How My Boss Reacted When I Told Him I Was Leaving Office to Become an Actress - Somkele Idhalama

There are a lot of talented people in this world, and many of these talented people dream of leaving their corporate workplace to go into the entertainment industry, but are 1) either too afraid to, or 2) don't know how. This is what happened to Nollywood actress Somkele Iyamah-Idhalama and now she's talking about how she did it, her unique experience with it, and advice she would give to somebody who wants to do same. Here's what Somkele Iyamah-Idhalama had to say about leaving her corporate world to go into acting, and how her boss reacted.

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During her interview with The New Telegraph, Somkele Iyamah-Idhalama was asked "You were once in the corporate world and spoke lovingly about your boss being an understanding person. What would be your counsel to aspiring actors who are currently in another profession but yearn to embrace the film industry knowing that they may not have the kind of boss you had?" Somkele said:

I will not sit here and ask anyone to make some self-proclaiming speech to their superiors about wanting to chase their dream. You just may end up being fired. Mr. Jim Ovia is a man I will always respect and pray for God to always have an open ear to his prayers. People like him are not many. You also have to understand that your job is also part of someone else’s dream and as human beings we want to know that we are getting value for our expenditures.

I will tell you that no matter what you do, there is a time for everything under the sun. There is a time to ensure that all the work you are required to do at an office desk is done and no one can fault you while there is also that lunch break you will use to run for a quick audition or after work. In all your efforts, crown it with prayer for the required discipline and favour.

Favour could come with a co-worker who will cover for you when you need it the most or the boss randomly giving you the day off. Whatever opportunity you get, use it wisely. Be ready to work at very odd hours. There were several times when I did not go home for weeks because I went from set to set for work.

Wow, it's very rare that you find such understanding bosses, especially here in this Nigeria. The advice Somkele gave is really solid advice though. As long as your workload is actually taken care of and you have done what is expected of you, the rest of your time (lunch break, after work hours) is up to you and you can run both as long as you have favor and that good work etiquette. But whoa! It still cannot be easy trying to juggle the two, and many bosses will either laugh or scoff at employees who say they want to leave the corporate life to become actors.

What do you think about this? How would you advice people break the news to their boss if they found themselves in this situation? What do you think of what Somkele said? Let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment either below or on my Jide Okonjo Facebook post.

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