The concept of nation building in Africa and Nigeria as example

Nation-building is constructing or structuring a national identity using the power of the state. Nation-building aims at the unification of the people within the state so that it remains politically stable and viable in the long run. According to Harris Mylonas, "Legitimate authority in modern national states is connected to popular rule, to majorities. Nation-building is the process through which these majorities are constructed." In Harris Mylonas's framework, "state elites employ three nation-building policies: accommodation, assimilation, and exclusion."

Nation builders are those members of a state who take the initiative to develop the national community through government programs, including military conscription and national content mass schooling. Nation-building can involve the use of propaganda or major infrastructure development to foster social harmony and economic growth. According to Columbia University sociologist Andreas Wimmer, three factors tend to determine the success of nation-building over the long-run: "the early development of civil-society organisations, the rise of a state capable of providing public goods evenly across a territory, and the emergence of a shared medium of communication."

Nations are an important part of modern society. Historically, the world used to be divided into empires and kingdoms. In the modern times, however, nations or nation-states have replaced empires as the basic unit of organization (Gambari 1). As an integral part of the modern world, therefore, Nigerians are rightly concerned about nation-building. Nation do not happen by mere historical accident, rather, they are built by men and women with vision and resolve. Nation-building is therefore, the product of conscious statecrafrt, not happenstance. Nation￾building is always a work-in-progress, a dynamic process in constant need of nurturing.

Since Nigeria‟s independence, the greatest need of the country has been to weld together a unified entity from the desperate communities whose members retain primary loyalties to the smaller units. The major political parties in the First Republic- the Northern People‟s Congress (NPC), National Council of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC), and the Action Group (AG) had enjoyed the support of their respective regions of origin (North, East and West respectively) and non had a national outlook (Agi 188).

Nation-building has important aspects. First, it is about building a political entity which corresponds to a given territory based on some generally accepted rules, norms, principles, and a common citizenship. Second, it is also about building institutions which symbolized the political entity. These institutions include bureaucracy, economy, the judiciary, universities, civil service, and civil organizations. Nation-building is about building a common sense of purpose, a sense of shared destiny, a collective imagination of belonging. It is therefore, about building the tangible and intangible threads that hold a political entity together and gives it a sense of purpose. This is in consonance with this era of globalization and rapid international inflow of people and ideas make a nation viable and synonymous with achieving modernity. It is about building the institutions and values that sustains the collective community in the modern times. This paper is aimed at x-raying the challenges of nation-building in West Africa using the Nigerian example since independence.

The concept of nation building is based on the idea that a nation is more than just a collection of individuals - it's a group of people who share a common history, culture, and identity. Nation building is the process of creating or strengthening a national identity and a sense of belonging to a nation. It involves things like establishing a shared language, creating a common educational system, and promoting a shared understanding of history. 

Nation-building is the process whereby a society of people with diverse origins, histories, languages, cultures and religions come together within the boundaries of a sovereign state with a unified constitutional and legal dispensation, a national public education system, an integrated national economy, shared symbols and values, as equals, to work towards eradicating the divisions and injustices of the past; to foster unity; and promote a countrywide conscious sense of being proudly South African, committed to the country and open to the continent and the world.

 It's also important to understand that nation building is a complex and long-term process. It takes time, effort, and resources to build a strong and cohesive nation. And it's not a one-size-fits-all process - each country has its own unique challenges and opportunities when it comes to nation building. 

There are many problems that make nation building difficult in Africa. One of the biggest is the legacy of colonialism, which has left many countries with weak institutions and divided populations.

Another major problem is the lack of economic development, which makes it difficult to provide basic services like education and healthcare. Finally, corruption is a major obstacle to nation building, as it diverts resources away from the people who need them most. 

Some examples of nation building in Nigeria and Cameroon. In Nigeria, one example of nation building was the creation of the Universal Basic Education Program, which aimed to provide free, compulsory primary education for all children. This program has helped to increase literacy rates and has had a positive impact on the economy. In Cameroon, a major nation-building initiative has been the decentralization of government, which has helped to promote local development and give people a greater say in their own affairs. 

Another example from Nigeria: the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). This program was created to promote national unity and encourage young people to contribute to the development of the country. It involves young people from all parts of Nigeria serving for one year in communities different from their own, to learn about different cultures and to promote understanding between different ethnic groups. 

Okay, let's look at the Bakassi Peninsula dispute. This was a territorial dispute between Cameroon and Nigeria that lasted for many years. It was finally resolved through a peaceful process of negotiation, which involved both countries agreeing to cede territory and create a joint development zone. This is an example of nation building through peaceful conflict resolution. 

There are a few potential solutions to the challenges of nation building in Africa. One is to promote federalism, which would allow different regions to have more autonomy and make decisions based on their own unique needs. Another solution is to promote decentralization, which would give local governments more power and resources to address the specific needs of their communities. And finally, there's the idea of "nation-building from the middle," which would involve empowering local communities while also maintaining a strong central government.

It's important to remember that there's no one-size-fits-all solution to nation building. It's a complex and nuanced process that requires careful consideration of the unique circumstances of each country. I think it's also important to remember that the process of nation building is a long-term one - it can take generations to build a strong, cohesive nation. 

1. Achebe, Chinua. The Trouble with Nigeria. Enugu: Fourth Dimension PublishingCo. Ltd., 1983.

2. Coleman, J. Nigeria: Background to Nationalism. California: University of California Press, 1958. 

3. Mylonas, Harris (2012). The Politics of Nation-Building: Making Co-Nationals, Refugees, and Minorities. New York: Cambridge University Press. p. xx. ISBN 978-1107661998.

4. Wimmer, Andreas (2018). Nation Building. Princeton University Press. doi:10.1515/9781400888894. ISBN 978-1-4008-8889-4. S2CID 240305736.

5. Gambari, A. Ibrahim. The Challenges of Nation-Building: The Case of Nigeria.Abuja: 2008

A COUNSELOR IS A PSYCHOLOGIST AND A TEACHER

A Counselor is a Psychologist and a counselor is a Teacher. 

Are you with me?

And Who is a teacher?

What is the position of a teacher in the society? Same as a Counselor.

A teacher is a person who helps others to acquire knowledge, competences or values. 

When a teacher teaches it only left for a learner to apply the knowledge and skills acquired in a specific field, and these services given by a teacher are not to be taken for granted. If there is no teacher, there will be no any profession.

That's why as a Teacher and a Counselor in Training I have practice numerous skills to guide and teach you. Gone are the days people have their certificates and rely on government jobs, so think outside the box, learn something new and start practicing, practice makes perfect.

 B.F. Skinner the behaviourist psychologist who believed that human behavior is shaped by external stimuli and condition, he also said 'Everything is learned through conditioning'. 

So, learn something with this unsatisfactory economic condition.

I won't talk much because it says a word is enough for a wise but what I want to let you know is that don't just relax and watch start from somewhere, dedicate to learn, be hardworking and God will see you through.

With just a little time I will provide free step by step online classes with some of my digital marketing business ideations.

But for now you can still request for some of my business synthesis that are available which include:

1. Information products marketing business course ebook

2. Content marketing business course

3. Social media marketing ebook

4. Affiliate Marketing Business ebook

5. Fundamentals of Web analytics ebook

 

To get those ebooks go click

https://paystack.shop/bem-t-celestial-products-and-services

Thanks for your dedicated time here.

I remain loyal.

KNOW YOUR FINANCIAL STATUS

Hey,

How are you doing?  Thank God in every situation you find yourself in, don't say I supposed to be like these or that by now, God always did things for a reason and for our good, everything is design by the Most Great Grand Creator of the universe, everything is predefined just for us to ascertain or exhibit clearly the way we want.

