12 months have breezed by. Still, we are all gamblers. I am a bad influence. Siji, you must practice Medicine!

Hi, been a while. What have you been up to? Let me tell you what I have been up to and what has happened to me in the last few days.

September 2014 this blog was born

While it is not yet exactly a year since I published the first article of this blog, it is already another September and time to reflect on what the last one year has been like. The entrepreneurial journey has not been easy. I have not earned a salary in more than 10 months now (my NYSC last month salary-October 2014 -was my last). I have survived mostly on Forex, locum in Medicine and money from (the sale of some of my equity in) Credicoins.

[Remember I told you this blog came to existence because of Credicoins and should actually have been credicoins.com/blog and not sijinius.com if not that Hostgator refunded my deposit.]

Leaving Medicine to start/pursue business, or another career is gambling

Everything in life involves risk. 

So, Credicoins began operations on September 1^st 2015, with our employees #1 and #2 resuming work on a combined salary of at least N280,000. However, the person we share office with is an immediate past special adviser to the former Governor of Lagos state, Fashola. When he heard that I left Medicine to pursue business, he would hear none of it. He told me that he wants to see me return to (practising) Medicine as Nigeria needs more practising Medical Doctors so ‘why should I further reduce the number of practitioners?’

To the man, I am a gambler gambling with my future. And he is right.

[People naturally think doctors leave medicine because they are chasing the money, or they were never passionate about medicine. I say nothing other than, ‘Each case is different...on its merit’.]

You are statistically more likely to succeed outside of (clinical) Medicine

I don't discourage other doctors from practising, however, I wished I had calculated the odds and told the former special adviser the statistical probability of a medical doctor making it outside Medicine. 

Maybe if I knew the odds of a medical doctor succeeding in another career after leaving the practice (which I believe is higher than if he/she continued to practise at that point) then he will know that I am not really a ‘gambler’- I have overall, a greater chance of success (than staying in Medicine). 

Some believe that the reason that non-practising doctors succeed is obvious and a no-brainer. Doctors are generally more respected, intelligent and have gone through some of the most rigorous training as students. So bringing and applying all that to another career automatically results in success.

I say nothing other than, ‘Each case is different...on its merit’.

However, it is all smokescreens (And as the preacher says, ‘All is vanity!’).

 Nothing in life is certain.

You don’t believe that? Let me tell you of some family and friends who are doctors and fellow gamblers.

(N.B: I am not saying they influenced my decision not to practice. Neither am I saying I am rebelling against my grandmother’s decision for me to practise medicine- I had decided to pursue a career in medicine instead of ‘creative engineering’ before she told me to. These accounts do not imply anything other than what I have stated.)

Leaving Nigeria to practice Medicine abroad is gambling, and transferring half of your salary to trade is also gambling

I have a distant cousin and I know other medical doctors, who went to the USA to write USMLE in order to practice. But failed again and again, and then opted for nursing seeing that that was easier.

I have colleagues who have been writing IELTS, and the medical license practising exams of UK for a while now but without success. Some are already back in the country to try again, others are looking elsewhere.

Of course, some of my closest pals made the exams and are now practising in UK, so it is not all gloomy.

Another friend who is also travelling out decided to trade with more than half his salary because ‘he needed money badly’. He lost it all. He is still going abroad this month.

Lesson: Nothing in life is certain. We are all gamblers. The level of our risk taking is simply different, and so is our ‘returns on/of success’ (think ROS instead of ROI). Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

You failed! Sorry, your best was not good enough for the minimum standard.

You tried 'your best’, yet you failed.

It seemed Siji (or that friend of yours) did not try as much as you, yet he passed (she succeeded).

Life is not fair!

Do not try to be(have) like me, or anyone else for that matter....

Growing up, I always sat at the back of the class in primary and secondary schools (-I did likewise for most of university too), and you will rarely see me writing in class, reading lecture notes or preparing for exams.  In fact, for my junior and senior secondary school (JSSCE and SSCE) exams, I did not have any lecture notes- I read the textbooks directly. Many of my friends who tried to copy me ended up failing while I had the best results.  

I was termed a bad influence! Parents warn their children to not take after me.

I tell people to do as I say, not as I do because I have come to find out that I am unique and special, i.e I am not average, so the advise that applies to the average person does not usually apply to me.

AND I AM NOT BOASTING- THAT IS THE TRUTH. I get away with many things partly because of my genes, partly because of my (name and birth) history, partly because of ‘luck’.

 (Dr Seyi says that my mum must have dipped me in a ‘luck river’ after I was born to be this lucky in life. lol)

So while I know I have been called to influence people in my speech and actions, I always remember to tell everyone STILL, BE YOURSELF, do not copy Siji!

While in medical school, many tried to copy me again. Thankfully, most of them did not fail (Dr Funmi had a resit in first MB, he eventually passed and we graduated together. They all became wiser professional MB after MB after MB, and actually helped me pass too. lol).

A female colleague Dr Seun, actually confessed to me in final year that she hitherto disliked me, and felt God was partial by allowing me pass when ‘more serious’ students failed or repeated the class. But after we worked together in final year, she said, ‘Now I see why you pass- You have a unique way of approaching/doing things...well’.

And it applies in personal finance too...

If you still do not know that I advocate that you should not listen to the ‘experts’ regarding your PERSONAL finance, read my article on it. One cap does not necessarily fit all.

Know the guiding PF principles, and apply it uniquely to your situation. Always live a principle-centred life - not a people-, materials- or emotions-centred life- and you will succeed.

Find your own unique way of being YOU.

Thanks for reading. See you soon.