Konnected Minds Podcast

From stumbling into influencing in 2019 without even knowing what content creation was to building two businesses on the back of social media attention, and why the brutal truth about being an influencer is that you can't be popular forever because your time will pass and younger people will be more vibrant and more in tune with the culture than you are which is why you have to find something that works for you when you're sleeping and when people don't see your face, the young woman who got paid 800 cedis in 2019 to post bags for a brand thinking it was the biggest deal of her life before realizing people actually get paid serious money for this and she could step up her pricing and start talking to brands properly, the reality that influencing can be very dicey and you can lose it at any moment which is why she doesn't even know how she's been relevant from 2019 till now because usually some people are just there for some months and then they are gone, the wisdom that the moment you get that people are looking at you, you have to find something and put the influence inside otherwise you can't be an influencer forever because it's not possible to have that hold on people forever, the honest truth that just like footballers can't play for the rest of their lives and will retire, influencers also have to retire because you can't be popular for the rest of your life, the blessing of being lucky enough to be an influencer for 10 years which is a long time for people's attention to be on you and within that 10 years you should be able to build something so when you're telling your children that you were popping you can also tell them what you did within that 10 years, the biggest challenge being that she's an on the spot thinker who never asks what questions will be asked in interviews and can't write scripts because she works better in the moment looking at products and deciding what will work better but sometimes that doesn't work with some brands who want you to script it or have their own storyline which becomes difficult because it's not just bad for the brand it's bad for her brand as well when a post gets 50,000 views instead of her usual 500,000 views, the mixed reality that not every brand takes influencing seriously but some brands do and right now they are starting to take influencers seriously because it's better now than when they started in 2019 as brands are starting to understand the power that social media has as compared to traditional media, the fight that one influencer has to say this one I'm taking 10,000 so the next person doesn't settle for 5,000 which reminds her of the type of work Shatta Wale had to do fighting for musicians in the country to get what they deserve, the lack of unity in the influencing business because nobody wants to start that conversation after she went to an interview three years ago and mentioned she was paid 5,000 cedis for a brand to help other people coming up know what to expect and everybody said she was lying so now who wants to have the conversation when somebody tried and people put them down, the reality that people are afraid of sellouts because if they all agree to something somebody will go for less like it has happened to her before, the country where people don't like to talk about finances or give figures but she feels like it's a realistic conversation to know what to expect in the real world like if you have 500,000 followers how much is a good amount or a range so people know what to expect, the disagreement that influencing is oversaturated because anybody can be an influencer just like the number of lawyers that are competing or doctors so why is influencing oversaturated when brands just need to know who they want to pick.

