With 20+ years of banking experience, Sterling Bank’s CEO, Abubakar Suleiman, shares tips for a successful career



As CEO of Sterling, one of Nigeria’s biggest banks, Abubakar Suleiman leads with his heart in two ways. One: he’s catalyzing growth for Nigeria with a laser-sharp focus on health, education, agriculture, renewable energy and transportation. Two: for him, humanity always comes first.

Here, Abu – as he’s known to his friends and colleagues – gives his top five tips on how to make it to the top of your chosen career.

1. Decide how to invest your time

Time is your most important commodity. We only have 24 hours a day to spend so we have to decide how to spend it wisely. First, decide what’s important to you. How much time do you want to spend on those things?

You can’t improve your skills without time. Time is the single most important thing to invest in your career.
After school, you’ll be forced to make choices between spending time on qualifications or getting work experience. There’s a disconnect today between the skills you get at school and university, and the skills you need in your job.
Our education isn’t giving us what we need to do our jobs well anymore. So, if you have a good first degree, choose work experience. Never turn an internship down because learning how to work in teams and how to collaborate are crucial skills that you can’t learn in school.
Your time is your most valuable asset. Decide how much time you want to dedicate to your career. When I was at the start of my career, I realized I spent about 16 hours a week on football. Not playing football, but watching football, talking about football and researching football players.
I couldn’t give up time with my family and friends, so that had to go if I wanted to invest in my career. That’s the sort of decision and sacrifice you have to make.
The biggest investment you can make in yourself is knowledge.
Commit yourself to learning on a daily basis.
Finding people who are on the same journey as you is a great way to do that.
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