The Phone Call That Changed My Life: Lessons in Leadership from Yushau A. Shuaib
By Ozumi Abdul
Some moments change the course of a life so quietly that you only appreciate their significance years later.
For me, that moment came on April 28, 2022.
It was Ramadan, just four days before Eid-el-Fitr. I was exhausted, frustrated and struggling to provide for my young family. Barely two years earlier, my wife and I had relocated from Lagos to Kano, hoping to build a new life. Instead, we found ourselves in unfamiliar surroundings, with no relatives, no support system and very little knowledge of the Hausa language that shaped everyday interactions in the city.
Like the wandering figure in Syl Cheney-Coker’s poetry, we drifted through uncertainty, searching for stability in a place where everything felt unfamiliar. Every day brought fresh worries, and every morning raised the same question: How would we survive?
I remained devoted to journalism, a profession I genuinely loved. I had established an online news platform, Nigerian Trumpet, where I wrote, edited and published stories with the hope that passion would eventually become livelihood.
It did not.
The platform earned respect but not enough income to sustain a young family. Passion, I discovered, does not always pay the bills.
That afternoon, while searching Facebook for story ideas, I came across PRNigeria, a platform I had long admired for its authoritative security reporting. I had often relied on its reports, always giving proper attribution, but never imagined it would one day alter my own story.
Something prompted me to search for the organisation’s contact details.
I found a phone number.
I dialled.
I had no influential sponsor. No recommendation. No connections. Just hope.
The voice that answered immediately surprised me.
It was warm, humble and welcoming.
“Good afternoon, Siiiir,” the voice said cheerfully.
“Is this PRNigeria?” I asked.
“Yeses, sir!”
Only later did I fully appreciate that I was speaking with Alhaji Yushau A. Shuaib, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of PRNigeria.
Instead of dismissing a stranger looking for employment, he patiently asked about my education, professional experience and journalism background. He wanted to know where I lived.
When I told him I was in Kano, he responded almost regretfully.
“Oh, we have an office in Kano. In fact, we just concluded an investigative journalism training there a few weeks ago. I wish you had called earlier.”
Those words carried something I desperately needed at the time—possibility.
Before ending the conversation, he asked for my byline. Unknown to me, he was probably searching for my published work while we were still on the phone.
The conversation ended.
Life returned to uncertainty.
Then, two days later, my phone rang again.
This time, it was not another conversation.
It was an assignment.
Alhaji Yushau sent me a story to edit. I completed it and returned it promptly. Later that same day came another assignment, which I also finished. Looking back today, those editing exercises were more than simple tests of competence. They were opportunities to demonstrate commitment, discipline and professionalism.
A few weeks later, he called again.
“My appointment letter is ready.”
That sentence changed my life.
There was no prolonged recruitment process. No endless waiting. No lobbying. No influential person speaking on my behalf.
Someone simply gave me an opportunity to prove myself.
I still remember the excitement that evening. My shout of joy startled my wife from her afternoon rest. For months, we had wondered how we would continue to survive.
One phone call had changed everything.
But employment was only the beginning.
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At Image Merchants Promotion Limited (IMPR), Alhaji Yushau continually expanded my responsibilities. I served as a political correspondent, later moved into fact-checking as a senior fact-checker, contributed to entertainment reporting and eventually became Editor of Arewa Agenda, focusing on issues affecting Northern Nigeria.
Each assignment stretched my capacity.
Each responsibility deepened my confidence.
He never simply employed people and abandoned them. He challenged them to grow.
When the manager of IMPR’s Kano office resigned, I was entrusted with leading the branch in an acting capacity. Although I repeatedly declined appointment as substantive manager because I believed my limited Hausa language skills would constrain effective leadership, the confidence he placed in me taught another important lesson.
Leadership is not merely about identifying strengths.
It is also about recognising limitations without diminishing people’s value.
Alhaji Yushau understands this remarkably well.
He sees possibilities where others often see deficiencies. Rather than expecting everyone to excel in every area, he identifies where individuals can contribute most effectively and creates opportunities for them to flourish.
That philosophy extends beyond individual employment.
The PRNigeria Young Communication Fellowship is perhaps its clearest institutional expression. Through the Fellowship, young communicators in Abuja, Kano and Ilorin have received practical training, mentorship and professional exposure that many would otherwise struggle to obtain.
Mentorship, after all, is not measured by motivational speeches.
It is measured by lives transformed.
Looking back, I often reflect on another statement that has stayed with me. During a conversation, Hajiya Zainab Okino, Publisher of Verity News and Vice Chairperson of Blueprint Newspapers, remarked, “There is something for everyone in Abuja.”
Whenever I remember those words, I think of Alhaji Yushau.
His approach reflects the same belief.
Everyone has value.
Everyone possesses potential.
The task of leadership is to discover where that potential can flourish.
That is why I have never been surprised by the descriptions people use for him. Some call him “a man who can squeeze water from a rock.” Others describe him as “a man of many ideas” or “a man of letters.”
All those descriptions have merit.
Yet none captures him quite as accurately as this:
He is a builder of people.
I have also watched him navigate the difficult chapter surrounding his interrupted academic journey at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru. Whatever history eventually records about that episode, I remain convinced that no title or post-nominal can fully define a person’s contribution to society.
Professional honours are valuable.
Academic distinctions deserve respect.
But there is another form of recognition that no institution can confer.
It is earned in the lives of those who become better because someone believed in them before they believed in themselves.
It lives in the journalist who can now provide for his family because someone opened a door.
It lives in the young reporter who learned to investigate fearlessly because someone invested time in teaching him.
It lives in every communication professional who discovered confidence because someone chose encouragement over rejection.
That is the kind of legacy that outlives certificates, titles and awards.
As I look back on that phone call in April 2022, I realise it was never simply about getting a job.
It was about encountering a leader who understood that sometimes all a struggling young professional needs is one opportunity.
I remain grateful that I made that call.
Even more grateful that Alhaji Yushau answered it.
As he marks another birthday, I pray that Almighty Allah continues to bless him with good health, wisdom, strength and many more years of impactful service.
Barka da ranar haihuwa, Alhaji. Allah Ya kara lafiya, tsawon rai mai albarka, hikima da nasara.
Happy birthday to a true leader of men.
Ozumi Abdul is a journalist, writer and strategic communication expert. He can be reached via [email protected].
