Nmeri17:
still following. when you say "traction" in a lay man's terms what do you mean??

Traction simply translates to getting users that are using and liking your product and their continued growth at a reasonable rate. It is the most important thing for early stage startups.

The tide in the workplace is changing. Read the following blog post:

The most important piece of advice for folks starting their careers
By Jacqui, calacanis.com

1/The most important piece of advice I can give folks starting out: be great at an important skill.
The important skills in the world right now include:

a. sales
b. coding
c. product design
d. growth
e. design
f. corporate storyteller

2/Refine your skill faster than your peers.
If you’re a product designer, stop binge-watching TV & read every book on UX. Learn to use every tool you find on the internet.

Many folks will tell you that the world is not a zero sum game, with one person not having to lose at the expense of another winning. This is simply not true, as in most startups there is a very limited number of seats and they go to the people who work the hardest and who have the most skill.

In your career you will find that life is a zero sum game: the winners get the prime positions and the person who comes in second place for that position is the first loser — not the second winner.

[ Click to Tweet (can edit before sending): http://ctt.ec/uUcf3 ]

3/Take your skills to a startup. Period. Full Stop.
Don’t worry about your salary, just get enough money to live in a closet close to work. Focus on providing your CEO 10x the value of your contemporaries. Your CEO will notice you, eventually, and she will love you.

CEOs love people who work hard and who refine their skills faster than everyone else (see #2) because those people remind them of themselves. How the f@#4k do you think she got the CEO slot, by waiting in line? By random luck? No, she f@#$king took that slot.

If you’re taking your slot by working harder than everyone else and by refining your skills faster than everyone else she will notice it.

4/Once you’re noticed by the CEO: take on every project she offers.
Great CEOs obsess over their high performers. They like to talk to them, they like to mentor them and they like to challenge them. Once you prove yourself, it’s time to reap the benefit of being a hard worker with massive skills and the ability to learn new ones.

Never leave work before she does, respond to her emails quickly and without excuses. Here are things to say to her when she gives you amazing responsibilities that will make her love and trust you more.

When your boss asks you to set up the sales department for your startup you say:

“I have never set up a sales department before, but I’m going to find three people who have and suck their brain dry after work. If you know anyone smart I can leverage let me know — if not, I’m off to the races.”

When your boss asks you to set up a blog and podcast for your startup you say:

“I’m on it.” Then you come back to her 24 hours later with a Google Doc and say:

“Here are links to the five best corporate sites I could find, ranked in order of how well I think they’re executed. On each one I listed the three best editorial devices they used. I also put together a list of the platforms they’re using and how often they have each published in the last 60 days. Based on all of this I’d suggest we use Squarespace or WordPress, SoundCloud or this podcast plug-in. We should publish a blog twice a week and spend 2x as much time promoting it as we did writing it. By my estimate this will cost us 20 hours a week of editorial time and 50 hours of setup time. At $25 an hour fully baked it’s a $30,000 year one expense, so if we land three clients for our average enterprise software subscription we break even — at a 20-month LTV, of course.”

Here’s how most folks answer that:

“I’ve never set up a blog.”

“Can you just tell me what to do?”

“I wasn’t hired to do this.”

I can go for hours on how most folks answer these challenges and then never follow up, forcing their boss to chase them: “How’s that blog and podcast project going?”

There are two types of people in this world: killers and the killed.

You can move yourself from the killed bucket to the killers bucket by ‘doing the work,’ but in my experience only 10% of the people in the world ever make it from deer to tiger.

Counter arguments to working hard include burnout and missing out on life. The truth is, many startups do run on 80-hour weeks. 50 hours a week is probably the norm, and paying your dues early is the quickest way to acquire the skills necessary to become a founder yourself — and accumulate enough wealth never to work again.

Hustle early and often is the best life strategy.

5/Teach everyone around you everything you’ve learned.
There is always more knowledge to acquire, new skills to be mastered, yet most folks hoard their talents. This is a mistake. Give away everything you’ve learned, and take credit for doing so with your CEO with language like: “I’ve fully briefed our new hire Joe on how the blog and podcast work, and he understands the best practices we’ve established. I’ve asked him to update the best practice document if he learns anything new and to send us those learning points by email as well. What’s next?”

If you level people up you have a new job title: CEO!

Counter arguments to teach everything you know are many, not the least of which is “What will I do if someone does the job better than me?” Simple. You either learn from them or you move on to your next skill.

