Chioma Ikejiani has her eyes set on becoming Canada's first African Canadian talk-show host. She wants to be the Oprah Winfrey of Canadian television. Some may think this a tall order for Ikejiani, when there are no Black television shows - not even a Black radio station - here in Ontario.
But Ikejiani, who went from months of unemployment and two welfare cheques to a six-figure income, believes that hard work, focus and determination can bring success. "I believe that anything you really believe or want in life is possible," she says during an interview at her townhouse in central Toronto. "And everything I've done in my life has been against the odds."
It's early afternoon, and the tall, attractive 34-year-old is casually comfortable in a brown cowl-collared dress. She makes herself a quick lunch, a cup of lentil soup prepared in the microwave. She's watching her weight, she says. The light-coloured carpeting is plush underfoot and the furniture, paintings and African artifacts which grace the living room indicate that money is not a problem.
The television show she hopes to call her own some day, is to be about people who have achieved success, both financially and spiritually, by overcoming personal hardship. Her goal is to be inspirational, positive, uplifting and fun.
"People should walk away from the show with a renewed sense of strength and determination to make their dreams a reality." Ikejiani is fascinated by stories of success from humble beginnings. She is currently reading "An Empire of their Own - How the Jews Invented Hollywood," a recent book by Neil Gabler, about the immigrants form eastern Europe who rose from abject poverty to create the American film industry. She was also impressed by "Oprah Winfrey, Her Real Story," by George Miair.
And for Ikejiani herself, life has not always been a smooth ride, as she too has experienced pain and suffering. There were times in her life, she relates, when things were extremely difficult and the future looked bleak and empty.
Her family fled Nigeria and the Biafran War in the mid-sixties. She was one of eight children. Somehow her mother got separated from the family during their flight and they sadly assumed that she had been killed in the war.
Years later, they found out that her mother was still alive. She had escaped the war, but the tragedies she had experienced had taken their toll. She was in a psychiatric hospital in England, under constant care.
"I was barely four years old when I saw the horrors of war and what it can do to a nation, let alone its people," she says, wiping tears from her eyes. After a few years in Europe the family settled in Nova Scotia.
Her father, who had studied in Canada before returning to Nigeria, resumed his studies and became a pathologist. "I quickly learned the meaning of responsibility and independence," she says. "I was eight years old and life was a struggle. My siblings and I tried to raise each other with no money and very little guidance."
But Ikejiani had dreams, and when she graduated from St. Mary's University in Halifax with a B.A. in political science, she headed for Toronto. It was the late eighties and jobs were scarce. She was alone, unemployed, with little money and few friends.
Some months later, she found a job as a sales representative at an upscale ladies' wear boutique in downtown Toronto. Ikejiani had found a niche. She was great with people and an excellent salesperson. "I was selling over a million dollars a year for the store, and they were paying me about ten thousand," she recalls.
When she asked her boss for a raise based on commission, her request was declined. She finally decided to quit. "As long as I live, I will never forget my boss's final words to me," she says. "'Without me Chioma, you will never succeed.' I can now recall this incident with a smile of satisfaction, but at that time it tore my confidence apart."
But Ikejiani didn't let this incident deter her, and with the credit cards she had acquired while working, she borrowed enough money to take a real estate course. Her timing was bad, it was 1990 and the real estate market was experiencing a recession. She couldn't find a job. "It was the worst time to start a career in real estate," she says, "I was rejected by 30 real estate firms, as many perceived me to be a liability. I was young, Black, had no car and no other source of income." She was also on the verge of being evicted for not paying her rent.
Her father sent her some money but it was not enough to pay off the debts she owed. Now, she suspects that her father's motive was to steer her toward a more conventional career. "He thought I should join the legal profession," she says. "I think that, by not giving me enough to pay off my debts, he hoped I would give up on my dreams, come home and start all over again."
It was during this period that Ikejiani was forced to seek aid from welfare. She had plenty of drive and a desire to succeed, but realised, that a welfare cheque was a necessary, temporary measure. Still, she wanted more from life.
"Canada Trust took a risk and hired me. It was 1990 and by 1992 I was one of their top agents." Ikejiani didn't have a car, but that was no deterrent. She took public transportation or rode her bicycle to sell homes. When clients asked where her car was, she told them that she had parked a few blocks away and walked over in an effort to lose weight.
She stayed in the office late into the evening making cold calls - her goal was 100 calls a day - and then went from door to door looking for clients. "People are going to think Chioma makes six figures, but they must understand that it's a lot of hard work. I work seven days a week."
In 1994, she moved to Prudential Sadie Moranis Realty in Toronto, where she is currently one of the firm's top real estate agents. "Chioma's a hard worker," says Sadie Moranis. "She's very charismatic, very bubbly, and wants to get ahead." Ikejiani's success story has drawn a lot of attention and she has been featured in Toronto's three major newspapers. She has also appeared on the Dini Petty Show, Camilla Scott, Global News and CBC's Undercurrents. She was also featured on Jane Hawtin's Talk Radio.
In December 1996, Ikejiani was chosen by the CBC to question Prime Minister, Jean Cretien, about job creation at his town hall meeting during the last federal election campaign. She didn't just ask her question and sit down. She had the audacity to interrupt, press and prod the PM when he dodged her question. "That experience blew my mind," she says. "Who would believe that Chioma Ikejiani, a war refugee from Nigeria, would get a chance to interview the Prime Minister of Canada on national television?"
She has since done several motivational speaking engagements across Canada. And she has talked to the homeless, welfare recipients and street kids about believing in themselves. She shares her story to give them hope.
According to Ikejiani she is a great believer in spirituality, guidance from inner voices and gut feelings. She "thanks God every day" for those people who gave her a chance. But does Ikejiani have what it takes to make her dream of becoming Canada's first African Canadian talk show host a reality?
"She looks good on camera, she is articulate, she has a good story and her idea for a show is developing," says Joan Jenkins, executive director of Women in Film and Television. "She certainly has the drive and is making the contacts that she needs to move ahead."
And last October, Ikejiani flew to Chicago, hoping to see Oprah - without a ticket to the show or an appointment. But she used her charm and determination to get in to the studio and speak in person with the queen of talk television.
"This is a big challenge for me and I think the timing is perfect. They are now talking about 500 channels in the millennium. I just have to keep knocking on doors and the doors will open." Her immediate future includes a guest spot on "Real Life with Erica Ehm: to talk about real estate. At the time of writing, the eight-minute segment was expected to air on The Life Network on January 19. And sometime in the not-too-distant future, we might just be tuning in to watch "Against the Odds - The Chioma Ikejiani Show."