Category: Inspirational
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Meet David Ifedilinwoke, Aba Real Estate Lawyer Who Played a Pivotal Role in My Most Fulfilling Case
David Ifedilinwoke Editor’s Note: It was 2010. I was in my mid-twenties practicing law in a private law firm in Aba, Nigeria. On this day, I had just finished a hearing in court and was getting my gown and wig ready to head towards the door when some young men approached me. I recognized them…
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Five Things to Learn From Author Elechi Amadi’s Life as Nigerians Mourn Him
It’s probably more than twenty years since I read The Concubine but the memorable characters (Ihuoma, Ekwueme, Emenike, Wodu Wakiri, Agwoturumbe etc.) Elechi Amadi created in his first novel remain vivid in my memory. I also remember the last sentence in the novel which read something along the lines of: “Evil Spirits are known to…
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Meet Rhoda: Lawyer, Banker, Luxury Consultant, and Music Artiste. Who Says You Can’t Do it All?
A portrait of Rhoda’s grandfather, as painted by her father who was an engineer, songwriter, artist, and author. Editor’s Note: Rhoda and I were classmates in the university. We both graduated from law school in 2008. This week, I reconnected with her to see what she’s been up to. In this interview that is both…
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Three Reasons Why Criticisms Should Not Get to You
When I first started getting my feet wet in the legal profession (I still am), I once wrote a brief and my supervisor, after reviewing it, returned it with a note that read: “Good. Well-researched.” He didn’t make any edits. A few weeks later, in the reply brief, the opposing counsel wrote that the argument…
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Dear Women in the Workforce, You are As Smart as Your Male Colleagues. Here are Four Mistakes that Hurt Your Career
When I was looking for job fresh out of law school, a lawyer, who would later become my employer, expressed his preference for male employees. He believed that female employees often have other priorities higher than their jobs and are more likely to be absent from work. While family obligations–like having to leave work midday…
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The Invisible Discriminator – You Too Have Bias
Last week, I came across this video via social media. In it, a ‘man clad in black’ springs up behind the actors, communicating negative ideas to the actors about other people based on stereotypes. And each time, the actors’ actions towards the victims are influenced by the ideas previously fed them (the actors) by the…
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Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff, And It’s All Small Stuff
This week, someone gave me a book by the above title written by Richards Carlson, PH.D. It’s fun to read and contains anecdotes which show that most of the things we fret and worry about in life are small stuff, and how if we put them in perspective, we will live a less stressful life.…
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No 1 Thing on My Bucket List – Visiting Christ the Redeemer in Rio
I heard about the statue is a TV series some years ago. Since then, I fell in love more with the statue with each picture I saw. The image of Christ overlooking the city, like the Redeemer and good shepherd He is, evokes a deep religious feeling in me. I hope they inspire you to…
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Daring to Believe – Paschal’s Wager
Pascal’s Wager is an argument in philosophy devised by the seventeenth-century Philosopher Blaise Paschal (1623–62).[1] It posits that humans all bet with their lives either that God exists or not. Given the possibility that God actually does exist and assuming an infinite gain or loss associated with belief or unbelief in said God (as represented by an eternity…
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My Yar’Adua – A Rare Breed of Politician
The day President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua died, I wept thrice. I couldn’t veil my grief. Though the nation saw his death coming and his political opponents – figuratively speaking – had been dancing on his grave as his health deteriorated, I had hoped that somehow he would defy death, at least at that time. A…
Anne Mmeje 