Nigeria, April 3 -- From a convention space at the New York Westin to a mission-driven femtech venture, my journey with Sanicle.Cloud began as a scrappy, self-funded hustle. I maxed out my savings and leaned on the generosity of friends, while cold-calling potential clients under aliases - adopting accents, inventing fictional team members like "Sarah in Finance," and doing whatever it took to keep the dream alive. It wasn't glamorous, but it taught me resilience.

A year in, life threw curveballs: I enrolled in an inclusive Executive MBA programme at the University of Washington, only to undergo emergency gallbladder surgery shortly after. Recovery forced me to slow down - a challenge for someone who once defined himself by speed. For ye...