Found My Place in Business by Temitayo

Found My Place in Business by Temitayo - January 2026 Scholarship Essay

The goal of an entrepreneur is to “Create value by building a successful business that solves a problem or meets a need for customers.” When I discovered the mission of an entrepreneur, it heavily resonated with me. From an early age, I grew familiar with being of help to those who are in my life and hoping my advances to support others would be impactful. I learnt that quickly when my parents sent me to Nigeria because my brother was alone there. Me being sent to Nigeria was not a consequence of my own actions. My brother was sent to Nigeria due to his bad behavior, and I was sent to keep him company.

When I reunited with my mother after 3 years,she would teach me the role of a woman and how my job as a woman is to support my house. I never resonated with her idea of what it meant to “support.” To me, it sounded like a list of ways to belittle her value as a woman, wife, and as a mother. Her list consisted of ways to diligently cook and clean. She is more than just a woman who is diligent with her chores. I'm not against taking on the responsibility of keeping my household clean and putting food on my family's table, but I am against that being where my value lies. I have so much more to offer than food and a sparkling counter. I’m against the degrading connotations that came with her idea of a woman. I grew up watching her follow her list of dos and don'ts. She was diligent in fulfilling her idea of a wife, yet my dad still didn't give her the love she deserved. He would degrade her in front of the family they built together. He would disrespect her and yet he would still come home to a clean house with dinner.

May of 2023, my mom broke the news to me and my brothers that my parents will be getting divorced. Weirdly, my heart was relieved to hear that. I knew this meant my mom would now finally be free, and in freeing herself meant freedom for my brothers and I. Once the serious tone of the conversation died down, I showed her a video I saved of a single mother with two sons and a daughter surprising her kids with their new house. I saved this video before I was aware that my parents were getting divorced. I was intrigued that the woman in the video had the exact amount of children my mom has and that the children shared the same order in which we were born. After three months of my mother being homeless, she bought a house that me and my brothers now live in. She inspires me to live outside constraints of society. My mom was looked down upon for leaving her marriage, but she proved that regardless of the circumstance she will do what it takes to make sure her and her family are safe and living comfortably. My mom inspired me to become an entrepreneur that never gives up and continues to fail forward until my desired result is accomplished. Until those who I desire to help can say “due to the work and sacrifices put into this product my quality of life has improved.” I can proudly say that due to my mothers hard work and sacrifices, my brothers and I live in a better world.

A hands-on experience that secured my passion for business was in junior year. I was enrolled in an off-campus entrepreneurship class. Through that class, I was given the opportunity to come up with a business idea with a couple students, and after some months, we would go out and sell our product. My team decided to give back and donate some of our revenue to the RAINN organization. RAINN is the nation’s largest victim support organization. RAINN is a national sexual assault hotline for those in abusive situations in need of help. Our business name is Scents Not Scars. We provide products that are soothing remedies to all. On our pitch day, we shared our story, and one of the judges began to weep and thank us for creating something like this. She felt touched by our goal to give back and shared her own testimony of how she was once in an abusive situation. Once I saw the evidence of our mission helping those who were abused feel seen, I knew this was something I wanted to do forever. Not only was it emotionally rewarding, it was also financially fulfilling. On our pop up day, our group's revenue exceeded the usual amount that groups would get during this pop up event held by entrepreneurship students. We set a new record for future students that would be involved in this program. Usually, students make at most $200-300 but our group of three students was able to acclimate more than $1,000 dollars in revenue. I am forever grateful for such an opportunity.

I will be an entrepreneur that gives hope and a new perspective to life. I want to show the world that no matter your circumstance, you matter. I don’t have much to be proud of materialistically, but I have a story and a goal, and being an entrepreneur gives me the platform to help and create.