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By Vera Wisdom-Bassey
The Role Model Teenager is a book that breaks down so many things that concern the daily lives of a youth, unlike what today’s youths source on the internet. The book, written by Folske Adelusi, which also offers the right answers a teenager should know and leaves a positive impact in their lives, was launched in Lagos.
A book with 10 chapters and 120 pages, it deals mostly with the daily lives of the teenager. It is all about catching the teenagers at their age and moulding them to become good leaders in the society, especially the character traits and with their temperament, which is prevalent in today’s youths life and also imbibing the right values in them. The book also helps youths discover their right purpose early in life and direction.
Speaking at the event, the chairman of the occasion, Mr. Taiwo Olukunle, the CEO, Supreme Adequate Insurance Brokers, called on the Teenagers to be more focused on their studies, and not to be in a hurry to make money, stating that “money will definitely come, but there is a need to acquire the skill first”. He made this call during the launch of the book, The Role Model Teenager”, a handbook on how to live a successful teenage life, at Rotary Club Ikeja, Lagos. As an advocate for youths, he said money should not be the first thing a teenager should focus on – “It is the skill that brings the money; “Money does not fall from heaven and all the youths should stop thinking that their role model, because you can negatively pick a Role Model”.
Giving an instance of a bad role model, he said, “Three hours ago, I was asking some people if their role model used to be Hush Puppies, the fraudster?” He is in jail now. So, the narrative has to change from money to becoming successful. A role model is someone who can impact your life positively, who has also done so in his own life.
“You would have seen his track records, what he has been able to achieve, what were his antecedents. Nobody can just make money and he becomes a role model. That you made money does not make him a role model.” How much has she/he impacted on the lives of others? That is, who is a role model in every field of organisation? A lot of people came into the insurance industry and made it, because God made it possible through me,” he said.
Advising our youths on the current harsh economy, he said, “The economy seems bad, but is not too bad, because there are opportunities. There are so many untapped opportunities in this economy that people do not know of or have not discovered or gone into, but everybody is looking at what is bringing money now, “We should know that what is bringing now, people researched into it years back. Youths need to sit down and find out what can bring money into the table, not what other people are doing.”
One of the youths, a 14 year-old Olu Rotimi Solomon, in unveiling the book, called on youths to know that they could always improve, “even if they are a public speaker there is something you can improve on”. According to him, the book is meant for 13-19 years olds.
Speaking also, the author, Folake Adelusi, the founder of a Non-Governmental Organisation, known as Unique Youth Initiative (UYI), remarked that, for us to get good leaders we have been aspiring in the future, it had to start somewhere, “and it has to be the young minds; the community cannot chose a leader who is better than the person occupying it”. And so picking these young ones early enough and mentoring them is very important, and will assist in picking the right leader quality that we desire in them.”
According to her, they visit public schools in the less privileged areas; they have not started going to private schools to mentor the young ones, and pay the school fees of those who can’t afford their fees. As a message to the government, Adelusi called on the government to empower her foundation to do more, “The Unique thing the government can do is to empower us with necessary resources to do that which they cannot do because we are closer to the youths,” she said.
