VEXED INTHE CITY:It’s all about the Benjamins

Sean John Combs aka Diddy was referring to money when he sang ‘It’s all about the Benjamins, baby’ back in 1996; ‘Benjamins’ being slang for hundred dollar bills, because the likeness of former US President Benjamin Franklin appears on the hundred dollar bill.

I on the other hand am referring to people like Benjamin, the hardworking, dependable young man who drives me and runs errands so efficiently that my friends refer to him as my Personal Assistant. My family no longer views him as a driver; he is an honorary member of the family and valued aide. When I started writing for NEXT he became my muse, inspiring and contributing to several articles.

Benjamin - or Benj as I call him, not Ben, never Benjy - started work with my family when he was 26 years old. At the time I thought he was too young to be responsible but thought I’d give him a try while I looked out for a more mature ‘family man’ to ferry me about. I’ve now learnt the lesson behind the saying ‘never judge a book by its cover’, because Benjamin is one exceptional young man.

He has shown up to work on time nearly every day for four years, calling to let me know on the few occasions when he wouldn’t be on time. Yes he does have his flaws and he has undergone a lot of ‘training’ but overall Benjamin displays the attitude that every employer values- he is enthusiastic and eager to learn, takes feedback and is generally good natured.

I was keen to know what drives his behaviour so I brought it up one morning on our way to work. First I told him that my family and I had noticed his self-discipline and how he tirelessly supports his family. “Why do you behave the way you do?” I asked. He was confused so I rephrased my question. “You behave a certain way because you think a certain way; what is on your mind when you are sitting there with all the other drivers, but you are so quiet?”

That was the starting point for the lessons I learnt from Benjamin, which I think are worth sharing. With all due respect to Simon Covey and all trademark and copyrights, here are the Seven Habits of One Highly Effective Benjamin.

Habit 1: he listens far more than he speaks. “I only talk when I have something important to say” Benjamin replied. “Some people, if a fly passes they will talk about it. I rather listen more to understand the type of people I am talking to.” “Why?” I asked. “Because I want to find out whether I should separate myself from them” he replied. That brought me to my next question: “Why do you want to separate yourself from people?”

Habit 2: he minds the company he keeps. I wanted to know why Benj keeps to himself. “If they are trouble, I will separate myself from them and sit on the other side.” It seemed a rather silly question to ask but I thought I’d ask it anyway: “Why do you want to separate yourself from trouble, have you ever been in trouble, why do you fear trouble?” “I don’t get myself involved in bad things because I respect my name.” I thought that was odd, considering he’s not from a family with a well known name to protect, so I probed further. “What name do you respect, your first name or your father’s name?” Benjamin explained that his Igbo name means ‘there’s no one like God’ and that he respects that name. I can’t say I understand the logic but it makes good sense to Benj.

Habit 3: he is disciplined with his money. Benjamin nearly never has any money on him. I used to find it annoying whenever I turned to him for a quick loan, say two hundred naira for parking or one thousand naira for airtime. He pinched pennies and would walk if that would save him transport fare. My mum and I agreed that he was the stingiest man on the planet. He laughed when I told him that, during our discussion on his behaviour. “Many people say that I am stingy, but every year I set a target for my money. If I carry money I will spend it. I don’t have ATM card because even at midnight you can withdraw. People who talk about big money can’t save because they don’t consider small money.” I asked him what his wife thinks about his stingy ways. He said she’s just like him, and told me a hilarious story about how he decided she was ‘The One’.

“After me and her have known ourselves for some time I asked her if she has a bank account, she say yes. I asked her how much she has inside, she say why am I asking her. She eventually told me and when I calculated it I saw that for somebody who has worked for only seven months she has saved a lot. I like that.”

To be concluded next week.