A Man, A Plan, A Cyber Café
Sometimes, it’s the small successes that make everything worthwhile. This isn’t a story about a Gates Foundation grant, a fabulous new software project, African tech startup, or a microfinance program designed to serve the needs of thousands. Rather, it’s the story of a single young Cameroonian who through his own grit, determination, talent, discipline and tireless effort made a bright future for himself. His name is Simon, but everyone (and I do mean everyone) in Buea knows him as “Wise Man” now.
Wise Man is just nineteen, and the youngest cyber café owner in Buea, probably the southwest of Cameroon—maybe even the entire country.
Simon was a gangly kid of seventeen when I first met him, back in the tail end of the rainy season of 2006. He lived with his family in a ramshackle house in Sandpit surrounded by avocado, plantain and banana trees. We were practically neighbors, so I saw Simon and his family nearly every day. His father is a retired prison warder and his mother does what many Cameroonian women do, which is cook and care for the extended family living in the house. Simon’s parents, I learned, had invested their modest means in his education and imbued him with a strong sense of morals and responsibility. He struck me right off the bat as an unusually sharp, curious kid.
The job market for young Cameroonians like Simon isn’t the most promising, to say the least. Back then, he found occasional work hauling water to mix cement at construction sites. It was hard going even for a young, able-bodied teenager. The pay was meager at best, and the builders had a habit of postponing payment for his work, often indefinitely.
Simon had a strong interest in computers, so I waived the enrollment fee for the computer training program I’d started at the Teachers’ Resource Centre. He jumped at the opportunity. He sped through the required coursework, took additional classes and earned the first-ever computer training attestation issued by the centre. His thirst for knowledge was something to behold. To this day, he remains my star student—an Outlier in the truest Gladwellian sense.
Attestation in hand, Simon landed a job working at a busy cyber café near the University of Buea. In time, he was managing the place and earning a respectable salary. But he didn’t stop there. No, Simon had his sights set on bigger things: he wanted to take what he’d learned and open his own cyber café.
With a vote of confidence from Hans and myself, Simon was permitted to join a traditional savings group called a njangi which met once a month in a dusty outdoor courtyard. Members included police commissioners, tradesmen, business owners and the like. Simon’s age pegged him as the youngest member by nearly a decade. Even so, he committed a healthy portion of his salary to the pool each month and eventually walked away with 75,000 francs (about $150). This, together with some small personal loans, served as his startup capital.
Many months of hard work later, Simon is now the proud owner of a cyber café called “Master Planner” located on a busy footpath in the heart of Molyko. Since he opened last year, he was forced to abandon his Camtel dial-up connection (too slow and problematic) in favor of WiFi broadband. This required the purchase of an antenna mast (pictured) and networking equipment which he financed in installments. The red and white painted mast is a symbol of achievement that marks his business as a serious venture. Simon couldn’t be happier with it.
Along the way, he’s learned the ropes of owning and operating a small business; keeping books, promoting his café, maintaining equipment, hiring people and often working around the clock. He sleeps stretched out across chairs in his café when he can.
Simon’s also achieved something remarkable that very few Cameroonians his age can claim: he’s created jobs. Master Planner’s generates enough revenue to pay a very livable monthly salary of 30,000 francs (about $60) for someone to fill his shoes as cyber café manager. Simon also engages local hardware technicians, software consultants, network engineers, painters, builders, carpenters, laborers and other tradesmen for contract work.
Recently, Simon donned a suit and was asked to speak at an event focused on entrepreneurship at the University of Buea. Assembled in the amphitheater were the top 5% of students drawn from the business, finance and banking departments along with professors and dignitaries from Yaoundé. Simon ran a PowerPoint presentation and told his story to a rapt audience of academic elites about how he became a successful entrepreneur, against all odds. Today, they seek him out for business advice.
Not too shabby for a young kid from Sandpit. Wise Man, indeed.
Update: If you were inspired by Simon’s story, why not drop him a note saying so? He’d love to hear your feedback: masterplanner01@gmail.com
(Pause) (Cameroonian self now speaking) Dis one, oh, na wah! (One clap of hands) I wash hand. Sometime, oh, he fit be ma massa for Buea. Time way I reach Molyko, I go dasso kam shidon for he cyba cafe. I beg, oh. Jos lef am so. :)
To Simon: Whe-eh, brother, you’ve gone far. Is not a small thing, oh. Congrats. Take care. Stay in the “wiseness” always.
No doubt he will inspire dozens of others along the way.
You should also be proud of the part you played in his success.
When is he opening his next Cafe? :O)
Kudos, too, for the work you do with your NGO, which you talk about in this very important and inspiring blog post, really one of my favorites of all the posts you’ve written:
http://www.27months.com/index.php?s=human+terms
I think people outside Cameroon who have been following your blog will understand that everything successful is a journey of many difficult steps—sometimes carefully chosen, often ardently taken. A journey for you, too, and not just for those whose lives you touch. :)
@BB, I’ll forward your Pidgin to Simon. I’m sure he’ll appreciate it. The kid is quite a catch, you might have to hurry before he gets taken by a UB girl. :)
@Sean Murphy, here’s hoping. He’s definitely on the right track.
