From Ignorance to Stardom (My Mandela Washington Fellowship Story)

So, it’s already another time to apply for the Mandela Washington Fellowship. Around this time in 2015, I got an email from one of my mentors informing me about the opening of the 2016 Application. Truth be told, up until I received that email I knew virtually NOTHING about YALI nor the Mandela Washington Fellowship. I was living in the dark. Knowledge is truly light and that email was the light I needed.

Dr Teresa is one person I respect so much. She must have seen something in me to have taken the stress to send me that email, so I decided to click on the link in the email she sent me. I saw information about YALI, I saw a link to the YALI Network Face2Face group on Facebook, I saw the YALI LEARNS online courses, I read about the YALI Regional Learning Centres (RLCs) and I also saw the Mandela Washington Fellowship. “What a beautiful initiative”, I thought.

Reading about the Mandela Washington Fellowship gave me chills. But, I was first discouraged by the huge competition that surrounds it and the slim chance of being shortlisted. I also had my initial doubts about fairness and discrimination. Reading further, I saw Adepeju Jaiyeoba'(a 2014 Mandela Fellow from Nigeria) picture with President Obama. She looked radiant and super-excited in the picture. Something told me it couldn’t have been Photoshop. Lol! President’s Obama’s gallant posture in the picture reminded me of the American values of merit and due-process. Now, my fears are gone. “I am going to apply for this thing”, I murmured to myself.

True to my latest conviction, the Mandela Washington Fellowship, like every other YALI Program, is executed through a highly-coordinated, merit-based, gender-balanced, fair process. There is no discrimination based on religion, political-affiliation, sexual orientation or physical disability. The application process may seem tedious and tiring, but every bit of it is rewarding. The questions asked will reveal your inner self to you and you’ll become better, even as you answer the questions sincerely.

MY 10 TIPS FOR SUBMITTING A WINNING APPLICATION:

These are from my personal experience and observations.

Before we get into the tips, that's me behind President Barack Obama (in a grey suit and a Naija muffler on my neck) smiling bright beside his right cheek. And it's not Photoshop. Lol! 😅😅😅

1. BE SURE YOU ARE ELIGIBLE: Mandela Washington Fellowship is open to countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. I advise you double-check your country is amongst the participating countries. Also, it a programme for “YOUNG” African Leaders so the age range is 25 -35. However, outstanding applicants less than 25 years old are usually considered. Read up full eligibility requirements on goo.gl/xBOnjs. If you meet all the eligibility criteria, you must then importantly CONVINCE yourself that you have the stuff to make it. If you can’t convince yourself, you can’t convince the person reading your application. Read about past fellows, follow their projects (if related to yours), find out what they do and tell yourself “I can do this”. Your mindset and self-belief will ultimately reveal itself in your application and at the interviews.

2. FIGURE OUT YOUR BIG IDEA & STORY: your big idea forms the fabric/backbone of your application. You must be able to communicate your major achievement as a leader. YALI MWF is looking forward to building upon your previous success in your local community by exposing you to tools, people and opportunities for global leverage. Streamline your numerous achievements and years of experience into one or two related BIG IDEA(S). Once you are clear about your BIG IDEA, now it’s time to put together your story. Make your story sooooooooo clear that the reader can “see & feel” WHAT you are passionate about, WHY you are passionate about it, HOW you have demonstrated your passion, the RESULTS you have achieved so far, the CHALLENGES you have faced doing that, HOW you have overcome those challenges, WHAT you need to do next and HOW this fellowship will help you do better at it. More importantly, your story MUST show the LINK between what you are doing and a global issue/challenge the United States is trying to solve or interested in solving. This, more than any other thing will determine if you will make it to the semi-finals.

3. CHOOSE YOUR TRACK APPROPRIATELY: the fellowship has three tracks, Business & Entrepreneurship, Civic Leadership and Public Management tracks. A new Energy track was introduced as a pilot-test in 2016 and should hopefully be sustained this year. Be sure you understand what each track stands for and identify the track that best suits your work/big idea. Getting this right will make your application more precise and your story more focused, it will also help the admin connect faster to your project.

