When too much job pressure forces you to be your own boss

2018 survey by job placement website Brighter Monday found that 80 per cent of Kenyans are unhappy at their workstations. It further established that 37 per cent of those between the ages of 24 and 34 years are ready to leave their current jobs if only they can find an alternative.

Inflexible working hours, toxic work environment, unethical work practices and workplace pressure are some of the reasons employees quit their jobs to venture into the world of entrepreneurship.

For instance, Willie Oeba, commonly identified with his brand “Oebaism” quit his sales job at Blaze, Safaricom’s youth initiative, in 2017 to start his own brand. The 24-year-old is now a spoken word artist, an MC, a host at Nakuru TV and a songwriter.

“There was a lot of pressure at work as we were required to win clients within a very short period and there was limited room to grow career-wise,” said Mr Oeba who now earns about Sh65,000 a month from his work.

The Blaze BYOB 2017 Music category winner also says he could not explore new ventures and opportunities while on the previous job.

“I am now able to explore new opportunities and can try new work ventures which give me room for creativity,” said Mr Oeba.

His story is not different from that of Talia Joshua, a graduate from Multimedia University with a degree in Communication and Journalism. She resigned from a company in Nairobi citing a punishing schedule.

While working as a journalist at the company, the mother of two resolved to quit in her seventh month of employment to start a boutique which she operates to date.

Ms Talia’s daily work schedule was punitive; she reported to work at 7am and worked until as late as 11pm. The routine ran from Monday to Saturday.

“I thought all was okay until I was diagnosed with depression at Nairobi hospital in June 2015. I knew it was time to resign from my Sh70,000 paying job. It (resigning) was therapeutic,” said Ms Talia.

To make matters worse, her company would occasionally demand that workers show up to work on Sunday.

“We only had one day of rest which was not guaranteed as the staff would be contacted randomly to report back to work. The long-hour work schedule was exhausting and most of my colleagues resigned,” said Ms Talia.

The 31-year-old now runs her boutique business in South B, Nairobi, selling fashionable clothes. In her first sale in 2016, she made a profit of Sh2,000, she now makes a profit of Sh830 per item sold.

Rajab Juma, a former high school teacher, was also forced into entrepreneurship by workplace pressure. He resigned in 2009 citing too much pressure, insufficient finances and lack of job flexibility.

“Always work for your exit from day one. I worked for my exit for 16 years and had to do away with a fixed monthly salary of Sh55,840,” said Mr Juma.

The former teacher of English and Literature at Lugari Boys High School had to answer a lot of questions from people who demanded to know why a teacher of his calibre would leave his stable job to start his own business.

Nine years later, Mr Juma has answered all the questions as he now owns two trucks, two hardware stores in Chekalini Ward, one retail shop at Lugari station, rental houses in Eldoret town. He is also a building and construction contractor.

“I own two trucks which help in transporting building materials. I charge a fee of Sh4,000 per trip on goods transported although 80 per cent of the transport done is for my hardware shops and building contracts,” he said.

The 51-year old’s main challenge is the bad roads leading to his businesses especially during the rainy season. He counters this challenge by having enough stock for his businesses before the bad weather strikes.

The father of four, who makes a profit of Sh223,360 a month, advises young entrepreneurs to practice ethics and honesty, which he adds are pillars of every successful business.

“Customer satisfaction is an important consideration for every business. Entrepreneurs should also learn to live within their means and keep on investing,” said Mr Juma.

- African Laughter