I’ve had executive assistants take over operations, operations managers take over sales, and sales executives take over marketing. Having multiple, overlapping skills is what defines the best senior executives often: “She started in sales, but now she’s CFO” and “He was a designer but now he runs product” are commonly heard.

6/Never get involved in politics & never be negative.
The people who are killed, the deer, tend to huddle around the kitchen or go on cigarette breaks and bitch and complain about everyone and everything at the company. The tigers are too busy killing it to be bothered with such things.

If you see people crying and pouting walk away. Go back to work. Here’s the language:

Deer: “Bitch bitch, moan moan, blame blame, cry cry.”

Tiger: “Hmmm…that’s an interesting take on things. I gotta get shit done, good luck with that.”

You can always focus on the product, and how much it delights, helps, and inspires your customers instead of complaining.

Note: debating how to make your products better is healthy and your observations can be about the negative aspects of your product. However, you shouldn’t be negative on the team and company, you should see problems as opportunities.

7/Get as much equity as you can, don’t be afraid to ask for more!
If you’ve done 1-6 in the list above, it’s totally warranted to ask for more money or equity. I suggest asking for equity first and letting your boss bring up cash — she will, because she values the equity more (that’s a protip right there).

After five years of crushing it for your CEO, ask her to invest in, and be an advisor to your company…

…. and then email me, because I’m the most helpful angel investor in the world.

8/Bring order to the chaos, define reality
In a startup things can often be vague and confusing, because things are just… starting… up. There is no HR manual or sales process, the org chart has never been memorialized and what you’re supposed to do next is confusing.

Oh yeah, things change constantly! Your job is to take what is unclear and make it clear. To take what is a vague concept and make it into a process. To take a system without metrics, strategy, and discipline, and install all of those things simultaneously.

That is called leadership, and leaders at their best define reality.

In conclusion
Don’t bust your ass and sharpen your skills for your boss alone, do it for yourself and your boss. Taking on all the problems at a startup is not being taken advantage of — it’s taking advantage of.

Slurp up all those problems and knowledge, and leave nothing for anyone else to do. Tackle the hardest problems, because those are the ones that make you strong, especially when you fail at solving them.

Have a great weekend … solving the problems your peers are too stupid and cynical to own.

best @jason

since when other peoples start dey see vision for you. Their motives are unclear and there could be a conflict of interest. My take, enter your own prayer and fasting. If the vision is that important surely God will reveal it to you too. If you no get revelation, diplomatically inform your in-laws that you too have prayed and that your answer is that despite the potential pitfalls it will give you plenty of experience and stand to you for good.

In the process of selling my startup's solution, i've come across clients that want a deeper solution than i'm willing to provide for several reasons.

I however have a reasonable knowledge of the tech required and access to the market for it but don't want to apportion my resources to implement it.

So If you're a freelance dev with Linux and python knowledge who is willing, i can give you the direction on what is needed to implement the solution and give you the clients too as they come. All you need do is invest some time in learning a little bit and commit to a mutually beneficial partnership.

Respond here or txt 0 9 0 9 2 9 2 2 4 0 2

toluxa1:


How are you sir..
Is this still open?

Yes, please email the address listed and we'll take it from there

seedbaba:



good day sir, please is this opportunity still open?

Yes, please email the address listed and we'll take it from there

XuteSleeks:
Can like minds join in to assist? Or are you capable of handling it solo?

Cheers.

Yes please, we need more hands on deck. I have resolved to build it to something of an institution we can pass on so please email me at abujadatacollection@gmail.com

make sure to include your phone number so i can give you a call.

The grass is not greener on this side. It's harder being an entrepreneur and you have an even tougher boss - the customer. I'm afraid your perception may be misplaced, reassess the situation and your motivation. Again, the grass is not greener on this side and when it is it's because one stayed up day and night watering it.

Enabling Environment

My philosophy on life and business is that your success lies within you and the effort you make (for the most part). Now having said that the life of the entrepreneur in Nigeria could be made so much easier by a lot of people. The amount of obstacles that are in the way are just tiring. It seems that as a country and people we still lack the understanding that entrepreneurship is the lifeblood of the economy and the only way to lift us out of the abyss we currently find ourselves in.

