The number of Nigerians,not even only the youths, looking for work is growing daily. The sad news is that the jobs are not turning up as fast as hoped. My younger sister just finished her NYSC joining the race for 'any job' at all. But the question is, why have we all refused to change our mindsets that we must work for somebody before we can make it! There are several opportunities one can tap into to make a descent living in Nigeria. if you ask me, it is high time we helped ourselves since the government is not willing to do anything about the rate of employment in the country.
why are we so afraid to start with what we have? We are quick to forget that these jobs that we are looking for most times do not at the end of the day provide the financial security that made us to desire them at the end of the day. Why are people still looking for work?!!!!!!

Start with what we have, its so easy to say but can one start with 10k? Remember most Nigerians hardly have enough for 2meals a day, so how can this people start with what they have?

If one is creative, you can start a business with N10k in present day Nigeria.
Business is by ideas
Business is done created when it can solve a problem
Business is about providing solutions, solving problems
If i have only 10k as capital as a fresh graduate, how will i start a biz with 10k?
1st, i will not look down on any activity as menial or too low to do
2ndly,i will bury the pride about being a graduate
3rdly,i will scan the environment searching for problems and working out the solutions
Providing the solutions is the business

With 10k, i can set up the following:
A cleaning service in a residential estate by looking for residents who need cleaning services and getting people to do the job for them.Very simple to do but many graduates are not looking that way. With time, it will grow to a big cleaning business

2ndly, i will look for restaurants who need someone to supply them with moi-moi.
If i get orders, its simply to prepare it in my kitchen and supply them. With time, it will grow to a big operation.

3rdly, i can start an ironing service, ironing clothes for people. i only need an iron to start with. As it grows, employ more hands from the overswollen ranks of jobless youth.

4thly, i can sell newspapers. Vendors selling newspapers earn N40k plus monthly while many office working graduates earn much less than that. Some graduates earn less than N15k monthly doing ''any job''.Working as a newspaper vendor does not mean selling on the streets running after vehicles. Not that way. This is where creativity comes in. A graduate must make a difference in his approach. Any unsold copies are returnable to the newspaper companies except Punch and Guardian.

5th, i can distribute bread. Set up in a location where there is high human traffic.

6th, walk into any insurance company and seek to be a sales representative. you get free marketing training and off you go marketing life insurance.

You can do wonders with N10k.

The issue is that many graduates are not enterprising for business.
If one is creative, you can start a business with N10k in present day Nigeria.
Business is by ideas
Business is done created when it can solve a problem
Business is about providing solutions, solving problems
If i have only 10k as capital as a fresh graduate, how will i start a biz with 10k?
1st, i will not look down on any activity as menial or too low to do
2ndly,i will bury the pride about being a graduate
3rdly,i will scan the environment searching for problems and working out the solutions
Providing the solutions is the business. Think of the problem that you can solve.
Thinking about the money first is a wrong step.

With 10k, i can set up the following:
A cleaning service in a residential estate by looking for residents who need cleaning services and getting people to do the job for them.Very simple to do but many graduates are not looking that way. With time, it will grow to a big cleaning business

2ndly, i will look for restaurants who need someone to supply them with moi-moi.
If i get orders, its simply to prepare it in my kitchen and supply them. With time, it will grow to a big operation.

3rdly, i can start an ironing service, ironing clothes for people. i only need an iron to start with. As it grows, employ more hands from the overswollen ranks of jobless youth.

4thly, i can sell newspapers. Vendors selling newspapers earn N40k plus monthly while many office working graduates earn much less than that. Some graduates earn less than N15k monthly doing ''any job''.Working as a newspaper vendor does not mean selling on the streets running after vehicles. Not that way. This is where creativity comes in. A graduate must make a difference in his approach. Any unsold copies are returnable to the newspaper companies except Punch and Guardian.

5th, i can distribute bread. Set up in a location where there is high human traffic.

6th, walk into any insurance company and seek to be a sales representative. you get free marketing training and off you go marketing life insurance.

7th, set up a fruit stand in a busy place.