Now let's look on how this life is going and where it is going, everyone wants to be a government worker and I hope your dream is the same too, ok but let me ask, how many government workers are successful in work and after work (retired)?  Which kind of work they do and in which sector? is all government workers in the same  sector or field? Ask these questions within you and give yourself an answer. Am I going to be in the same field or sector with those that make it or my field is different?

These richest men in the world,are they government workers? 

Ok now let go into statistics of world richest people.

The top  richest people in the world as of December 3, 2023, are:

Elon Musk.

Bernard Arnault.

Jeff Bezos.

Bill Gates.

Larry Ellison.

Steve Ballmer.

Larry Page.

Mark Zuckerberg.

Now let's look briefly on these  people we have listed; 

1. Elon Musk

Age: 52

Residence: United States

Co-founder and CEO: Tesla

Net Worth: $219 billion

Tesla Ownership Stake: 13% ($96.3 billion)

X Ownership Stake: 79% ($9.32 billion)

Other Assets: Space Exploration Technologies ($53.2 billion private asset), The Boring Company ($3.33 billion private asset)5

Elon Musk is the richest man in the world. He was born in South Africa and attended a university in Canada before transferring to the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned bachelor's degrees in physics and economics. Two days after enrolling in a graduate physics program at Stanford University, Musk deferred attendance to launch Zip2, one of the earliest online navigation services. He reinvested a portion of the proceeds from this startup to create X.com, the online payment system that was sold to eBay (EBAY) and ultimately became PayPal Holdings (PYPL)

2. Bernard Arnault

Age: 74

Residence: France

CEO and Chair: LVMH (LVMUY)

Net Worth: $171 billion

Christian Dior Ownership Stake: 97.5% ($132 billion total)

Other Assets: Moelis & Company equity ($26.4 billion public asset) and $13 billion in cash13

French national Bernard Arnault is the chair and CEO of LVMH, the world’s largest luxury goods company. LVMH brands include Louis Vuitton, Hennessey, Marc Jacobs, and Sephora.

3. Jeff Bezos

Age: 59

Residence: United States

Founder and Executive Chair: Amazon (AMZN)

Net Worth: $169 billion

Amazon Ownership Stake: 10% ($143 billion)

Other Assets: Blue Origin ($11.2 billion private asset), The Washington Post ($250 million private asset), Koru ($500 million private asset), and $13.7 billion in cash

In 1994, Jeff Bezos founded Amazon.com in a garage in Seattle, shortly after he resigned from the hedge fund giant D.E. Shaw. He had originally pitched the idea of an online bookstore to his former boss David E. Shaw, who wasn’t interested.

Though Amazon originally started out selling books, it has since morphed into a one-stop shop for everything under the sun and is expected to overtake Walmart as the world’s largest retailer by 2024.

4. Bill Gates

Age: 68

Residence: United States

Co-founder: Microsoft (MSFT)

Net Worth: $133 billion

Microsoft Ownership Stake: 1.4% ($23.9 billion)

Other Assets: $63 billion in cash and billions over multiple other companies

While attending Harvard University in 1975, Bill Gates went to work alongside his childhood friend Paul Allen to develop new software for the original microcomputers. Following this project’s success, Gates dropped out of Harvard during his junior year and founded Microsoft with Allen.

The largest software company in the world, Microsoft, also produces a line of personal computers, provides email services through its exchange server, and sells video game systems and associated game devices. It has recently invested heavily in cloud services.

5. Larry Ellison

Age: 79

Residence: United States

Co-founder, Chair, and CTO: Oracle (ORCL)

Net Worth: $129 billion

Oracle Ownership Stake: 42%+ ($96.8 billion)

Other Assets: Tesla equity ($10.5 billion public asset), $21.5 billion in cash38

Larry Ellison was born in New York City to a 19-year-old single mother. After dropping out of the University of Chicago in 1966, Ellison moved to California and worked as a computer programmer. In 1973, he joined the electronics company Ampex, where he met future partners Ed Oates and Bob Miner. Three years later, Ellison moved to Precision Instruments, serving as the company’s vice president of research and development.39

In 1977, Ellison founded Software Development Laboratories alongside Oates and Miner. Two years later, the company released Oracle, the first commercial relational database program to use Structured Query Language. The database program proved so popular that SDL changed its name to Oracle Systems Corporation in 1982.

6. Steve Ballmer

Age: 67

Residence: United States

Owner: Los Angeles Clippers

Net Worth: $128 billion

Microsoft Ownership Stake: 4% ($118 billion total)

Other Assets: Los Angeles Clippers ($3.73 billion private asset), The Forum ($400 million private asset), Intuit Dome ($2 billion private asset), $3.4 billion in cash.

Steve Ballmer joined Microsoft in 1980 after Bill Gates convinced him to drop out of Stanford University's MBA program. He was Microsoft's 30th employee. Ballmer went on to succeed Gates as Microsoft CEO in 2000. He held the position until stepping down in 2014. Ballmer oversaw Microsoft's 2011 purchase of Skype for $8.5 billion.

7. Larry Page

Age: 50

Residence: United States

Co-founder and Board Member: Alphabet (GOOG)

Net Worth: $122 billion

Alphabet Ownership Stake: 6% ($106 billion total)

Other Assets: $16 billion in cash48

Like several of the tech billionaires on this list, Larry Page embarked on his path to fame and fortune in a college dorm room. While attending Stanford University in 1995, Page and his friend Sergey Brin came up with the idea of improving Internet data extraction. The duo devised a new search engine technology they dubbed Backrub after its ability to assess links to a page.

From there, Page and Brin went on to found Google in 1998, with Page serving as CEO of the company until 2001, and again between 2011 and 2019.4950

Google is the world's dominant Internet search engine, accounting for more than 92% of global search requests. In 2006, the company purchased YouTube, the top platform for user-submitted videos.

8. Mark Zuckerberg

Age: 39

Residence: United States

CEO and Chair: Meta Platforms (META)

Net Worth: $121 billion

Meta Platforms Ownership Stake: 13% ($117 billion total)

Other Assets: $3.93 billion in cash59

Mark Zuckerberg first developed Facebook (now Meta) alongside fellow students Eduardo Saverin, Dustin Moskovitz, and Chris Hughes while attending Harvard University in 2004. As Facebook began to be used at other universities, Zuckerberg dropped out of Harvard to focus entirely on his growing business. Today, Zuckerberg is the CEO and chair of Meta, which had 3 billion monthly active users as of Q2 2023.

Facebook is the world's largest social networking service. As the website is free to use, most of the company's revenue is generated through advertising.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Elon Musk; CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, and owner of X, is the richest person and the richest man in the world with a net worth of $219 billion.

After Musk is the chairman of LVMH, Bernard Arnault.

Other billionaires with some of the largest net worths include Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Microsoft's Bill Gates, and Oracle's Larry Ellison.

Eight of the top 10 billionaires made their fortunes in technology, with Arnault and Berkshire Hathaway's Warren Buffett being the exceptions.

Thank God as you can see non of them is a politician or government worker, they are rather helping their governments and that of others too. They can even buy you government so what are you waiting for? There are endless opportunities under what they have created and also the ones you have so let's put it into practice and enjoy. You and your generations will enjoy it without end just for you to define it simple.

Look, everyone is created differently so why don't you start to define things yourself in your own way? Did you feel your story will be the same with that person that made it successfully? Have you study his/her steps or you are born with the same career? If Yes you are good to go, but if not, am here to give you my advice as a counselor in training and practicing, I have these ideations of sharing my talents, ideas and experiences which some are psychologically and other wise, most of my ideations now are based on Career which is everyone's dream to make it in life. 

I want to really let you know that you can be your own boss, so what are you waiting for? Here is the way.

