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I was with my sister in her salon shop, discussing the difficulty one faces to secure a job in Nigeria if all that you have are your certificate and expertise.
"Getting a job without needing the assistance of anyone in the form of an unofficial recommendation is a rare occurrence. I have the belief that God will help us."
"Amen," I responded from the plastic chair that I was seated in outside the shop.
My face was rough with the blend of dust and sweat. The dust of the unpaved road through which I trekked through from work left my black shoes being roughly taken over by brown color.
I was teaching in a school about 2 kilometers from home. I trekked to and fro in most of the days. My salary couldn't sustain taking any other transportation means.
"There is rice in the kitchen. Pick the room's key from that black purse." She pointed to the purse laying on the extension of the mirror table in the shop.
I barely stepped out of the shop after picking the key when my phone rang. I checked the phone and realized that Abdul, my former colleague, was the one calling.
Abdul left the school where we were both teaching to a bigger school a few months earlier. I celebrated the breakthrough with him the day that he got the job. The salary was about 200% more than what he was earning in my school.
"Don't worry," he said to me. "Just the way an opportunity came for me to leave to a better place, a similar opportunity will come your way very soon. If there is any opportunity at the school that I am going to, I won't hesitate to call you," he assured me on our last day discussion as colleagues.
"Hello, Mr. Ojo. Good afternoon," He exchanged pleasantries with me over the phone. "There is a vacancy for a mathematics teacher in my school. I want you to come with your CV tomorrow and apply in person. Please be prepared, and come."
Skepticism arose within me.
"I believe you remember that I did not major in mathematics. Do you think that it won't be an impediment?" I asked him.
"This school gives jobs based on competency. Many applicants have come to write the aptitude test. I want you to come and write also. The best person will be offered the job irrespective of what you majored in during your bachelor's degree. I believe in your capability. I plead with you to come and apply."
Abdul was someone who believed in me nearly more than I believe in myself. He had boasted to people several times of having a friend who was a genius in mathematics. Some times, I would wonder if I were the one he was praising to such a high haven.
I was convinced by the phone call from him to go and put in the application.
The following morning, I prepared very quickly and left for his school. I put on my best suit with well-polished black shoes. I avoided trekking any distance to avoid disfiguring my appearance with the dust that enveloped the unpaved road from my house. I took a motorcycle to the main road where I boarded a vehicle to a junction, from where I boarded the vehicle going to school. I was guided by the address given to me by Abdul. I didn't face any challenge in locating the school.
I arrived at the school, and I initially got carried away with the serene nature of the surroundings. Trees and flowers were everywhere with a cool breeze, making the whole area a good place to be.
I finally approached the security personnel manning the gate.
"How may we help you?" The young man smartly dressed with a handheld scanner responded to my greetings.
"I am here to apply for a vacant position in mathematics," I responded to him.
"Is the authority aware that you are coming? Or you only want to submit the application letter and go back."
"The school is inviting applicants to come and submit applications for the vacancy in person. I am here to do that."
He picked up his telephone and dialed a number.
"A man is at the gate, and he said he is here to apply for a mathematics teaching position," he said to the person from the other side of the phone. The following response from him was a mixture of "yes ma and ok ma."
After the call, he scanned my brown parcel and my body before letting me in.
"Turn to your left and go to the hall that you are facing," he directed me.
I arrived at the hall and met four other people already seated. I took my seat.
Shortly after, a man came with answer booklets and question papers to administer the aptitude test on us.
"The test is of two sections: general mathematics and further mathematics. I will give you two answer booklets each for each of the sections," he said.
He shared the booklets and the question papers. Someone joined us along the line, and we became six in number that wrote the test.
The head of administration of the school came to address us after the test.
"Thank you for having an interest in joining our team of educators. We will get back to you on the next line of action."
We all left the premises after the address.
Abdul called me to inquire from me about how the whole test session went. I explained everything to him.
"I will follow up to see your performance," he promised.
About a week later, I was invited by the vice principal of the school.
"Am I speaking with Mr. Ojo? I am Mrs. To, the vice principal of The Hillside School. I wish to invite you to the school in continuation of your interview on Monday, by 9 am."
"Alright, ma'am. I will be in your school at the scheduled time. Thank you for the call."
I received the call on Friday. I spent the weekend rehearsing how to answer interview questions for teaching jobs. I researched about the school and got prepared in every other way that I could. I reached out to Abdul to inform him of the development.
"This is a good step forward. For you to be invited at this stage, you are one of the top performers from the aptitude test. Prepare for a micro-teaching should in case you are asked to do that. I am sure that you will scale through the remaining huddles."
Abdul was more than a friend. His unwavering support was topnotch.
I arrived at the school a few minutes before 9 a.m. I was let into the office of the vice principal by 9 a.m.
What I expected to be the continuation of the interview process turned out to be something different, shockingly.
"You have done superbly well in the written test. Every member of the recruitment panel recommended that you should be given the job. How much can we offer you to join us?" She asked.
I was lost of what to say initially. I didn't want to call an amount that would look too huge for the job, and I also didn't want to be underpaid. My mind flashed back to what Abdul had told me the day we discussed salary negotiations with organizations.
"Don't think that a salary is too big for your expertise. Go into any negotiation with confidence. Call your price and wait for the negotiation to continue. If you are needed, there will be a meeting point for you and your potential employer."
These words from Abdul encouraged me to approach the negotiation with confidence.
"I can consider 150000 naira," I responded to Mrs. To.
She laughed for a while before responding. "That's on the high side. We will offer you 70000 naira with an increment of 20000 naira if your performance is satisfactory after six months."
We continued the negotiation, and we both finally agreed on a salary of 80000 naira with a 20000 naira increment after six months of satisfactory work.
I was asked to wait at the reception.
A few minutes later, the appointment letter was handed to me. It was like a dream as I read the letter to the point of the amount written as agreed. My salary in my former school was 26000 naira. Moving from a salary of 26000 naira to 80000 naira was an exponential growth that I never envisaged so soon.
Holding the letter tight to my chest, I went to meet my sister in her shop. It was a celebration galore. She was overwhelmed with joy that after only a week of us lamenting about getting a befitting job at the time, I was able to secure one. Our joy knew no bounds.
About three weeks later, my sister fell sick, and she never recovered from it. I lost her after about five months on the sick bed. Each time I talk about this story, her loving memory remains evergreen in my heart.
