Meet Meloseri Dumnoi

We recently connected with Meloseri Dumnoi and have shared our conversation below.

Meloseri, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

I am of the belief that purpose is not supposed to make sense while making sense at the same time. Looking at me on the outside, assessing my behaviors and achievements, if I told you what my purpose was you wouldn’t be surprised. It would make sense, actually you might tell me my purpose before I told you. But before we continue, it is important to my story to state that I am a believer of Christ. This is essential to the story because my purpose was written for me and it is the only thing I am on this Earth to carry out.

So what is this purpose I keep referring to? My purpose is to transform the African continent through the education of the social sciences. This purpose extends to the support and uplifting of those of African-descent all over the world. Look at my page, hear me speak, look at my course list, deduce my major, go back in time, and you’ll see it. It was always there. And the thing is that I knew that it was always there, but I didn’t really know it was always there.

I was playing a game of ‘Who’s Most Likely To’ in 10th grade amongst my then classmates. They asked, “Who’s Most Likely to Stay in Nigeria Their Whole Life?” And I pondered, while every single one of them pointed at me. I was offended, not because I didn’t love Nigeria, but because I was confused as to why they would point at me or anyone for that matter when we all received the same education that was supposed to send us to countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. Why did they think that I wouldn’t achieve that, and what makes them think that they are better than me?

But then we can go further back in time and I would be in fourth grade. My father would ask me if I knew where I wanted to go to university and I would say, ‘Here!’ (in reference to Nigeria). A few days later, I would have a private sit-down with my African American homeroom teacher (who was the only black head teacher in my elementary school back them) and my dad, and I would be told why I couldn’t go to school in Nigeria for university.

Connect the two stories, and I realized that I always knew who I was and where I belonged, and maybe the only reason I moved from that path was because I was told at a young age that I should try something that could open up more opportunities. Going to school in the United States of America has done just that, especially as a citizen, I should of course ensure that took advantage of the doors that opened up for me. However in my third year of college I would study abroad in Ghana, and I would feel my heart opening and filling up in ways that I could have only imagined. I wished that someone had told me that I could go here because I hadn’t even thought of it. The slight inconveniences, the bungalows that lecturers stayed in, the running around to check in and find space for a hostel, and the ever-looming possibility of something coming up. That doesn’t sound fun, and it’s not, but it felt like a fairytale. I knew here I could make true change, make these universities a place that people aren’t told not to go to, a place of possibility and opportunity, just like the United States of America.

I think back to when my classmates said I would stay in Nigeria all my life, and I thank them for seeing me when I didn’t even see myself. I thank God for giving me clues and hints all my life. I’ll be honest, I had no reason to live —not in a sadistic way, but in a way that I truly didn’t enjoy living or operating in society. I still don’t, but I’m here, and it’s because I know that my purpose is going to be the thing that transforms nations. And so, I carry it out because that’s all I’m here to do. To find your purpose, talk to God and ask Him what’s up, and He will give you the crumbs you’re looking for. The next step is to ask him for complete alignment, and He will remove the shaft from your life and give you the map to success. Once you do that, you’ll come to find out that life becomes so much easier, and you’ll find yourself exactly where you’re supposed to be. I am right where I am supposed to be, and I know my end goal; however, I don’t know everything that will happen in between. Even though my story has been written, I don’t know all the words just yet, and that’s the best part.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

The next part of the interview is where we’d love to learn more about you, your story and what you are focused on professionally – whether it’s a business, nonprofit, artistic career etc.
Please tell our readers about what you do, what you feel is most exciting or special about it, as well as anything else you’d like folks to know about your brand/art/etc. If relevant, please also tell our readers about anything new (events, product/service launches, expansion, etc)
My name is Meloseri Dumnoi! I am the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Ekinken. Ekinken is a media organization that focuses on African fashion. In short words, it is a love letter to the African fashion industry. We document, report, and make observations about the African fashion industry while ensuring that we give credit and accolades to the creatives that keep it running as a whole! My purpose is to transform the African continent through the education of the social sciences. Ekinken is one of the ways I am doing so. By utilizing skills that is learned within social science classes and showing African creatives that their education and talents are important and valued, we are changing the way that African fashion is looked upon and documented across the world. Africans giving Africans their accolades should be valued, and that is what we strive to build and cultivate through Ekinken. Also, it’s a big plus that we get to go to the biggest events in fashion and witness a whole new world of style everytime!
Outside of Ekinken, I am a budding academic dedicating my life to being a forever learner and education of Africa. I’ll let you know how that goes in 10 years!

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Kindness – Being kind should be at the root of who you are always! Being nice and kind are two different things, but for me to succeed at anything in life, being kind has always been my favorite quality about myself. The ability to empathize but not be somebody who I am not is something I will always admire about my younger self and I strive to live up to who she was!
Confidence – Knowing who you are and walking boldly in that is very important! Nobody should be able to define you, just you and the Lord! When you know who you are in Christ; stay firm in that, evolve, learn, and shine very bright!
The Ability to Leave – Leaving situations that hasn’t served me or the stage in my life that I am in has been essential to my mental health and to me actualizing my potential. Stay in places for a season, you don’t need to be there forever. Allow yourself to outgrow people, places, situations, jobs, and more! Lean on the Lord if you’re worried about being unstable, you’d come to find out that instability is where greatness lies.

We’ve all got limited resources, time, energy, focus etc – so if you had to choose between going all in on your strengths or working on areas where you aren’t as strong, what would you choose?

I think it’s important to do both. As the founder of a media organization, I am proud to say that I can fill every role required to run it. That allows me to pick up whenever there is slack or I simply just can’t afford to outsource at the moment. It’s essential to build skills across the board, but I say do both because media is my strength. Organization is my strength. Data analysis is my strength. Social media is my strength. I picked my strength when running a media organization, but that doesn’t mean that I’m perfect at everything. It just means that I can get it done. So do both! Being well-rounded is a beautiful thing. As the saying goes, “A jack of all trades is a master of none, but way better than a master of one”.

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