There is enough online that you can do with or without your personal skills or business. We have what is called Digital marketing which is very wide that everyone can enjoy without end, it is different with that of employee's work because here you are a boss yourself while you have a boss at work there. He/she takes all the financial decisions and management. Do you want to know more about Financial decisions and management too? I will come for that in my next post.

So lets look on some of the types of digital marketing, here we have;

1. Content marketing

2. E-commerce

3. Online marketing

4. Affiliate Marketing

5. Blogging

6. Email marketing

7. Information product marketing

8. Search Engine Optimisation

9. Social media marketing

10. Web Analytics. Etc.

Now choose what you want then leave the rest to Bem T Celestial Computers, we will teach you how to get started and everything you need to know, just give us a dim notice and we will give you the light, brighter and smart. 

To get a full ebook tutorial on this click here; FULL TUTORIAL

Just stay cool and have a blissful.day

Bem T Celestine

CEO, 

Bem T Celestial Computers Tyowanye

@ No.3 Yam market street Tyowanye

Buruku, Benue State, Nigeria.

BN3305427

How to increase your income.

The online world has tremendously affected our everyday lives that sometimes it might even seem impossible to imagine our lives without technology and online communication. This trend naturally transferred to the business world, where the new technologies opened up so many
exciting opportunities. The businesses out there were no longer confined by location or restricted by infrastructure. Once everyone hurled to the big cities because these have been places enabling your business to grow. Businesses needed more qualified employees, they wanted exposure to more customers and opportunities to network and create partnerships. All of these required your business having headquarters in a big city, but this is no longer needed.
All you need is a computer and the internet connection, and you are ready to take your
business anywhere you want.


Speaking of the business world, this term has so long been used in relation to big corporations and management teams, but nowadays, we see more and more one-man businesses that grow and expand their reach globally. There is a significant number of businesses completely set up
and run by a single person. Or they start as such, only to expand as their influence online begins to increase. Entrepreneurship has become a popular business model which helped so many wonderful business ideas come to life.
The possibilities on the market are numerous, especially if we have in mind the online market.
There are so many different ways and strategies to set up and grow a business, depending on the niche, resources, knowledge, etc. What is safe to say is that these opportunities are a part of the online world, and new opportunities keep popping up. One of those is affiliate marketing.

Affiliate marketing
While every business starting out nowadays will first create a website, optimize it and then head to social media to establish a presence there, not everyone will consider affiliate marketing as an opportunity at first. The goal of this ebook will be to show you the real potential of affiliate marketing and how developing a strategy of your own can help your profits soar and your business grow.
For starters, you will need to understand the difference between being a merchant and an affiliate because these require two completely different strategies. In fact, these can develop your business in different ways, so you can either focus on one or choose to be both, a merchant and an affiliate, which, although less frequent, is still doable. You will also learn about
business models that are available in affiliate marketing. Affiliate programs and tools will be essential parts of your strategy, which is why you need to learn about those as well. Your goal will be to learn as much as possible about affiliate marketing opportunities and about different affiliate programs and tools that enable you to form your own custom strategy, an approach and a plan which will be oriented towards one idea – improve your business through affiliate marketing.

Affiliate marketing is a part of online marketing, which means it is connected and related to all of the segments of online marketing. This is why there will be a chapter about this connection, and how using affiliate marketing requires at least basic knowledge of online marketing in general.


Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is a way of making money online. It’s really a simple concept. When you are an affiliate marketer, you promote a product, service, or site for a business, and you as a publisher get rewarded for doing so.

In most cases, you find products related to your niche and offer them on your website or blog. You promote the products and post a link on your site where they can purchase the products. Then, when someone follows that link to buy something, you earn a commission. The commissions can be either a percentage of the sale or a fixed amount.

You can make sustainable income online with affiliate marketing using your mobile phone. If you are interested in this business opportunity, you can CLICK HERE to get this ebook and know more about it.

Go Digital and made it

The smart way to operate in this our present generation is to go digital.

This is the only way you may not be constrained by location or time. Let me explain that.

If you are not running an online business, it means you must always be at your shop or office. You can’t stay at home and hope to make money. For some of us that run digital type of business, we don’t need physical location to do our business. The main thing you need for digital business is your laptop, tablet or phone, then, you are connected to the entire universe at any place you probably find yourself.

What of time constraint?

You dare not work beyond the normal safe hours of the day. You hardly see any businessman working around 12am to 4am. I mean, you open your shop or office and you are still willing to collect cash at those hours of the day without well armed security guards around you. You know what the story will end up to be already.

But do you know that it is not uncommon occurrence for people like us in digital marketing world to get paid around 2am at the dead of the night? I mean with digital expertise, people can pay you at any time of the day without your physical presence. You just wake up to see cash lodged into your bank account while you were fast asleep. What a sweet world of making money.

That’s only possible digitally.

But a lot of people still don’t understand how it works. That is why I decided to give a comprehensive training to those that genuinely want to become an expert and be digitally wealthy.

If you are interested in having a deep understanding about this, then, you need to order the Internet Wealth Secrets Package – The only Digital Marketing Training in Nigeria that assure you of making money from home when you follow what you are taught in the online courses.

https://paystack.shop/bem-t-celestial-products-and-services

After your full year of taking this full blast apprenticeship-like of training, making money online will become the usual occurrence in your life.

You can access this training online. It means, distance barrier is being broken. You can have your training online and then contact me anytime you need my assistance.

When you subscribe to the training, I'll ensure you have maximum benefit of learning all you need to know about digital marketing.

Why don’t you just click right now, order your package and let’s kick start this fantastic way of becoming wealthy digitally.

https://paystack.shop/bem-t-celestial-products-and-services

In case you still want to speak with us, don’t hesitate to call our phone numbers below 

 

CUSTOMER CARE LINES

Nigeria:+2348071917666

(Calls from Mon-Fri; 8am-6pm only. SMS: 24/7)

Whatsapp Only: +2348027836543

5 Signs You're Doing Well in Life Even Though You Don't Think So

5 Signs You’re Doing Well In Life Even Though You Don’t Think So

Sometimes it feels like life’s all fuzzy and confusing. Like it’s going to fall apart like a wooden building in the eye of the hurricane.

Perhaps your marriage has become wobbly lately, or your company just downsized, or you failed to pass an exam that has cost you lots of money and valuable time and now you are feeling depressed, helpless, and hopelessly defeated.

But hey, life could be worse.

Our mind is powerful.

It determines the course of one’s life. Way more than any other body part.

That is why we have to keep it healthy.

And a healthy mind means positive thinking. But enough psychology.

        Human mind all about psychology

This post is aimed at encouraging you. The goal will be to push you towards being positive so that you can achieve more success.

It is true that life can be hard at times. Think harsh economic conditions, sack and rejection letters, unemployment, unfriendly bosses, etc.

And during these times, it is easier for us to focus on these things?—?and imagine that things cannot get better.

And this is just wrong.

Because negativity never produces positive results. That is why it is negative in the first place.

And it is a positive result that can change a situation for the better.

So, this post is aimed at stopping you in your tracks. Take a breath of fresh air and see the reasons why you are doing okay.

Maybe you are not where you want to be?—?but at least you are somewhere.

And it is on the platform of the good things you currently have that the good ones you are hoping for will rest on.

So you must learn to appreciate what you have now.

Here are 5 reasons you are doing great:

1. You are alive

A dead man is dead. That is what it is. Dead.

But you are alive. And this alone shows you are not doing badly.

The popular word is: While there’s life, there’s hope

And this is true.

I Googled “how many people died this week”. It leads me to a statistics website called wordometers

I could only get the estimates of people who have died this year and today. See below:

That’s a lot of deaths. I tried to filter by country to get Nigeria’s estimates but the feature was unavailable.