4. BE ORIGINAL & SINCERE: Hey! This is where honesty and integrity comes in. You want to be sure that: (i) the work/big idea is yours or you played a major role in it (ii) You put together your application by yourself. These two are very essential, because if you lie about some important stuff, it will eventually be found out. Never consider giving your Username/Password to a past fellow. That negates PRIVACY rules and the standard of INTEGRITY expected of a Mandela Fellow. You may get help by seeking for advice, but not to the point of giving someone else your entire application to work on. Haba! The US Department of States has its way of finding out what they need to know about you. Why lie? The Mandela Washington Fellowship is more than just travelling to the US. It’s your ticket to a life-long relationship with the US government and plenty of awesome people in the YALI Network. Just be confident and straight forward. You’ll make it.

5. JUSTIFY YOUR SPOT WITHOUT BEING PUSHY: Choosing just a thousand fellows out of over 50,000 applications is a difficult task. In Nigeria, the stakes are even higher. In 2016, it was 100 out of 10,000+ submitted applications. As you can imagine, that is a very huge competition. This is why your BIG IDEA/STORY/ WORK must be highly convincing without you sounding desperate. Don’t try to impress or push the reader by stating too many achievements and all your village titles. Also ensure that your commitment to return to Africa is reflected from your application. The fellowship seeks to INVEST in you, so you can INVEST in others. Make sure your BIG IDEA/STORY and VALUE PROPOSITION is razor sharp and all the small pieces fall in line with the big picture you are trying to paint. You can always find a balance.

6. DISPLAY YOUR AWESOMENESS: don’t be afraid to brag about your success. However, while doing all that, acknowledge the support and help you received from other people. That is what makes a LEADER awesome. Too many good people apply for the fellowship but only the GREAT get selected. Your greatness comes out in your TEAM SPIRIT. This may include acknowledgement of advice from friends, team members’ help or the community support you received on your journey to success etc. As you project your success story, use more of “We” than “I”. This will reflect your ability to work and lead a team.

7. PROOF-READ YOUR APPLICATION: Grammar ooo! Grammar! There is no English Language test or examination required to qualify for the fellowship. But, it is expected that you should be able to write, speak and communicate in simple, basic and error-free English. This will reflect in your application. Read, read, I say read your application again, to be sure it is almost error-free, before submitting. Consider this as part of your first impression.

8. SAVE A COPY: It’s okay to edit on the go. You can save the questions on your local drive to answer as you go and come back to fill the application when you have given each of the questions the best shot. Also, save a copy of your work before or after submission. If you make it to the semi-finals, you’ll find this tip very helpful while preparing for your interview.

9. DON’T RUSH AND DON’T BE LATE: the application window will be open for a few weeks and it’s not a fastest-finger first thing. If you need to take your time, please do within the application window. You shouldn’t submit anything less than your best in the name of “getting there first”. You don’t have to rush and you don’t need to be late. Just make sure you are giving it your best shot, while leaving some time before the application deadline.

10. FORGET ABOUT IT: Your peace of mind is paramount. Meanwhile, Olympics isn’t always to win, but to participate. No amount of your worry will hasten the application calendar or increase your chances of being shortlisted. After you have submitted your application, take a cup of coffee or zobo or kunnu or whatever your heart desires at the moment and forget about it. If you know how to pray, do so, but don’t mistake hope with worry.

Let this post be the light that you need to go out and do great exploits.

Go and submit your winning application here: goo.gl/Q1CPkv.

See you at the semi-finals.

Yours truly.

#YouHaveARightToBeMotivated #EmdeeTiamiyu

Emdee Tiamiyu (OCPJP, OCPDBA, OSHA UK, B.TECH)

2016 Mandela Fellow | Curator, #TEDxIsaleGeneral | Software Evangelist | Public Speaker | Author |

Website: www.emdeetiamiyu.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/justemdee

Facebook: www.facebook.com/emdeetiamiyu

Twitter: www.twitter.com/justemdee

Last Edit: 5th October, 2018.

Let's go to The White House!

