THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING - HERE'S MY INTRODUCTORY POST

Hello Hive Community, I am a newbie here and I am excited to be here. I would like to thank my boss @writo for introducing me to great mentors who took the time to lecture me on what Hive is all about.

I am grateful to @hive-bootcamp for giving me this opportunity to put my creativity to work and also for introducing me to this platform to grow and interact with creatives in the Hive community.

I am also grateful to my boss @starstrings01 for his help.

ABOUT MYSELF

My name is Collins, I'm a graduate of the University of Lagos where I studied pure and applied chemistry. Anytime I tell someone about the course I studied their reaction makes me laugh. They call me 'boss' to pull my legs, this is because they know studying chemistry is no child's play. I'm an introvert.

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND

I attended Yaba College of Technology Staff School (creche and primary school). Then I attended Divinity international College for my junior year and moved to Bright Future International College for my senior year.

When I was a child, I dreamt of being a Lawyer. Funny right? But my parents were against it they wanted me to study medicine. So, I had no choice but to obey them. I went to science class confused about what to study at university. One thing lead to another I ended up studying pure and applied chemistry.

Studying chemistry was stressful, tasking and fun. I wasn't the best graduating student but I graduated with a good grade.

MY HOBBIES

I love singing. I started singing at the age of 10 in the children's choir. I would say listening to music and singing is therapeutic for me. Music is an everyday dose of happiness and it's what calms me when I'm nervous or angry. Music is life.

I love reading, reading is fun. "Knowledge they say is power". I read to learn, unlearn, relearn and also get inspiration.
Books I enjoyed reading during his year are " How to win friends and influence people by Dale Carnegie", "Where there is problem There is the money by Sunday Adelaja" "Mountain moving faith by Kenneth E. Hagin" "Small business big money by Akin Alabi" and a few others. I'm currently reading "Make today count by John C. Maxwell".

I love writing. Writing brings out the creativity in me, helps me pen down my thoughts and it's also a way I could help people out there by giving quality content So, be ready to get quality content from me.

If you're looking for a movie lover then you've met one. A day won't pass by without watching a movie. Watching movies is a way I use to ease out stress and relax. I'm a die hard fan of k-drama series, this doesn't mean I don't watch other movies.

What if I tell you I get inspiration for my writing from movies.

I love hanging out with friends. Hanging out with my close friends is always fun. They bring out the crazy and funny part in me. I cherish my friends and hanging out with them is one thing I look forward to.

FAVOURITE FOOD

Hmm...
I don't have a favourite food. I'm ok with any food that's healthy and delicious. One thing I could eat every day and not get tired of is rice.

PROFESSION

I'm a content writer (Social media writer). I'm currently working with an Agro-investment company where I create content for their blog and social media accounts. I also work with an NGO (non governmental organisation) which focuses on mental wellness across the globe.

I've always loved writing. Back then in primary school I and my sis would write stories and sell them to our friends in school. We used this to earn money. When I was in junior high school, I wrote stories for my class drama and we always won the best storyline.

My English teacher in Junior high school (Mr Patrick) helped me edit some of my stories and advised me never to give up my dream of being a writer. But, I stopped writing in my senior year.

I got back to writing in 2021. It wasn't easy at first, I had to take lessons, and do my research. I wanted to give up but with the help of some creatives I was able to push through and here I am getting better.

I'm also an entrepreneur as I own a small perfume oil business. I took over this perfume oil business from my sis in 2019. I sold undiluted perfume oil for both men and women. I watched videos on marketing, branding and customer retention on YouTube. This helped me understand how to market my goods to my target audience and make them loyal customers.

To make my brand known I created an Instagram account where I advertised perfume oil. I would say being an entrepreneur is not easy, there were times when I didn't make any sales. I had to research, ask for customer feedback and create content that would attract my target audience.

In 2020, I continued with the business but had to put a pause on it because I went for service (N.Y.S.C). My service year was stressful so I didn't have time for my business.

In 2021, during my service year, I came across the book "Small business big money and how to sell to Nigerians by Akin Alabi'. These books opened my eyes to secrets in business. I would advise all entrepreneurs to read these books. I plan on getting back into the perfume oil business soon.

CONCLUSION

I believe this journey will be a wonderful one. I look forward to growing, meeting creatives, having fun and most importantly, paint hive with educating and fun-filled quality content.

Thanks for reading.