Friend, you get the point. You are not one of the over 22,000,000 deaths this year alone. You are alive.

The dead don’t read. Congrats on being alive. Be grateful for it.

I thank God for you.

2. You are Sane

I bet you were not expecting this.

But sanity is a gift. And insanity does not mean only those who stroll on the streets naked?—?although that too is sad.

But I’m saying that your brain works. Your mind is sound, rational, and healthy.

The beauty of a sane mind is that you can learn. That means you can become anything you want to be.

And the ability to learn is a blessing.

The greatest wealth in Life is the ability to learn. 

The issue with insanity is that it grounds you. It puts you on the same level forever?—?until you get your sanity back.

That we have hope for a better job, marriage, children, increased salary, making an impact?—?or whatever? the nice thing we are hoping for —?all rides on the fact that we are sane.

Sorry this might make you moody?—?but the point is?—?be grateful.

And do say a prayer for those you know who need their minds back.

3. You have a bed to sleep

People who are familiar with life in Lagos will appreciate this point.

Sometimes last year, I had an appointment very early in the morning so I left the house earlier than normal (around 5:00 am) and on getting to the streets leading to my destination (Ikeja, Lagos) – I saw people sleeping on side steps, front porch of shops & buildings in the area.

I saw people sleeping on mats and hard cardboards.

Some just woke up, while some were still at it. My heart tanked. That was the first time I will see such.

The parked tricycles homed some people and also parked trucks.

It was sad.

I don’t think you are in this position. I think and know you have a nice bed and a roof over your head.

I need not remind you of those transversing borders in Europe looking for new homes due to war.

But you are not.

Be grateful.

And say a prayer for the families in distress in North-East Nigeria and in Europe. 

4. You have got Peace

Writing this point made me somewhat sad.

During war or chaos?—?everything is grounded.

No one is operating any business or posting new jobs. What job? To do what? Maybe to become a soldier but definitely not a customer care officer at a Multinational in Lagos.

Nobody is promoting you or increasing your salary. The mind shifts from convenience to survival.

But you have peace. You are not worried about your safety.

No one is chasing you out of your home.

You should be grateful.

And pray for peace in Nigeria. 

5. You have faith

This point will not sit well with most in other countries, but that’s their loss. We are Nigerians and we have faith here, people.

Any part of the divide you find yourself tells you that you have something higher than you. That you have a God who Has got your back.

I Googled for the part of the Quran that says this and I saw:

“Verily We created man from a product of wet earth; then placed him as a drop (of seed) in a safe lodging; then We fashioned the drop into a clot, then We fashioned the clot into a little lump, then We fashioned the little lump into bones, then clothed the bones with flesh, and then produced it another creation. So blessed be Allah, the Best of Creators!” [23:12-14]

And I know the bible says:

“For I know the plans I have towards you are plans of good and not of evil, to give you hope and an expected end”. Jeremiah 29:11

So, hold on to your faith. It is your best bet.

You only have to play your own part and the author of your faith will play His.

In conclusion; discovery is all about showing you the wisdom that will help you succeed in your career and business—but whatever we teach will not work if your mind is not set right.

Yes, there are things you are not happy with—but hey, there is a lot more for you to be grateful for.

It’s always tempting to focus on the things not going well—know that this will not help. It never does.

Yes, it is good not to accept the status quo. But let that feeling drive you to find out how to change it.

Failure often implies some things were done wrong. Don’t be sad—just go find out how to do it right and apply what you learn. And you’ll be good.

Always remember that a lot of people will be glad to have the things you and I take for granted.

Think about these things.

The summary of it all is that no matter the position you find yourself in today, always be grateful to God. Your case is still better than several others.

GETTING STARTED ON CONTENT MARKETING/ BLOGGING

1. Intro to content marketing

With so many businesses operating online, standing out from the crowd is essential. Content marketing is a great way to help you attract your audience’s attention.

Here, we’ll look at why content marketing is important, and how you can use it to engage with your audience. We’ll also introduce some best practices to help you create your own content marketing campaigns.

Content marketing is based on the creation and sharing of online material, like videos, blogs, and social media posts. It’s designed to generate interest in a company’s products or services by capturing people’s attention.

It can also help to increase sales by directing traffic to your website, boost awareness of your brand and build trust and recognition amongst your audience.

Let’s journey back to the days before the web, when TV, print and radio dominated. Two-way interaction wasn’t possible between brands and customers and audiences received advertising messages whether they wanted them or not. These days, people can pick and choose when they engage, and content marketing allows businesses to connect with their audiences like never before.

Imagine you run a Hair Dressing Salon business, and want to use content marketing to increase awareness of your business and drive more traffic to your website. To achieve this, you could publish engaging content about hair style on your website’s blog, and promote it across the company’s social media platforms to increase readership.

Great content campaigns are based on understanding who you’re writing for. The more you know about your audience and share their passions, as well as their pains, the easier it will be to engage them on a personal level.

Try considering the challenges or pain points your customers face, and then tailor your content to these insights. For the hair dressing salon business, for example, pain points for customers could include a lack of time, bad weather, or simply wanting to keep their hair healthy.

Next, let’s cover some effective content marketing practices. The key to success is creating a content marketing campaign that accomplishes three things: 

(1) answering your audience’s questions,

(2) providing something of value and 

(3) keeping them wanting more.

Here are a few best practices to keep in mind as you put together your own strategy:

* Take the time to get to know your audience better. 

* Look at which accounts they follow on social media to get a sense of their likes and interests.

* Experiment to find the best types of content for reaching your audience and don’t be afraid to use multiple formats.

* Choose the right places to publish your content and make sure you’re talking directly to your audience

* Throw away the business speak and stock responses, and prioritise natural language to interact with your audience.

* Make your content unique, interesting and exciting. 

* Use engaging headlines, eye-catching pictures and informative language to capture your audience's attention.

By keeping these pointers in mind when creating a content marketing strategy, you can boost your potential reach and strengthen your presence online.

When starting to write your own content marketing strategy remember the three keys to success mentioned earlier:

Focus on answering your audience’s needs

Create content they’ll find valuable

Keep them engaged so that they’ll visit you in the future for more content.

Now, try brainstorming how content marketing can be used to engage your audience online, and consider what goals it could help you achieve.

Key learnings

With so many businesses and brands online, content marketing is a valuable tool in helping you to stand out. In this lesson, we'll explore:

What content marketing is, and why it can add value to an online business

Best practices for creating your own content marketing strategy.

2. Get to know your online customers

Everyone is different, so when it comes to creating online content it’s good to think about who your audience is, and what they want to know. This is where audience segmentation can help.

Here, we’ll explain what audience segmentation is and how it can be used to improve your content marketing campaigns.

Segmentation involves dividing your audience into groups of who they are and what they like. Rather than spending time and money targeting a wide range of people, segmentation helps to identify the groups most interested in your product or service. The result is a more cost effective and persuasive way to connect with potential customers.

By researching your audience and segmenting them into groups, you can then create specific content that excites, entertains and engages them.

For example, imagine a new hair dressing salon business building its content marketing strategy. The first step would be to segment potential audiences and identify who would benefit from its service: this could be ladies who don’t have enough time to go to salon, or ladies who want to socialise with people.

The next step would be to create content with that specific group in mind. For the busy ladies segment, this could include helpful content about hair care, or a guide on how much daily hair care is good for ladies.

But why exactly is audience segmentation so important when creating and distributing content?

Understanding the habits and preferences of an audience can help you target content directly to that specific group of people.

For example, if you’re looking to launch a new Salon, and your website analytics reveal that young people are statistically more interested in barbing than fixing weavon, this would suggest you should target your content to this group.

