By Henry Uche
Corporate leaders and professionals across all sectors in Nigeria have been urged to uphold excellence, quality, integrity, and consistency while shunning mediocrity in 2025.
At the 2025 New Year Kickoff Summit held in Lagos, performance strategist Dr Abiola Salami made this call, challenging Nigerians to transform past limitations into opportunities for elevation. He described mediocrity as simply repeating the previous year’s performance.
Organised by CHAMP GLC with the theme “Navigating Innovation & Growth in 2025”, the session provided strategic insights for participants to elevate their performance in the new year. Salami highlighted: “Stagnation in performance is mediocrity, not poor performance.”
Focusing on leadership, goal-setting, and innovation, the event was rebranded from Rock Like A Champion to reflect its vision of empowering and inspiring professionals and entrepreneurs for a stronger start to the year.
“Our goal is to empower career professionals and entrepreneurs to achieve unprecedented success in 2025, ensuring this year’s results significantly surpass those of 2024,” Dr Salami declared at the summit.
Top professionals and thought leaders were present to inspire strategic thinking and personal development for the year ahead. Among them were LOTUS Bank MD Kafilat Araoye, Digital Encode CEO Prof. Adewale Obadare, Founder of OLCA Dr Lanre Olusola, and social media influencer Dr Chinonso Egemba, popularly known as Aproko Doctor.
Echoing Dr Salami’s perspective, Araoye emphasised three key traits that drive workplace performance: flexibility, focus, and consistency. “You cannot achieve peak performance without these qualities,” she stated.
A peak performer is adaptable, focused, and consistent. He embraces feedback, identifies areas for improvement, and views mistakes as stepping stones to growth. Above all, humility is the hallmark of a true peak performer.”
In another session, Obadare and Olusola shared insights on cybersecurity, artificial intelligence (AI), and developing a money mindset for innovation and growth in 2025.
While moderating the panel discussion, Dr Salami skilfully guided the conversation, ensuring the panellists provided actionable strategies to help participants navigate challenges and opportunities in the coming year.
Prof. Obadare highlighted the transformative impact of technology on daily life, particularly in reshaping the way people manage their affairs.
He also issued a caution about the risks of public Wi-Fi: “Be mindful of what you do on public Wi-Fi. Your phone can be hacked using certain technological tools. The safest approach is to avoid public Wi-Fi altogether.”
Meanwhile, Olusola delved into the concept of a growth mindset, offering valuable advice on wealth creation. He remarked: “The only way to create and sustain wealth is to identify a problem and solve it. Once you’ve mastered solving that problem, the next step is to scale it.”
Shifting the focus to addiction and its harmful impact on health, Aproko Doctor described it as a form of mental imprisonment created by the individual. “If you are struggling with something right now, it’s because of the story you’ve told yourself about it and the strong belief you have attached to it. That is why breaking free feels so difficult,” he explained.
He encouraged participants to prioritise healthy living by envisioning the person they aspire to become in 2025 and actively working towards that goal.
Austin Avuru, Founder of AA Holdings and one of the event sponsors, shared insights on “Leading in Challenging Times.”
He defined a peak performer as someone who excels with minimal supervision and shared his formula for success: “Discipline, focus, and integrity. Combine these with hard work, play hard, and stay focused on your goals, and you are unlikely to fail. Obstacles may arise, but you will ultimately succeed.”
The event drew individuals and organisations from Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Abuja, and Kebbi, among other states, while virtual participants joined from West and East Africa, North America, and Europe.
Three workshops encouraged attendees to engage in reflection and self-appraisal while envisioning and strategising for personal and professional growth in 2025.
Commenting on the summit’s success, Dr Salami said: “I am glad to see the hundreds of leaders from both the private and public sectors and the value they received, as evidenced by the excellent feedback. We are encouraged by this feedback, and the next edition, the 2026 New Year Kickoff Summit, will hold on Saturday, 17th January 2026,” he added.