Tobi Bakre, a finalist from Big Brother Naija Season 3, recently shared why he made the decision to leave his banking job to participate in the popular reality TV show in 2018.
Tobi, who had been working as a currency dealer at Heritage Bank for four years, explained that he found the job monotonous and boring, which led him to seek new opportunities.
In a recent episode of Menisms’ audiovisual podcast hosted by Olumurewa and Michael Sonariwo, Tobi revealed that he was just 22 years old at the time and felt that he needed a change.
He said, “My personality gets bored when I’m doing the same thing over and over again. So, I thought to myself, ‘Okay, I’ve always wanted to go on this show [Big Brother Naija], and I’m tired of this banking job.’
It was either I start processing my visa to Canada or I can go for [BBNaija]. And then it was like, ‘You can go for this thing [BBNaija] and then come back and process your Canada visa and see where life takes you.'”
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Tobi expressed that he was feeling unsatisfied with his job at the bank and wanted to take a chance on Big Brother Naija. He didn’t have a clear plan after the show, but he had trusted management in place to help him navigate his career.
He said, “I was just really tired of where I was. So, I thought, ‘Okay, let me take a chance on this [BBNaija].’ So, we went for Big Brother naija, and after that, I didn’t really have a concrete plan of what I wanted to do. I was just like, ‘Okay, in case anything comes up, I have management,people i respected and trusted.’
And I told them, ‘Please, whatever I’m doing there [Big Brother house], make sure there’s value to be gained when I get out.'”
When Tobi came out of the Big Brother house, he was surprised and thrilled to see his former boss from the bank pick him up at the airport in a Range Rover, which was his first time riding in such a luxurious car.
He also noticed a significant increase in his Instagram followers, reaching 250,000. Despite not winning the grand prize on the show, Tobi revealed that his fans donated N800,000 to his account as a gesture of support.
Tobi admitted that he had experienced financial challenges after spending his money on clubbing and enjoying himself with friends in December before entering the Big Brother house.
The unexpected donation from his fans gave him a boost, and he used part of it to buy an iPhone. He expressed his gratitude and determination to work hard, stating, “I didn’t have much money in my account, but I was ready to put in the effort. I think the rest is history.”