There are thousands of houses in the world painted white, but the one located at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC is unique. The White House stands out not just because of the architectural style of the mansion, but because it is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States. The White House has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. In a few days’ time, I will be heading to the White House to learn more about President Barack Obama's works for The Future of Africa and the Role of Youths in the scheme of things. This is a very special trip and it will be great if you can be a part of it. My grandfather would say, “Son if you want to go FAST, go ALONE; if you want to go FAR, go TOGETHER.” I am inviting you to join me on this journey to the house of the first family in the United States. On this trip, I’ll be sharing lots and lots of Inspiration and Motivation that would help YOU get to your dreams. Join now. www.instagram.com/justemdee; www.twitter.com/justemdee; www.youtube.com/emdeetiamiyung;

www.facebook.com/emdeetiamiyu;

NOTE: Only those who follow the above links can fully participate in the upcoming life-changing engagements. Do it NOW and don’t procrastinate. I can’t wait to follow you back. Welcome on board!

#YouHaveARightToBeMotivated 

#YourFutureFirst 

#LifeOfASpeaker 

#SoftwareEvangelist 

#EmdeeTiamiyu 

#WhiteHouse 

#ForbesAfrica 

#ChaseYourDreams

How the Best Leaders Lead by Brian Tracy

   If you have ever doubted Newton’s postulations about inertia, stop doubting right now. I have been trying to write this post since Nineteen-Ninety-God-Knows-When. Bae, Inertia is real jor! Okay, now that I have overcome the invisible forces of inertia holding me back from writing this post, let me write. I say write. Alaye, stop wasting our time. Write something abeg! Oya, lemme sha write!

         Since January, 2016, Mark Zuckerberg has been running all around the world; Since January, 2016, Emdee Tiamiyu has been reading all around the world (actually a green-white-green world called Nigeria); “How the Best Leaders Lead” by Baba Brian Tracy is my 4^th book for the year and likely my 6^th  Brian Tracy title. I have read so many books on management and some have intimidating sizes that make people do “hmmm!” when they see you holding them, but to be candid some of those books contain absolute jargons and watery stuff. In just 238 pages, Brian Train killed it and passed across the finest strategies of Leadership.

     Again, I have read lots of titles from the same author and most times it gets to a point where the stuffs in the different book become repetitive; You’re like “I’ve read this in his other book”. Can you relate? However, that is not the case for this awesome book. I’ll not like to lie, Baba made a great impression on me again with this book.

         When I discussed this book with some of my mentees, the first thing they thought was “Our leaders in Nigeria should read this kind of book”; As much as they are correct, the book made it clear that Leadership is not by position, but by action; The responsibility of Leadership lies on all of our shoulders at home, business, career and not just the political space;

      The moment you’re in charge of one or more persons or other people’s job depends on the output of yours, you’re a leader. There are lots of interesting Chapters and Subsections in the book, but my favourite is Chapter 6 where Baba talked about “Building Winning Teams”; For the most part of what I do, I am always building, managing and working with teams; that’s why I consider that chapter as my new Team Building Bible.

      If you’re wondering why I keep calling Brian Tracy Baba, here’s my response; Anyone of his AGE, with his WISDOM and who is likely to have an ear infection can be called Baba.

You’re sharing this post at your own risk! LOL!

Thanks for reading.

#FourthBookForTheYear #Amazing2016 #LifeOfAReader #EmdeeTiamiyu #MandelaFellow #ReadABook #BookDiscuss 

Are you MOTIVATED enough to start your Dreams?

I have a quick confession to make!

For over four hundred (400) days now, I have been delivering Daily Inspirational Messages (DIM) to over ten thousand (10,000) people across the world. That is really massive and sounds unbelievable, even to me. But, I didn’t start that large. I started with less than twenty people all in Nigeria, but now we have over 10,000 DIM recipients across 42 countries including Lesotho, Papau New Guinea (PNG), Belarus, China, and the USA. My primary mission is to help as many people as possible maximize their potentials and get the best results in their jobs, careers and business. This stems out of my mantra that everybody has a right to be motivated.

I have suffered so much through life to know the inestimable value of #MOTIVATION;

Without motivation, stuffs don’t work.

Without motivation, common challenges get swags to supress your dreams.

Without motivation, the journey to success seems too far and too difficult.

