Joy David has always been in tech, starting off as a content writer and earning ₦1,000 per hour as a freelance writer at a Lagos co-working space to becoming a UK-based product manager was a mix of curiosity, stubbornness, and quiet conviction.
Today, at 24, she’s living in the UK, working as a product manager and building a growing online community around financial literacy and career development. Her focus is on documenting her journey toward financial freedom, and inspiring others, especially women, to take their money and careers seriously.
The Beginning
Joy’s story starts in Lagos, where she began as a content writer right after university. She worked from CC Hub, a tech co-working space in Yaba, writing Upwork and Fiverr gigs that paid a thousand naira per hour. “I didn’t want to work from home,” she recalls, “so I got a desk at CC Hub and surrounded myself with tech people.”
That proximity changed everything. Her long-term partner was a software engineer, and through him, she developed an interest in tech. She tried coding but hated it. “It just didn’t click,” she laughs. “I spent too long trying to print ‘Hello World.’”
Still, the exposure opened a door. She began writing for tech blogs, profiling founders, and covering stories in Nigeria’s early startup scene. One of those stories introduced her to the founder of SheCode Africa, a community that deepened her curiosity.
Then, one day, she heard about product management. “It sounded so interesting,” she says. “I didn’t know exactly what it was, but I knew I wanted to do it.”
The Early Days
Once she discovered the field, Joy threw herself into learning. She joined online communities, read everything she could find, and eventually took a product management course. Around that time, a friend building a small startup invited her to “help out” as a volunteer product manager. It wasn’t paid, but it was experience, and it set her path in motion.
By late 2019, she was cold-emailing companies, pitching herself for associate product manager roles. “My partner encouraged me to just reach out directly,” she says. “That’s how I got my first interviews.”
In January 2020, one of those emails worked. She got her first product role at IQ Labs, earning ₦100,000 a month.
“It felt big,” she remembers. “I was finally doing something I liked.”
The Leap Abroad
By the end of 2020, Joy’s ambitions had outgrown Lagos. “When Buhari won the second time,” she says bluntly, “I knew I wanted to leave Nigeria.”
She started looking into master’s programs and scholarships, focusing on the Chevening Scholarship and the London School of Economics (LSE), and while Chevening didn’t work out, she was accepted into LSE. Tuition was steep, but she didn’t give up.
“I applied for LSE’s graduate funding and wrote an essay. That’s how I got a fully funded scholarship from Standard Bank.”
In September 2021, she moved to the UK. The transition was smooth. “I had friends here already,” she says. “People from my community. That helped a lot.”
Her scholarship came with a generous stipend, enough to live comfortably without working. “I didn’t have to think about rent or food,” she says. “It was school and study.”
The First Job in the UK
After her master’s, Joy started job-hunting early. While writing her dissertation, a friend referred her for a product manager role in the UK. She got it, earning £43,000 annually in her first role.
It was a big shift, but her finances told a different story. “Honestly, I can’t tell you what I did with the money,” she admits, laughing. “I wasn’t flamboyant. I didn’t buy designer things. The money just… disappeared.”
A conversation with a friend changed that. “She asked where my money was going,” Joy says. “That’s when I realized money has wings. If you don’t tell it where to go, it will fly away.”
That moment sparked her interest in investing. “My friend introduced me to an investing app,” she says. “I started putting small amounts aside, some for saving, some for investing. That’s how it began.”
The Investor Mindset
Unlike many, Joy approaches investing with patience. “I’m not chasing quick wins,” she says. “I invest long-term. I’m thinking in years, not months.”
For her, it’s not just about money, it’s about control. “Financial freedom, to me, means being able to decide if I want to work or not. It means choice.”
Her current goal is simple but ambitious: to have a net worth of at least $1 million in five years. She won’t share numbers, but she smiles when asked about progress. “It’s coming along,” she says. “Not linear, but coming along.”
Building a Financial Community
Joy’s online presence began as a journal. “At the start of this year, I decided to document my journey to making money,” she says.
She didn’t want to be another finance influencer who “already made it.” Instead, she wanted to show the messy middle and what it looks like to be figuring things out. “I’m not teaching,” she emphasizes. “I’m sharing what I’m learning.”
Her content is a mix of storytelling, reflection, and small, practical lessons. “People message me saying they started investing because of me or negotiated better pay. That makes it worth it.”
Despite her calm confidence, Joy doesn’t claim to have it all figured out. “I’m still learning,” she says. “But I’ve learned to have a bias for action. Do things. Try things. Don’t wait to be perfect.”
She credits her progress to two mindsets: bias for action and high agency.
“Bias for action means don’t overthink, just do. High agency means asking: what can I do with what I have, right now?”
To her, that’s the real secret of growth. “You are the architect of your life,” she says. “If you’re not happy with your situation, ask what you can do about it. No one’s coming to save you.”
The Next Chapter
Joy’s not sure what’s next. Maybe she’ll build something of her own, maybe she’ll scale her community into a platform. For now, she’s focused on growth, learning, and staying authentic.
“I’m not chasing perfection,” she says. “I’m just trying to live deliberately and design a life I’m happy with.”
At 24, Joy is part of a new generation of African women redefining success through intentional living, financial literacy, and quiet ambition.
She may not have a roadmap, but she has momentum. And sometimes, that’s all it takes to build a life that matters.
I’ve lived many lives, but one lesson ties them all together: money is only as powerful as its utility. Through my work, I share stories about money and create guides for Africans who want to get the best out of theirs.