I don't think I was born a weird child but I'm sure growing up, I set out on the weird path. Many times over, I've talked about the society and all the boxes they try to fit us in and it seems the more I grow, the more I get to talk about this.
Growing up, there weren't too many of these boxes or maybe I hadn't grown enough spine to question them but they all seemed fine and realistic. Brush your teeth, take your bath, have breakfast, go to school, be the best so that you can get the best gifts and also get into the best schools.
While in junior secondary school, I had a Maths teacher who was different from the rest. I found him super cool even though not everyone saw him in the same light. On that fateful day, he stood in front of the class and told us about life instead of maths. He was reading a book and took time out to share with us. It was my best moment in secondary school.
His story, and the concepts from the book piqued my curiosity and I went in search of the book only to find out it was well beyond my reach. How was a boy whose total weekly income was about ₦100 supposed to get a book of ₦3000? It was a sad reality but one that I couldn't do much about.
That was until I found this book laying idly by my mom's bedside. Rich Dad, Poor Dad was the beginning of my special journey; special because I wasn't the only one to listen to that story in class or read the book but I had an experience different from the others.
Then there was Think And Grow Rich, The Richest Man In Babylon, and I was full throttle.
So how was a kid who has been exposed to stuff like this so early ever conform to the norm?
It hasn't been a smooth ride trying to explain to my folks that I'm on a different path to what they have been used to. My first set of attempts to make them understand that I didn't want to work for anybody felt like episodes out of a sitcom. I wasn't taken seriously and I didn't push any further but kept the overall goal in mind me still.
Since then, I've been taking little giant steps on the path towards my goal. I figured that since the traditional path was "go to school, get good grades, and get a nice paying job", then the goal of the whole process must be to make money. So all I had to do was figure out how I could make money legitimately without following that path.
It took me several years and thousands of different tries before I eventually found something in the guise of Steemit. Months go by, and the money starts to trickle in. I wasn't totally lazy after all, only lazy towards the path I didn't like. I happily put in all the effort needed because it was on the path I wanted to explore.
After about three months of being totally independent, I realized today that getting money may not have been the goal of society's path. What if you had to just follow society's path just to gain the approval and acceptance of society?
What if you had to get a job so that when you're asked, you can easily name where you work? But I have a job, I am a writer! Oh really? Well you know society won't understand when you try to explain what it is you do. You need a job that is presentable. You need an office to go to or at least a well known company to work for.
Oh well...