How to Break Into Nigeria’s Most Exclusive Circles

There are lots of Nigerian sales experts in quote out there who go around talking about different things that might have an element of truth in them, but are not really helpful when it comes to growing your sales or when it comes to increasing growing your business. And today we're going to be talking about some of those things and it's not something I would normally talk about, but you know, listen of the podcast sent me a video.

I wanted my comments on a couple of things. So yeah, that's what I'm doing in the most recent series. So yeah, that's it. Essentially. I'm just taking a look at some content that currently lives on the Internet, on YouTube, Instagram, where else? OK, the fellow also has a podcast and I'm not trying to do it takedown per SE, but I'm just looking at the idea is expressed. We're going to talk about some of the things there that are good and true and some of the things there that perhaps need a different perspective.

Let's just put it that way anyway, so today we're going to talk about breaking the matrix or breaking mindset barriers. Now, for those of you who've been listening to the podcasts for a very long time, you guys will be surprised because you know that I don't touch all this mental stuff. But anyway, let me just go ahead and react to some of the ideas that were in this guy's video. Of course, in my usual fashion, I'm not going to call the fellow out by name because that is not important.

So it's the ideas that we're going to tackle here. So breaking the matrix and mindset barriers. So of course, I have to define what mindsets he's talking about and what a matrix is. Now, this fellow defines the matrix in quote as systems that exist in society, systems that exist in business that prevent people from breaking into wealth. And he talks about a cabal. Let me repeat. There's this idea. It's not even a uniquely Nigerian idea because yes, in Niger they will say, you know,

an occult or Bony and, you know, kitchen cabinets, presidential cabinets, you know, cabal this and this, that and that. And then in nine in America, you talk about, you know, maybe the Illuminati and, you know, the New York mafia, blah, blah, blah, sorry, the New York entertainment mafia and, you know, all these sorts of things. So all these ideas that there's a group of people who hold the key, you know, they're the ones who are the captains of the guard and they're the ones who will decide why are you, you'll be wealthy.

You you won't be wealthy. So that's what this fellow is talking about in some of his contacts, content that we have to break down our matrix and we need to shift our mindset. So yeah, that's what the guy says, that there's a cabal that exists that is stopping some people from breaking into wealth. So the barriers that he talks about, he describes them as restrictions to market entry. And, you know, just like me, you know, he mentions these things and then he moves off to something else.

So it's not really something that he substantiated or that he really delved into, but it's an idea that I want us to talk about just because I know that there are lots of people listening to this podcast today who believe, they honestly believe that there's a cabal somewhere that wants to block their progress, that doesn't want to allow them to to move. The first time I came across this kind of idea was after legal practice and after my master's when I was back in the country trying to break into the event space.

I started hearing that there was a cabal in Lagos. I heard that there was a cabal, you know, of wedding planners, you know them, them high society type people. So there's a cabal and they don't want people to break in. OK, no problem. So Lagos get cabal and no problem. Eventually I moved into Abuja and I found that there was also a cabal as it is a northern cabal of wedding planners, you know, makeup artists, you know,

people like that who have access to the northern markets, northern clients where all the big money is. And so there's a cabal that don't want younger wedding photographers to, to, to progress, you know, to move on. So I say, OK, Abuja Savv, get cabal. So what I'm saying here is not story. If you haven't heard it in your own industry, eventually you will hear it that there's a cabal that somewhere there is them, them and then those people in their secret meetings or whatever.

So excuse me? They're the ones who get to decide who's going to move forward or not, who make progress or who make progress. Now, do these cabals exist? Quite frankly, I don't know, and honestly, I don't even care. But it'll be nice to see somebody talk about this thing and substantiate it. You say Kabal D and these are the Kabal members. Or this is how the whole setup works now, regardless of whether these cabals exist or not.

And by the way, I'm not a professional in these sorts of things, but this, I think, is the likely dynamic of what is taking place. It's not as if there are people who are saying, no, we don't like this person. This person won't progress. Or we like this person, we'll let this person in. We'll keep this person out. We'll let this person. It's not as if that's what's happening, but I understand that sometimes they can't feel that way.

