Backkkkkk!!!!!!

I opened the blog recently and loved the memories it rekindled so I decided to go for another post! I plan to keep going. 

So, what's popping?! Today is the 6th anniversary of working in America and I still have corporate culture shock in the US. Navigating the landscape has been difficult and slow, this snail speed stunted my career growth. 

I worked in Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) in Nigeria for three years before I moved to the US. The Commercial Banking industry in Nigeria is an assault on human dignity. Verbal abuse is rife, and physical abuse, though not common, would not be frowned at. I have so many "can you believe this happened at work" stories. I remember watching an employee get carried out of the building because she had fainted at work from the stress. Once, in 2014, I had to resume an hour early for days, because we were ordered to find a report from 2007 in a stack of poorly organized files. The bank did not use e-Filing systems. Nobody complained though! We all considered it part of a normal banking career. Turnover was more financially motivated than culturally motivated. 

Fast-forward to 2025, I have worked with two global companies, and the experience is so similar, different and weird! One time, I found myself missing my time at GTB!

Similarities - People are the same generally - nice and helpful ones, confident ones, stupid ones, smart ones, those that will do anything to get to the top and those that believe their calling is to make your life miserable. 

What's different? People complain actively! I remember this co-worker throwing "F" bombs about what his manager had said in a meeting. Said manager was behind him! People complain - in the open. Second, office gossip was a bit different. In Nigeria, my experience with it was about - IT girls at work and assumptions about their sex lives and the sexual relationships between managers and employees for promotion. In the US, it was more around structural office politics and leaders who did not deserve to be leaders. The most significant difference to me was how much I had to nurture my career. Be in charge and in care of myself, and advocate for myself because I realized no one was going to. As a matter of fact, you are considered you an OP, and they want you out of the way! They will scheme, teach you nonsense, report you for being stupid and set you to fail! It's like you are in a Mortal Kombat game! I felt many nasty feelings in corporate Nigeria but never felt that I was someone's OP at work! 

I gave this a good thought and have come up with a game plan. In Nigeria, this attitude was very common with husband snatchers**. This attitude is full of confidence, puts up their best personality, talks a big game and looks good. Marry them and you'll find out that they are just full of nothings - just like those co-workers. Most Nigerians are familiar with the work of a husband snatcher. If I ever need to encourage another Nigerian immigrant facing a hard time at work, this is going to be my go-to reference. Act like a husband snatcher!  

*OP - Opposition, heard this term in an episode of "I said What I said" (ISWIS) podcast 

**Husband snatchers - women who actively date married men and scheme to have them divorce their wives