How is one supposed to start up and run a business when you're running around looking for non existent petrol for your generator due to the non existent electricity, or the numerous tax collectors that knock on your door as soon as you open for business. When you do finally manage to open your doors, everyone along the way is looking for a cut or percentage with little to no input. The things i'm seeing at the coalface beggars belief.

My take: New businesses should be given a total tax holiday for the first 3 years and if anything should be given grants and low interest rate loans to help them succeed. We speak about jobs, jobs, jobs. It is simple really, MSME are the largest job providers the world over, support this sector and see unemployment rates nose dive. Buy from your local sellers and businesses. Don't make things unnecessarily hard in your work place for business people. If you can help a business get a contract, please minimise 'cut taking'. You never know, that small business may grow to the big business that will give your son or daughter a job in the future.

The country will only succeed when MSME's thrive.

Rant over!

Learning on the go

So since i've returned, everyday has just been a learning experience. The first thing i did was to organize a seminar to try and gather a group of my potential customers and offer them some of my expert knowledge while demoing the advantage of using my startups services. I was able to get on the radio to promote it as well as do other things. Which included handing out flyers and speaking to random people in public. I tell you this start-up life is not sexy.

The seminar came and went and we were able to take some positive learning from it and were able to sign up a few customers. Subsequent to this i decided to shift my focus a little bit to a different aspect of the value proposition to see if it will make customer acquisition easier. So we refined the product to suit this new focus and we are trying to push it. Our target is a specific number of customers by the end of the month. Hopefully we achieve it despite the long sales cycle that is becoming more and more apparent in this my sector.

On the staff front, i hired a part time assistant to do some little jobs for me here and there as i need to. He's not making the cut however so will have to let him go soon. I've some start-up competitions coming up in the near future that i'll be pitching in so watch out for me and extend some encouragement my way because this start-up life no easy at all!

Hi everyone

Apologies for the hiatus. I've been back and hustling to get things going.

I've done a few experiments and pivoted a little bit so y'all will be hearing about it.

I'm also in a start-up competition and hoping to win it so keep your fingers crossed for me.

So the journey is back on the road and i'm fully hands on so get ready for a rocky but eventful ride.

odimbannamdi:
Hi sir...God bless you on your decision to mentor graduates out there. frankly speaking, some can not decipher their left from their right despite the years spent in scho...little wonder naija companies prefer recruiting foreigners

however, sir, how about graduates that have business ideas with which they can become financially independent but face a major constraint - CAPITAL.

am one of such graduates.

i got a splendid idea that can be implemented in the ongoing nysc camp. but my major problem is money to implement it. ts really painful having an idea but no money to kick start it.

i would be glad if u help me out sir. we can chat on whatsapp 0 8 1 6 0 4 6 6 2 2 5

Please email the address listed above and we can take it from there

keppyy:
Okay...I'm so interested...Thank you.


I live in abuja...

Please send an email as per the instructions listed above and i will get in contact

marksooyinmiebi:
Hello, Am Mark an undergrad of UniAbuja, am excited about anything 'INTERNET' it does energize me, ) now- is the offer also open to undergradss? thanks.

Absolutely!

Sundayme:


SELLING TO WHOLESALERS- I intend being a supplier to wholesalers, but they already have their own suppliers (probably middlemen who buy directly from the big importers).
How I Intend Dealing With This
1. Apart from luring them with a low price, i've also met some people who can connect me with this wholesalers.

Those are the loop-holes i think i know now. When i've indulged in the business, anyother loop-holes will become known firsthandedly.

I will be grateful if you will support me sir. Thanks.

How about you go get pre-orders from these wholesalers first before importing it. Get a commitment in writing of how much they will buy. Look up how to write a business plan and write a formal one. Get back to me with the above within 3 weeks. I'll consider some more then.

I laugh at 'responsible approach to our trade'. How oxymoronic is that!

Please if you don't want to sell death, don't apply for this. If on the other hand you don't mind doling out death and suffering go ahead.

To the person that said smoking doesn't cause cancer please don't spread falsehoods. Smoking is the number 1 cause of preventable deaths and causes or is implicated in multiple cancers and diseases.

Also the idea that smoking is freedom is a lie. Most people start smoking in their teens when their incapable of making that decision, worse still, companies like BAT actively recruit these teens. Why? They aren't able to judge the risk and by the time they are they're already hooked and can't give it up.

I've met many smokers in my time and they're not many who don't regret ever smoking.