Let me give you an example. You guys know that I've been podcasting for a while, going on 7 years now. And those of you who are regular listeners, you will know that I've been trying to break into certain podcast syndication networks, Nigerian podcast syndication networks. That's when certain people come together and jointly try and promote their podcasts and things like that. So, you know, there are a couple of them that are going here in Niger, Lagos mostly, and then some guys based in the UK and,

you know, try getting into those sorts of things, you know, to also grow my show. And you know, to be honest, I remember some time feeling like, you know, like, what the hell, this is nice. I global, you know, like them them, you know, and after a while you start seeing some things like this one lady that I reached out to. She has a newsletter that promotes podcasts as I was opera with her. Oh, I see what you do. Looks real nice.

So how does somebody get in? What's the application package? You know, how much, what does it take? And then the talks went nowhere. But then after a while I started noticing that the people who were in podcast syndication club, the podcast that she was promoting, if I one of the podcasts that she promoted had been dead for about 5 years. But I just noticed that do it from a certain tribe, you know, if I can put it that way,

reading between the lines. And so I understand at times like that, it just feels as if cabal de dem dem, they're putting a chokehold on the market. But honestly, I think this is the likely dynamic of what's going on. When people come together and you put together a club or you get something going, it's just normal that in this new club or in this new space, in this new whatever the older members expect, that newer members must pay their dues.

It's that simple. I think that's just what is going on. We come together, we create something that is viable. We're extracting market value from this thing. You know, we have something nice going on. And then all of a sudden somebody just called from outside and the person just wanting like, like, who are you? Like, you know who you be? Like, what value do you bring to the table? I think they just want people to pay their dues First.

Let's see who this guy is. Let's see what this guy is about. Let's see if this person is going to be a valuable asset to the team. Simple questions. It's nothing cynical. It's nothing devious. Nobody means you harm. Nobody sat somewhere and they say, you know what, anybody that comes from this part of the country won't let them in or anybody who is this sex or this age won't let them in. I think it's just a simple something of paying your dues.

So if you're patient enough and you're willing to pay your dues, you should be OK. Then another dynamic plays this whole thing of building alliances because know how know how when people are. You know, I think of it now, secondary school, like those of you who didn't start from JSS one, maybe you transfer from JSS 2 or something. By the time you enter in JSS 2, like everywhere don't set now, like people already have been rolling with their clicks since JSS one.

They all know themselves. So you're kind of like an outsider. So you the outsider who is coming in, you, you know, you understand the lay of the land. Now you see who is who. Then you would build your own alliance now. So you would enter small, small, small. So even from secondary school, not the same dynamic. Now you're coming to a place where don't set like everybody knows themselves, everybody get their own click. You're just coming from outside as a fresh boy.

Then you want that they'll just turn over this valuable asset that they've built. How I think that's likely dynamic. So go there, be patient, learn the alliances, know who is who, begin to build your alliance. Then you plot your way in instead of staying on the outside and complaining that Kabal D in Lagos, Kabal in Abuja, Kabal in politics, Kabal everywhere, Kabal figure out the alliances leaning. Play the whole game.

It's not cynical, it's not devious, it's not devilish. There's no ground, masterpiece. There's no ground, you know, whatever. It's just a simple something. Everybody is really cool. Then get their own click. You are an outsider. And who is this guy? It's as simple as that. And I understand that people feel that way because even me too, sometimes I get that feeling because when I'm trying to talk to this lady now and as I seen all those names.

Oh, OK. So she only messes with these kinds of people who went to these kinds of school. You know, I just got back kind of people. I said OK, now so, but it's nothing personal, nothing devious there. Just relax. There's no cabal. There's just no more human behavior when people come together and they put together an association, whether it's wedding planners who are trying to hack into another market or track into any kind of hack into any kind of regional market and able to succeed and they get things going.

