Tips for Lagos Living.

Here are a few tips that have helped me, one small way or another, to survive in Lagos. It's been two years since I moved back, so I guess I have been well schooled. I'm still learning sha. I figure these may be useful to a potential move-back-er too. Also, feel free to add your own tips in the comments section.

1. D.I.Y (Do It Yourself): The average Nigerian is looking for a JJC (Johnny Just Come - if you didn't know this, you need a proper Naija-fication) to take advantage of. And you know we like forming, especially when we have small money - you change jobs from an Okokomaiko-located one, to a VI-located one, and we won't hear word again. All of a sudden, Mama-Put disappears from your dictionary. Lol. (Don't mean to diss you if Okoko is your hood, consider it a figure of speech :D). Anyways, my point is, you can save a lot of money by doing some things yourself or making cheaper decisions. No one is going to stop talking to you because you were on an okada. In fact, the person that stops talking to you because you have an okada 'customer' is a goat. What I am saying is, bring your lunch from home once in a while (I went to drink/eat(?) some watery peppersoup at one upscale restaurant that other day for N1,500.00. My friend paid, but SMH). Buy your own relaxer and hair extensions at the market before going to the salon; the salon owners add shop rent and transport money to the one you buy from them. The examples are endless; I'm sure you get the gist. You are allowed to get a driver sha, just be sure to pay him well.
2. Lose the accent, Embrace razzness: Area boys can smell ajebota from miles away. A friend of mine suggested practising razzness in front of the mirror everyday. People will take advantage of you when you show them that you're 'not from around here'. Don't be alarmed though if you find out that people become spawns of Patrick Obahiagbon when you tell them that you studied abroad - "Why have you refused to remove the currency from where it is being trampled upon?" Na 50 pa wey dey ground Oh. D tin don tear sef. i con tink an tink an sey wetin bros e de Obahiagbon about? (Eko no dey carry last. Lol. In the words of the owner of this blog: Don't. Waste. English.)
3. Plan for more than one source of income: A side hustle, a small business venture, a mutual fund, an investment;  whatever it is sha, make sure it's legal. Companies are somewhat unstable in the Nigerian society. Many people are complaining that their companies don't have money to pay salaries. While this doesn't happen across the board, a safety blanket is NEVER a bad thing.
4. Bring a little of your old life into your new life: a). Clothes, Shoes, etc - except you are not a Primark/Old Navy/Outlet Mall shopper like me, and you don't mind spending N 30,000.00 ($200 or £120) on a good pair of jeans (There are cheaper alternatives, have no fear); b) Your favorite appliances - blender, hair styling equipment, etc; c)A Fall jacket/pullover, Hamarttan dey get as e be for these zones o. In fact, if you will be in the North, just bring your Winter coat. There must be at least one Nigerian car-shipper in your area. Depending on how much time you have, you can send the things you won't need for a while through them. It's not an Under-G arrangement, some of them run actual shipping outfits, so it's legit.
5. Start job-hunting before you move back: Connections rule Nigeria; use the ones you have. Recruiters tell you that they make selections based on merit, but don't be surprised to find out that the person sitting next to you in the interview hall didn't even write the pre-selection test; Her uncle's best-man is the second-cousin to the niece of the GM's PA. When you get in, you will do everything in your power to show your employer that even if you wrote the test, they would have selected you.
6. Bring your boyfriend: Guys need not worry about bringing their girlfriends. The market is already more competitive than it should be. If you bring her here and you don't marry her, you don cause wahala be dat.
7. Each day, ask God for more patience than He gave you the day before, you'll need all the patience you can come across. If your blood too dey hot, Naija go make you hug transformer. 

I hope that with these few points of mine, I have been able to convince you and not to confuse you, that farming is better than brick-laying. Thank you. (Key in 'skirt-brush curtsey')


:D!