Several rankings have acclaimed her to be the richest woman in Nigeria, and the 2020 list of Africa’s Billionaires placed her at 20th position in Africa.
Folorunsho Alakija over the last decade has been widely recognised as one of the richest people in Africa. Born on the 15th day of July 1951 to a middle class family in Lagos Nigeria, Alakija has travelled the world and worked her way up to the peak.
With business interest in many sectors in the economy which include oil and gas, transportation, and fashion designing, among others, she has made a name for herself.
Success they say is not an easy step in the business world. It takes a lot of effort, hard work and determination to make it as a successful business man or woman. Also, only a few have been able to carve a name for themselves in gold.
Mrs Alakija’s success story is very much inspiring as she gradually rose from grass to grace, coming from a polygamous household where her wealth and fame were not handed over to her on a platter of gold. She had to work tirelessly in order to pursue her dreams of being successful.
As part of the game changers who has shown that women can be successful in their chosen profession, there are so many lessons to be gleaned from the story of this billionaire businesswoman and humanitarian of note.
She has often shared the secrets of her success story and one thing that is worthy of note is the fact that she never fails to acknowledge God’s unseen hands in her journey. Her acknowledgment of God and reference to Him in her success journey is astounding.
It pays to invest in your own growth. It is often said the the greatest investment with the best Return of Investment (ROI) is investing in oneself. Sometimes, in order to get to the next level, one has to spend time investing in one’s personal development.
After quitting her job, Alakija decided to study fashion designing to learn the trade and get qualified as a designer before becoming one of the leading fashion houses of her time. In this era of job insecurity, a person can lose their job at any moment in time but owning a skill is always for a lifetime. You can’t get fired from your own skill except you decide to quit.
Alakija said she was able to get to where she is now because she never backed down. In the business world you need a strong backbone to survive and you must also be ready to face huge rejection.
Alakija initially had a number of rejections when she was looking to break into the competitive industry but each time she went right back. She said she was able to get to where she is now because she never gave up. In business, her persistence and resilient spirit beat the resistance of the then oil minister who eventually awarded her the oil license.
Alakija went the extra mile and also challenged herself into doing things differently. She decided to go into a career that was predominantly dominated by men.
There are definitely many more lessons to draw from her story and wealth of experience. The life of this great woman is a testament to every young person aspiring to be successful that women can be anything they choose to be (and be exceedingly successful) as long as their mind is made up.
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