It's not a cabal. It's just people getting together, playing well together, trying to make money together, trying to grow together. You coming in as an outsider and you want to join you guys to pay your dues. It's not paying dues. Don't know who you are, don't know what you're about. Whether you can blend with the system or not. Figure out who is who within the setup, blend, build your own alliances inside. Become a trusted insider as well.

Figure out the motivations of the group. Figure out the motivations of the people who are inside the group. Then you will now take your own motivation, your motives, and blend with other people's motivations or blend with the group motivation and then you'll be fine. It's nothing personal. It's nothing cynical, nothing devious, nothing devilish. No secret cults. Now, secret cults today, definitely. But I'm just saying that we should stop thinking that every single time that as a guy or as a baby can't move forward, you know, Nah, kebab on Illuminati.

Relax, relax. It's purely natural what it is that is going on. And the solution is just apply. You like the association, you like the people, you like the group, apply. It's the same thing. OPEC, Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, Nigeria is now a member. You know, Nigeria wasn't always a member because it didn't have oil. And then one time we discovered oil and what do we do? We apply. You say OPEC, I have oil, I want to join OPEC.

We say OK, now the application process be this, now the, now the levy structure with this, now the compliance, you know, this and this and that and that. You will now apply if it's worth it. You will take your time when you apply and today Nigeria is a member of OPEC Organization of Petroleum exporting Countries is the same thing. It's purely natural. So the solution is applied to get in or you can do what some of us do, which is build your own ecosystem, because I've tried to crack into some people's flow before, but did you no work then go and.

Build your own. That's the reason why I have my podcast. Nobody's going to give up their stage for me to come and shine on their own stage. So therefore me, I build my own stage. You try The thing is not working. Go and. Build your own ecosystem. It's not every time we should keep looking on people to give us the leg up. Go and build your own. So yes, in the beginning, honestly speaking people's masterminds, I need to speak on other people's stages.

I want it to be on other people's platforms. If there no one give you platform, go and. Build your own. But best I can see, those are the two options available. You like the network, you like the club, you like the whatever it is that is going on there. Apply if you're not patient enough to apply like me. Go and build your own. Nobody's stopping you know there's many fish in the in the water should be there succeeding try your own now yourself.

You might succeed. So if you want to break into the cabal in quotes pay your dues apply. There will be a period of what we're like, you know, like internship kind of deliver value. Once you get into the organization, let people know who you are. Let them see that you're a valuable asset. And by the time you've been delivering value for a while and people see that this guy, this babe, my correct guy, be that, then you'll be able to extract value from the ecosystem and you'll be able to eat your own share of the cake.

You need scale skills to be able to do that. You need to learn stakeholder management. You're coming into a setting and you're trying to figure out who is who, what the movers, who are the Shakers, who are the important peoples, who are the different stakeholders here? How will I blend with all of them? How could they manage them? Stakeholder management, a very important sales skills. You need it. So I'm not going to join other people and be saying, ah, Kabal,

kabal, Kabal. I won't say that, OK, Even if the Kabal exists, where Kabal Kabal, OK, So what next? We stand, continue to complain, build your own. If you don't want to build your own, apply and pay your dues. Learn how to build alliances. It's important. There's also another thing that I talk about over here on the podcast, the very important sales skill, building alliance. Who is who? Who is interested in what? How does it blame with my own motivation?

How does it blame with the things that I want to do? This is a foundational skill that everybody needs when they are trying to break into a clique or whether you're trying to break into a market or whether you're trying to break into an individual account, you're trying to sell your product or service into a company. It's a foundational skill. You need to be able to figure out who is, excuse me, who in this environment is worth talking to?

Who should I be talking to? You need to be able to figure out. It's a sales skill. What is important to these people? You need to be able to figure that out. It's a sales skill. Now that I know what is important to them, excuse me, what is important to me? And then how our interests aligned. OK, based on how our interests are aligned, I am now going to propose this agenda. Propose this agenda, or I'll try this thing, or I'll try this thing, or I'll try that thing.