The journey hasn’t been that easy, but I’ve enjoyed it and learned a lot from the challenges therein. My team and I get lots of feedback from the DIM recipients and we are always inspired by how much the DIM means to a lot of people and what they do.

One of such example is what I am about to share with you here. It’s about something that is really making my heart melt and I do hope it inspires you.

Just last Friday 3rd June, 2016, I got a message on #WhatsApp from Armstrong Mbe, a gentleman and a DIM Subscriber in Calabar, Nigeria. Armstrong happens to be a student enrolled a one of Nigeria’s universities. He has been subscribed to the our DIM Channel for over 365 days and little did I know how much positive impact the DIM has on his life and his dreams. 

Here is a screenshot of his message to me on WhatsApp;

Merely reading this should give you an evidence of what consistent motivation can help you achieve.

While I am proud of Armstrong and the exciting experience he’s having with his life, I am confident that this story could be yours; I want to be proud of you too; I want to see you surmount your greatest obstacles and be the best you can be. I can't wait to celebrate you and show you to the world.

My team is currently working on pushing the subscriber base to 30,000 before the end of 2016.

To subscribe and get inspired, kindly send:

“Inspire Me” + “Your Full Names” + “Your Country/City” to +2348126362482 via WhatsApp or connect with me on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram;

Subscription to any of the DIM Channels is ABSOLUTELY Free!

It would be my pleasure to be your motivational companion.

Armstrong is now fully set out to achieve his dreams of online journalism by posting latest updates, gist and news on his website www.lolz.com.ng. I implore you to check it out and offer him positive words of encouragement and tips to make it better. I am kissing you on the forehead as you do that.

Are you MOTIVATED enough to start your dreams?

When is the best time to start out on your dreams?

Remember, You Have a RIGHT to be MOTIVATED;

Claim your RIGHT Now!

INTERESTING FACT: I’m yet to physically meet with Armstrong, even though we live in the same country. I look forward to meeting him soonest;

#LifeofASpeaker #EmdeeTiamiyu #MandelaFellow #ChaseYourDreams #LiveYourDreams #TheFutureIsNow

TEDxIsaleGeneral 2016: Let’s Get This Started!

Good morning Ladies & Gentlemen.

I am Emdee Tiamiyu and I welcome you on board flight TEDxIG2016.

I’ll be your captain on the flight.

I have a couple of awesome and proficient co-pilots working with me to ensure we deliver incredible inspirational flight services to your satisfaction.

TEDx is a self-organized event with license from the TED Global Community, New York.

TEDx brings people together to share a TED-like experience in a local comminuty.

TEDxIsaleGeneral is the very first TEDx event to be licensed for Ogbomoso and the second for Oyo State, Nigeria.

TEDxIsaleGeneral is about the Unusual, the Abnormal and the Crazy!

That’s why we themed it: “Beyond the Walls”

We are set to bring forth stories of people who were Unusual, Abnormal and Crazy enough to see things Beyond the walls;

You can only imagine what I am talking about, right?

With TEDxIsaleGeneral, community development has never been any better;

We’ve been contacting people with Jaw-breaking, Incredible and TED-Like Stories who would come share their experiences and inspire the whole world for many years to come;

The list of our speakers would “wooow” you, even before they speak!

We’ll soon be serving you our impeccable in-flight delicacies, but before that kindly take a moment to join us on social media for details of the event. Please invite your friends to do same;

Facebeook: www.facebook.com/tedxogbomoso

Twitter: www.twitter.com/tedxogbomoso

Email: contact@tedxisalegeneral.com

Details on how to register and attend will be posted shortly.

For Partnerships, Sponsorships, Nominations and Collaborations, Kindly contact us via the above email.

This is just 2.34% of what you need to know about TEDxIsaleGeneral.

Till I come back with more information, I say thank you for choosing to fly with us “Beyond the Walls”.

Enjoy your flight.

Yours in Community Service,

Emdee Tiamiyu,

Curator, TEDxIsaleGeneral.

What's your Plan for Children's Day?