Another benefit is being able to pinpoint audience behaviour and using this information to refine your marketing approach. Now that you know people are interested in barbing, you could research a step further and find out how often this segment people barb and at what time of day. Try to answer: What social channels does this group use? What do they do with their free time? For example, people who enjoy the visual nature of a social media platform like Pinterest are likely to prefer different content to those who like to read and contribute to forums. All this information can provide value when it comes to creating tailored content for this group.

To get insights into what people search for,  you also can utilise analytics features on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter to get a glimpse of audience demographics and behaviours. Experiment with a number of tools and compare results to get a more complete picture of who your audience is, and how they behave online.

Finally, don’t forget to talk to people. It may be easy to forget in this online world, but connecting with people face to face can yield some truly unique insights into who they are and what they need.

To wrap up, here are some questions for you to contemplate:

* Why is audience segmentation so important in content marketing?

* How can it help brands when creating and distributing content?

* And which tools can you explore to better understand your audience?

Key learnings

Making sure you are saying the right thing, to the right people, and are connecting with them at the right time is critical when it comes to content marketing. In this lesson, we'll explore:

* What audience segmentation is and how it can benefit a business

* How to use audience segmentation to boost your content marketing efforts

* Some of the tools and systems available to help you segment your audience correctly.

3. Choosing the right format for your content

Online content can take lots of different forms: from case studies and ebooks, to infographics, images and video clips. Each of these different formats comes with its own benefits; whether it’s to inspire, educate or entertain.

Here too, we will explore popular content formats and explain how to choose formats based on the specific needs of your audience.

Whatever format you choose, the purpose of content is always the same - to connect with an audience. This audience, in turn, will engage, share, learn, and perhaps even convert into customers.

Let’s start by exploring some popular content formats.

Blogs are typically published as a subsection of an existing website, and can include original content or guest-authored content. Writing unique, quality blog posts can help increase publicity and give you interesting content to share across other channels, like social media.

Infographics are informative and a great way to present knowledge visually. They work well online thanks to their eye-catching format and can help present complex or unusual content in a creative way.

Ebooks are educational, easy-to-read guides focused on a specific topic. This format provides readers with practical content and will help you stand out as an expert in your field.

Videos can include anything from product demonstrations to tutorials and customer testimonials. They allow brands to create engaging, entertaining, and useful content that can be consumed on the go.

There are many other content formats to consider, including: press releases, webinars, reviews and case studies. To explore even more content formats, please check out the additional links provided at the end of this topic.

Successful content doesn’t have to go viral or reach millions of people. Focus on the creating content should be tailored to your audience, and design it so that it moves customers towards a specific goal or action.

Now that you’re familiar with different formats, the next step is to consider the main goal of your content. In content marketing, there are typically four main purposes of content, which are:

To entertain

To inspire

To educate, and

To convince.

Let’s take a look at how to match different content formats to your content goals.

Meet Madam Mercy. Madam Mercy runs a hair dressing salon, and she looking to create a content strategy to help boost her online presence.

To entertain her audience, she decides to publish some video clips of her styles over social media. To inspire, she plans to create a forum space on her website where people can post their questions and get insights from both her and others hair styles. To educate her audience, she shares blog posts including top tips on hair care and hair nutrition. To convince people to use her services, she’ll share testimonials from happy customers, as well as ebooks to showcase her knowledge in specialist grooming skills.

In your own business scenario, consider how certain formats are best paired with specific content goals. For example, if your goal is to educate, then guides, ebooks and infographics would be the ideal formats –whereas if your goal was to entertain, a better format choice would be quizzes or competitions.

When assessing which content formats are the right fit for your goals, think about the ones you can easily produce yourself, and consider recruiting assistance for those you can’t. Identify the purpose of your content, and then select the formats best suited to that goal. Finally, when designing your content, remember to consider your audience, and address their specific needs in a format that will wow them.

Key learnings

Content is much more than just text on a screen. From entertaining GIFs to blog posts, whitepapers, and full-length videos, understanding which content format can make the most impact on your audience is critical. In this lesson, we'll explore:

* Popular online content formats.

* The four main purposes for content marketing.

* How to match different formats to your content goals.

To save a space, you can get full tutorial on this using this link to our shop @ Bem T Celestial Computers

When you are facing the road to your success, destiny and financial freedom,  Satan always blocked you on the road to hinder you from going to success, my people it is not easy, a road to success is a hard task, a battle to fight, therefore you have to struggle high so as to win the battle, today is the time, tomorrow will be too late, let's move together and climb the ladder of success. 

The link is still available here, don't left behind, so lets go  https://paystack.shop/bem-t-celestial-products-and-services

And where ever you are confused don't hesitate to call or chat me on this WhatsApp number for more details. 

08027836543

It's still that Counselor Bem T Celestine (It won't be Ok untill you reach to success)

MAKE MONEY ONLINE WITH INFORMATION PRODUCT MARKETING

Your Easy Guide To Creating And Marketing Your First Information Product

Robert Allen, one of the world's most foremost information marketer once called information marketing business the easiest and fastest means of making money on the internet and I believe him.

You See,

With information marketing business, you do not need to have any prior experience or skill. You do not need to sell your personal belongings in order to get started because, it requires very little start up capital.

In fact I am going to reveal to you how to create your first hot-selling information product without spending up to ₦10,000.

Oh Yes! I Will....

You don't even need to be a University graduate (we've seen secondary school drop outs who are making a very good living with information marketing).

You don't need to rent a shop because you can carry out your information marketing business from the privacy of your bedroom or even from the comfort of your village, so long you have a valid e-mail address, a bank account and access to the internet.

So What Is Information Product Marketing?

Information marketing involves creating a product, packaging them in the form of an eBook, CD, Video tutorial, Manual, online courses, etc. and selling them online.

Remember, everyone surfing the internet is seeking information on one thing or the other, and if you can just provide a solution to what is giving them sleepless night, they will be willing and ready to empty their bank accounts just to purchase that information from you.

You can sell your ideas, expertise, hobbies and skills.

You may even decide to create a product on the topic that interests you the most. It may be on

• Dating
• How to pass UME
• How to make money online
• How to win Government contract
• How to cure premature ejaculation
• How to pass an interview
• How to write an effective resume
• How to travel abroad e.t.c.

My own favorite way of packaging information product is through an e-book, simply because it is easy, more profitable and super fast in delivery.

You only need to deliver your product inform of an e-mail message, attach the product you are selling and it gets delivered instantly.

If you accept credit cards on your website, it will be an added advantage because once your buyers insert their credit card details, they will be able to download the product themselves, your money would just keep on piling up even while you sleep.

N.B: e-Book stands for an Electronic Book. It is the same as a hard-copy book. The only difference is that, the pages can only be viewed on a computer. Just like we have a hardware and a software, e-book is a soft-copy while the books they sell in bookshops are the hard-copies.

It can be converted into a hard-copy once you print out its pages from a computer.

Gone are the days when you need to go through series of publishers before you can produce a book, now you can produce and publish your book online without having to go through any publisher.

I am guessing your next question would be, I cannot write, how will I be able to make money with information marketing?

My guess was right after all, that is exactly where the problem is, not everybody can write.

Now, don't start getting scared yet.... I could tell I was losing you with that statement...

Hold On A Second,

There is an easy way out and I'll show you.

You can actually create your own hot-selling information product without writing a word!

How am I able to do this?

Good question!

I'll explain to you

You can do this by making use of information product that has been created by other people. You don't believe me right ?

Ok, let me make it more crystal clear to you.

There are several e-Books with full resell rights and private label rights flying all over the internet, they are available on any topic you can think of.

When you buy a product with full resell rights, it means that the producer or creator legally permits you to resell it as if it's yours and keep 100 percent of whatever profit that you have made.

