Jobs: The new requisite skills

After being fed up with my job, I ran into my former colleague and friend in a bank. I told him I needed to change my job and enquired if there was a vacancy in his place of work. He told me to call him afterwards.

I called him few days later and he asked me what  I had in the industry and  what I could do for the company. He told me the company was interested in people that would add value to it. So, he wanted to know what I could offer.

Ab initio, I was taken aback since I thought I just needed connection to get the job. After some seconds, I regained my composure and started reeling out what I could do for the company. I ended the conversation with “in fact, I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me”. He could not help but laugh.

As things are changing, so the recruitment process is changing. For me, it is now transcending the shores of who you know to what you can do or what value you can add to an organisation. Of course, what you can offer is the sum total of your course of study, ability, potential and experience.Although not in all cases.

It is very sardonic to find a graduate that does not know what he can do. He cannot even apply what he read in school. All that he cares is about is just to get  any kind of job. He is only interested in working in an organisation. He just wants somebody to refer him for employment. Well, while such ambition may not be bad, my question is, what if your potential or ability is sine qua non to getting a job? Then, what happens?

Recently, I saw a handicapped shoemaker. He is crippled and was crawling with his basket of tools on his head. I want to believe that he has all the excuses in the world to be idle or resort to begging, yet he defied all odds to earn a living.  My charge is that if we cannot do better, then we are not better than him.

I have also come across illiterates who go into business and succeed. If a cripple and illiterate can do something and succeed, what excuse do we have not to as we have everything we need: we are schooled, smart, creative, digitalized and ultimately, we have God? What is the problem with us?

Emmanuel Onoja

Makurdi, Benue State