I turned down $150k bonus because I couldn’t comprise on my values – MTN CEO

He's in a better place today but certainly did not have it easy, he had to make some pretty tough decisions; turning his back on some 'juicy' offers and giving up his job at a point, so his integrity could be kept intact, Chief Executive Officer of MTN Ghana, Selorm Adadevoh has revealed.

Motivating participants with his life story at the 2019 SpringBoard Convocation in Accra, Mr. Adadevoh noted how he had to among other things, turn down a $150,000 bonus offer because he wanted to uphold his integrity and preserve his decency.

“Last year, I walked away from $150,000 bonus because what I had to do did not align to my value. I quit my job in Haiti because I couldn’t take that money from anyone. It did not align to my value, no alternative”.

Recounting the number of times he has had to miss on chances to become a millionaire or a more successful person in life, he said

“Integrity is the value that made me quit my job. There was a cost to it and that wasn’t my first time. It happened three times in my life where I walked away from becoming a millionaire or something else but because of my values, I stayed broke and today, I’m the happiest person in the world because, I have no weight”.

The MTN CEO was emphatic about values and their roles in people's lives. Though challenges which will question one's values are unavoidable, it is important that one is disciplined enough to take bold decisions and uphold their principles.

“success without value is not success, and if you really want to make it in life, you need your values to be what defines what your limit”.

Whilst admitting that the youth are energetic and corruptible, he urged them to fine-tune themselves and stick to their core values to be better people in future without any “weight” on their shoulders.