Marriage, Children Not Life Achievements – Etinosa Idemudia 

Nollywood actress, Etinosa Idemudia, has advised women not to measure their lives by marriage or motherhood, saying they should build their self-worth and pursue their dreams without allowing society to set the pace for them.

Speaking on lessons she would pass on to her daughter with media personality Egungun, the actress said, “If I don’t teach my daughter anything, I would teach her how to respect herself, how to value herself, because a woman who respects herself can never be disrespected by anyone.”

Naija News reports that she also made it clear that she would never raise her daughter to believe that marriage or having children defines success. According to her, “Marriage is not an achievement. Having children is not an achievement. She will do whatever she wants to do at her own time, at her own pace.”

Etinosa also spoke about success in the movie industry, saying hard work alone does not always determine who becomes successful. She noted that some actors put in more effort than she does yet are still less recognised.

She said, “Hard work is part of it, but I can never say that hard work is all of it because there are some people who act far more than me, who work far harder than me, but I might be more recognised than them or I might be more successful than them. Like the Bible says, ‘Paul plants, Apollos waters, and God brings the increase’. It’s not just hard work. Hard work alone is not enough, just like love alone is not enough in marriage.”

The actress further encouraged women to remain focused on their careers despite the extra challenges they often face.

According to her, “I feel we women need to work twice as hard to get the recognition or applause for what a man will work half as hard for. So, as a woman, you need to be on top of your game.”

She also urged women not to lose confidence because of criticism or false accusations often directed at successful females.

Etinosa said, “You need to close your ears to people who say, ‘Oh, she didn’t get it by merit. She went to sleep with somebody.’ Women will never stop calling a successful woman names. So block your ears to the noise. Stay grounded. Stay focused. Study people who have made it ahead of you. Do not envy. Be inspired. Do not be jealous.”