In the same vein, when you buy a product with private label rights, it means that you can remove the original creator of such a product and put your own name as if the product was created by you. Oh yes! you can, it is also legal to do so.

You get the drift now?

So what are you waiting for? You can actually start your information product marketing business right away.

And Do You Know What Is Even More Amazing?

It is the profit potential of this business, let me explain

If you buy a product with full resell right at ₦2,500, and with the marketing strategies that I am going to reveal to you, you are able to sell 200 copies every month at just ₦2,500. Now, let's do the maths... 200X2,500= ₦500,000

Did You See That? Five Hundred Thousand Naira In Just One Month!

That means you can be making a killing profit of 500k naira every month on a product that you spent just ₦2,500 to purchase.

Now tell me, what kind of offline business can give you such a profit?

Not only that, you will continue to make money from this product for as long as you live, and you can have as many products as you like that you are selling. That is nobody's business.

It may sound too good to be true, but it's true and 100 percent proven. What you don't know costs you money.

And to prove this to you...

I am not showing you all these pieces of evidence just to intimidate you. Not at all! We are not here for that. The major reason why we are here is to teach you step by step how to achieve greater or similar success with information product marketing business.

If you want to turn your Knowledge, Talent, Experiences, Passion and Interest into an endless flow of income, CREATE YOUR DIGITAL PRODUCT and share your expertise with the world.

If you want to build an online business that sells...Here is the sure fire niche no one is telling you about. You too can start your own information product marketing business and make lots of money from it daily like I do.

For you to be able to set up your own cash generating information marketing business like mine, I have therefore made available for you a detailed, comprehensive and easy to understand step by step training guides on how you can make millions monthly selling your ideas, expertise, hobbies and skills on the internet.

You will also discover how to create your own information products without writing a word. If you follow all my instructions in this training package, you will start getting credit alert from your bank like mine above.

INTRODUCING...

INFORMATION PRODUCT MARKETING BUSINESS TRAINING PACKAGE

This Training Package Reveals: First Class Coaching On How To Create Your Own Hot-Selling Information Product Even If You Don't Know How To Write. You Will Discover How To Set Up Your Own Cash Generating Business With Information Product Marketing.

This simple and easy-to-read training package with relevant videos, pictures and illustrations will show you...How to start your information marketing business from the scratch.

Click here to Get it

TRAVELLER'S HABIT

*10 TYPES OF PEOPLE YOU'LL DEFINITELY MEET, WHILE TRAVELLING BY PUBLIC BUS AS NIGERIAN* 

 *1. Seat Grabbers* : This ones are not preachers of love and they came prepared to fight. After you've settled into your seat, they'd come and tell you to stand up for them. If you don't, fight will start.

 *2 . The Sleeping Machines* : These ones cannot come and Kee themselves. The moment the car starts moving, they port to another universe.

 *3: The Where Are we now Group:* These ones behave like they've never travelled before, every five minutes they're asking you: Brother, please wia we dey now? We don reach Kafanchan? Shebi after Zaria we go enter Lagos?

 *4. The Zealous Prayer Warriors:* These ones don't smile, they are ever ready to give it to Satan hot hot. They'll speak in tongues from beginning to the end and sometimes even force all of you to join.

 *5. The Gluttons:* These ones don't want to hear that they got ulcer because of common travelling. So every chance they get they gauge their stomach well. They combine akpu with malt and garden egg, then top it with sugarcane. Five minutes later, they're pricing chin chin and water melon.

 *6. The urinators:* These one shout 'Driver stop!' every twenty minutes, then run into the bush to do the needful, they mostly belong to group 5. They are always offloading to create space for downloading.

 *7. The Assistant Drivers:* Drivers pray every morning not to meet these ones. They'll never blink, their eyes are focused on the driver. If driver tries overtaking they shout and insult daylight out of him. Try overspeeding and they might even land you a knock. I love them 😄.

 *8. Story Tellers:* These ones make the journey lively. Their mouths keep moving nonstop. They'll tell you what happened in their village in Adoka in 1967 and tell you how Adakole impregnated his uncle's neighbour's tenant, while you're still confused, they quickly move to tell you of their days serving in the military (mostly old men).

Have you heard about Bem T Celestial Computers Tyowanye? 

Just visit www.bemtc.business.site to know the location and go for their services. You can also go for their products and services online here; http://flutterwave.com/store/bemtcelestialproducts or https://paystack.shop/bem-t-celestial-products-and-services

 *9. The Unconcerned Ones:* These ones plug in their earphones throughout the journey.

 *Who can tell me the Number 10?* 

Just drop in a comment section below.

A Must Read Life Happenings

My wife is a CEO, she always hates me for being lazy and wants to divorce me. But she doesn't know that her success is bestowed by me.

"Dustin, here is the divorce agreement prepared by Ms. Nicholson, please sign it."

In the president's office of the Quine Group, Lyra Blaine, the secretary, placed a piece of paper on the table. A man sat opposite her, dressed in plain clothing.

"Divorce? What do you mean?"

"Your marriage with Ms. Nicholson is over. You're not even on the same level anymore. Your existence is nothing but a smear on our CEO's reputation!"

"A smear on her reputation?" Dustin frowned. "Is that what she thinks of me?"

Dahlia Nicholson and Dustin Rhys had been married for three years. After Dahlia's meteoric rise to success, she was about to abandon Dustin as a burden and filed for divorce. Unbeknownst to her, everything she had ever achieved was actually bestowed by him.

Back when they first got married, the Nicholson family was in ruinous debt. He was the one who helped them when they were at their rock bottom. Now that they became rich, Dahlia Nicholson was ready to kick him out.

With the sound of the door opening, a pair of enchanting high heels came into his view.

"You're finally here."

Dustin felt complicated when he saw the beautiful woman. They had been married for three years, during which they treated each other with care and respect. But this was how it ended. He still didn't know what he had done wrong.

"I'm sorry for being late, I was caught up with something else."

Dahlia Nicholson sat down. Her expression was as impassive as ever.

"You certainly are busy, if you need your secretary to help you deal with your divorce," Dustin said.

Hearing this, Dahlia frowned slightly. However, she did not explain herself. Instead, she said, "Since you're here, let's end it on a pleasant note. You can have the car, the house, and 8 million dollars as alimony. How does that sound?"

At that, she placed a card on the table.

"Do you really think our relationship can be measured by money?" Dustin asked.

"Too little? That's alright. Let me know what you want. I'll give you anything within my power," Dahlia said placidly.

"Are money and power that important to you?" Dustin was truly bewildered.

"Dustin, that's where you and I diverge in philosophy. You'll never understand what I really want." Dahlia shook her head in disappointment. 

"You're right." Dustin nodded without any emotion. "I heard that you've been close with the heir of the Nolan family. Is it because of him?"

Dahlia was about to deny it when she gave it a second thought. In the end, she nodded.

"You can say that."

"Okay. I hope you're happy with him." Dustin smiled and signed the divorce agreement without any more hesitation. All he felt now was disappointment. Ironically, today was also their wedding anniversary. There was cruel humor in divorcing him on the day they had gotten married.

"I don't want the money, I just want that crystal necklace back. My mother left it to me before she died so that I can give it to my wife."

"Okay."

Dahlia nodded and gave him the necklace.

"From today on, we will have nothing to do with each other!"

Dustin put on the necklace and left. He had no more gentleness in his expression, all that was left was distant aloofness.

"Did I do the right thing, Lyra?" Dahlia asked hesitantly.

"Of course you did!" Lyra nodded. " Dustin does not deserve you at all. You're destined to be the most powerful woman in Swinton!"

Dahlia did not answer her. As she watched Dustin leave, she felt as if she was losing something precious.

Chapter 2

In the elevator, Dustin stared at the crystal necklace dejectedly. It was time to awaken from this prolonged daydream.

