Abdulsalam M. Nuhu

Donye has been complaining about academic excellence going unrecognised since Don Jazzy snubbed him during his giveaway giveaway a couple of days ago. People were posting their account details and achievements, hoping to get some attention from Don Jazzy. Donye quoted with screenshots of his distinctions in medical school, his great WAEC results. he was totally snubbed Perhaps he felt that his accomplishments deserved more recognition than he was already receiving. And, to be fair, academic excellence is something that should be recognised and rewarded. However, there is something Donye needs to understand: the value of academic excellence, at least in terms of public recognition, largely ends within the academic environment. You may be an exceptional scholar. People may admire you, give you money and celebrate your achievements. Some have done that for you already, and rightly so. But that recognition is not going to continue indefinitely. It is often short-lived. He is a rare scholar, but he is not the only one. Beyond the academic environment, you will discover that most people do not particularly care about his distinctions, WAEC scores or how many examinations he passed. There are young students who will admire him, look up to him, become his fanboys and act excited whenever they encounter him But outside these circles, his achievements may mean very little to people. And the reason is simple: he has not figured out how to convert those achievements into real value for other people. He is one of those students who have demonstrated exceptional academic ability, but I have not seen him build a system through which he can teach others how to achieve similar results. He has not shown people how he studies, how he approach difficult academic problems, the practical steps he takes and how he can help another student reproduce his results. That is where the opportunity lies. Donye, If you can take your academic experience, organise it into a practical system and help other students achieve the kind of academic excellence you have demonstrated, you can build an entire career around it. Think about it. Even if you receive all the recognition and financial rewards you desire today, those rewards will eventually run out. What happens afterwards? The real opportunity is to build something around your achievements: a platform, a programme, a learning system or a service that helps people who desire the same accomplishments. There are thousands of students who want to earn distinctions, excel in medical school and achieve outstanding WAEC results. You could build something that helps them get there. But most of what we see from you is flexing. I had this distinction. I got this score. I achieved this. I received that. I want this recognition. I deserve this reward. There is very little about the practical steps behind these achievements or how another person can benefit from your experience. And you cannot expect to make a sustainable living from simply announcing your accomplishments. This is also why Don Jazzy can overlook your achievements. He is a musician. He operates in an entirely different industry. He doesn't give two fucks about whether someone has a distinction in medical school. He probably doesn't even know what the distinction requirements are, let alone the pass mark. Your academic accomplishments are simply not what he is looking for when he gives out money. This is a problem I have noticed among many exceptionally brilliant students. They are very good at reading, very good at passing examinations and very good at accumulating academic achievements, but become almost useless when it comes to the workforce, economics and converting their knowledge into tangible value in the real world. You need to understand that being academically exceptional and being able to create value are two different things.