Chief Executive Officer of EIB Network, Nathan Kwabena Anokye Adisi popularly known as Bola Ray has reminisced how he became a subject of mockery when he anticipated becoming the force behind a powerful media house in Ghana.
Speaking at the Under 40 CEOs Forum in Accra Thursday November 16, Bola Ray chronicled how he received the worst of reactions from his own colleagues during his active Radio days after an interview with a print media in 2006 was published.
Narrating the reactions he received after the interview ten years ago, Mr. Adisi said he was tagged as “overly ambitious” when he proclaimed that he wanted to man a media group with about five radio stations and a television station.
“I remember in 2006 when I was interviewed the newspaper called P&P (People and Place) and they asked me, so in the next ten years where do you see yourself? And I said I want to actually head or be a director or a board member of a company that owns five Radio stations and a TV station. And I remember when I went to the newsroom and the newspaper was there some of my colleagues were laughing at me,” he recounted.
He added that, “They said I’m overly ambitious … but I knew and I said that is what I wanted to do. It didn’t take ten years, 2014 it happened. I was waiting for 2016 but it happened in 2014 because you push, you are aggressive, you know what you want and that is what I do with my life.”
He used his experience to encourage young entrepreneurs not to give up when things don’t go their way because God might have other plans for them.
He recalled how he felt dejected when he was refused an Italian Visa to go and work on a tomato farm after his A-levels in 1996.
Bola said at age 18, “I said when I go I will not come back, just be on the streets of Italy and make it and when I was refused a Visa it was one of the days that I cried in my life.”
“When I was refused a Visa, I thought God wasn’t being fair to me, but God knew it and that is the message that I want tell you today that the God-factor is important, never downplay it,” he added encouraging them to stay focused as the “right time will come”.
The Under 40 CEOs Forum came off at the Swiss Spirit Hotel and Suites Alisa in Accra under the theme: ‘Building, Running and Sustaining Business in Ghana’.
The Forum seeks to motivate young Ghanaians to be more involved in contributing to the growth of the nation’s economy and grant them the platform to pitch their business ideas to potential investors.
Under 40 CEOs launched on TVC Entertainment and TVC News on the 9th of October 2016 and subsequently launched on Silverbird Television Network on the 13th of January, 2016 and has spotlighted inspiring young business leaders aged 40 and under from Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa.
Under 40 CEOs recently launched on GHOne TV in Ghana and will be reaching record 15 African countries via Africa Magic on DSTV.
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