How to Make Tech Work for You When You Don’t Work in Tech

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Have you ever felt guilty for not knowing how to “pivot to tech”? Well, you’re not alone. 

Somewhere between the high cost of garri and the daily collapse of Nigeria’s power grid, the average Nigerian teacher, tailor, or trader—people in non-tech careers—is now expected to moonlight as a software engineer—pressured to learn tech skills like coding—or risk economic irrelevance.

Welcome to the age of economic Darwinism—tech edition—with survival being for those who know how to schedule a Zoom call and send a PDF, not just the strongest or the fastest.

The truth is, the world isn’t waiting for Nigeria, or anyone to catch up. In 2023 alone, 90% of global businesses engaged in digital transformation projects, with 40% scaling them up significantly. 

However, while 66% of large corporations have a digital strategy, only 49% of small businesses, the backbone of developing economies, have done the same. In Nigeria, where over 33 million MSMEs operate largely informally, this has gone beyond a gap to a canyon.

And still, many believe tech is “not for them.”

Let’s dismiss that.

Who This Is For (And Why You Shouldn’t Scroll Past)

This isn’t a discussion for coders. It’s for:

• The public school teacher surviving on delayed salaries and a broken chalkboard.
• The market woman whose entire accounting system fits in a leather purse.
• The civil servant knee-deep in file cabinets from the Babangida era.
• The young graduate with zero connections and a cracked phone.
• The pastor, plumber, pepper seller, or anyone earning a living in a system that rarely keeps its guarantees.

In other words—you.

If you’ve ever felt that tech belongs to another class of people; younger, richer, more “connected”, then this article is your rebuttal.

What Tech Really Means (It’s Not Coding, It’s Convenience)

Let’s simplify the tech conversation.

Tech isn’t always AI, machine learning, or writing 5,000 lines of Python. Sometimes, it’s using:

• WhatsApp Business to auto-reply when you’re asleep.
• Canva to design a poster without hiring a graphic designer.
• Google Forms to take customer orders or collect event registrations.
• Selar or Gumroad to sell your cooking lessons, hair tutorials, or sermon notes.

Tech is using tools—many of them free—to reduce your workload, increase your income, and gain visibility.

Here’s what it might look like in real life:

If you can use a smartphone, you’re already halfway there.

Real Nigerians, Real Outcomes

Consider Amaka, a home economics teacher in Enugu who couldn’t make ends meet. She began recording short lessons on her phone, uploaded them to YouTube, and linked them to a ₦1,000/month subscription on Selar. Within 6 months, she had 700 subscribers.

Then there’s Chukwudi, a spare parts dealer in Aba. He didn’t build an app. He just started listing his inventory on WhatsApp Business and responding faster. Orders tripled—especially from Lagos mechanics.

This isn’t Silicon Valley. It’s Aba, Yaba, Enugu—and it’s working.

The 5-Step Tech Plan for Non-Tech People

Here’s how to make tech work for you:

1. Audit Your Workflow
   What do you do manually every day that drains time or limits reach? Deliveries, payments, stock records, advertising?
2. Choose 2 Tools
   Not 10. Not 20. Just two that solve your biggest headache. For example:

• For visibility: TikTok or Google Business
• For payments: Paystack or Flutterwave Store
• For admin: Notion or Trello (for organised minds)

3. Learn on Your Own Terms
   YouTube. Free online courses. Watch. Pause. Repeat. You don’t need a four-year degree to send bulk SMS or automate responses.
4. Apply it to a Real Problem
   Don’t just “learn tech” in theory. Use it to solve something today—even if it’s just scheduling customer appointments digitally.
5. Grow Consistently
   Track what’s working. Learn new tools as your needs grow. Upskill if you’re ready, or delegate to someone who can.

The Global Reality (And Why You Should Care)

Let’s take this seriously: AI is projected to impact 40% of global jobs, transforming how work is done and who gets paid. The same algorithms that power ChatGPT now decide which CV gets seen or which bank loan is approved.

However, paradoxically, only 1% of companies consider themselves fully AI-integrated, meaning there’s still time for you to adapt.

Meanwhile, global IT services are growing at twice the rate of the world economy, creating jobs at six times the rate. If Nigeria’s workforce, even outside tech, doesn’t plug in, we’ll not only be spectators to a global revolution; we’ll be casualties.

The Big Picture: Why It’s Not Just About You

When ordinary Nigerians start using tech adequately, something changes:

• Efficiency improves: Less waiting, more doing.
• Income grows: Side hustles become SMEs.
• Opportunities widen: Education, health, and commerce all get better.

Imagine if even 10 million Nigerian workers outside tech adopted just two digital tools. The productivity boom alone could ripple through the economy, reducing friction in everything from school admissions to market deliveries.

It’s Not Too Late, But It Will Be Soon

You don’t need to be in tech to win with tech.
You just need to stop standing on the sidelines.

Be you a shop owner, teacher, photographer or pharmacist, the digital world is already shaping your reality. The thing is: will you shape it back?

This week, pick one tech tool. Learn it. Apply it. Repeat.
And when it works, share it with someone else who thinks “tech isn’t for people like them.”

Because it is.

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