Suddenly, his phone rang, breaking him out of his trance. 

A familiar voice raised, "Mr. Rhys, I'm Hunter Anderson from the Swinton Group. I heard that today is your wedding anniversary with Ms. Nicholson, so I've prepared a gift for you. I'm just wondering if you have any time today?"

"Thank you for your kindness, but I'm afraid we won't need the gift any more," Dustin said. 

"Why?"

Hunter could sense something wrong.

"Is there anything else you'd like to talk about, Mr. Anderson?"

"Actually, yes." Hunter cleared his throat awkwardly. "I've got a friend who contracted a strange illness. He's seen a lot of doctors, but none of them could do anything about it. I was hoping that you could help."

"Mr. Anderson, you know my rules."

"Of course! I'm sincere in my request. My friend owns some canscora, which I remember you were looking for. I'm sure he'll be willing to part with it if you help him," Hunter said.

"Is it true?" Dustin asked seriously.

"Yes, it is!"

"Alright, then I'll be willing to take a look." Dustin immediately agreed.

He wasn't interested in money or jewels, but rather some rare plants, as he needed them to save lives.

"Thank you, Mr. Rhys! I'll send someone to pick you up immediately!" Hunter smiled in relief. 

As the CEO of the Swinton Group and one of the Mighty Three of Swinton, Hunter acted exceptionally timid in front of Dustin.

"Great, one more done, five to go. I should have enough time," Dustin muttered to himself. His mood was lifted a little by this news.

With a ding, the elevator doors opened. As soon as he stepped out of the building, he saw two familiar figures walking to him. It was Dahlia's mother and brother, Florence Franklin and James Nicholson.

"Mom, ..." Dustin greeted.

"Did you and Dahlia get divorced?" Florence did not waste any breath.

"Yes, we did." Dustin gave her a forced smile. "It's not Dahlia's fault, it's mine. Don't blame her."

However, hearing this, Florence snorted coldly.

"Of course it's your problem. I know my daughter well. If you hadn't done anything wrong, why would she divorce you?"

Dustin was stunned. What was this? Victim blaming?

"Mom, stop wasting time." Suddenly, James stepped forward. "Listen, Rhys. I don't care whether you divorce my sister or not, but you're giving me all the money you got from her."

"Money? What money?" Dustin was flabbergasted.

"Stop feigning ignorance! My sister gave you 8 million dollars as alimony!" James said coldly.

"That's my daughter's money! Give it back!" Florence stretched out her hand in demand.

"I didn't take any money from her," Dustin denied. 

"Do you take us as idiots?" James did not believe him.

"Rhys, you'd better be tactful. Don't make me angry!" Florence warned.

"You can ask Dahlia if you don't believe me." Dustin did not want to explain himself any further.

James dove straight into Dustin's pockets.

Florence followed suit.

"Mom, do you have to do this?" Dustin frowned.

Florence spat on the ground in disgust.

"Who are you calling Mom? Who do you think you are?" As she spoke, she continued searching Dustin's pockets.

After some time, they didn't find what they wanted.

"Did he really not take it?" James said, displeased.

Suddenly, he spied Dustin's crystal necklace and pulled it off roughly.

"Isn't this my sister's necklace? Why is it here? You steal it?" James demanded.

"This is the Rhys family heirloom. Give it back!" Dustin said, expression darkened.

"A family heirloom? Does this mean that this is valuable?" James'eyes lit up. 

"Then it can be your repayment for these three years that you've been living with us. Let's go!" Florence gave her son a look and prepared to leave.

"Stop!" Dustin grabbed James'wrist. "Give me back the necklace!"

Seeing that he had no chance of freeing himself from Dustin, James threw the necklace onto the ground. With a crisp clink, the crystal necklace broke into pieces. Dustin blanched. This was the only thing he had to remember his mother by.

"How dare you lay your hands on me! I'd rather break it than give it back to you!" James said as he rubbed his sore wrist.

Dustin clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles popped. His eyes were red with anger.

"Screw you!" Outburst, Dustin punched James in the face.

James was punched so hard that he spun back uncontrollably before falling to the ground. He was so dizzy that couldn't stand up.

"Let me teach you manners!" Dustin grabbed him by hair and lifted him. Then, he punched him several times.

James' face soon turned bloody from the punches.

"How dare you hit my son!" Florence screamed as she tried to help her son.

"Get off!" Dustin turned and glared at her. The glare was so intense that Florence froze in her tracks.

Chapter 3

"Get off!"

Those two words were enough to scare Florence motionless. 

When she finally got her wits back, Florence began screaming, "Help! He's murdering my son!" 

Soon, the Quine Group's security guards gathered around them.

"What happened, Mrs. Nicholson?" The head of the security guards recognized Florence and stood at her side immediately.

"Tom! Lock this guy up at once!" Florence yelled.

Just as they were about to act, a voice sounded.

"What do you think you're doing?"

A curvaceous woman in a silver dress barged into the crowd with her bodyguards. With her lips painted a fiery red, she was stunningly beautiful. Every move she made was alluring.

"She's gorgeous!"

The security guards stared at her dumbly. 

"Mr. Rhys, are you okay?"

The woman ignored the looks and headed straight toward Dustin.

"Who are you?"

Dustin narrowed his eyes at her, his anger dissipating.

"Nice to meet you, my name is Natasha Harmon. Mr. Anderson sent me here," the woman said with a smile. 

"Natasha Harmon? Is she the heiress of the Harmon family?"

"Oh, my God! Why is she here?"

Natasha Harmon was a well-known name around the city. She was pretty, influential, and smart. At 22 years old, she had already gained control of the Harmon Group and built her own business empire within five years. 

"Ah, it's you."

Dustin nodded.

He had heard of Natasha before, but he hadn't expected her to be involved with Hunter.

"Mr. Rhys, please wait in the car. I'll deal with this." 

Natasha snapped her fingers. Behind her, her four bodyguards whipped out their batons and advanced toward the crowd. The security guards back off.

"After you, Mr. Rhys."

Seeing that no one else dared to move, Natasha smiled and held out a hand to lead Dustin to the car. Without a word, Dustin picked up the pieces of his necklace and left with Natasha. No one dared to stop him.

"What's wrong? Why did you just let them go?" Florence yelled when she realized what was happening.

None of them dared to lay a finger on Natasha.

The security guards looked at each other, not daring to speak. 

"What happened?"

Dahlia and Lyra came out to see what the commotion was.

"Dahlia! You're here! Look at how badly your brother's been beaten up!"

As soon as Florence saw her, she began to cry, as if she was the one who had been beaten up.

"What happened? Who did this?"

Seeing her brother's wounds, Dahlia's expression became chilly.

"It's that Dustin!" Florence cried. "We met him just now. James picked up a crystal necklace that he dropped and tried to give it back to him, but he tried to turn it around and said that your brother stole it from him. After some argument, he beat up James! My poor James, he just did what he thought was right. What has he done to deserve this?"

She began crying harder.

"Dustin?" Dahlia frowned.

After three years of marriage, she knew Dustin's personality well. He was normally calm and collected and rarely lost his temper. He wouldn't just beat someone up for no reason.

"Look at your brother! Is the truth not clear enough? If you don't believe me, ask the security guards. They saw everything!" Saying this, Florence gave the security guards a look.

"Ms. Nicholson, your mother is right."

The head of security understood his assignment perfectly.

"You hear that? I'm not wronging that person!" He even has a new woman now!"

Hearing this, Dahlia frowned. Could Dustin really do such a thing? Maybe he was furious about the divorce and wanted to exact revenge on her through her brother. If so, then she had to admit that she had misjudged him!

 

Chapter 4

"Mom, take James to the hospital. I'll deal with this."

