INSPIRATIONS FROM MR TUNDE LEMO,
A BANK MOGUL (PART 2)

Shall we continue to learn from the vast business experience of Mr Tunde Lemo, a banker and philanthropist who rose to becoming the Managing Director of Wema Bank Plc until he was pulled over to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as a financial regulator.

Lesson 4: Health
When you lose your health, nothing else makes sense; everything else you have acquired loses meaning. Your attention would be on how to regain your health, and you are willing to sell everything to be healthy. He tries as much as possible to exercise. At a point, he stopped exercising when he joined the CBN because of the rigour of work. He almost paid dearly for that, as he suffered a health condition that almost kept him indoors if not for God’s timely intervention. He has learnt to check his blood pressure on a daily basis. He also changed his diet alongside his daily routine of exercise. When you get to middle age, you must adopt lifestyle changes. Again, your heart must be free: don’t bear grudges. Bitterness destroys your biological system. Don’t be jealous. The race of life is not a 100- metre dash. It is a marathon.

Lesson 5: Marriage
Pray to God to give you your own spouse. The first thing I am grateful for is that God gave me a wife who shares the same faith, views and values with me. Your wife must be your best friend. And from day one, you must make up your mind that your marriage is going to work. You cannot marry a perfect human being. Nobody is completely useless and nobody is 100 per cent perfect. As a man and head of the home, you need to show some leadership qualities. Most women will love you if they know you are committed, and if they know you love them. They begin to act up if they realise that you are not committed. When it comes to discipline of the children, you should both speak with one voice.

Lesson 7: Attitude
“You can turn a setback into an advantage”, he said. There is a way in which the environment you grow may create some obstacles for you. “I had to work as a young teacher in a private school. That was the first distraction I had. I did not start with good grades in my early years in school. But when I realized that I was not disadvantaged in any way, I woke up one day and reasoned that I had to re-write the script of my life. That paid off. I rewrote my School Certificate exams, and I made Division One. I also finished my University degree with a First Class Honours. That also propelled me to put in my very best from the start of my career till I left the CBN after completing my three-year term.”
BEST ADVICE: One from his late boss, Dr. Rufus Giwa: He said, “When you are humble, people are willing to overlook your mistakes”. The second advice was
from Chief Joseph Sanusi who told him, “Young man, be truthful; falsehood may appear to be holding sway, but it cannot run for too long.”
Dr. Lekan Are also taught him that everyone cannot like you even when you are doing good, but remain consistent and continue to do good whether people appreciate you or not.
To be continued in the next quarter…