THANK YOU, TIM BERNERS-LEE.

April 2009 ends today and I think it is apt for me to honour the man who has made it possible for me to be able to maintain a blog online. His name is Tim Berners Lee. He ushered in the World Wide Web in the early Nineties. He was a chip off the old block as his parents were mathematicians, who helped construct the Manchester Mark 1,one of the earliest electronic computers.

Tim attended Oxford University and he built a working computer out of Spare parts, before he was banned from using the elite institution's computer after being caught hacking. In 1980, Tim Berbers-Lee took a job as an independent contractor at Cern, a huge physics laboratory in the Swiss Alps. Frustrated that he could not remember the connections between the variuos people and projects that filled the Laboratory, he created ENQUIRE, a primitive programme that used hypertext to link documents on his computer. He then proceeded to link the systems of his colleagues. That was how the internet started. Today, there are more than 1.5 billion internet users worldwide. Tim hardly made a penny from his creation. What a man!!

Tim has taught me to believe in the creative abilities that the good lord has deposited in me. We are all born to make an impact in this world. Are you using your gifts today? Start thinking creatively. And how was your day?

ITCHING HANDS.

I got up this morning and really didn't know what to do. After saying a quick prayer, I looked out of the window. Yeah, vehicles were moving to and fro and the Buses were picking up passengers infront of my house. That's the way of the world for you. People will always go about their own businesses irrespective of the way you feel about them. That thought jolted me back to my senses. I have a part time job now, and I'm still trying to get a full time job. However, there is something I still want to do. Until I make my mark in the literary world, I will not be satisfied. I know I've got a writing talent and God is expecting me to unleash it on the world. I believe God does not give us gifts for nothing [ the black boys in South East London will say 'nuffin' ]. So I really want to use my writing gifts.

I just finished sending some articles to thejuicetimes.com. It is news website conceptualized and run by my friend, Abiola Oyewo. I believe his site will do well. April is already gone. Tomorrow is the last day of the month. My hands are itching and something tells me I will finally be able to complete a projeect of mine this year. Lets keep our fingers crossed. And how was your day?

Gino - No Be God? [ MY BEST NAIJA HIP-HOP VIDEO ].

I believe Nigerian youths are gifted and very creative. We have what it takes to dominate the world when it comes to Entertainment. It is just that we have a government that does not care about Youth Development in the country. Gino's song ' No Be God ' is my best Nigerian Rap song. The track and video was No 1 on the list of many charts in Nigeria for months. The song is very inspirational. Thanks Gino for making my day and helping me to believe in myself.

I wish you the best in life, Gino. I also have my own dreams too. Cheers.

CHANGING JOBS, SEEKING FULFILMENT.

I stopped going to work on Wednesday night. I had been planning to change jobs for some time now. My body could not stand the rigour of working night shifts anymore. You see, I have been doing night shifts with my company for almost eight months. During those months of staying awake from 11pm to 6.45am, I gave the job my utmost best. I worked hard and I was recognised for it. Though my take home pay was not increased. I must confess that it was a tough job. Sorting plastics, cans, milk bottles and all kinds of things for Recycling. It was indeed a difficult job. It was my hardworking nature that made me continue with the job. It is all over now. I'm moving on.

One thing I have learnt in life is to understand my body. I cherish my health than the money someone is going to pay me for working for his or her company. There is nothing like moving on to better things. One cannot be in a place for ever. I've got my dreams to carry on. There are other things I want to do. Staying rooted in a place does not signify progress. I'm always on the move. The guys at the office called me and yelled at me for not coming to work. Then one of them told me I had been sacked. Not for once have I felt bothered about their decision to do away with me. I'm at peace with myself and my environment. Before I left the job, I had already gotten a Part time job. I will definately move on to bigger things. I have a winning mentality. I know that ultimately, I would have my own business. I was born to be a change bringer. The time for me to launch out on my own is getting near.

I will never be fulfilled working for others. I have always known that. I can only learn and gather financial resources from anyone I work for at this stage in my life. Like Martin Luther King said- I have a dream. Tolu Ihidero has dreams. So I need to keep learning. And Nigeria is home. How was your day?

FLYING ABOVE THE STORMS OF LIFE.

When the storms of life rage, I will not be moved. I will not become jittery and start looking for help elsewhere. My help and strenght comes from the lord. He did not promise me that the road to my destiny will be easy, but I know he's always close to me. God does not fail those who believe in him. I have seen the manifestation of his power in my life. He has saved me from the darts and arrows of the devil several times. I know he will keep protecting me.

The storms of life can keep raging, but I'm not perturbed. I hold on to the promises of Jesus Christ. With him, I know my dreams will come to pass. He has started with me, and he'll finish his work in my life.

With Jesus, I'm flying above the storms of life.

God bless you. Amen.

BIOLA'S COURAGE.

His name is Abiola Oyewo. I met him for the first time in 1994 at Twinmoric Hostel in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria. What struck me then were his looks. Biola was very handsome and still is. At least from his recent pictures I've seen. He was one boy that I never had problems with as a Senior student. Maybe because he did not attend the same school with me initially. He spent some time at the Adeola Odutola College in Ijebu-Ode before jumping ship to JOGS. Most guys in town then wanted to attend my school- Ijebu-Ode Grammar School.

