12 Lessons Learned During my NYSC Year

It’s been over 2 months since I rounded up with the mandatory National Yout Service Corps (NYSC). Since the year consisted of 12 months, I decided to group all I learned into 12 lessons. I hope you learn from it and I also hope these lessons impacts your life positively

Let’s get started!

1. Step Out of Your Comfort Zone

When I was in camp, I joined the NYSC Musical band. Asides being a member, I was also given the responsibility of being the camp secretary for my batch. It was a great avenue for me to horn and sharpen my leadership skills. I went further to contest for the post of Vice President of the band (I didn’t win the elections). However, by doing something outside the norms, I learned to play the bass drums, made friends for life, improved my leadership skills and gained a family. I also learned the true meaning of family and love from the band.

2. Accept what comes to you in Good Faith

I got posted to the Army and I immediately had mixed feelings about spending one year there. I didn’t know whether to be excited or skeptical about it. So I embraced it instead, accepted it and tried to make the most of it. I made amazing connections there and I learned a lot about the military. In good faith, the posting came with accommodation, flexibility, comfort, and love

3. Make efforts to do your best right where you are

If you ask the people in the army about me, they might share various opinions and ideas about me. But one thing I made sure of was to be dedicated & disciplined. I obeyed their rules and regulations and gave my best there. Even though I felt like I should have been posted someplace else. I gave it my best shot and developed an app during my year there. The app development surprised me because I didn’t think I could do that when I was assigned the job

4. Do not settle

If you know me well, you will know that I am all about personal development. So in my spare time (i had a lot that year), I read like crazy. I also took lots of online courses and developed myself. I aimed for higher and I used the platform I found myself to develop and propel myself forward. I pretty much gave myself lots of work that no one sent me.

5. Volunteer

A large percentage of my spare time was spent volunteering. I volunteered at different organizations and simply made efforts to give back in one way or another. I volunteered my time, resources, energy, talents and I am glad I did all that.

6. Work on you

I know this lesson is related to the 4th one but this is just as important. NYSC year is a time to work on yourself, pick up life & career skills and add value to yourself. I picked up lots of skills and positive habits during my NYSC year and they have been a source of positive influence in my life. I suggest you do the same too

7. Don’t be afraid to fail

My NYSC year was a period that I was willing to try a lot of things regardless of the fear of failure. I followed my curiosity and enrolled in some courses that I have failed to complete. I also contested for a post that I didn’t win. Overall, I learned to try things out and not to be afraid to fail. In the long run, I gained knowledge from each experience.

8. Join a Mastermind Group

One of the best decisions I made during my NYSC year was to start a mastermind group. I was amongst like-minded people who wanted more from life and were making conscious efforts towards achieving their goals. We would set goals weekly, keep each other accountable and crush our goals. They are a huge source of support and drive and has helped me stay focused and continuously improving.

9. Create Meaningful Connections

The friends and connections I made during my NYSC year have been very meaningful. They are amazing people and have helped me tremendously in one way or another. It’s great to have people around that you can always turn to should the need arise.

10. Work on your Profile/Brand

Before NYSC, I did not take LinkedIn very seriously. However, I got to learn how important it is and I did an audit on all my social media profiles. I put most efforts on updating my profile and making meaningful connections on LinkedIn. I made moves to put myself out there in a positive and good career light. I also took out time to work on my CV from the numerous resources and guides online.

11. Apply to Jobs Consistently

2 months before the end of Service year, I started applying for jobs. I went for a couple of interviews and they all taught me confidence and helped me streamline my search. The more I applied, the more I understood the kind of job I really wanted. So when I would see jobs or get called for jobs that were not favorable or in my career path, I didn’t take them. I have various versions of my CV for different job roles. I also used to apply to at least 2 jobs daily. I obviously did not get called back for a lot of them but I did get my present job before I rounded up with NYSC and I am glad.

12. Add Value to Yourself

I made efforts to make my NYSC year count so I suggest you do so. Use the time to add value to yourself. Develop yourself by acquiring skills that make you stand out when opportunities come knocking. Make efforts to be valuable and you sall become indispensable.

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There you go! 12 lessons I learned from my service year. I hope that your NYSC year will be as impactful as mine.

Feel free to share your thoughts, experiences in the comment box