Life’s most defining moments often come in unexpected ways, as they say. For me, it sprouted out of a “one chance” robbery incident on the 30th of September 2025, that not only threatened my confidence in the world, my career, and faith in humanity, but redirected the trajectory of my career at the National Institute of Credit Administration (NICA).
When i joined NICA, I was posted to the Human Resources Department. My duties revolved around the staff, recruitment, on-boarding and internal administrative tasks. The HR was a flair, an opportunity, a sacred ladder to my administrative ambitions. The intention was to sign up with the Charted Institute of Personal Management of Nigeria (CIPM), the complexity of everything changed after I became a victim of a “one-chance” robbery. My life, my dreams, and my confidence all flashed before my eyes. My dreams, ambushed by fear, as the gloom became a transitory abode. While the incident was traumatic, it strapped me in despair, and my aspirations were temporarily crippled.
However, getting to work on a daily basis became mentally challenging, a routine that once seemed seamless became a gruesome task, saddled with steps of anxiety. After the institute had reassigned me to the membership department, I had no idea what to expect as a Membership Executive/Administrator, it was an unfamiliar territory to me and my experience. The journey was worrying, adjusting to the demands of the role required an enormous level of concentration and consistency I was already struggling with mentally. In response, the institute gave me a two weeks break to recuperate and supported me during that difficult period. When I returned, I was received with warmth and encouragement from each member of the team, ensuring I felt safe and valued.
Albeit, what began as a reluctant, traumatic and spooky transition unfolded into a new path for career growth and fulfillment. As a Membership Drive Executive/Administrator, I was placed at the vanguard of NICA’s collective operations. A daring task that adjusted my role from focusing solely on internal staff affairs, to directly dealing with elite professionals across numerous organization. Whilst I handled membership registrations, renewals, and data management, I had to engage with prospects, explaining the benefits of joining the institute, as well as following up with the existing members to ensure they remained connected to her doctrines. While none of this was an easy adjustment for me, convincing very busy professionals, CEO’s of various profession and executive membership teams required a different level of communication skills, persistence, and patience at an elite standard. There were challenges, and high expectations. Yet, each obstacle came with a platform and an opportunity to develop resilience, and learn the subtle art of tolerance in this field. With time, my improvements became notable, my intuitions were crisp and sharp. Beyond administration, the role exposed me to adequate planning, a thick skin for rejection as the nature of the role demands it.
However, my experiences broadened my understanding. With the fact that membership is the foundation of any elite professional body. Without an active membership base, and a well drilled team hungry for growth, it becomes an uphill task to propel the institution’s objectives. Looking back, that one-chance incident fortified me mentally. As painful as it was, it became a pivotal turning point to my growth. What seemed like a setback became an opportunity to dig deeper into my potentials, to discover skill-sets and abilities that are sacrosanct to my development. While the adaptation wasn’t easy, I adapted. It strengthened my interpersonal skills, and rejuvenated the hunger to move up on the administrative ladder. In its quest to promote a credit-based economy, NICA’s mission to professionalize and regulate credit management in Nigeria has been world class. .
In conclusion, this experience has exposed to me, a shelf of important lessons; that sometimes, the most difficult phase of your life experiences carry within them, crops of opportunities for growth waiting to be harvested. Whilst a traumatic event pushed me into an unfamiliar role, I can now make strategic contributions and expand my administrative qualities. Today, I embrace my identity, not just as an administrative officer, but as a professional, waving the flag of growth as a member of the institute. What began as a recovery process from a robbery, evolved into an inspiring tale of resilience, adaptability, and hopefully, of a major impact in the pyramid of administrative prowess.
NO. 10