Sundayme:


Thanks sir. Actually, i'm facing certain particular products that are doing well around my environment- which I'm already prepared for.

What i want to first start with is micro cards (memory cards) 2gb. I live somewhere close to Ojo Alaba International Market, where such things are doing fine. There are many people selling such, if i am supplying it to them at a lesser price, i will become their customer.

This is how i want to get it. If i'm buying 500 pieces, the supplier have agreed to sell at the rate of 0.35 USD for me. Meaning

Per piece= 0.35 usd
500 pieces= 175 usd.
175 usd x 199 (present exchange rate)= #34, 825.

#34, 825 + #995 (agent's service cost) = #35, 820.

Now, retailers sell one for 450, 500, 600 naira. Meaning, i can make wholesalers and retailers buy from me at the rate of 200 naira. If i sell for 200 naira.

200 x 500= #100,000.
Profit= 100,000 - 35,820= #64, 180.

If i'm buying 1,000 pieces, the seller agree to sell at the rate of 0.30 USD. Thus,

1000 pieces = 300 USD. Which is #59, 700 (with the current exchange rate).

Cost price= #59, 700+ #995 (agent's service cost)= #60,695.

Profit=
200 naira x 1,000= 200,000.
#200,000 - #60,695 = #139, 305.

So, if By God's Help, i was able to do repeat that four times in a month, it will be 139, 305 x 4.

I will feel very grateful if you can support me sir. Thanks.

It's not that simple, if it were others will be doing it. Look more into it and tell me the loop holes in your plan and how you plan to plug them. I've set aside the 50k, you'll get it when you can convince me of a more thought out business opportunity.

olurotimi1:

I wonder o. The best bet is to create a special broadband company bundled with iroko TV. So we can enjoy fully, not this limited and slow internet data we have.

Creating a broadband company is a different kettle of fish. Besides there are multiple providers in the market.

MTN, Glo, Airtel, Etisalat, Spectranet, Smile, Phase 3 to name a few.

The biggest problem has been surmounted with multiple internet landing cables already in Nigeria. The problem is distribution currently. A market will all the aforementioned distributors will ultimately produce better services and cheaper rates. It's only a matter of time.

I'm sure we'll soon see bundled Iroko TV with some of the telecom services. Iroko is doing this already with Tigo in Rwanda.

Horayce:

You don't need to see the underlying terms of the contract to know the business has a very low upside. The technology is not there yet ( affordable broadband). Do we have 7 - 10 million Nigerians paying 1000-3000 naira a month to stream 50 -100gig in content a month? Not for the foreseeable future at least. How will he break dstv's grip on the home entertainment market? That's were his market is. He needs to come up with blockbuster entertainment offerings that can rival what people get on dstv(big brother Africa for example) to sway the market, otherwise he can't compete on anything else. Regardless, I'm hoping he wins but I don't like the odds at all, if I were half the man he is id be investing in something else.

Not sure if this is known but Iroko already make millions of dollars in revenue annually. That revenue is based on the technology not being there yet. Imagine what will happen when the technology arrives. Make no mistake it will definitely come. Internet is progressively getting cheaper and will continue to. There are more and more players investing big cash to make this happen. Reason being other markets are saturating and Africa is yet untapped but has the population and resources.

The thing with technology is that the people that make a killing are those that get in the market before things are ready. Look at Apple, Microsoft etc. Yes there's money to be made by going with sure things now but there's far more money to be made by betting on the future. That's exactly why private venture capital exists.

Your pivoting from 5 star global to office manager now?

Sundayme:
Good day all. My name is Sunday. Am a 19 year old aspiring entrepreneur (i will be twenty by april). By God's Help, i intend establishing my business before going to the university (i intend writing jamb next year, and intend studying law). I want to begin importing customers ready products (mermory cards, tablets, and some other house hold products). I need money to start, and if you will help me, then it could be in two forms.
1. Either helping with money.
2. Or, helping me get a job with my ssce certificate. I stay around ojo alaba, lagos. One of the reasons why we do hear about many young successful white entreprenueurs is because of the supports they get. We young blacks also need that. Thanks.

Yes you are right entrepreneurs are successful because of support. Why importing business though? So many people are doing that already and the margins are poor. Come up with a better idea and we can talk then. If it's something good, i'll give you 50,000 naira to start.

The power of tech businesses. Billion dollar exits. What never makes front page however is the hours and hours of hard work and the many others that fell along the way despite hard work and dedication. Well done to lynda!

