Steve Harris began his professional training as an Industrial Mathematician at the University of Benin, but he didn't complete it. Today, he is the head of the Consulting Group and Lead Facilitator at Visible Impact, a social enterprise set up up tackle social and environmental challenges and limitations with the aim to build people into super achievers and responsible leaders, build corporate organizations into global market leaders and responsible corporate citizens, as well as government in developing blueprints and programs that create a desirable environment for their people to do great things.
Steve is also one of Nigeria's sought after motivational speaker. He spoke to dgistcacter about his passion and what keeps him going against all odds.
1. How was growing up like
for you?
Growing up for me was a lot of
fun and excitement. I had a
pretty diverse upbringing in
interesting parts of the world
and Nigeria as well. I came
from a middle class
background, we weren’t
wealthy, but my parents gave
the best they could with their
resources, education being the
most important legacy. Though
my parents restricted our
interaction with other children,
we were raised to love books
and instilled in us, courtesy and
respect for others.
2. Tell us about your university
days.
I gained admission to study
Industrial Mathematics at the
University of Benin. Studying
Mathematics, in retrospect, was
a huge mistake as I ’ve always
hated figures and calculations.
I had my moments, as I guess
every college kid did, made
some mistakes, learned from
them and have no regrets. I
guess the most memorable
point of being in the University
of Benin was getting kicked
out of school in my
penultimate year. That was a
turning point in my life.
3. How and when did you meet
Fela Durotoye?
I met FD in 2005, after getting
kicked out of school. I ’d
stopped by church on a
Wednesday service (not
something I ’d do then) and
heard there was a guest
speaker coming; Fela Durotoye.
I initially disregarded the
speaker, thought that if you ’d
heard one, you’d heard them
all. But there was something
different about this guy, he
spoke from his heart, and he
spoke with great passion and
conviction. During his session, I
heard God say to me “This is
what I created you to do and
You would be a fool to let this
man go and not sow into his
anointing ”. I was initially
stubborn, because I was broke,
so I felt that God didn ’t notice
my financial condition. But as
I ’ve come to learn, it’s not what
you don’t have that limits you,
it’s what you have, but don’t
know how to use. So I pulled
off my wristwatch, waited after
the service and sowed it to
him, he prayed and prophesied
to me, and the rest, they say, is
history.
4. Tell us, how did the
consulting thing start for you?
Well, it’s a long story. You gotta
wait for my book to come out
in the first quarter of 2011. But
the executive summary is that
because I was a “college
dropout”, I wasn’t qualified to
be a consultant, so I was hired
as an intern/office assistant.
But because I was hungry to
better myself, I ’d sit in and
learn from our consultants
who were gracious enough to
mentor me and let ’s just say
I’m a fast learner!
5. Who is Steve Harris?
SteveHARRIS is just an ordinary
guy that has been privileged to
have an extraordinary
testimony. I believe that my life
epitomizes possibilities. I live
by the idea that “it’s not what
you don’t have that limits you,
but it’s what you have, but
don’t know how to use!” I’m
an unashamed Jesus lover (He’s
brought me from a “mighty
long ways and set my feet on
the rock to stay ”. I’m a
Management Consultant,
motivational speaker and
certified life coach.
6. Are you married? Tell us
about your family.
Yep! I’m married to my best
friend, my girlfriend, the
hottest chic ever! Her name’s
Imma and she’s my Owerri
Princess and my Nubian Queen.
She saw the KING in me even
when I didn ’t and she took a
chance on me and now, it’s
paid off to God’s glory.
7. What are your
developmental habits?
I read biographies and listen to
a lot of inspirational messages
from Reverend Sam Adeyemi,
Paul Adefarasin and other
accomplished speakers.
8. Do you have mentors? And
who are they?
I love to learn from people who
both inspire and intimidate me.
I have FD, Tonye Cole (CEO,
Sahara Energy) and Pastor Paul
Adefarasin as my mentors.
They have a total balance of
success in marriage, ministry
and business.
9. Advice for the youth.
Don’t let nobody tell you
different. “It’s not what you
don’t have that limits you, but
it’s what you have, but don’t
know how to use!” You’ve
gotta take responsibility for
your own life, nobody will
value you more than you value
yourself! They say “time and
chance happen to us all”, but I
say, you can’t afford to leave
your time to chance!
10. What does success mean to
you?
I don’t pursue success. I
deliberately pursue
significance (making a positive
difference in the lives of
everyone I come in contact
with), and as a result, success
follows naturally. The truth is,
not all successful people are
significant, but most significant
people are successful.
---Interview by Yinka' Falola
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