Some years ago I was a young fresh graduate out from camp and fresh to the labor market years, fresh from university and got employed as a mortgage banker in a local bank in Lagos. On top of my salary, I had commission income, transport and entertainment allowances. It was good right? But not all that glitter is gold.

However six months into it I was disappointed. I realized that rosy picture I painted of work life in the finance sector was born of artlessness. Underneath that suit and immaculate appearance, I was just a saleswoman, advertising one peddling products I could not even convince myself to buy.

I also felt like I was doubling up as a club hostess peddling my services to clients, in this case they were property agents, and bribing them with fine food and alcohol in a bid to get engaged for mortgage advisory services in the event of a successful home sale. This happened on an almost daily basis. I found it absurd I spent 4 years studying accounting that turned out to have little to do with my job.

People at work were miserable. Humiliation was a tactic used to encourage sales performance. Tight date lines sent everyone panicking, which you’ve to deliver. I was told some would sleep with property agents to get business. How true I don’t know but I wouldn’t be surprised. It was a lot of money if you did well.

It was a bitchy industry. I was not sociable and didn’t try to get along with most of the bankers. Probably one reason why I was the victim of horrible rumor's.

The story went that I accused my mentor, someone I held in high regard, of raping me after I tried to seduce him and got rejected. That was sick. I never did any of those things; never seduced him, never accused him. I then knew why he avoided me for the longest time. Since we had never spent enough time for him to know me enough to know I wouldn’t sink that low, he likely believed them more.

Sexual harassment was common. I think because many of the women were fine with sexual exchanges, the men assumed all of the women wouldn’t mind their advances. Of course not all the men were disrespectful. A few did come to my aid at various times.

I felt that the environment negatively impacted everyone. There was a lot of money to be made and it led to people becoming mercenary, selfish, backstabbing, demeaning, those who were not, were also affected like me.

I felt my mental-wellbeing under constant attacks and it affected my personality. I was distrusting and temperamental. It hurt the interactions with people I was close to. In distress, I seek the solace of short term pleasures, consoling myself with the food and alcohol that was always on offer, but I only felt worse. My self-esteemed dipped. I was not proud of the person I had become. At some point I realized this was not living. No amount of money was worth selling my soul. I left after 2 years into the job.

You see, our work life has a huge influence on other areas of life. If you feel constantly feel shitty at work, this negatively influences your character and colors everything else you do. If you feel good at work, your moods will positively impact other areas of your life. Therefore, choose your work wisely.

However I am really grateful to that experience because I learnt so much about life and how to better identify the right career path for myself in such a short time and at an early stage of my life. It’s all good.

Thank you NL for letting me share my story

How was your first job experience like? Kindly share your story.

Bakery work was shit
Just finished secondary and wanted something doing
Mehn na so I start de find work like mad man
Well it paid off in three days time I got an offer to work in a bakery for 15k
Mehn the work was big time stressful
People who have worked in a bakery factory can relate
Especially night workers
And I was permanently night
Mehn my body tell
I would work through out the night from 5pm till 7am
Gosh they was a time we worked from Saturday night on till Mondayday morning we no rest I developed serious back pain cus if that work ooh
And on top the manager will make you do the work of the other female stafffs cus he believes women are not meant to be stressed ... So na me like stress abi??
Carrying of bags of flour everyday was a norm
Atleast you will carry 7 bags of flour into the main factory everyday before you start working
Only God knows
They was a December I stayed they till 31st night through out that 31st night I was working in the factory till the following morning which was 1st January
You can imagine ..when others where shouting happy new year I was sweating my ass for another man's pocket

.
.to all the factory workers reading this God is yiur strength ...save up and start something new please..
It's to stressful

My first work nah POS
That's when I drop out of uniben.....
Them say they go dey give me 8k and I de trek from army barracks to iya Grace shop for upper saponba that time....

As i reach that mumu shop around 7:30, everywhere dey very dusty... I clean for like one hour.....
I start market, sit down wait for 2 hours
Customer no come.....
Las Las one womat come...

Naso I on POS machine, network run away...