Paulscholari:
What Internet business can i do with #0,though i have massive internet bundle
ANY IDEA ?

You have a massive internet bundle, i suggest using it to learn. Go to youtube and learn about anything you want. If you are really into technology i suggest learning some programming. You can then leverage your learning to provide some sort of service either online or physically.

Several valid points in the article.

Reading the responses, thought i'd add some of my thoughts. Of note I got married in my mid twenties:

For guys, the ball is actually in your court for taking the initiative to marry.

I would suggest you do it earlier rather than later so you can build a marriage based on love, cooperation and hard work. You both can pool your incomes to achieve greater than you would alone.

Also don't be promiscuous, how can you be faithful when married if you've been sampling half the girls in your area. Besides how can you expect to attract anyone other than someone as promiscuous as yourself.

Look for the right people in the right places. Get involved in noble, laudable things in your communities and follow your passion. It is there you'll find someone similar to you that's genuine.

Always run from women that are focused on money, run to women who don't need you, are independent, driven and encourage and inspire you to be better. They exist, I married one and I know several others.

You can't eat your cake and have it, the other person is not a slave. Being with someone is give and take. The wonderful thing is that for someone you love, seeing them happy fulfills you and makes you happy. So giving up EPL or what ever else you are obsessed with should not be an issue when it matters. If letting go of these lesser things is 'emasculating' for you then know you have to keep searching. Also know that the right woman for you will not nag you to give it up but you will willingly.

Ultimately there's no better thing in life than a man and woman being united in love and devoted to each other. Time will pass, money will come and go, friends will pass, many things will happen but your spouse will always be your rock.

Growth

I've been looking at strategies to try and fuel growth and came across (again) this paul graham article on growth. http://www.paulgraham.com/growth.html. Essential reading for any tech founder.

Essentially he says that the defining feature of a startup is high growth. This is thus what every startup founder should aim for otherwise you're just a regular business like the bar or restaurant down the road.

The actual thing i was searching for when i came across the article above was: 'ideal growth rate for tech startup'. Paul answers this quite well in his article. He opines that the target should be 5-7% weekly, as this the rate the good YC companies grow at. Note also that early on this is achievable, if it isn't then you have to seriously consider a pivot. Think about it, going from 1 user to 2 users is 100% growth. Whereas going from 45 to 50 is 11%. The absolute number is greater in the latter but the growth rate much less. Things only get harder as time progresses.

Paul suggests a laser like focus on growth rate weekly. Keeping this rate steadily means an increasing amount of users weekly. This equates more and more work on an ongoing basis. In our startup, we currently have an average weekly growth rate of 15% to date. I plan to start tracking this rate from week to week and aim for a target of 10% weekly. Hopefully this can fuel our growth and keep us in the 'startup' range.

I'm resorting to applying some methods that have worked for user acquisition so far in other ways. The first has been to vary the location. As a result we now have a few users from another African country.

I had looked at engagement previously but growth will be the focus for now.

What we should take out of a degree (especially arts) is the ability to learn and think critically. Those are the skills that are needed in the workplace.

The thought that the material you learn in uni will somehow be critical in your working life is unfounded, this only applies in technical fields like engineering, science etc. Even then you still do a lot of on the job learning.

So learn how to learn and think critically

To the job seekers dropping emails here, whcih person looking to hire someone will drop you and email when applicants are not scarce. You have to go out and seek things. Time for manna is long gone!

Inspired by the thread on helping job seekers i've decided to help mentor a few interested and driven young people. Read below:

I interviewed a number of people some months ago and was appalled at the quality I saw. Frankly these our universities are cheating us, many graduates are frankly unemployable.

To help out i'm offering the chance for an unpaid internship/ mentoring opportunity.

Duration will be for 1 month initially and may extend for longer depending on how you do. It will be very flexible and give you the opportunity to learn a lot and apply yourself. It will get you working and thinking constructively instead of wasting your talents. If you do well i'll happily become your referee and help you get ahead in your future career. If you do extremely well, i could employ you.

So email 'abujadatacollection [at] gmail [dot] com' if you fit the following criteria

- Live in Abuja
- Unemployed or underemployed
- Age < 24

email should contain answers to the following.

- In <100 words, could you explain something to me that is complicated but you know well?
- What activities energize and excite you, what are you passionate about?
- Relate an instance when you solved a difficult problem, if no previous experience, relate how you would solve a specific difficult problem?