I am getting ready for my biggest Children's Day event yet.
The National Information & Technology Development Agency (NITDA) is hosting an "ICT Sensitization Event for Teenagers" to celebrate Children's Day 2016. The Honourable Minister of Information and the Honourable Minister of Education are the special guests who would be hosting the 150+ invited kids.
I have been invited as a Facilitator & Guest Speaker for the event. I'll be engaging the kids on ways to "Learn, Create & Grow Faster with ICT." I love kids, lots of them. Kids Love me, I don't know why. It's time to put on my "Software Evangelist" cap and preach the goodnews of Software to the Future Leaders of our nation;

Date: Friday 27th May (Children's Day), 2016. 
Venue: Sandralia Hotel, No 1 Solomon Lar way Jabi, adjacent NHIS Building, FCT Abuja, Nigeria (The kids will love this venue.) 
Time: 10AM;

Lots of Fun, Food, Laughter, Games, Gifts guaranteed! 
This event is Strictly by invitation, but open to all school children; Please don't come if you don't have a school uniform. *winks*

Proudly organized by: TotalView Ltd in collaboration with the Federal Minstry of ICT, Federal Ministry of Education & #NITDA.

#LifeOfASpeaker #EmdeeTiamiyu #ShareWithAKid #ChildrensDay2016 #TheYoungShallGrow #MandelaFellow #ForbesAfrica #IAmMrGuts #ChaseYourDreams 

Another Reason to Act Like a Corper

Since "Act Like a Corper, Think Like a Gold" was launched in March, we've received lots of success stories and testimonies from readers in Nigeria and abroad. Few days ago, I got a message from a Corps Member who is currently serving in Lagos State. Aniche Ubaka Emmanuel (pictured below) is a young Project Manager, Business Strategist and Entreprenuer posted to Lagos for the compulsory one-year national service. He sent me the following message after reading my latest book, "Act Like a Corper, Think Like a Gold".

"Good afternoon sir..... Three hearty cheers to you sir... Your book is an excellent solution to the challenges of service. I could not stop reading until I finished it. You are a great blessing and I wish that this book will be in the hands of every corps member. I can't stop promoting it..... Thanks for giving yourself to this noble cause. God bless you richly." 
(Let's somebori shout "Amen"!) I decided not to edit his words, so you could read it as I did.

Gentlemen corps members and Prospective Corps members, this is a call to action. Going through the service year in Nigeria is a once-in-a -lifetime opportunity, for those who see it that way. From my combined experiences, I have come to realize that the NYSC Service Year isn't a question of "Where" but "How" you serve. What that means is that your state of posting has less roles to play with your overall success or failure, but How you serve has a lot more to contribute. 

Another set of youths are ready to hit the orientation camps in a few weeks. If you have children, friends, students, neighbours or relatives who will be going for national service, kindly help share this messge with them. You'll will be investing immensely in their future.

"I am extremely blessed. The book is professionally concise and with simple terms", Ubaka added. He concluded his message by saying: "I read your book in less than 2 days. Sincerely I got a better way to write down my goals and business plan.  My goals and ideas are not only in my head, I have them well written. Thanks again."  (Now you know why my head dey swell, bah?)

This could be your story too. Get your own copy of "Act Like a Corper, Think Like a Gold" at accredited bookshops or simply order from Konga here: goo.gl/Wb6rlk

Thanks for reaching out to me, Ubaka. I congratulate you for taking the bold step towards setting your NYSC journey straight. I'm looking forward to meeting you in person and I can't wait to celebreate your forthcoming achievements during your service year and beyond.

If you have read this book, please feel free to share your #ActLikeACorper testimonies. Go and succeed!

Distributors & Retailers needed nationwide! 
Kindly reach out via www.justemdee.com.

#LifeOfAnAuthor #EmdeeTiamiyu #ThinkLikeAGold #InspireTheWorld #LifeOfASpeaker #MandelaFellow

Earth Day 2016 & Earn your #YALIGoesGreen Badge!

Hurray! It's Earth Day! Celebrate by joining #YALIGoesGreen today (April 22), start by educating yourself about climate change by taking the YALI Network Online Course, Understanding Climate Change, then take your knowledge further by hosting a climate event in your community to earn a #YALIGoesGreen Earth Day badge!