From getting slapped by a teacher in class one and walking home alone because the school bus left to becoming one of Ghana's most recognized influencers building two businesses on the internet, and why the brutal truth about growing up protected is that when your sister is ready to slap someone for letting a child walk home alone after being punished for not having a book and your mother gives birth to you at 37 making you the patient baby with siblings in their 40s who became like three mothers watching over you, that protection keeps you from going out and socializing but it also fills your childhood with so much love that you grow up naturally being a people person even when you don't make actual friends until senior high school, the young girl who went to about 10 junior high schools before completing at Maranatha International School because when a teacher lashed her and made her stay to sweep the compound in class one she had to walk the distance from American House to Ars Road alone proving that moving schools wasn't just about her sister's protection it was about finding safety, the only child between her Ghanaian mother and Scottish father who discovered she had step siblings when she overheard a conversation in GHS one but calls them siblings not step siblings because the bond is that close even though she grew up with her mother's children and her father's children have their own mother and most of them are not in Ghana, the daughter whose father left for the UK when she was very young and didn't come back until she was already in her teens which means the relationship she has with him is based on respect and looking just like him in pictures but it's not the same as the jokes and freedom she feels around her mother who she lived with her whole life, the student who was always first to fifth position growing up and never took exams seriously because good grades came naturally until she went to St. Joseph senior high school in Legon and got 10th position for the first time which shocked her into stepping up and picking back up her performance, the psychology and information studies graduate who studied at Legon but doesn't really use her degree for anything even though people talk to her a lot and call her a lot making her think maybe she should tap into that psychology training because clearly people see something in her, the girl who didn't know what she wanted to become growing up and only thought about being an air hostess when she got to senior high school before changing her mind again proving she never had a fixed vision of the future, the naturally friendly person who could vibe with everybody in school but that doesn't mean you're my friend because being loved by everyone doesn't mean you let everyone in, the protected child who wasn't allowed to go out and socialize which she appreciates now even though she didn't see why back then because that same protection kept her safe and loved and surrounded by family who made sure she never felt alone, the last born whose big sister is 41 or 42 right now and another sister in her 40s creating this situation where she had like two mothers or three mothers all making sure she was protected and loved and never lacked anything, the young woman who made amazing friends at the end of senior high school like Frida and Pre Lakani and others she's still friends with today even though in the beginning she was just there not really making friends just existing in the space, the influencer who people keep saying the industry is over saturated but she doesn't think so because the problem with Ghanaians is everybody wants to be a food content creator everybody wants to do lifestyle when there are so many other content ideas like being unemployed that can also be content, the entrepreneur with two businesses who uses content to push all of them because she knows her brand can influence people to buy her products but also understands you can't be an influencer for the rest of your life because your time will pass, the young girl whose childhood was just love and protection and getting lashed in school and being taken out of schools because her family wouldn't tolerate disrespect, the woman who is here to inspire people with her story especially the young girls and boys who look up to her showing them that you can actually build business on the internet while creating content that you love.

Guest: Princess Ama Burland

Host: Derrick Abaitey

From posting underwear on day two after wanting to end her life to selling out 10 bottles of hair oil in 30 minutes on day three, and why the brutal truth about building a business from rock bottom is that sometimes your darkest moment becomes the exact turning point where you realize you have to create something for yourself because when a scandal video drops and you're ready to give up but someone reaches out wearing a hoodie to sit with you while you cry and tells you what's there to care about, that shift in perspective can change everything, the young woman who went to a scandal that made her want to kill herself when a video was posted and blogs were talking and people were judging but one person reached out and hung out with her and wore a hoodie and kept her company showing her that someone cared when she felt completely alone, the sister who sells underwear that she posted on day two after the scandal because she had to do something and couldn't just sit there drowning in shame, the hair oil she had been making for free and posting the full process on YouTube without any intention to sell because she was just sharing her personal recipe that people kept asking for, the decision on day three to make something from this for herself by putting the oil she had already made into bottles with no labels just 10 bottles total even though she posted that she had 100 pieces, the 10 bottles that sold out in 30 minutes making people think 100 bottles got finished in 30 minutes proving that even in your lowest moment people are ready to support you if you give them something real, the shy kid who had aunties in the extended family saying this girl when she goes to school this and that making her mother worried and causing relatives to call saying your daughter is doing this this this all because she was always on her phone, the phone that got seized because family members were complaining but that same phone became the reason she's being invited on podcasts and building businesses, the realization that being loved and having the basics like school fees paid and weekly money given doesn't mean you can afford the fancy stuff in life because her mom lost her business when she was in class six going to Togo and China and having goods seized at the port, the mother who sold all her cars and didn't have a car at some point but made sure her daughter never noticed the struggle until senior high school because she still provided at least two meals a day and paid school fees, the advantage of not having to think about paying school fees or taking care of nephews which meant she could focus on building something to move from being average to being comfortable, the weekly money of 150 cedis compared to someone else getting 1000 cedis and the desire to make her own money so she could buy the nice dress and the jewelry without waiting for someone else to provide it, the people she had to prove wrong in the extended family who were pointing fingers saying she's always on her food always quiet always on Snapchat questioning what's going on with this girl, the determination that came from wanting her mother to be proud of her and wanting to show those aunties and relatives that they were wrong about her, the wisdom that happy home and being loved doesn't mean you have money for fancy stuff and the basics being covered is already an advantage that should be used to build something real, the depression she felt at times realizing maybe it was because she couldn't afford certain things and how money really solves a lot of problems even though people say money isn't everything.