No CV's please!

This will be a great opportunity for whoever is successful but will be largely dependent on your own zeal.

Don't email if you don't
- like to work hard
- like to read and learn
- like being corrected
- like volunteering

I'll contact and take on as many people that impress me.

About me - i'm a young professional, trained and worked in several countries across the globe. I've founded a new company in the last year and relocating to Nigeria fully soon. Read about my journey via my signature. I'm passionate about providing equal opportunities for all people.

JAkpayen:
I only thing I read here is "I have BSc., Masters, Professional Certs, Grad with 2.1 or first class, etc". This is what is killing Nigeria - Qualifications everywhere. It's good but any company that will recruit you may look beyond your qualifications.

I am expecting the unemployed to they can do to help the company. For example, someone who study marketing should list the best way a company in a particular product line can achieve maximum market share thus increase profitability. A practical example is the Guiness new product called "Orijin" which is fast selling in the market. Another is NBC's coca-cola product with names pre-print, I can look for my name, wife's, children, etc. This convert to sales for the company.

Just think, think, think. Truth is that many companies want to grow their profit with lowest cost possible, so they may not think of qualifications per se especially the production/manufacturing companies or those into merchandising.

This is spot on!

I interviewed a number of people some months ago and was appalled at the quality I saw. Frankly these our universities are cheating us, many graduates are frankly unemployable.

To help out i'm offering the chance for an unpaid internship/ mentoring opportunity.

Duration will be for 1 month initially and may extend for longer depending on how you do. It will be very flexible and give you the opportunity to learn a lot and apply yourself. It will get you working and thinking constructively instead of wasting your talents. If you do well i'll happily become your referee and help you get ahead in your future career. If you do extremely well, i could employ you.

So email 'abujadatacollection [at] gmail [dot] com' if you fit the following criteria

- Live in Abuja
- Unemployed or underemployed
- Age < 24

email should contain answers to the following.

- In <100 words, could you explain something to me that is complicated but you know well?
- What activities energize and excite you, what are you passionate about?
- Relate an instance when you solved a difficult problem, if no previous experience, relate how you would solve a specific difficult problem?

No CV's please!

This will be a great opportunity for whoever is successful but will be largely dependent on your own zeal.

Don't email if you don't
- like to work hard
- like to read and learn
- like being corrected
- like volunteering

I'll contact and take on as many people that impress me.

About me - i'm a young professional, trained and worked in several countries across the globe. I've founded a new company in the last year and relocating to Nigeria fully soon. Read about my journey via my signature. I'm passionate about providing equal opportunities for all people.

Wallie:
@1k001

What's your revenue model? I can see digitization and access being a low-hanging fruit feature if you can get partnerships in place.

Sorry i didn't respond to this earlier, only just saw it as i was reviewing the thread.

As for revenue, we are employing a SaaS model. We get subscriptions from clients, ideally monthly to suit usual cash flows but looking at the financial industry in Nigeria, we bill annually instead. I wish we could have things like direct debits more widespread and easy to set up. It would make payments easy for businesses and people to manage. We also have an option for a one off sale but this wouldn't really suit the value we would like to provide.

Partnerships will be key for us but it's been proving a bit tricky to get in place particularly as i'm not currently in the country. Nigerians like face to face things. Hopefully when i land (in a few weeks) i can focus on this. In Africa partnerships will no doubt be key for all tech businesses. It allows the introduction of something new and different under the ambit of something people already understand and use. Look at how aggressively the likes of Iroko are chasing them. In the last few months they've announced partnerships with various telcos across Africa. Partnerships are the way to go.

Opeyemi4real:
Can you guys advise me on Ireland(Dublin)? Plss

Lived in Dublin for a while, unlikely i'll ever go back! Why:

- Cold depressing weather, rains for 2 weeks straight and i'm not even exaggerating.

- Only superficially friendly people especially if you're a teetotaler.

- Institutional and overt discrimination, an African once changed the name on his CV to a white name and got far more call backs.

- Expensive city to live in.

- 'Knackers', trust me, you don't want to come across them.

The list goes on. But so as not to sound too negative i'll also list some positives:

- Beautiful country scenery, plenty of history

- Good educational system and opportunity to get great working experience

- Reasonably good support for children and families

Hit it off with the right people and you can have some great moments