Ali stared at the ₦10,000 in his OneBank app. That was all he had. It could either buy him food—or change his future.
Sitting under the mango tree in his compound, Ali stared at his phone, scrolling endlessly, lost in thought. Life had been tough, and the scorching Lagos sun was making it even tougher. Sweat trickled down his underarms, thickening his yellow-stained-formerly-white-hole-infested singlet with the scent of a strange oud — Eau de sapa. Even he wished that he could take a leave of absence from his own body.
As if that was not enough, the smell of smoking catfish left him coughing. Unlike his childhood friends, Dele and Seyi, who had both made it big—one a doctor, the other an engineer—Ali’s path had been different. After attending multiple job interviews and praying ceaselessly for at least one to pull through, he resorted to hawking smoked catfish on the streets of Lagos just to survive. He had given up all hope at this point, “who would employ a 30-year-old graduate with a 2.2 CGPA? My Business Admin certificate is useless!” He thought to himself.
His heart grew heavier as he thought about the countless job applications he had sent out after finally completing his degree. No responses. No calls. Just silence. Employers wanted more than just certificates these days; they needed people with skills—practical, in-demand skills. And Ali had none.
As he continued scrolling his phone, he stumbled on an Instagram page: @goverticul. Scrolling back and forth, and digesting each post, he went ahead to visit their website, goverticul.io. “Become 5X More Employable”, a large text stared back at him. The courses ranged from AI to Banking, soft skills, and more. He saw testimonials—real people like him who had transformed their careers by taking courses on the platform.
His stomach growled. He chuckled bitterly. Shey me wey never see better food chop na hin wan take course? The thought of spending money on an online course when he barely had enough to eat felt ridiculous. But then, another voice in his head countered, This could be your chance, Ali. Just grab it.
He opened his bank app. Ten thousand Naira. That was all he had. He hesitated. But something in him knew—if he didn’t take a step now, he would remain stuck forever. Gritting his teeth, he enrolled for the “Prompt Engineering for Beginners: Artificial Intellligence 101” course.
For the next three months, Ali was relentless. He allotted a percentage of the proceeds he made from his fish business to taking courses. He even got a side job as a security man, all in a bid to afford more courses. He studied day and night, taking one course after another. He absorbed every lesson, practicing what he had learnt. His confidence grew. He no longer saw himself as just a fish seller or an unemployable graduate. He was becoming someone new—someone valuable.
The time came to test his new skills. He applied for jobs again, applying all that he had learnt in the ”The Job Interview Masterclass” course. This time, something changed. He got interview invites. Not one, but multiple. He passed every stage, impressing recruiters with his technical knowledge. “Your Excel skills are impeccable”, one recruiter voiced. He smiled, knowing how much time he had put into mastering Excel hacks with Verticul’s “Excel Basics” course.
Eventually, he landed two jobs—one as a Virtual assistant in a foreign startup paying in dollars and another as a Data Clerk in a Nigerian recruitment agency.
Ali sat back one evening, sipping a cold drink, with a bottle of groundnut beside him, stretching out his crossed legs on a small locally made stool which he had refused to abandon despite his recent lifestyle upgrade. His mind journeyed back to how much life had changed in less than a year. When Dele and Seyi were talking about their careers, now he could talk, too. The same companies that rejected him now sought him. And all it took was a N9,999 worth of sacrifice that turned him into someone earning in dollars.
With a smile, he whispered Verticul’s tagline to himself, “How High Can You Go?“ “As far as your eyes can see”, was the answer the wind whispered back.