8th, set up a snacks stand in a busy, high traffic place or where there are schools and offices.

9th, go round offices & banks,package yourself as a drycleaner and collect suits for laundry.Hand them over to another established launderer to do the drycleaning and you get a commission. Smart guys are doing it and making a living from it.

You can do wonders with N10k if you can be creative by tapping into an existing idea and remodel it

10k is  even too much to start with! I once  started  a  biz  with 5k graduated from the ok clothes  I was buying and  selling to new ones and after about  3 months, I had in stock and cash-  money worth N160k. This  is  a true  life  story. I think the  important  thing  is  to  identify  the  area  where  your passion  lies, then the  journey to the top will become  much easier.

The issue is that many graduates are not enterprising for business.
If one is creative, you can start a business with N10k in present day Nigeria.
Business is by ideas
Business is done created when it can solve a problem
Business is about providing solutions, solving problems
If i have only 10k as capital as a fresh graduate, how will i start a biz with 10k?
1st, i will not look down on any activity as menial or too low to do
2ndly,i will bury the pride about being a graduate
3rdly,i will scan the environment searching for problems and working out the solutions
Providing the solutions is the business. Think of the problem that you can solve.
Thinking about the money first is a wrong step.
With 10k, i can set up the following:
A cleaning service in a residential estate by looking for residents who need cleaning services and getting people to do the job for them.Very simple to do but many graduates are not looking that way. With time, it will grow to a big cleaning business
2ndly, i will look for restaurants who need someone to supply them with moi-moi.
If i get orders, its simply to prepare it in my kitchen and supply them. With time, it will grow to a big operation.

3rdly, i can start an ironing service, ironing clothes for people. i only need an iron to start with. As it grows, employ more hands from the overswollen ranks of jobless youth.

4thly, i can sell newspapers. Vendors selling newspapers earn N40k plus monthly while many office working graduates earn much less than that. Some graduates earn less than N15k monthly doing ''any job''.Working as a newspaper vendor does not mean selling on the streets running after vehicles. Not that way. This is where creativity comes in. A graduate must make a difference in his approach. Any unsold copies are returnable to the newspaper companies except Punch and Guardian.

5th, i can distribute bread. Set up in a location where there is high human traffic.

6th, walk into any insurance company and seek to be a sales representative. you get free marketing training and off you go marketing life insurance.

7th, set up a fruit stand in a busy place.

8th, set up a snacks stand in a busy, high traffic place or where there are schools and offices.

9th, go round offices & banks,package yourself as a drycleaner and collect suits for laundry.Hand them over to another established launderer to do the drycleaning and you get a commission. Smart guys are doing it and making a living from it.

You can do wonders with N10k if you can be creative by tapping into an existing idea and remodel it

^^You've got a point but not everybody lives in Lagos where you can easily sell things fast, or start selling with such a little capital. Again you should consider factors like store or space. 'sides cost of living have increased overtime.

Great topic, the point is individuals must be business minded and ready to do anything. As we all know Rome was not built in a day and to succeed in life one must work very hard.

Great thread! I'm impressed. Guess I'll be checking this section forthwith.

As a graduate,you don't have to do a menial job to make money.Every course studied in the Uni or Poly I believe has got one or two human problems to solve.An Accounting Graduate,for instance,can setup a bookkeeping firm,A Business Admin Graduate can start a small business consulting firm.These businesses require a laptop which most of us have got and less than 10K to start,as you can run them from your homes.

The problem lies in our orientation and not insufficient capital.We all offered Entrepreneurship in our various institutions but unfortunately,more than 95 percent of us only read to pass exams.I don't know how informative that of other institutions are,but the Entrepreneurship programme I took was more than enough for any graduate to start-out on his or her own.If you cannot make do with the little you have got,then you will not succeed with a large amount.

You really don't need that much to start up that business that God has designed for you. The problem we have is that we have eyes to be like Mr A or Mr B , who may own a big electronics shop without really checking to know how they started. Dangote as big as he is now started his cement business with N500,000 and he is the third richest African in the world. It's not always about money, it's about what you have upstairs and how enterprising you can be.

