The "Upcomers".

A meeting with a renowned photographer inspired this piece. I had to collect some of my featured runway photographs and decided to use the opportunity to talk about a photo shoot for my Afrocentric collection.

I had invested all of my NYSC savings on a fashion show, that was not enough, My family had to support in any little way. Each member of my family contributed their own quota to help me debut. When you are an entrepreneur, you take risks and you invest. Lately, i have invested my time and effort in branding my clothing line. So the photographer mentions the fee he will charge, and I am like "Is that the last price? And He says "Yes". Then I think about models and a make up artist, I have to pay them too. He says he can help me get models and a good make up artist that would charge a considerate fee. I laughed and then we summed up the monetary value of our conversation, I smile and tell him "Let me go back home and start saving", trying to be sarcastic but really telling myself "You have got to make this work". I tell him "It's not easy being up and coming", He says "It's not easy being up and coming in any industry" and he shares some of the ugly past experiences he has had over the years as a photographer. He is successful but he had gone through his own struggles as an up and coming entrepreneur. After the meeting, I realized most people likely go through the same process when starting out.

The Upcomers are people who dare to make their dreams come true. People who take a chance, go out and take a risk because they believe they can transform the world with their dreams. The upcomers are passionate about what they do. The upcomers are also people who are just starting, they are the beginners in any industry, they are the younger generation, they are a bunch of talents unfolding steadily and working so hard behind the scenes to ensure they get a brighter tomorrow. For someone to excel in life, sometimes all that matters is "belief" Which most upcomers don't get. Most people don't believe in upcomers because they are short sighted. I don't blame them, it is how they have configured their mindset. Most people want to be associated with success and not the process of it. If you are working hard to make a dream come true and no one believes in you, don't worry. God believes in you. With fame and money comes fake friends. God purposely wants you to know your real friends when the ride is smooth.

There are people whose job is to discourage your dreams, don't listen to them. As an upcomer, you have to choose what you listen to, negative thoughts are harmful and are discouraging which may make you attempt to murder your dreams . Remember "Opinions are not facts". Push yourself to the limit and replace negative thoughts with your vision and hope. I once overheard someone say "I can never wear her designs and she was my friend, It was petty gossip that i was not suppose to hear but I happened to hear it, It did not stop me from sketching designs or registering my clothing line with Corporate Affairs Commission. I have been blessed to have people act like potential clients on blackberry and take my sketches to their tailors to produce, it just taught me to do the business differently.

Don't get intimidated by other people's success. You have no idea how they got to the peak, learn from them and think of ways to take your dream to the next level. Being in a competition with another person is not healthy and it doesn't help. Each human has different goals. Run your own race. Your lane is different from any other person. Do not compete with established people. Find new opportunities, I learned this at an entrepreneurial forum.

If you fail, stand up and move on. Don't quit and blame it on failure, because failure itself is not excuse. Be optimistic and have faith. You need faith as an upcomer because most times, people don't really understand your dream, when you talk, all they hear is blabbing, they remain in the picture for one selfish future benefit or the other and I think this is the reason why Fela Durotoye said "Choose your friends based on where you are going to, not where you are coming from". So most upcomers are lonely people because they really can't share their stories with anyone. Most times, all you have is God and yourself. Don't get discouraged.

Keep taking chances, persevere, believe, inspire, give faith a fighting chance and most importantly have the courage to follow your HEART and INTUITION, they somehow already know what you truly want to become, everything else is secondary. You won't be an upcomer for long.


Dedicated to all dreamers, the dreams motivate the action and vision.