Well! Well!! Well!!!

It is the 11th day, of the 11th month of the year, and it is my birthday.
As the days come and go. You realize that: Life is a like a box filled with many mysteries, and you keep discovering newer things as you continue your walk in its sphere.

I have learnt over time that one act to engage in continually to live a fulfilling life is Gratitude. It has been proven to increase one's mental state, lift one's spirit and act as a catalyst to greater things. Foremost American Author: James Altucher once wrote a post about : The Miracle in Gratitude.

And in keeping true to the act of being grateful and to appreciate God for all the blessings this day signifies, I am writing this post to show gratitude for all the wonderful things going on in my world. From evolving into a Content Ninja to ...
Here are the 7 things I am grateful for.

1) Grateful To Be Alive

Well, this is a a no-brainer. I am extremely excited and happy to be alive today, being alive is as a result of the Grace of God on my life, one that i do not take for granted. I might not have been born during the Industrial Revolution era, nor during the development of the PC Industry/Internet, but in this 21st century of: The Internet, Internet of Things, Softwares, SAAS,Elyon Musk's: Tesla, SpaceX and Hyperloop (I just love the guy and everything he does), it is a great time to be alive.

2) Year of Learning

I am a twenty-something year old with an unusual appetite for devouring information. I read everything and anything. As a student of Kaizen (continuous development), i am constantly seeking out new ways to improve myself , knowing fully well that I cannot give what i don't have.
Some of my favorite websites for garnering information this year include: Neilpatel.com (for digital search executive & SEOs), Inc.com , Entrepreneur.com, JamesAltucher.com, SethGodin.com ,Businessinsider.com,Insidify.com/discovery, nairametrics.com and so many other quality-content-generating powerhouses out there.

3) The Year I Became A Content Ninja

When I was in the University, I was a writer for a board: Socioscope and I generated content weekly for a period of 2 years, however, this was just a way for me to express my ideas to the university community. Fast forward to 2015, I have been able to create content on a larger platform with our productivity blog at Insidify.com ....Insidify.com/Discovery , which has imparted and impacted lives.
And getting comments and notes like the ones below, make all the effort invested in the preparation of each and every content worth it.
Good Day, I am Chuk Steven (not real name), a Nigerian from the eastern part of the country. I am replying to show my appreciation for these wonderful write ups you create to encourage young people like me,God bless you and your organization.
"Inspiring and educative stuffs. There is also enough details to help. Thanks a bunch (Anonymous)
So how did i become a Ninja? Sure you must have been wondering. Well! because as against a year ago, I have learnt the art of creating great content, experimented, iterated and have been able to identify patterns .

Well, you must have noticed a similarity in the headlines.They all have numbers. Well from experience, lists and How-to's are some of the most read content online, take it from the self acclaimed ''Content Ninja''.

4) Reading The Alchemist

Grateful to have read this book by Paulo Coelho earlier this year, and it easily rose to become my second favorite book. Blue Ocean Strategy by Renee Mauborgne and W. Chan Kim remains the first.

The Alchemist has sold over 65 million copies and was on The New York Times bestseller list for more than 315 weeks. It's also been translated into 80 different languages, setting the Guinness World Record for the most translated book by any living author
'
These quotes from the book resonates with me:
''There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.'' and ''It is in the posibility of a dream coming true that makes life interesting.

Jim Collins's Good To Great, Why Nations Daron Acemoglu's ''Why Nation Fails'' were some other great books i read this year
But, The Alchemist!...........


4) Immersion into SEO

Like any wannabe swimmer would-when learning to swim-, moving from the shallow to the deep end of Search Engine Optimization was a great experience for me this year. Learnt about On page & Off page Optimization, Link-building, Keyword Research and so many vital aspects that are integral . And for someone like me who has always been passionate about marketing, adding Digital Marketing Knowledge to my knowledge base was a very interesting one.

What's more, the alexa rating of the technology company i work at (Insidify.com) progressed from the 1200 position in the country-of this time last year-to the 178 most visited site in the country as at yesterday.

5) Completing My Service Year

Grateful for completing my service year. It was great bonding and meeting people of like-minds throughout the duration of the program. Meeting some of the most intelligent and passionate young Nigerians around renewed in me the hope of a better nation.
Despite the various many flaws of the scheme, I derived lessons from the whole process, which i am effecting in my personal and professional life.

6) Africa is Rising

Africa is the second largest and second most populous continent on the face of the earth with about 1.3 billion people. And since the Human Resource of any nation/continent is its greatest resource (as people make other resources to work or fail depending on their actions or inactions), i believe we have a great chance to forge a new reality all across the black continent

We have the youngest population on the planet, and if our leaders put in place the right structures, policies and systems (like those Deng Xiaoping of China launched in the 70's; that propelled them to become the economic behemoth and industrial giant that they are now)then we can ride on this population explosion in the continent to become a developed continent.

7) Adoption of Technology/Disruptive Innovation

Nigeria currently has around 93 million internet users, about 137 million and according to records, Nigerian telecom market reached 139.1 million active phone subscription in December 2014 with a teledensity of 99.39 percent.

The number of connected telephone lines in the country is 196.9 million as at the end of April, of which 145.4 million are active lines.
This fast paced continuous adoption of these technologies has led to a rise in the technology industry in the country, with internet companies in the country experiencing exponential growth as a result. This gladdens my heart. As oil belongs to the past. ICT is the currency of the present and of the future.

Most of the biggest companies in the world are from the ICT industry from: Uber, Airbnb, Facebook, Google, Amazon, Ebay et al
And with Internet of Things evolving, and disruptive innovations springing up all the time there exists massive potential for the industry in sub-saharan africa-especially in Nigeria- hence my happiness, when i see companies like: Konga.com, Hotel.ng, Delivery Science, Irokotv, Andela, ACE.ng. Supermart.ng, Paga, and so many others blazing the trail, and awakening a industry as a result of their milestones....
These and many more I am grateful for.



Muyiwa Babarinde is a Business Analyst at Insidify.com (Africa’s 1st Social Job-site), and as a passionate Content Enthusiast, he generates content about: Job Searching, Resume Writing, Interview Tips, Productivity and Life Hacks on Insidify.com/discovery . His articles have been read by over 30,000 people.

He is also the co-founder at TheScribesAgency.com.ng , a business writing outfit that focuses on: Cover Letter and Resume Writing, Business Plans and Proposals and all other forms of B2B (Business-to-Business) Content.