Laila Ijeoma
heheheehe.......i will soon do my own interview....... A popular Nigerian blogger, Laila Ijemoa, has spoken out about why blogging is a more lucrative job to do than banking.
In the Nigerian blogosphere, Laila Ijeoma commands a lot of
respect, not just because she owns www.LailasBlog.com; an entertainment
website that reports trending Nigerian news read by millions monthly.
On June 30, 2016, Laila took a bold step of abandoning her over
N5million per annum bank job to become a full time entertainment
blogger; risking everything to take a gamble on her passion.
She traded her lucrative job to pursue what was still at that time,
just a hobby she was passionate about, but today, the decision has
become one of her best turning points. In a chat with Saturday Woman,
she says she has no regrets a year after taking this huge leap of faith
as she now has all the time to focus on her family and continue to grow
her blog even bigger.
Why did you dump your bank job for fulltime blogging?
I started blogging as a joke in 2012; I wasn’t looking for money
because I was already gainfully employed at that time. All I wanted was
an outlet to share my life with Nigerians, inspire them with my stories.
So I started a Facebook group called, ‘True love for my man’- that
should be around 2010.
That was the first social media account I used to gather people
together and we chatted about love and heartbreak. My big dream had
always been to have a top Nigerian talk show, so I later started a show
on radio. I eventually had to put it on hold because it was so
demanding.
Being married, a mum to 3 boys, working at the bank, there was a
lot to do in just 24 hours every day and the whole schedule nearly
‘killed’ me, so I had to drop the radio show. Along the line, I
discovered blogging through a colleague at the bank where I worked; he
owned a blog, after he introduced me to it that fateful day, I got
hooked. I realized I could reach out to people through it with much less
stress compared to a radio show.
I told him I would love to have mine and he helped me set it up. I
didn’t even take it serious then. But as I kept on sharing stories, and I
read comments from my audience, I knew this was what I was born to do. I
have always been a science student in school, I knew nothing about
blogging, and I had zero celebrity friends, zero celebrity sources for
my stories but I didn’t let that stop me.
How difficult was it juggling being a banker, blogger, wife and mother of three boys?
It was a crazy, hectic schedule! On a daily basis, I woke up 4am;
go to bed sometimes 12 midnight. And the next day, I still have to go to
work. No excuses. I was able to run my life like that for four years
because I was purely fuelled by passion. I just love blogging, there’s
this irreplaceable, beautiful joy it brings me.
As with every new venture, the beginning is usually slow.
How long did it take for your traffic to skyrocket?
It took about 6 months after I made the first post on my blog for my traffic to start skyrocketing.
Did the traffic immediately translate to money for you?
No it didn’t. My traffic didn’t translate to so much money till
2014. That was the year this particular company contacted me and ran an
advert with me that lasted for a full year and changed my life.
Would you say blogging is lucrative in Nigeria?
As long as you are a passionate blogger, as long as you are in
blogging because you enjoy what you are doing, as long as your blog, its
concept, its contents are original, not a rip off of another blogger’s
website; blogging is the best thing that can ever happen to you. The
rewards will blow your mind! It’s already an open secret that blogging
can make you a billionaire. You get lots of free stuff from brands too.
People just call you up.
They want to advertise on your website and they are handing out
their products and services to you for free so you can review them and
share with your readers. Then you have the best reward; you are
recognised as a voice that can start a change. You are respected. People
want to read what you have to say about a situation. Readers are so
addicted to your blog that they wake up in the morning and can’t wait to
read what is on Laila’s Blog today. As a blogger, you can comfortably
work from home in your pyjamas.
So you prefer blogging to banking?
I did banking for 10 years in one of the best banks in Nigeria and I
enjoyed it. But I wasn’t self-fulfilled, I wanted more. Again, I was
already blogging for over 3 years alongside my day job. Truth is as time
went on, it became harder running my blog, bank job, family and taking
care of myself efficiently. I wanted to wake up in the morning to the
joy of knowing that all I had to do for that day was write about the
trending stories in Nigeria and not miss any story just because it
happened while I was offline. I also wanted to spend more time with my
very supportive husband and children every day.