I will tell you more about Biola later on. We are currently involved in some projects. Biola is now into Multi-Media and Website development. He is based in the United States. He is doing some things that amaze me. I'm in awe of his design skills and current knowledge about the internet. This was a guy that jumped around the hostel grounds, back in the days, as if he had no purpose in life. He's a dynamite now and could be the next big thing in Internet business. I'm watching him like a hawk. Biola started a site- www.monitorthechange.com The site was meant to observe how President Barack Obama will fulfil his election promises. Due to a scarcity of resources, he has taken the site down. He's been up to something new recently. His new site is- www.thejuicetimes.com

I've decided to support Biola in his endeavours. These are the kind of guys that Nigeria needs. Like I said before, Nigera's Got Talent. I will post his photos on this blog soon. Hope you're enjoying the Easter Holidays. I'm not too happy these days. I'll let you know why later. Help me promote this bog. Thanks. And how was your day?

JUST GOOGLE IT: An Interview With Sergey Brin. [ Co-founder, Larry Page ]

If you look carefully at my Shelfari bookshelf, which is on this blog, you'll notice I have a book about Google on it. I am an ardent admirer of Sergin Brin and Larry Page, the founders of the highly acclaimed search engine. I became fascinated with the internet way back in 2003, and Sergey and Larry have helped me deepen my knowledge about the workings of search engines.

I will focus more on Sergey Brin in this post. This is because he is the one that mainly talks to the press. Larry is a bit reserved and loves to work behind the scenes. Sergey was born in Moscow, USSR, on August 21, 1973, to Russian Jewish parents. His father, Michael Brin, is a Mathematics Professor at the University of Maryland, USA. His mother, Eugenia Brin, is a research scientist at NASA'S Goddard space flight centre.

Sergey met Larry Page, the co-founder of Google Inc at Stanford University when he was doing his PhD in Computer Science there. They quickly became friends and were very intellectual in nature. Soon they started working on Google. They crammed their dormitory room with cheap computers and tested their new search engine designs on the web. Their project grew quickly enough to cause problems for Stanford's computing Infrastructure. They then realized they had succeeded in creating a superior engine for searching the web. This discovery made them suspend their PhD studies to work more on Google.

If you want to read more about Google, conduct an internet search yourself. Wikipedia will give you more information about the company and its founders. Google Inc has become the best search engine in the world. It is the world's largest internet company based on its search engine and online advertising technology. Sergey Brin is ranked by Forbes as the 32nd richest person in the world. Brin is worth billions of dollars. The company has also won many awards, including the Outstanding Search Service Award in 2001. Brin is a Computer Scientist, Technology Innnovator and Entrepreneur.

Everything about Google gets me excited. The Company has its own way of conducting business. Google employees hardly wear ties and suits. They dress like people going for a nice time at the Pub. They are indulged with three square meals at work. If you care to know, Google actually has an in-house cook. Google Employees can also be found playing computer games at work. However, they get the job done for Brin and Page. My advice to you is that you should pick friends that will inspire you to greatness. Don't walk with friends that cannot support your dreams. Good friends are hard to find. Sergey Brin and Larry Page are both Jews. Their parents are scholars, so they were able to positively influence their children. Try and stimulate the thinking of your kids. It would do them a lot of good.

I don't have many friends. The fewer my friends, the better for me. Most of my friends are nerds anyway. One Nigerian I admire is Seun Osewa. The founder of Nairaland and Nairalist. Nairaland has about 315,000 memebers now. Seun's sites are getting adverts from Google these days. I admire Seun because he started Nairaland as a forum where Nigerians and friends of Nigeria can exchange ideas. His Nairalist is also people oriented. Learn a lesson from this. Think about others. As for me, I have my own plans. And how was your day?

TECHNICAL PROBLEM.

I made a mistake today while trying to make this blog better. I wanted to upload a photograph of US President, Barack Obama, but the picture appeared in a bad format on my blog. It is making the site look somehow. Dunno what to do now. However, I have learnt a lesson today. I will never underestimate the workings of the World Wide Web again. Though the internet is a good place to get resources for whatever we are doing online, things could go awry when we least expect it. Anyway, I hope to add more posts today so that this mishap on my page can be pushed further down the listings. I'm learning daily. I know I'm going to make mistakes, but those mistakes will only make me stronger. Like it is said- There is no gain without pain. Cheers.

Vitamin Water Essential Widget

DIRECT ADVERTISING AND YOU.

I decided to conduct a search on the internet during the week. If you can remember, I made a promise in one of my posts to make TOLU'S PARADISE outstanding this year. If you've noticed, my blog has not been having a lot of pictures to complement the words I've been spewing out. So I decided to do what many a great mind would have done- I decided to scour the web for sites where I can get free pictures and photographs. Thanks to Google, My search delivered many websites to me. The sites providing free photos for bloggers are many. Before I go on, I will like to ask you this question. What are you doing to make the lives of other citizens under the sun better? I'm asking this question because I know some people in different continents decided to help creative types like me, to make their online experience good, by providing free pictures for them to download for their personal use.

