BEING YOUNG IN NIGERIA IS EXPENSIVE

Being young in Nigeria is expensive, And I don't mean just money.Although, let's be honest, money is already a big part of the problem. Everything seems to cost money these days. Want to start a business? You need money. Want to learn a skill? You probably need money. Want to look presentable for an interview? Money. Want to move out and have your own space? Please, let's not even go there.Sometimes I sit and wonder how young people are expected to figure life out when simply trying to survive already takes so much from you.You are told to go to school.You go to school.Then you are told to get a job.You start looking for a job and discover that many jobs want three years of experience from someone who just graduated.Then you finally get a job and the salary is barely enough to cover transportation, food and the small things you need to survive.And somehow, you are still expected to be building your future.You are expected to save, Invest, and Start something on the side. Take care of yourself.Look good, Have a social life; And of course, don't forget that you are getting older, so you should probably be thinking about marriage too. Sometimes I think we underestimate how much pressure young Nigerians are carrying.There is this constant feeling that you should be doing more.Someone your age is already married.Someone else has bought a car.Another person has started a business.Someone has relocated.Another person is making money online.And you are sitting there trying to understand why your own life doesn't look like theirs.But nobody tells you what it cost them to get there.Nobody sees the failed businesses.The debts.The help they received.The opportunities they got.The sacrifices their parents made.We just see the finished picture and start wondering what is wrong with us.I think that is one of the hardest parts of being young today.You are trying to build a life while constantly being reminded that you are behind.And Nigeria doesn't exactly make it easier.You can have a plan today and the cost of that plan can change tomorrow.Transport becomes more expensive.Food becomes more expensive.Rent becomes something you have to mentally prepare yourself for.Even trying to save money can feel like a battle because there is always something that needs attention.And still, young people are trying.I see it everywhere, People selling small things online, People learning skills from their phones, People creating content, People writing books.People starting businesses with whatever little money they have.People working during the day and trying to build something at night.People quietly praying that the thing they are working on will finally work.That part doesn't get talked about enough.The resilience.The trying.The fact that some people are building their dreams with very little support and still waking up every morning to try again.I am one of those people too.I have had moments where I looked at everything I wanted to do and thought, How am I supposed to afford all of this?But I am learning that having a small beginning doesn't mean you have a small dream.Maybe some of us are not behind.Maybe we are just building with what we have.And honestly, in Nigeria, that is already something worth being proud of.Because being young here is expensive.But somehow, we are still trying to build beautiful lives with the little we have.And I think that deserves to be acknowledged too.

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