Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing.
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What’s your earliest memory of money?
In SS 3, a bank came to my school and opened accounts for the students. Mine remained inactive until it was time for JAMB lessons. I can’t remember how much the lesson fee was, but my dad transferred the money to my account, and I paid the lesson fees for the period I spent there.
It was the first time I handled money. Before this, I hadn’t thought much about money because my parents handled all I needed.
Does that mean there was money growing up?
We weren’t Otedola-level wealthy, but we were okay. My dad was into construction, and my mum had a provision store. We had enough to meet our basic needs and extras like going to Apapa club to swim once a month.
When was the first time you worked for money?
2018. I was in 300 level and did a three-month stint with a radio station for SIWES (Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme). They paid me a ₦10k monthly stipend. My job was to tweet what was happening on air. If a song was playing, I had to tweet, “Now playing: XYZ.”
I also managed their WhatsApp sometimes. Other times, they sent me to buy food. I didn’t like the job at all. The moment my SIWES ended, I told them I wasn’t returning the next day.
Haha. Was it that bad?
It was a toxic environment. Interestingly, before my SIWES, I wanted a career in radio. But I experienced it and decided, “Nah.” Also, the salary was terrible.
My salary as an intern was ₦10k, but full-time staff earned only ₦80k. The stress was a lot, too. Imagine entering hours of traffic to come on air, talk for hours, and go home on ₦80k.
After SIWES, I returned to school and lived on my ₦10k monthly allowance. I’m not entrepreneurial, so there was no hustle to want to make money. My goal has always been to get a 9-5 job and be comfortable with my consistent source of income.
However, in 400 level, I started battling anxiety about what I wanted to do with my life. Radio was out of the picture, and I needed other options. So, I started applying for different jobs, hoping to find something that’d stick.
Did you find any?
Yes. My sister introduced me to someone who wanted a content manager. They were starting a travel blog on Instagram and wanted someone to create content calendars and post content. It was a remote role, and the pay was ₦20k/month, so I took it.
The work was so overwhelming, though. I had to create and post all the content. I was also juggling my final-year project, so I barely slept. I didn’t last a month. To be fair, I wasn’t good at the job. I had no experience, and I was doing rubbish.
My boss complained about the content, too. One day, she just said, “Don’t worry,” and paid me ₦10k for the half-month I worked with her. I was so excited when she took the job back. I was already tired but didn’t want to quit, so her sacking me was very welcome. I think that was my confirmation that I’m not a hustler like that.
I’m dying. What did you do next?
I just focused on school. In my final year, my allowance increased to ₦20k/month, plus provisions from my mum, so I was comfortable. On days when I was really broke, I went home — I schooled in the same state where my parents lived — and collected more provisions.
I wrote my last paper in uni in 2019 and suffered another round of anxiety and panic attacks. I had no clue about what to do with my life, and it bothered me. NYSC was next, and even though I wasn’t sure what I wanted, I knew I didn’t want to teach.
I started applying for jobs so I could serve at the organisation when it was time for NYSC. I applied to anything and everything until I landed a ₦40k/month customer service internship at a music distribution company. Two months later, I started NYSC, and the ₦33k stipend increased my income to ₦73k/month. This was 2020.
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Was that good money?
Ah. I felt like a millionaire. I got the first allawee at the orientation camp and ate all the money. After the excitement died down, I committed to saving the ₦33k stipend and living on my ₦40k salary. I was living with my sister, so I didn’t worry about rent or major bills.
In early 2021, my graphic designer colleague at the office switched careers to UI/UX design. One day, I saw him working on Figma and asked about it. He explained it. I was just like, “Wow. I love this. I want to design apps, too.” I decided there that UI/UX was what I wanted to do with my life.
What made you love it?
I just liked user experience. I was already good at customer service, and I thought UX was a bit similar to what I already knew. User experience involves researching people’s behaviour and designing what you think they need based on this information. I honestly just loved the idea of working with Figma and designing. Also, I was getting tired of customer service.
My colleague trained me on UI/UX, and I learnt like my life depended on it. I also started applying to product design internships, and in March, I got one with a marketing agency. They paid me ₦50k/month, and since it was remote, I could do it with my customer service job.
I’d literally resume work at my 9-5 and be doing my product design side gig in the same office. So, at this point, I had three income sources: allawee, my customer service 9-5 and my product design internship.
Nice. How did you juggle both jobs, though?
My 9-5 job wasn’t very demanding; I’d answer two or three calls, respond to five emails, and then sit at my desk for the rest of the day.
The product design job was more demanding. I was a design novice, so I was learning and working simultaneously and getting feedback. It was a lot of work, but I enjoyed it. It was a three-month internship, so I only worked there until June.
After the internship, I continued my job search. A few weeks before my service year ended, I landed a job at a fintech. It was also a customer service role, but my salary was ₦150k/month.
I thought you wanted product design?
I had to collect customer service like that for the money. Also, it was a popular fintech, and I thought it’d be a great addition to my CV. I reasoned I could hold the job for a while and switch departments later.
I worked at the fintech till the middle of 2022, when I unfortunately lost the job.
Ah. What happened?
I did something stupid. A customer complained about something, and instead of sharing a screenshot to show we had fixed their problem, I sent someone else’s account information. Then the person went to tell the CEO, “Is this how you train your customer service staff?” and it became a whole thing. In summary, I lost my job.
I thought it was the end of the world. It was my only income source, and I thought I’d just die. I was only about a year into adulthood and ready to end everything. I had about ₦350k in my savings, but losing my income overnight really messed with my head. Honestly, it was very dramatic, but I was so traumatised.