"What do you think, Lyra?"

Dahlia rubbed her temples. She felt a headache coming on.

"It's obvious, isn't it? It was Dustin who assaulted them first. The security guards were witnesses, so that can't be a lie," Lyra said.

"But my mother's not exactly an honest person…" Dahlia began. She knew her mother and brother well. They were a hot-tempered and ruthless duo.

"Either way, it's still wrong for him to throw the first punch!" Lyra said righteously. 

Dahlia's frown deepened along with her doubts. Lyra was right. It would seem like her decision to divorce him was right.

She took out her phone and called Dustin. At the same time, Dustin was sitting in a silver Bentley and frowned when he saw the call coming in. Despite his reluctance, he still picked up the call.

"Dustin, I need an explanation!" Dahlia demanded. "Are you taking revenge on my family just because I divorced you?"

Hearing this, Dustin was taken aback. He hadn't expected Dahlia to be so aggressive. She hadn't even stopped to listen to what he had to say. After three years of marriage, she was treating him as if he was a mere stranger, or worse.

"Dustin, I'll give you another chance. Go to the hospital right now and apologize to James, and I'll pretend that nothing happened. Otherwise…"

"Otherwise what?" Dustin retorted. "Are you going to call the police on me, or hire someone to take me out?"

"Dustin! Are you really going to throw away my goodwill?" Dahlia snapped.

"Goodwill? Are you sure it's goodwill?"

"You…" Dahlia's retort was cut off as Dustin hung up.

She almost threw out her phone in anger. Dahlia had always been good at hiding her true emotions. It was one of the reasons why she had managed to get to where she was today. But right now, she was having a little trouble in that regard.

"How rude of him." Lyra was about to say more when Dahlia stopped her.

"That's enough of this. I need to work on more important matters, like the charity ball with the Harmon family."

"The charity ball? Has that got anything to do with our partners?"

"That's right. I just received news that the Harmon family has shortlisted the Quine Group. If we do well at this ball, we could be the Harmon family's next partners!"

"That's great! I'll go make the arrangements right now!"

...

After hanging up the call, Dustin arrived at Swinton Primary Hospital. Natasha brought him into a VIP ward, where an old man was laying on the bed, looked dying. Several doctors surrounded him, but none of them looked optimistic.

"Natasha! You're finally here!"

Suddenly, a young woman ran up to them. She was the second daughter of the Harmon family, Ruth Harmon, and the old man on the bed was Andrew Harmon, her grandfather.

"Ms. Harmon, we've already done everything we could." a doctor said helplessly.

"Mr. Rhys will take over." Natasha said coldly.

"Mr. Rhys?"

Dustin looked too young to be a good doctor.

To be frank, she wasn't quite sure about Dustin either, but if Hunter recommended him, then he had to have his merits.

"Could Mr. Anderson have been conned?" Ruth still looked doubtful. "Hey, you, are you really a doctor?"

"I know a little about medicine," Dustin replied.

"Just a little?" Ruth pouted. 

"I won't believe in you unless you can prove to me," Ruth said with her head held high.

"How?" Dustin asked nonchalantly.

"Tell me what ails me. If you're correct, then I'll believe in you!"

"Really? Show me your tongue," Dustin said.

Ruth did as he said.

After a quick look, Dustin said without any hesitation, "Your hormones are imbalanced, so you should be experiencing irregular periods and migraines. You're also showing some signs of food poisoning, which has affected your digestive system. You've been having diarrhea, haven't you? Oh, another thing, you have hemorrhoids…"

The more he spoke, the tenser Ruth became.

 

Chapter 5

"How did you know that?"

Ruth's eyes almost bulged out of her head. Everything from the migraines to diarrhea was spot on. 

"There's a lot you can tell about a person just by looking at them," Dustin said nonchalantly.

"Do you believe him now, Ruth?" Natasha smiled. At the same time, she also heaved a silent sigh of relief. Thank goodness Dustin knew what he was doing.

"He just got lucky!" Ruth refused to admit defeat. 

"I'm sorry, Mr. Rhys. Please ignore her," Natasha told Dustin apologetically.

"It's fine. Shall we begin?"

Dustin didn't take Ruth's attitude to heart. He walked over to Andrew and gave him a thorough check-up. It didn't take long for him to find out what was going on. It was obvious to him that the old man had been poisoned. Thankfully, it was discovered early on, so he could still be saved. 

"Ms. Harmon, can you get me some silver acupuncture needles?" Dustin asked.

"No problem."

Dustin nodded his thanks, then began. His actions were light but firm as his hands flew deftly. With his skill, his patient would not feel any pain from the needles. Seeing this, Natasha was surprised.

"He's good!"

Once all 16 needles were in place, Dustin breathed a sigh of relief. It had been some time since he last performed acupuncture, but thankfully he was still familiar.

"Is that all? Nothing changed!" Ruth looked confused.

"It'll take about two hours to drain the toxin from his body; you shouldn't remove the needles before the two hours are up, or there might be serious side effects!"

Ruth pouted.

"I need to go to the bathroom. Please watch over him while I'm gone," Dustin told the occupants of the room before leaving.

Not long after he left, a group of doctors barged in. These were some of the most skilled doctors in the hospital. A balding man led the troupe.

"I'm Jansen, the executive director of the hospital. I'm here on orders to treat Old Mr. Harmon," the balding man introduced.

"Ah, you're that famous Dr. Jansen! The best doctor in Swinton!" Ruth was ecstatic.

Dr. Jansen said proudly, "yes, I am."

Ruth immediately moved out of his way. Clearly, she trusted Dr. Jansen more than she trusted a youngster like Dustin.

Dr. Jansen nodded. When he got nearer to the bed, he frowned. "What's with the needles? What nonsense is this?"

As he spoke, he made to remove the needles.

"Wait!" Seeing this, Natasha stopped him. "Dr. Jansen, I've already hired another healer. He said that my grandfather has been poisoned. We cannot remove these needles as there might be serious side effects."

"A pack of lies!" Dr. Jansen snorted derisively. "If these needles can cure ailments, then what are doctors for?"

"That's right!" Ruth agreed. "Natasha, that Dustin barely looks a day over 20. How could he be a skilled healer? Please don't tell me you believe what he said."

"Ms. Harmon, all of the best doctors in Swinton are here." Dr. Jansen took the next word. "Please don't believe in these superstitions. It would just make things worse!" 

Their confidence weakened Natasha's resolve. However, she insisted, "We should wait for Mr. Rhys to come back."

"Ms. Harmon, I'm busy. If I pull out these needles and anything happens to Old Mr. Harmon, it'll be on me." With that, Dr. Jansen pulled out all of the needles.

As soon as the needles were removed, something strange happened.

Andrew's body began convulsing. His face began to turn black, and blood gushed out from his nose and mouth. The machines on either side of the bed began beeping.

"What's going on?" Dr. Jansen was surprised by the turn of events.

"What's this, Dr. Jansen?" Natasha frowned.

"That's strange, he was fine earlier…" Dr. Jansen felt uneasy.

"Sir, the patient is coding!"

"Quick, get the machines!"

Without delay, Dr. Jansen began emergency resuscitation. Even after a lot of effort, Andrew did not seem to get better at all. In fact, his stats were declining uncontrollably. Dr. Jansen was panicking.

"Ms. Harmon, I think… I think Old Mr. Harmon is… dying…"

"What?" Both Natasha and Ruth were shocked.

 

Chapter 6

"You liar!" Natasha was livid. She grabbed Dr. Jansen by the collar and yelled, "I told you not to remove the needles! Now that the worst has happened, this is all you have to say?"

"No, this has got nothing to do with me!" Dr. Jansen shook his head fervently. "It must be that other healer. His needles must have caused this to happen!"