How would you compare your income now to when you were a banker?
It has been tremendously rewarding, spiritually, family-wise, and
financially. You know with a steady day job, you don’t have to worry
about getting your paycheck at the end of the month. There are days I
worry- what if I don’t make money this month? That was why before I quit
my bank job, I made sure I saved up my salary and had at least 6
months’ salary set aside. I actually had a full year salary saved up
before I made the leap and resigned.
If you don’t plan properly, things can actually go wrong and your
dreams won’t come out the way you planned them; you will fail and life
will become miserable. I’m so glad I conquered my fears of what if
something goes wrong and took the leap. My friends, family, parents
thought I was crazy when I first mentioned it. But after they saw I
wasn’t going to quit blogging and that I had prepared for the worst;
they rallied round and supported my decision to leave banking. Having
them behind me made me stronger and I left.
Any regrets so far?
None whatsoever; my income tripled. My kids wake up in the morning
they see mummy. Mummy takes them to school, mum brings them back, mum
tucks them into bed every night, mummy helps them with their school
assignments, things I couldn’t do before. I love what I do now and it
gives me so much joy. I just miss my former colleagues once in a while.
What are the challenges you face as a blogger, especially those peculiar to the Nigerian blogosphere?
My biggest challenge is internet network; there are times I wake up
to blog and I discover my internet isn’t as fast as I need it to be.
Sometimes, it’s entirely down so I can’t even blog. Second challenge is
power; a laptop is to a blogger what the Bible is to a Pastor. Laptops
can only work if they are charged. Because I am online at least 18 hours
daily, I spend a lot on fuel for generators.
What stands you out from other bloggers?
You can be very sure that out of the over 50 stories you read on
Laila’s blog in a day, at least 50% are our original stories. Again, we
deliver stories as they are happening. You will read breaking news,
trending stories first on Laila’s blog before they appear on other
websites.
In your estimation, what’s the future of blogging in Nigeria in the next five years?
With a computer today, anybody can build a global business from
his/her bedroom, with a bit of creativity and sheer determination.
Every day, we have over a hundred new bloggers coming online.
Vlogging is now a huge thing! Five years from now, I see more younger
people doing big things, conquering boundaries, becoming millionaires
through blogging in Nigeria. I also see blogging in Nigeria becoming
more professional. I am a registered member of this CAC registered
bloggers’ association called The Guild of Professional Bloggers in
Nigeria.
Aside blogging, any future plans?
I have this huge passion for taking care of orphans and vulnerable
children, kids under the age of 18 years who are at high risk of lacking
adequate care and protection. Right now I have 10 under my care,
children my husband and I take care of. We have plans of taking that
number up a notch.
Any tips for upcoming bloggers who look up to you?
One Mr. Mohammed Mustafa Ahmedzai once said ‘The easiest job on
earth is starting a blog but the toughest job is maintaining it.” And
this is simply because patience matters in blogging, and most upcoming
bloggers don’t have that! Experienced bloggers will tell you that you
should only start to think about making money from your blog at least
after 6 months of blogging.
But every day, I get emails from new bloggers with 1-2 month old
blogs asking you how to apply for Adsense. These new bloggers apply for
AdSense and most times, they are rejected and you see them quit
blogging. From the day anybody starts blogging till the day he/she ends
her blogging career, there are lots of problems you’ll face.
Solving these problems and moving ahead is not easy as it sounds!
And that’s another reason upcoming bloggers quit blogging easily. So my
first tip for them will be to have patience. Without it, their eyes
shall not see the billions blogging can drop in their bank accounts. If
your main reason for blogging is money and you have no patience for
earning it, then you’re not going to earn from blogging at all!
What’s your biggest wish in life?
I wish to make the world a better place by saving abused and
vulnerable children and making sure their oppressors get severely
punished for their wickedness.
***
Culled from Vanguard
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