Phew. Sorry you went through that
Thanks. I moved back in with my parents, so the job loss didn’t have much financial impact on me. I didn’t have responsibilities, but I couldn’t imagine not earning an income. So, I jumped into job search again. In fact, the very next day after they fired me, I was applying for jobs.
It took me four months to land my next job. Funny enough, I didn’t apply for the job. Someone from a bank just called me and asked, “Did you apply for this customer service role at XYZ bank?” I said yes, even though I was sure I didn’t.
The person sent me the interview details; I did the interview and got the job. At this point, I needed money more than any career or passion. I just wanted to be independent and afford what I wanted again.
Real. How much did the role pay?
₦316k/month. Towards the end of 2022, the bank did a general salary increase, and my salary moved to ₦400k.
In 2023, I got tired of customer service again. I started considering branching into tech and doing something more product and user-experience-inclined. Fortunately, one of the product managers resigned during this period, and the bank started trying to fill the role.
I just went to my boss and told her I wanted the opportunity. Although I had no experience in product management, I was willing to learn on the job. She agreed and gave me the job.
They didn’t mind that you had no experience?
I was already a superstar in customer support, so they trusted that I could learn easily and do well. Plus, I had experience with the product I was supposed to manage, which was also essential.
That switch was the scariest thing I’ve ever done. I left my comfort zone entirely for something I knew nothing about. However, I was determined to succeed because I wanted to leave the monotony of customer support.
The career switch also came with a salary jump. It increased to ₦615k at first, then ₦699k after a company-wide review in 2024. Then, a few months ago, I got a promotion and now earn ₦1.1m/month.
That’s an interesting jump
It is. If I didn’t make that career switch when I did, I’d probably only be earning around ₦600k because the bank doesn’t promote people in customer support.
I didn’t even believe the promotion until the money hit my account in June. I’d never received a ₦1m alert at once, and it felt surreal. I still don’t know what to do with the money.
How would you describe your relationship with money?
I used to have a very toxic relationship with money. In uni, I was so scared of going broke that I’d starve myself to save.
That behaviour followed me for most of my life, and it got worse when I first got the customer support job at my current workplace. I started living independently for the first time in 2023 and was always anxious about money.
I had to worry about meeting my ₦800k rent and covering my living expenses alone. To deal with my anxiety, I spent only on food and rent. I never left my house or did anything with my money because I didn’t want it to finish. Still, the money always finished. It was a very toxic situation.
However, I’ve gotten more comfortable spending money since I started earning more. I do a lot of retail therapy now. I can just enter a supermarket, walk around and put things in my cart. I also visit restaurants and hang out with my friends. It also helps that I left my place and moved in with my brother in 2024. My landlord was moving mad, so I left and haven’t gotten another place since. So, no rent anxiety.
I think I’m now in a space where I’m learning to balance my anxiety and form a healthier relationship with money. My increased income has contributed to this. I even started investing for the first time this year.
How are you going about that?
A friend introduced me to an investment platform I started using in February. I try to put ₦150k monthly into it: ₦50k in US stocks and ₦100k in mutual funds.
I’ve not been consistent with it, though. Right now, I only have $80 in US stocks and ₦150k in mutual funds.
My core savings account is healthier than my investments. I save an average of ₦100k monthly and currently have ₦1.7m saved. Then, there’s another ₦200k in my emergency fund. I started the emergency fund two months ago because life showed me pepper.
My laptop spoiled, and I had to spend almost all the money in my account to fix it. That incident taught me never to be unprepared again, so I’m intentionally planning for emergencies. After I save, invest, and sort out my bills, I put around 10% of what’s left into my emergency fund.
Let’s break that down into typical monthly expenses
What do the next few years look like for you?
Honestly, I’m confused about what I want to do with my life. When I moved in with my brother, I planned to stay for six months and see if I could process japa to leave the country.
However, the process was more complicated than I thought. I wrote IELTS and entered the Express Entry pool for Canada, but my scores were too low. My travel consultant said I should learn French or do Agric or nursing. It was too complicated.
Plus, I got a salary increase, and now I don’t know if I want to leave the country or get an international job. I know most Nigerian companies can’t match what I currently earn, so my options are either to leave or get a job that pays in foreign currency sometime later. I don’t know what I want to do yet, and it’s bothering me.
No one is pressuring me, but I’m pressuring myself. I need to figure out what I want to do quickly. I’m doing well professionally and financially right now, but what’s the next step? What’s the next phase of my life and career? Do I need to acquire more skills to earn more? I have so many questions.
I also don’t want to live with my brother for too long. Either I get my place by the end of the year, or the japa plan works out, and I relocate. I just need to know where I’m supposed to go from here.
I feel like I don’t have to ask, but why do you want to leave the country?
I just want to experience a normal, stable country. Financially, this country isn’t working for me. No matter how much my salary climbs, I find myself struggling. Tell me why I’m earning ₦1.1m but can’t afford a decent mini-flat in Yaba, Lagos? I have to save for a couple of months to rent an apartment. How are the people who earn less surviving?
I also don’t want to regret not leaving this country. Things keep worsening, and the people who could’ve left during Jonathan’s regime now regret missing the opportunity. I don’t want to be in their shoes.
I get you. What was the last thing you bought that made you happy?
My phone. I got it in May for ₦750k without stress. I saved for two months to make that purchase, and I didn’t go broke after I bought it. It was the first time I’d made a big purchase without struggling. When I bought my laptop for ₦1.2m in 2024, I starved for three months just to make up for the amount I spent. I almost died.
I’m screaming. What’s one thing you want right now but can’t afford?
I want to get a tech MBA abroad, which should cost at least $25k in tuition, accommodation, and other expenses. Who has that kind of money? Not me.
How would you rate your financial happiness on a scale of 1-10?
8. My current lifestyle isn’t so bad. That figure will reduce to 6 if I start paying rent today.
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