Yvonne Unubun: What I’ve learned so far… (30 Days, 30 Voices)

3.20.13 - YvonneU_FullLength

 …this is for everyone out there who is on their grind, hustle, struggle, journey and chasing their dreams – don’t stop!

For someone who claims to enjoy writing and would pick writing an essay over solving a math equation in a heartbeat, this write-up has definitely caught me off guard, and left me short of words.

Why? Well because it’s always easier to write about someone else or something else other than myself, and my experiences – not just the writing part, but actually sharing one’s self with the online world requires courage and makes one vulnerable. You share yourself with the online world, and stand back and wait for the reactions.

On one hand you are thankful for the fact that you can’t see the faces of the readers, but on the other hand you slowly prepare yourself for the possible barrage of comments that are to come; they range anywhere from nice, to reasonably respectful, sweet and sour to downright sour! Some sour comments if allowed have the power to kill dreams, but the keywords are ‘if allowed’. I respect public figures and entertainers who for the love of their craft put themselves out there and face verbal abuse, and criticism – fairly and unfairly – day in day out, but brush it off and do the best they can to live their lives regardless, because at the end of the day, you cannot please everyone and people will talk – whether na sweet talk o, or sour talk o, dem must talk.

The same goes for being an entrepreneur, which is where my story begins. I majored in advertising and public relations in college, and before I graduated, I was sure advertising was where I wanted to end up. I landed a full-time position at a reputable digital advertising agency, but during the job-search phase I got thrown into freelance PR by a friend, who introduced me to my first client. One thing led to another and before I knew it, I was on a journey that led me to discover my love and passion for life as an entrepreneur in the PR lane, which led to the creation of Mayven PR. As a PR consultant, I hear the word ‘No’ a lot! Initially, this was a bitter pill to swallow. You have this wonderful client or proposal; you make your pitch to a potential sponsor or media outlet and think you’ve nailed it only to be turned down.

If allowed, such things can kill one’s drive and dream. In my short time on this journey, I have met and worked with a number of wonderful people, and fellow entrepreneurs who inspire me and whom I respect; not just because of the fabulous things they do, but for the courage to wake up every day and chase their dreams. Even with all the sweet and sour critiques they encounter, the obstacles that come with building a business and the numerous amount of “No’s” they get, they choose to not allow such things hold them back. Such determination serves as motivation to me, to continue to work hard and represent them even harder!

So this is for everyone out there who is on their grind, hustle, struggle, journey and chasing their dreams – don’t stop! Albert Einstein said “you never fail until you stop trying”. You might hear the word no, but you will get your yes. Don’t compare yourself to others; you don’t know their journey and their story. Instead celebrate yourself and your journey. You never know who you are inspiring along the way! Thank you to all the wonderful dream chasers who inspire me every day and my Mother who keeps telling me that the word ‘fear’ does not, and should not exist in my world. You are all amazing!

 

Yvonne Unubun is the owner of Mayven PR and currently is the official PR partner to the Nigeria Entertainment Awards. She also organizes seminars and panel/networking sessions aimed at empowering the African entrepreneur (Afropreneur), while maintaining her full-time job at a digital advertising agency in New York City.  Yvonne is from Edo State, and in her down time loves to travel, shop and be surround by good company.

—————————-

30 Days 30 Voices series is an opportunity for young Nigerians from across the world to share their stories and experiences – creating a meeting point where our common humanity is explored.

Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.

Comments (5)

  1. well done Yvonne you are a positive impact to the nigerian youths who do not believe in the “keep knocking” principle, God bless you and may you have more great opportunities to fulfill your dreams

  2. wow miss Yvonne this is one of the most beautiful and meaningful writeup i have ever read about entrepreneurship, as simple as it is , the depth is just mind blowing, keep it up , and we will always stand behind you

  3. awww this is a really good one. Nice work, Yvonne! 🙂

  4. Nice one! A sure stimulant for our Nigerian youths. Many whose dreams remains only a dream because of fear of what they would say or the sour commets and demoralizing critiques that intimidates and bully their enthusiasms or the “NOs” they gets when proposing a new idea.

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

cool good eh love2 cute confused notgood numb disgusting fail