I Sha try my best Sha...
The stuff no work ooo

The woman swear for me small...
She even talk say she no go come again.....

Las Las the machine start work...

I con dey wonder say shey them no dey follow me like this

Las Las i no sell anything that day.....

Omo small small business start to dey boom...

That woman later become my best customer...

Naso I jazz out commot for that mumu work....


I go baff soap begin dey para now....

I get my POS shop now sef

My first

I got my first job in one of the Behind investment management companies in Lagos, shortly after graduating from school, even before going for NYSC.

I found many things interesting. Yeah, good food for lunch. The informal gists with fonee speaking colleagues. I tried twisting my tongue too, make dem no think say aboki no dey speak turenchi, but my aboki accent no gree. I don improve sha.

The craziest thing was getting to work – crazy traffic. Having being used to strolling to classes in the university, adjusting to working life wasn’t easy. In the university, I used to go back to bed after my 5.45am, and sleep till like 7.30am before preparing for classes. I can prepare for and get to class within 30 minutes after all. And I can choose not to attend classes, anyway.

But working in Lagos – my first post-school – was a different ball game. Not funny at all.

I stayed at a very far distance. I had to leave home by 5am every morning, sometimes having to do eat dinner on the road. Of course I was hopping public buses, most times. I still struggled to get to work by 8am. Almost 3 hours on the road, every morning.

Work hours was officially 8-5pm, but with a caveat that “you may be required to work longer hours”. Well, that should actually be the rule, not the caveat. It was long hours everyday. 5pm? The work was just starting. 8pm? Okay, you may be free to go home then. And I spent between 1 to 2 hours on the road in the evenings too. Most times I got home after 10pm, sometimes after 11pm.

It didn’t matter whether there was oro (late night fetish activities in some Lagos communities with prior announcement on restriction of movement after a certain time in the night) in the suburb of Lagos I was staying. Wetin you go tell Oga? “There will be oro in my area today so I have to leave by 7pm to get home before 10? “

Well, guess where I landed on my fifth day at work?

Hospital.

I just sent an sms to my direct supervisor that I wouldn’t be able to come to work that Friday – my first Friday. I spent the Friday at the hospital. Too much stress.

Jarus 2021

My first job using my certificate to apply was at Dangote Cement, transport department. Hell of a job! The pay was poor for a graduate, working condition and work environment was degrading and beyond terrible, spending almost half of the salary to get the work done (transport, photocopies, call cards, etc), changing job nature and terms (from entrepreneurship program to permanent job with stipend as salary, from managing one truck to six trucks, from working during the day only to working nights as well), refusal to pay monthly bonus for working hard and surpassing target as promised. I almost developed ulcer because the job was too demanding and time consuming.

And from the refusal to be confirmed as permanent worker after six months probation period elapsed to outright disengagement of all Truck Officers in one fell swoop. Some people were dejected and disappointed but I was actually happy because it was a slavery with terrible health consequences if it continued like that for long. I had wanted to quit all along

Banking industry is tough

KingOfTheDamned:
Here is mine..

If you are bored watch a movie or listen to music...what does my work history concern you? Can't you mind your business?

Oga please get a job mbok . Didn't bother reading yours because like most sensible people, I don't care

Bye

The op is not the reason behind your frustrations

IyaTola:
The op is not the reason behind your frustrations

Madam, we weren't talking about frustrated, over aged, will die alone, below average looking , stank nasty women... If we were then you would definitely have been a reference point.

Until that discourse begins pls refrain from quoting me.

Thank you

DeMosthigh:
Dem reject me

Lol ....

The most Important thing is that you should never Reject yourself...

Not all of us, were born to work for others..

That rejection is a pointer to the fact that there is something in you that the world is waiting for...

There is that invention and idea planted in you that your Generation is longing for...

Aliko Dangote would be very happy that an employer rejected him yesterday.

Because if he had stayed in one tiny corner in one Company, he would not be celebrated today as Africa's Finest.

