Life is full of twists and turns, so from a young age, I learned that I could not let unexpected events keep me down or define me. When I look back, I see that many of such events shaped me and led me to succeed, but I also remember that what spurred me in the early days was not a self-cultivated desire for success. It was just about survival.
People ask when they hear my story, “How did you go from hawking to being who you are today?”
Indeed, my life has been an interesting journey, from a rough childhood in Benin to seeking opportunities in Lagos and from starting small businesses to teaming up with my husband to build a microfinance institution that impacts hundreds of thousands of lives. As a child, nothing in my life indicated that I would someday be the Executive Director of a top microfinance institution in Nigeria and create opportunities for others. Today, I am grateful for how far I have come.