Simulating Bravery— My LMUN 2024 Experience
You can’t call it bravery if you’re not a little bit scared. And it’s certainly not courage if you’re certain about how it will all turn out.
Some time ago, I tagged 2024 as my year of bravery. the Lagos Model United Nations’ 8th conference couldn’t have come at a better time.
In the years prior, I was a Media & Communications staff member under Godspower Nwaneri and Benita Riagbayire’s leadership. With their guidance and support, I made more pieces of content than I could count and talked about LMUN more than most things. On 16th July, 2023, they handing over the sacred titles of Under Secretary-General 1, Media & Communications, to Ude Ugo Anna and Under-Secretary General 2, Media & Communications to yours truly. I was now about to experience the responsibilities of the Upper Secretariat (cool kids call it the X13).
Over the course of the past year, I worked with Ugo (now known as my work wife), to bring LMUN’s digital marketing goals to life. Considering that I was the youngest member of the Upper Secretariat, and that my egbon (elder sibling), Oluwasemilore Olowokure did an excellent job as the Secretary General for the 2021 conference, I had a few mental limitations to conquer. Nonetheless, I had some factors on my side; I had been a delegate in 2021, and was awarded best non-substance staff in 2022/23. I could probably handle this. Right?
In the course of selecting staff members, drafting pre-conference, conference, and post-conference strategy, and dealing with day-to-day design demands, I considered that this work may be too much for me. The Secretary General for this year’s conference, treasure. , posted an article about how experience is the path to confidence. I cherished these words like a healing balm and reminded myself that like many of the staff members on my team, I was learning on the job and that was totally okay. Even now, as I write this, I think of how good I am at doing good stuff, but how not-so-good I am at reporting the good stuff I’m good at doing.
Side note: Treasure’s brand guideline document was better than fried plantain. It changed my life as a digital marketer and catalyzed my current obsession with Canva.
Anyway, back to the conference. Ugo built a sexy website for staff applications, handled newsletters and emergencies like a boss, and was always ready with a gentle answer when tensions ran high. I was busy monitoring our content schedule, designing carousels and flyers, and practicing my poem for the Opening Ceremony. I am especially proud of this design because my cute face is on it, and because its the first time we’ve had a flyer for performers (private jets next?).
In short, Ugo and I ended up doing an excellent job. We guided our team well, gave them pointers on how they could improve, and communicated our needs and strengths to one another. Inevitably, we fell into this ying-yang rhythm that didn’t make me so ashamed of my perceived weaknesses anymore. We even heard words like:
“LMUN is everywhere”
“Marketing for this year’s conference is crazy”
Our content and conversion strategy boosted our combined online following by 13% and we had over 200 delegates sign up for the conference! The entire X13 and LMUN staff worked really hard to pull this off and I couldn’t be more elated. I must give a special shoutout to Timileyin for being so intentional about increasing Psychology student participation in LMUN.
Seeing delegates share their ideas, win awards, and dance the night away made my heart swell with pride. It was also especially enjoyable to watch Ojeabuo Tovia’s dazzling smile as she won this year’s idea fair prize .
Every meal skipped, meeting scheduled, and sleepless night hunched over my laptop was worth it. This role opened my eyes to the value of endurance, compassion, leadership, and (of course) bravery. To my M&C family: Aderemi, Benny, Bolu, Dolapo, Eniitan, Queen, Isaac, Jedidiah, Jemima, Joy, Lateef, Lolade, Maryam, Michael, Motilayo, Ebube, Olamide, Susanna, Taslemat, and Wuraola, I say I love you. To the brilliant members of the X13, I say thank you, and to myself, I say well done.
I will cherish this experience and the friendships it has wrought me for many years to come. That being said, I made the difficult decision to mark this as the end of my LMUN journey. My inner-critic flagged this as potential cowardice but was quickly shushed by the blessed assurance that bravery can come in different forms: yesses and nos, continuity and change. I was very glad to take September off as a month of rest and I am comforted by the knowledge that M&C is now in the trustworthy hands of Jedidiah and Ebube.
To know more about the nitty gritty of handling M&C at this year’s conference, read my brilliant work wife’s article here.
