E36: Tunde Leye on the pros and cons of starting afresh

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In this episode, I’m speaking with Tunde Leye, author of over five books, including the critically acclaimed Afonja The Rise & Afonja The Fall. He was also a Consulting Partner at SBM Intelligence, an Africa-focused geopolitical research firm.

“I miss being part of the top 1%.” Let’s try to set some context.

Tunde was what you would call a high-flyer back in Nigeria. And then, as with most immigrants, he decided to leave all that and start afresh in England for his kids. And the financial tradeoffs and adjustments have been something.

In this refreshingly honest and raw conversation, Tunde and I chat about:

• The work needed to rebuild social capital as an immigrant

• The mental burden of code-switching

• Adjusting to the smaller houses you find in England

• Being a tourist vs. being an immigrant

• Writing his new book (Fireflies on the Lagoon) and the Western influence on the writing process

• Career adjustments, and more.

Official Links

👋🏽 Follow Tunde on LinkedIn

🎤 Follow Tunde on X

🎬 Tunde’s YouTube channel (African History Channel)

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