You can make money from any corner by simply retailing pure water, but how many people are willing to put shame aside and embrace such a business? All you need is to make sure that your water is always cold. Buy in Bulk and sell in bags to those who are willing to hawk on the street.

One of the fundamental and most important concepts in Economics is that human wants/needs/desires are limitless or boundless but the resources with which to satisfy them are limited or scarce.What we can deduce from this statement is that there are countless number of opportunities out there waiting for You and I to design a product to satisfy.

Search your environment.There is always an unmet need,a gap.a product(goods or services) that is not available that you can provide or a problem you can solve which individuals,families,communities,businesses are willing to pay for.It is not your money or level of education that makes you an entrepreneur,but your ability to spot or identify business opportunities.

Network marketing to me is the best business to start with little or no capital,even robert kiyosaki the author of rich dad poor dad recommends it. If you are interested use the link on my signature.

@businesstools
Good that an accounting graduate can set up a bookkeeping business and a mechanical engineer can set up a workshop to service generators and an English graduate can set up a tutorial centre
What can a graduate of Philosophy do with his skills and N10k to set up a business along the line of his skill set?

Don't tell me that philosophy does not add value to organisations or people's lives.Besides,there is no known rule preventing a graduate from delving into business in areas outside his/her discipline.I was only trying to emphasize that one can setup a business around one's passion,interests,skills,experience if one cannot identify business opportunities in the environment.

i observe dat waste disposal is another. you could negotiate wit people to get rid of their dirt.
1. first find out d price of waste polythene bags,
2. negotiate for a pick truck,
3. discuss wit at least 10 to 20 people who would accept your service for like 2times a week
4. modify as you wish

Any graduate who can communicate in English Language can take a course in Proofreading,Editing and Book Publishing
The course costs N5k-N10k. There are hundreds of proofreading jobs online at www.onlinewritingjobs.com waiting for proofreaders.
Offline,the market is wide,very wide. Proofreading in Nigeria is a goldmine but one needs to be trained to do it.

A mathematics graduate can team up with an english graduate and set up a tutorial centre teaching only maths and english
The idea is not to compete with the numerous tutorial centres in the market but to creatively create a niche
Maths and English are the major areas where many students have problems
Set up a tutorial centre focussing on just Maths and English only.
You can start by using the premises of a public or private school in your environment.
Visit schools and talk to students in JSS3 and SSS3
Print handbills and distribute around the schools close to the centre.

Fear of unknown is what is setting most people back. There are a lot of business ideas you can start with as low as 10k. The truth is that to make headway, you must be ready to invest little amount on training and books to get these ideas. Remember that the notable millionares we cherish today started from somewhere and there is no way you can be rich working for other people.

You are even talking of teaching SS3 and JSS3 what of the GRE and TOEFL that thousands are registering for to write.
A sound graduate can offer to specialize in coaching people for these exams.

I am employed but recently started a small home biz. I was chatting with a recent account graduate who told me of how tedious job search is.
I provided this graduate with one month account record and asked to create an account statement.
That was the last we have chatted.

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@Op, thx for opening dis thread, before i proceed i must tell u dis quote dat keep me going interm of job search, "its better to create a job than to search for job",
> some gud posters have already dish out the main point to all job seekers in the house, those who have eyez read and be transform cuz when u're not inform u're deform.
> Everyone on earth is born with an inbuild talent, so make use of your today. Do something,

All said but the probelm with Nigeria is everyone wants to be a graduate.Graduate with no experience is pretty useless.
We need to change our mind set
Unfortunately what we get taught at school is just theory.
There is more to it e.g look at the servicing and manufacturing industry its pretty dead.
We need more technical colleges not universities that would train individuals to get ready for work.
We need qualified builders, mechanics etc, and not engineer that are possibly corrupt and so nothing,

Being a graduate is not the problem.We need to re-orientate ourselves.If you want to learn the practicals,nothing stops you from going to the man on the roadside who has got no formal education.Swallow your pride.The universities are not meant to teach how to solder on the vero board.