Host: Derrick Abaitey

He started with GH₵1,000, lost two houses, a container of cars, and millions - and still built one of Ghana's most recognised real estate brands.

In this episode of Konnected Minds, I sit down with Ebenezer Saka Addo-Mensah - CEO and founder of Saka Homes and owner of five other businesses - or one of the most unfiltered conversations we've ever had on this podcast.

No fluff. No rehearsed answers. Just the raw truth about what it actually takes to build wealth in Ghana from nothing.

🎟️ Konnected MInds Live Kumasi, Sept 9th. https://www.konnectedmindslive.com/

Guest: Ebenezer Saka Addo-Mensah

Web: https://sakahomes.com/

Host: Derrick Abaitey

IG: https://www.instagram.com/derrick.abaitey

YT: https://www.youtube.com/@DerrickAbaitey

Join Konnected Academy: https://www.triibe.io/konnected-academy

🎟️ Konnected MInds Live Kumasi, Sept 9th. https://www.konnectedmindslive.com/

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Join this channel: /@konnectedminds

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From accidentally building an influencer brand on Snapchat to creating a hair care business that started with just 50 cedis and bottles, and why the brutal truth about being an influencer is that you can't be popular forever because your time will pass and younger people will be more vibrant and more in tune with the culture than you are which is why you have to find something that works for you when you're sleeping and when people don't see your face, the young woman who didn't even know what content creation was in 2019 when she had followers and got paid 800 cedis to post bags for a brand thinking it was the biggest deal of her life, the photoshoot with a big company that opened her eyes to the fact that people actually get paid for this and she could step up her pricing and start talking to brands properly, the COVID lockdown that kept everyone home watching her YouTube channel where she changed from just doing hair tutorials to showing her personality making people find her funny and creating clips and memes that made her sort of blow up, the hair oil she was making and using herself that people kept asking for until she finally gave in and started pouring her personal oil into bottles to sell even though she was a student who didn't mean to do business, the pre orders that came in because the oil takes time to make and the realization that just oil wasn't enough so she went to school to learn formulations and expanded into shampoos and deep conditioners and a full product line, the Okada bike her brother trusted her with that she sold after realizing transport service business wasn't her field and put the money back into the business, the Sunlight Shero competition where she won 5000 cedis by writing about her business proving that opportunities come when you're building something real, the wisdom that you can't be an influencer for the rest of your life because people like Nana Ama McBrown who are still relevant are rare cases and most people will eventually be replaced by someone younger, the meeting where brands were looking for artists who appeal to younger people instead of the top three musicians everyone already knows proving that relevance is temporary and you have to build something that works when people aren't looking at your face, the advice that if you're an influencer you should start an agency or find a nine to five or create something that infuses your influence into a business that keeps running even when you're on vacation for a month because influencing can be very dicey and you can lose it at any moment, the honest reflection that she doesn't even know how she's been relevant from 2019 till now because usually people are just there for some months and then they're gone, the reality that you can't be popular forever and it's not possible to have that hold on people forever just like footballers can't play for the rest of their lives they will retire, the blessing of being an influencer for 10 years which is a long time to have people's attention and should be used to build something real so when you're telling your children that you were popping you can also tell them what you did with that 10 years, the biggest challenge being that she's an on the spot thinker who never asks what questions will be asked in interviews and doesn't like to write scripts because she works better in the moment looking at products and deciding what will work better but sometimes that doesn't work with some brands who need structure and preparation.

Host: Derrick Abaitey