The Journey: 2019

Part 2

I shared with you some of the key defining moment for me in 2019, in the year I tagged, “Give yourself permission to be”.
At the start of the year, after Elevate your Game, I had a list of people I wanted to meet in 2019 that I would learn from and also build long term relationship to help build my process as a development expert. LinkedIn was a good source of information and professional network media platform for me. I met a very energetic SDGs world Ambassador, I gently reached out to her inbox with a message, she replied and that was how the relation began, I followed all her post religiously, learn, give credit to her creativity and comment on her timeline whenever necessary. She had in 2018 won a SDGs global award in Germany and numerous others.
In July, she was launching a new project in Nigeria and globally because the project has been adopted by United Nations as a good initiative to help achieve the SDGs, I got an invitation. At the launching of Solution 17 she humbled me even more because immediately she saw me which was the first time she said, “this is Sheriff even if I had not met you before I can identify you and after the launching am going to be working with you”. The launching gave me a rare privilege to meet Nigeria Nobel Laurette, Prof. Wole Soyinka, Director of United Nations Information Centre, Ronald Kayanja, Mories Atoki from Sustainability and Climate Change Department at Price waterhouse Coopers..
“You get paid for how much values you bring to the market place”, in September after a direct message from twitter by Foluke Michael, I found myself in front of all the executives permanent secretaries of Niger State government facilitating a training on localizing the SDGs, it was indeed a reward for values in me and I thank her so much for the amazing opportunities. She also officially gave me an opportunity to serve the Action Mobilizer for Solution 17 project, www.cycdi.com.
In 2018 I became a global Teach SDGs Ambassador, because I want to become more, I learnt the power in asking the right questions. In July, I saw a tweet by the Co-founder of Teach SDGs Ambassador Program recommending someone for the Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert program, I quickly jumped at the opportunity and sent a direct message if I can get the same privilege, she sent me links to registered, I was surprised the application was closing in just few 48 hours and I must do short online courses to earn point before I can even fill the application, thank God I did not give up on that process. Few months later I got the congratulatory email that ushered me into the programs that came with amazing opportunities.
I can end up writing a book about 2019 or about this decade but these are just few of the hurdles I came out from in 2019. Writing this is already an inspiration to me for what am becoming and how I want to shape the next decade but the journey starts one day at a time. The next one year for me is going to be about asking for more, I want to be an Oliver Twist, because it is not enough to be enthusiastic, I believe our progress can happen with great development if we have that discipline, the mental toughness to say I will do it or die.
Wishing you amazing 2020.