Dear Subscriber,
Find your feet and put them down!
In the professional world, dealing with strong personalities can often be challenging and at times intimidating. This could make one believe it is more discerning to lower your profile than fully express yourself and be assertive. While there is a thin line between aggressiveness and assertiveness, Edith Eva Eger, a renowned psychologist, brilliantly distinguishes between these two in her famous quote, “To be passive is to let others decide for you. To be aggressive is to decide for others. To be assertive is to decide for yourself. And to trust that there is enough, that you are enough.” In the lifestyle section of this Unity Bank digest, we explore a variety of helpful tips to enhance your assertiveness at work, along with the advantages it brings.
Businesses are caught in the turmoil
Businesses in Nigeria are facing multiple economic shocks to their operations and profitability. From forex scarcity to rising input costs, higher debt service burden and slowing consumer demand, the impact on businesses remains debilitating. Many businesses are beginning to halt operations or lay off staff. For instance, GlaxoSmithKline Nigeria, a distributor of pharmaceutical products, ceased operation due to supply constraints and the impact of recent policy decisions.
In July, inflation climbed higher by a whopping 1.29% to 24.08% mainly driven by higher food and diesel prices. But there could be some respite as the FG says there’ll be no further hike in petrol prices, which has climbed by 234% to ₦617/litre since the subsidy reduction. Moreso, the NNPCL has secured a $3 billion emergency crude repayment loan to stabilize the naira. As a result, the naira has appreciated in a few days to ₦860/$ from a low of ₦950/$, while the official rate is stable at ₦799.50/$-₦799.90/$.
In this edition of the Unity Bank Digest, we analyze the impact of these economic issues on individuals and consumers, but we are also spicing the challenges with lifestyle and entertainment stories, for your reading pleasure.
Please enjoy your read!
