Being socially responsible........#inthelineofduty

This week has been one week!! I must give it to full time, stay at home mums, you should hold your head up high because you are super, super! Summer school activities ended last week, to my shock and dismay *covers face*. But really, we still have till the 16^th of September before they have to resume so I was hoping for just one week more. Keeping active little men positively engaged is not a joke. So, before they kill my Nanny Mcphee, I decided to make myself available this week full-time (almost). Oluwa oooo! Kids just never tire.

I stole this picture from my friend Ralia's Blackberry display picture today because it is so apt! Thanks Ralia aya Bashir!

My line of thought for today's #inthelineofduty post is this; if there’s going to be any change in our land, it will be driven by entrepreneurs. I bet you've heard that my former big boss, Aliko is set to build a refinery in Nigeria, about time too! I know some of you are there rolling your eyes and thinking #$*! Capitalist, but let me ask you; if you had all that money and access, what would you do? There are others who have as much money as he does but half a brain and are busy wiring all the money out, buying property in Dubai and the likes. This initiative will create at least 80,000 new jobs for Nigerians (and a couple for Indians, maybe lol! Sorry couldn't resist). It will also boost the ailing economy. We should give it to the man, he may have his flaws (who doesn't!) but he is an entrepreneur extraordinaire.

Enough about Aliko. I watched the Igwe twins of @Speedmeals Mobile Kitchen On Moments with Mo yesterday. Inspiring stuff! Very interesting pair, those guys. If you missed it, you can read a summary of their story here;

(It's not the same though, moments with Mo should upload these interviews to youtube so people can watch these interviews when they want) 

They said something on the show, that I agree with totally. Every business should be socially responsible. There’s a never ending debate as to whether this should be mandatory or by choice, but I leave that to the CSR experts to deal with. Tobias (one of the twins) said they decided they wanted their brand to be associated with something good, something that would make people say, this company touched me.

My #inthelineofduty post today will be about being socially responsible........

When we hear the phrase social responsibility, most times we have a picture of big companies doing grand things and splashing them all over the dailies. For some it comes as an after-thought because there is pressure to connect with the community in which they operate, for others it is part of the foundation of their company policies. I am not a CSR expert, but I think social responsibility should be part of the foundation of a company. Businesses should decide what cause they want to address and document it.

I know I have an MBA and yes we had classes that tackled the issue of corporate social responsibility, but at the time of birthing Trezorlandia, It wasn't even a thought. Like I said, many times we think of it as something for big companies, those evil companies polluting our environment (haha).

The second valentine as Trezorlandia however, as I was preparing for my deliveries, I looked at the teddy bears from the valentine that never was and thought of kids who would give anything to feel loved. I immediately knew the cause Trezorlandia would take up. I made up my mind then to package the teddy bears along with a few other things from the proceeds of that period and visit an orphanage or home to help put smiles on kids faces. I wasn't thinking “social responsibility” then per say, but I had this nagging need to do something that would make a difference.

We visited So Said Charity Home in Okota, Lagos. You wouldn't believe how far your little contributions go to making a difference. Don't wait till you can build a house, just give what you have, even if it's just your time.

That's my brother in glasses, the "oyana of life" and chief networking officer. 

Today, it is documented in the Trezorlandia profile as the part of soul of our business;

 " As a corporate social entity, we engage in activities as a matter of policy to provide support to the less privileged children through initiatives that help us demonstrate friendship and show love to the hopeless" 

It feels great to put a smile of children’s faces. On children’s day this year, with the support of the trezorlandia family and in conjuction with Cares unend, publishers of Erin magazine, we had a little party and spent time with speech and hearing impaired children at a school in Ikorodu. We had a piece from the largest cake in Africa from Cakes by Tosan too, it was a great experience for us and the kids.

What are you doing to make Nigeria a better place?