@Steve, incredible steps to be sure. The truth is I played only a very small part- showed him the door, as it were. Simon did the rest. Re: next cafe, he’s got excess bandwidth (hard to believe in Cameroon, right?) so he’s already reselling it to an upscale private residence nearby. That was his idea. ;)
Sorry, I mean Wise Man…
My student dat!
Simon deserves all the attention- it’s not often a story like his comes along. Although, as @agvelarde correctly pointed out, there’s people like Simon all over Cameroon, waiting for their stories to be told.
@Heather, yes- I already told him you and Joe were visiting in April, he can’t wait to see you guys again. Same goes for me.
@Joe, he hasn’t forgotten your Photoshop class, believe me!
@Dibussi, what can I say? You’re the man.
Thanks for picking up Simon’s story. I hope you don’t mind if I print a copy and give it to him.
I can point to Dr. Henry Walker, who freely donated a dozen copies of his wonderful book “Tao of Computing”, one of which ended up in Simon’s hands. There’s Joe Talbot, who taught Simon Photoshop, and his wife Heather who paid his course fees. After he finished Joe’s class, Hans Maya looked after Simon and acted as his advocate when he wanted to join the njangi. Countless friends and relatives encouraged his business idea with small loans, labor and advice. Dr. Mamouda seized upon Simon’s example and invited him to speak on entrepreneurship at UB. A UB student in accounting who was among the hundreds who saw his presentation offered to help out with his bookkeeping. On and on.
Sheesh…someone should tell Malcolm Gladwell. :)
***
Letter to a man in Molyko:
Simon, What is this I hear about you stretching your legs across hard chairs in order to sleep at night? You want make I vex wit you? I know that business is important, but you need to be taking care of yourself. As you are branching into great things, remember that you need to stay healthy and strong. Don’t work round the clock. Take a small break when you can. I hear that UB girls have eyes for you. Those UB girls, eh, they have skills, oh. Skills until! So put your money in a secure bank and keep your “wiseness” with you at all times. No rush. You know what they say about a successful man, right? He has a good woman by his side. If you find a UB girl, make sure she has a solid education, a good heart, and her own goals. Wish you the best. -BB
Once more the Cameroonians will be really proud of u and ur Good work may God continuous Bless u….
Hey Man 4 true u are really a WISE MAN FROM ABOVE EVEN THE WAY U TALK is a great deal to dose that knows u.
May God Almighty in His Grace continue to guide u,inspire u and sustain u and man 1 last thing u get to know that u are a blessing to the society……. We Love U all.
Hey! am very grateful to all your comments and all your efforts to see me stand on my feet and to see me go trough the right part, for with this it gives the Cameroonians a great side of view to show that the are also capable to do so many great things by them selves.
And I just want to used to great opportunity to thank the man, and only one I mean no other man! a man who has been more than a brother to me, more than a friend, more than some one u cares, that’s, some one sent from above! no other man than Bill Zimmerman he has been in nearly every bit of thing concerning my success in life I do not know how much I can take to thank him he gives me too much of good surprise so then I want used this great opportunity to say to him I promise to do my best no matter what!
Truly to survive in this our Country Cameroon is not an easy task, as Bill has earlier mentioned! It wasn’t an easy task for me.
I have gone trough hills and valleys I have seen things and have made things happened, normally nineteen years in other country is normal for people to do great things but here in our own country there expect to see u at the age of 20 and above before being somebody in the society, but we the young entrepreneur have come to change things and yes WE CAN!!! But what you need to have in mine is faith, determination, focus, concentration and patience, for the determination of today leads to success tomorrow.
Pls permit me talk to Bill Zimmerman again on the behalf of Master Planner Cyber Café.
Once more it is with immense joy that i express my heartfelt gratitude to you for your contributions directly or indirectly towards the development of MASTER PLANNER CYBER CAFÉ .As I enroll into season 2009 of life, I am looking forward to the challenges i shall face .to do what i did, relied on your support .Thus, to do what I must to forge ahead, I shall need your assistance and believe me, together we shall create positive change in Buea, Cameroon and the world at large. Without lost of generalities I am going in advance thank those coming up with support directly, indirectly or comments which are going to increase platform.
And permit me ask of something who is this man Bill Zimmerman u are rely talking about the were u sound is as if u and him are more than brother’s Friends, for in normal circumstance many people will like keep things within them selves, but what u just did u have just shown that u are the true son of your father Jesus Christ because that’s the same example of Jesus he talks about his father all the time and the father is proud of his son that’s just what that has happened to u…….
Zman (permit me call you that). Thanks for bringing this and everything else to light. Stay consistent and keep us in the loop.
there is more ground to cover, so buckle up and get ready for the ride.
Great story!
We should work together sometime..
Thanks for this word of encorragement and to all of you too.
Take care! love you and God love you most.
But one thing 4 sure, i know what he’s capable of, he’s a great man, in fact a Great Hero has been Born unto this our generation.
The last thing he told me was watch Me.