To earn your badge you must complete the following steps:

1. Select an activity for your event from the list on yali.state.gov/climate.
2. Create an event on the YALI Network Face2Face page to advertise your event to the Network.
3. After your event is complete post pictures in Face2Face to let everyone know how it went.
4. Tell us about your event here by May 15, 2016 to get your personalized badge!

Together we can all do our part to protect our world and if each of us take one action imagine the impact we could have.

P.S. Listen to my special Earth Day interview with YALI Network member Catherine Constantinides to learn about what she is doing to address climate change.

Sincerely,
Macon Phillips
Coordinator, International Information Programs
U.S. Department of State

"How To Be A Nigerian" by Peter Enahoro

I discovered this piece during one of my trips back to Abuja, early this year. It was standing on a shelf and beaming at me from a bookstore inside the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja (Local Arrival Wing);

Its price was a bit on the high side compared to other "story books" of its size and category. But I've learned that no amount of money is worth the value of knowledge, so I bought.

"How To Be A Nigerian" by Peter Enahoro was first published in 1966. For the sake of people like me, who were too busy with heavenly installations back then, it was republished in 2013.

"How To Be A Nigerian" is an 88-page book written when Nigeria had just 5 Universities (now we've 141), population was just 55.6 million (now we're 185+ million) and the currency was Great Britain Pound (GBP) but now it's the Nigerian Naira (NGN) and Kobo; Even with the population and economic explosions, the specific natures of the Nigerian hasn't changed that much.

Apart from being a renowned journalist and a one-time Editor of the popular Daily Times Newspaper, Peter Enahoro is also a well-read and well-traveled individual;

I found out some very strange but true facts about Nigeria and Nigerians; I also discovered the roots of many odd things and anomalies we experience in our society today. Interesting enough to me is the Then-Now contrast of our statistical figures;

While I enjoyed and learned reading this, I do not agree with all the scenarios painted in the book. Given my over 2.3 million minutes experience of being Nigerian, I feel some of those scenarios could be best described as over-generalization;

I recommend this for Nigerians and foreigners alike, but unfortunately after reading it you wouldn't have become a Nigerian; At best, you'll have just been introduced to somethings to expect from a Nigerian.

The big take away for me is that, a good book always remains good and would continue to make IMPACT generations after generations, long after the author had forgotten he ever wrote anything.

A PERSONAL DISCLAIMER:
If you actually wanna be a Nigerian, this book wouldn't help; You'll have to marry someone from Nnewi or Okene or Ogbomoso or LASSA or Kano or Ijaw or Chibok or Oshogbo etc (contact me for consulting😇).

‪#‎3rdBookOfTheYear‬ ‪#‎LifeOfASpeaker‬ ‪#‎ReadABook‬ ‪#‎EmdeeTiamiyu‬‪#‎ActLikeACorper‬ ‪#‎ThinkLikeAGold‬ ‪#‎TheFutureIsNow‬

Celebrate Earth Day with #YALIGoesGreen!

Thanks to you, #YALIGoesGreen has been one of the YALI Network’s most successful efforts to spur awareness and positive change! Thousands of Network members have taken the YALI Network Online Course, Understanding Climate Change and hundreds went even further by holding #YALILearns events in their communities.

But we’re not done yet! In honor of Earth Day (April 22nd), we’re re-launching #YALIGoesGreen and I encourage you to share with your friends. From now through May 15, 2016, YALI Network members who complete one or more of these activities will receive a personalized #YALIGoesGreen badge: 

• take Understanding Climate Change and host a #YALILearns event
• organize a tree planting event and educate participants on the role of forests in combating climate change
• host a recycling drive
• create an Earth Day event engaging family, friends, students, scholars, etc.
• organizing an event around ocean protection issues and/or conduct a cleanup event of a local outdoor recreational space, waterway, or beach 

For more information and resources to help plan your climate events, visityali.state.gov/climate. We’ll follow up soon on how you can report your Earth Day event to us to receive your badge.

We all have a role to play in fighting climate change - and no action is too small. Everyday I bike to work. What will you do?

 P.S.

I look forward to hearing about your events. Be sure to share photos and stories with the YALI Network via Facebook and Twitter. And I promise to share a photo too!

Sincerely,

Sent to me from:

Macon Phillips

Coordinator, International Information Programs
U.S. Department of State