Back to the issue of direct marketing. Nigerians need to embrace the concept of Direct Marketing as the economy continues to expand. Companies in Nigeria must realize that it is not enough to place adverts on the Radio, Television and in Newspapers and Magazines. Adverts placed in the electronic media are fleeting and they might be quickly forgotten. I'm not ruling out putting adverts on our screens and on the airwaves, but research has shown that Direct Marketing pulls in more customers than other kinds of advertising. I have this belief that if Mr Biggs, Tantalizers, Sweet Sensation, Tastee Fried Chicken and other fast food outlets start utilizing the power of direct marketing, they will increase their customer base and make more money. Research has shown that many Nigerians need that fast food outlets are meant for rich people. So they don't even bother patronizing Tantalizers and Co. So why can't Mr Biggs and the rest of the fast food gang bring their services direct to Nigerian homes?

Direct Marketing does not cost much. It is a whole lot cheaper than other forms of advertising. Leaflets can do the job for both Small businesses and established big business alike. Leaflets do not cost much to print. What is vital is that the leaflets should be colourful, well designed and carry a strong message. Good images should be used on the leaflets. Images of cakes , meat pies, balloons etc will be suitable for a leaflet that is promoting a Fat Food joint. The prices of the snacks and food items should also be listed on the flyer or leaflet. Phone numbers, websites and email addresses of the eateries should also be displayed on the leaflets. My advice to any graphics designer or printer looking for Leaflet Design ideas is this- Conduct a search on the internet.

Creative advertising is what is needed in the Nigerian business environment. Many small businesses are failing because their founders are not innovative enough. They also don't want to go the extra mile of creating awareness for their business concerns. They just sit back and expect customers to come to them. In the end, the business collapses and packs up. I'm going to upload an image I downloaded from the web with this post. If it works, it will be the beginning of solid pictures appearing on my blog. I will give you a link to many of these sites that provide free pictures later on. If you're a small business owner, you need to start thinking of direct advertising and marketing. It is time to start giving the big businesses a run for their money. Cheers. And how was your day?

WE CAN MAKE IT IF WE TRY.

I have just finished watching one of the best music videos to come out of Nigeria. The rapper is Gino and the name of the track is- '' No Be God ''. The video was well produced with amazing camera shots that made proud of being a Nigerian. The video was shot in Dolphin Estate in Lagos, Nigeria. I have always believed that one make it anywhere in the world if you have focus, creativity, God and determination. I have seen Africans in Europe who are simply wasting their time there. I have also seen people in Nigeria and other African nations, who are making loads of money in their countries without travelling out of the continent. I love the message Gino passed along to us in the track. He is telling us that no matter what we are going through or what we have gone through in the past, we can still make it if we try.

I can still remember my days as a boarding house student at Ijebu-Ode Grammar School, Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria. There were days when I would have nothing in my locker to eat. The food served by the school authorities was nothing to write home about. I can recall that I often begged for Gari and Sugar from some of my friends and hostel mates. I still wondered how I survived back in those days when Hip-Hop was still in its truest form. Back in those days of Heavy D, KrissKross, Queen Latifah, Guru and DJ Premier [ Gangstarr ], Hammer, etc etc. I thank God that I survived the siege called ' exixtence ' from 1990-1995. Nothing has come to me on a platter of Gold since I was born. I've had to fight for some of the things I have today.

I love my country, Nigeria. After travelling out of Nigeria and seeing what obtains in Britain, I have come to love my country deeply. Nigeria is a blessed country. We have a nice weather and practically any crop can be grown in the country. There was a time I travelled to Abuja in 2002 [ I was also in Abuja in 2005 ]. As the Luxury Bus passed through Kogi State onward to the Federal Capital, I could not help being proud of the scenery. I saw forests, rock formations and hills that reminded me of some states in America. Nigeria is indeed beautiful. When I was serving in Ondo State, I was privileged to visit places like Owo, Ikare- Akoko, Ipele, Owena, Sabotu [ Riverine area ] and I also lived in Akure. Nigerian states have an amazing scenery. The problem with my coutry is bad leadership. Our leaders are mostly visionless and very greedy.

However, I believe we can make it if we try. It is time for all of us to start believing in Nigeria. Gino did not leave the country before shooting that great video. Change has come to Nigeria and it is the citizens that have brought about the change themselves. A lot of positive things are going on in Nigeria amidst the lack of basic infrastructure. Ordinary Nigerians are on the move. The country is being rebranded and my prayer is that Dora Akunyili will succeed where others have failed. At the end of Gino's video is the saying- ' No food for lazy man '. I agree with the dude. Hardwork pays. Let us put a lot of effort into anything we do. Our breakthrough will come when we least expect it. We can make it if we try. We need to make Nigeria the country it is destined to be. As for me, its hey no stopping me now, I'm on the move. And how was your day?