Very important sales skill, foundational sales skill. We should learn how to figure out what people's motivations are and figure out how people's motivations align to ours. So whether you want to break into a cake, whether you want to break into a cabal, what they are trying to sell to people, that's how we're going to get going. So do these cabals exist? Like I said, I don't know. And quite frankly, I do not care. But it would be nice for somebody to do some research to show that Oh yes, you know,

there's a cabal here and you know, this and this and that and that. You know, it's like how people, economists do research in, they call it market. So I can't remember what is called it. Is it market anomalies or markets? You know, like when they talk about monopolies because economists claim that a monopoly is a market aberration. Like you're not supposed to have one person in control, you know, controlling everything, which is one reason why people don't like that.

But anyway, let me not talk about that. So economists talk about monopolies. They talk about what again? Now monopolies. Then OPEC is not a monopoly. OPEC is a I can't remember what it's called. That's when people, different people come together and they say, you know what, all of us would be the supplier. So let us come together and let's start doing price fixing so that we can control how everything is going because that's essentially what I'm OPEC

is. So companies that produce oil to get together. You agree. Look, all of us, you must sell at this price. If we sell at this price, all of us make money. If we don't sell at this price, you know, won't be able to capture good profits. So economists already do research on these sorts of things on a very formal business level. So be nice for somebody to do the research and say, Oh yeah, cabals exist in this sector. Cabals exist in that sector.

But whether is Illuminati, well, none of my business whether it's a House on the Rock, because we would say house on the Rock is a cabals of none of my business. Whether is a presidential, What's it called? The presidential? What do you call the kitchen cabinet presidential? Kitchen cabinet, I don't care none of my business. Whether I was a Bony, I don't care none of my business. But if I decide that it's worth the hassle and I'm going to get there, I will either apply and pay my dues.

So if it's a presidential something, you know, I'll apply and pay my dues. Or I could do what? Some of our politicians try to do, I'm not going to call the guy's name, but I know, but there's some people who are trying to build a platform on their own so that they can deliver change on their own personal initiatives. Well, those are options. Essentially, apply and pay your dues. Or go and build your own. Well, please don't join other people, business comment commentators in Nigeria who just sit down and say there's a cabal, there's a cabal, there's a cabal.

If there's anything we need to break, I think that is real matrix that we need to break. We need to stop this whole kebab thing they're keeping, they're keeping us from getting our own. You'll try. Go and apply. If you don't like what you see, go and build. Your own. You don't know how to build your own. Hey, perfect. There's some people out here, there's some of us who are showing you the way. If you Google Nigerian podcaster or if you look for Nigerian podcasters, you know, I don't look like a Nigerian podcaster.

I don't sound like a Nigerian podcaster. I don't have, you know, the, the backgrounds or the, you know, whatever. I'm just a simple, simple boy doing my own thing. So for those of us who are trying to build our own stages, we can't build it, or you can't build your own too. Anyway, it's been 20 minutes and I normally don't talk about mindset, mindset stuff because quite frankly, I think it doesn't pay. What we need to do is we need to work on tactics and we need to be practical.

Because the problem with a lot of us is not that we have the wrong mindset. The problem is that we actually don't know what it is that we need to do. So we need to learn up on the frameworks, on the tactics, on the skills that we need to learn. So that's why I don't know when you talk about these sorts of things Anyway, so let me bring today's episode to a close for those of you who are discovering the podcast for the first time.

Don't worry. This podcast is a hardcore business podcast. And typically I'll talk about things from a sales perspective, sometimes entire marketing, maybe branding, but my area of specialty is sales. So don't worry, Come back the episode after this and I promise you, you're not going to be disappointed. It's going to be hardcore, practical, tactical stuff that you have not heard on any other Nigerian podcast. And that's the reason why you should subscribe on Spotify,

iTunes, Apple, any player of your choice. It's also the reason why you should reach out to me on 08064662140. You can call me, you can send me a text message, you can send me a WhatsApp message because I'd like to meet people who listen to the show. 20 thanks for listening and remember, this is our first time discovering the podcast. Don't worry, I don't normally talk fluff. The next episode is going to be practical, so don't worry.

Just hang in there and I'll catch you all some other time.