.
The market expects even more.
If your business cannot consistently generate profits that justify your investment, reward your effort and sustain future growth, the market wastes no time in issuing its own sack letter. In entrepreneurship, that sack letter is called ‘bankruptcy’. It is immediate, unforgiving and applies equally to everyone.
That is why entrepreneurship is not an escape from hard work; it is a commitment to greater responsibility.
Look around Africa today. Thousands of young Nigerians who could not find paid employment are building thriving careers through digital marketing, software development, fashion, agribusiness, logistics, renewable energy and content creation. They created their own job descriptions, and today some of them employ dozens or even hundreds of people.
The same story is evident in the United States. Companies such as Uber, Airbnb and Amazon created opportunities not only for their founders but also for millions of independent drivers, hosts, merchants and service providers across the world. They succeeded because they identified market needs and built businesses around solving them.
The lesson is straightforward. Stop asking, “Who will employ me?” Start asking, “What problem can I solve profitably?” That simple change in mindset can transform an unemployed job seeker into a successful entrepreneur.
So, if you need a job, our vacancy remains open. Come prepared to work hard, think creatively, solve problems and continuously improve yourself. The market has no retirement age, no employment quota and no salary ceiling. The more value you create, the greater your reward.
Have a business question that has been bothering you?
Send it via WhatsApp to the number in my byline below. Your question may be selected and answered in a future edition of the “Entrepreneurs’ Frequently Asked Questions” series in “MSME DIGEST”, helping thousands of other entrepreneurs who may be facing the same challenge.
Kola Owolabi is a Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Management Consultants (FIMC.CMC) and Chief Executive Officer of David Solomon Consulting Limited, based in Igbesa, a suburb of metropolitan Lagos, in the vicinity of Crawford University. The company can be reached via phone or WhatsApp at 08023203198
