Youths have been urged to prioritize purpose over financial wealth as they strive to build lasting legacies and achieve personal excellence. This message resonated at the Socially Speaking Conference, themed “Mastering the Art of Personal Excellence,” which drew youth mentors, speakers, and young participants from across Lagos.
Hosted by Ms Wealth Gbenga-Igbafen, the conference featured multi-session workshops on personal hygiene, networking, discipline, spiritual growth, and career development with some of the speakers taking turns to highlight important factors that define personal excellence.
Addressing participants on the need to seek purpose-driven lives, Ms Gbenga-Igbafen; “Excellence is not about you being a CEO or being the world’s richest person. You can have one billion naira and not be a success. So it has nothing to do with your money, because you can get money through any money through any means. So, it’s basically being the best version of you, being the best you. Not living a life lesser than you could have lived, you know, living an excellent life. You just being where God wants you to be. That is when you are truly a success,” She said.
She also urged youths to prioritise spiritual growth as a key driver of excellence, highlighting the role of faith and discipline in achieving personal transformation.
Ms Gbenga-Igbafen added, “It is through God you can actually know your purpose. You can’t create a purpose for yourself. You have to meet the maker to know what your purpose is, because he made you so he’s the only one that will know what He created you for.”
Adding his voice to the conversation, a guest speaker, Boluwaduro Okunade stressed the importance of values such as hard work, godliness, and direction in the pursuit of wealth. He warned that wealth acquired without these values could lead to destruction.
He explained that “when money gets into a person’s life in a heavy amount, without the person having a sense of direction, money begins to give that person its own sense of direction and more often than not, that doesn’t lead to a good place.”
Another key speaker, Pastor Mercy Oyakhilome shifted the spotlight to the “little things” often ignored in the pursuit of excellence.
She stressed the importance of intentionally striving for excellence in every area including; good personal hygiene, etiquette, and small, everyday habits that shape character and influence success.
“Excellence begins with the small details we often overlook — how you dress, how you greet others, and how you maintain cleanliness, what you say and what you listen to” she said. “If you can master these small disciplines, bigger opportunities will follow.”
Beyond motivational talks, the conference featured insightful sessions led by renowned guest speakers like Pastor Enoch Boamah from Ghana and Pastor Segun Adebayo.
Health and wellness were also highlighted, with one of the panelists, Miracle Odili explaining how nutrition and physical wellness play a crucial role in personal development.
One of the most memorable moments of the event was the networking session, where participants exchanged contacts and forged new connections.
Several attendees shared their reflections on the event, with many describing it as a life-changing experience.
The session climaxed with a lucky draw, which saw four lucky participants walk away with cash prizes of ₦50,000 each.