Mine was after my secondary school, I got a job as a server in a cyber cafe/business centre , the pay was small though (10k) but looked huge to me then as a student without even waec results ... I got to blend well and we very fast, I was even customers favourite I made money on a daily basis as I was been Gifted remaining change from customers and I also took corner jobs
... Though couldn't save much

Dem reject me

kkl

lol

My first job was posting for a media house and I was paid 30k.

I don't have a job right now but Isha Allah I will get one soon before 2023.

Hh

seen

And some Naija job seekers are excited to start a new job this 2nd half of the year some employees are actually writing their resignation letter and notice and some employers preparing the sack list

Splitmind:
My first job was posting for a media house and I was paid 30k.

I don't have a job right now but Isha Allah I will get one soon before 2023.

This life no balance

Nothing to share. All I know is that hardwork pays a lot

Waiting here to see the lie of the century

LETS'S VOTE

LIKE for TINUBU or ATIKU
SHARE for OBI

.

Yeah, so happens that my first job fresh out graduate, I was working more like a secretary got paid 15k, worked for 4 months sha and I quit
Stayed home for a while and gained admission to polytechnic, while schooling, I was sorting school and washing cars as side hustle! Twas tough but sha God knows the best.

Graduated from with my HND now, presently doing NYSC but I still find myself working at the car wash as a side hustle after PPA. I don hustle for this life sha, each time I reflect back at my life I duly regret my decisions to my path to becoming but laslas man must hustle to make things right, graduate working at a car wash, that's the situation of the country we are in now but at the same time I just wanna taste how a white collar job feels like because i haven't involved myself in one, looking at whatever CV I would be creating for myself in nearest future there wouldn't be a working experience in it, it pains me to the marrow when I think about it but what I earnestly know is that legitimate hustle would eventually pay someday.
I'm open to getting myself a new job very soon.

God go help us all in the end

My first job was as a computer operator. The pay was 8k, Omo at the time I couldn't reject because I was a fresh graduate but I wanted to learn and my employer at the time was bothered and also a nice person so he increased it to 12k. However after two months I got a better offer of 42k monthly so I left. Omo never despise the days of little beginnings o

Generally, work is a scam..
Sit in your home and supply something to consumer.
Freelancing, Service provider anything everything.

Patiently following this thread

I need am fa
Currently serving the nation. I'd like to learn from other people's experience how the outside life dey be true true o

Because ehn, what I'm seeing above so far is scary

WoW. The truth is your first major job determines a lot of things...your destiny is closely linked with your very first job. I wish I knew the things I know now, I would not have taken my first job.

People will say, take it and manage it till you get something better. But verily I say unto you, that advice is only for the strong-willed and ambitious ones. Not everyone is built the same way, if you know that you are always contented with something, please...be patient before accepting your first job, it is as important as choosing your life partner, if not before you know it, you have wasted 3 years of your life collecting 15k as salary.

Also, most importantly...never and I repeat, never stop developing yourself. Peace.

Meanwhile, for the best caregiving service around, check my signature.

People with thier crazy job experiences.

Lemme reserve moi....

Goodnight

My first job experience...
ASUU and strike were at play that time and I was freaking bored staying at home. My friend called me and said there was a job to market a fruit juice that was popular at the time and I was happy. For a student, the pay was okay and so I told her I was interested.

Fast forward to the day, we entered bus. That kind of bus with music to attract customers. We parked at a place to start marketing. I hadn't walked for long and my legs began to ache. Naso the work be A woman who probably saw how tired I was then called me to come and she bought. That was the only pack I sold sef.

I came back home around 9p.m. thanks to Lagos and traffic. By then, they were already looking for me at home. My mother had to help me with my legs as I kept complaining that they were hurting. I didn't even bother to show up for the supposed work the next day. I just told my friend that I no sabi the work of waka waka.

I still had many more of such all thanks to strike before I decided I had had enough.

my first job experience was actually awesome. It came during the peak of the covid pandemic so I was working from home as a CSR. I hate calls and by God's working, I wasn't put in the calls team. All I did was respond to emails and chats. Started as an intern with pay of 70k, then full-time, pay increased to 150 excluding other benefits.

I resigned to focus on programming. Now got another remote job doing what I like.