Episode 9: Beyond the Gadgets
As my journey continued, I discovered something unexpected.
The greatest joy in my work was never the gadgets.
It was the people behind them.
This realization became especially clear during my time as a gadget technician at Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State.
Every day, students walked into my workspace carrying devices that had suddenly failed. Laptops that refused to power on. Tablets that would no longer charge. Gadgets containing assignments, projects, research materials, lecture notes, and months of hard work.
To an outsider, they were simply faulty gadgets.
To me, they gradually became stories waiting for restoration.
Many students arrived frustrated, worried, and sometimes close to tears. Some had examinations approaching. Others had deadlines they simply could not afford to miss. Their devices were not merely pieces of electronics; they represented preparation, opportunity, memories, and hope.
At first, I only saw gadgets.
Later, I began to see people.
And that changed everything.
I soon realized that my favorite moment was never diagnosing a fault.
It was never replacing a damaged component.
It was never completing the repair itself.
My favorite moment always came afterward.
The smile.
The relief.
The gratitude.
That brief moment when a student realized their device was working again.
That feeling became my greatest reward.
Far greater than the payment.
Far greater than the technical accomplishment.
Far greater than any recognition.
There was something deeply satisfying about looking at a worried student and saying,
“Your device is working again.”
That moment never got old.
Even today, it never gets old.
It was during this season that I began viewing gadgets differently.
Not as objects.
Not as machines.
Not merely as electronics.
But almost as patients.
A doctor does not see a patient as a collection of symptoms.
A doctor sees a life.
A future.
A person.
In many ways, I began approaching gadgets the same way.
When someone brought me a faulty device, I no longer saw only the fault.
I saw the person connected to it.
I saw the story behind it.
I saw the need.
I saw an opportunity to help.
Perhaps that was why I often accepted repair challenges that others ignored.
And the students did not always bring ordinary repair problems.
Working at Covenant University stretched my technical abilities in ways I had not anticipated. Because I was willing to take on almost anything that came through the door, I found myself working on devices I had previously encountered only occasionally.
I began repairing AirPods, broken headsets, and other small gadgets. I became increasingly proficient in laptop hinge repairs, structural restoration, and other forms of physical damage. I handled a high number of water-damaged laptops and worked on faulty batteries in iPods, AirPods, and other devices.
Some of the repairs were straightforward. Others forced me to think deeply, experiment, improvise, and sometimes develop entirely new approaches.
The students’ unusual repair demands became an unexpected classroom.
Every broken hinge, damaged headset, water-damaged laptop, or failing battery presented another opportunity to learn.
The more problems I encountered, the wider my technical range became.
I was not simply gaining experience.
I was expanding my capacity.
I could never completely separate the machine from the human being depending on it.
That mindset would eventually become one of the defining principles of my work.
Technology exists to serve people.
Not the other way around.
While helping students, I continued experimenting with projects of my own.
One project, in particular, became a major milestone.
The battery of my work laptop—an HP 15 series machine—had become defective.
Most people would simply replace the battery.
I decided to build one.
From scratch.
The idea fascinated me.
For years, I had been intrigued by laptop battery systems, especially because many technicians considered them practically irreparable.
Whenever I hear the word impossible, something inside me becomes curious.
Why impossible?
What makes it impossible?
Can it be done differently?
Those questions had followed me for years.
In fact, my fascination with battery systems began much earlier.
Around 2017, I carried out my first major battery experiment using the battery of my own personal laptop.
At the time, I wasn’t rich.
Far from it.
I had worked as a petrol attendant just to save enough money to buy that laptop.
Every naira mattered.
Every sacrifice mattered.
Yet when curiosity called, I answered.
I dismantled the battery.
Not because I wanted to destroy it.
But because I wanted to understand it.
Why were laptop batteries treated like sealed mysteries?
How did they actually work?
Could they be rebuilt instead of discarded?
I remember visiting technicians’ workshop to collect defective laptop batteries to explore and the technicians would often look at me with amusement.
That curiosity eventually evolved into practical expertise.
Years later, standing inside Covenant University, I successfully designed and built a functional battery pack for my work laptop.
The result exceeded my expectations.
The battery delivered approximately seven and a half hours of runtime and served me reliably throughout my time at the university.
It solved more than a problem.
It reinforced a belief.
Many limitations exist simply because nobody has challenged them properly.
Most people see a problem and stop.
Innovators see a problem and start.
Looking back now, Covenant University gave me far more than professional experience.
It revealed a truth that I would carry into every future project.
Whether I was repairing a faulty device…
Designing a product…
Building a power system…
Or solving another engineering problem…
The real mission was never technology alone.
The mission was people.
Technology is simply one of the tools.
People are the purpose.
That realization reshaped my future.
I was no longer interested in building or repairing gadgets merely for the sake of it.
I wanted to build solutions.
Solutions that solved real problems.
Solutions that expanded possibilities.
Solutions that improved lives.
Because in the end, the greatest inventions are not measured by the sophistication of the technology they contain.
They are measured by the lives they touch.
Once again, the journey was evolving.
And the builder inside me was beginning to dream even bigger.
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This was a great read.
What resonated with me the most was the shift from seeing gadgets to seeing people. That simple change in perspective completely transformed the story.
The line, “At first, I only saw gadgets. Later, I began to see people,” really stood out. It captures the heart of the entire episode.
I also loved the battery experiment. The statement, “Whenever I hear the word impossible, something inside me becomes curious,” says so much about who you are. It explains your willingness to take things apart, experiment, and keep learning.
My biggest takeaway was this:
Technology is a tool, but people are the purpose.
If I had one suggestion, it would be to give the battery project its own episode someday. There’s a much bigger story there that I’d love to read.
Overall, this felt less like a story about repairing gadgets and more like a story about empathy, curiosity, and the desire to help others. That’s what made it memorable.
This episode gave me insight about n the way your perspective on technology evolved from simply fixing devices to understanding the people and needs behind them. I found the idea that technology is ultimately a tool for serving people especially meaningful, because it shows how empathy and innovation can work together to create solutions that genuinely make a difference.
Overall, this episode gave me a deeper understanding of the values behind MaxOhr and the importance of building solutions with people at the centre. I’m excited to learn more about the journey, contribute my own perspective, and hopefully have the opportunity to work with MaxOhr Technologies and grow alongside the vision.
This really caught my attention.
What stood out to me wasn’t just that you were able to rebuild the laptop battery, but the mindset behind it.
I love how you questioned the idea of “impossible” instead of simply accepting it. Asking “Why is it impossible? Can’t there be another way?” is the kind of curiosity that leads to innovation.
The fact that you were willing to dismantle your own laptop, experiment, fail, learn and rebuild until you found a solution is inspiring.
Sometimes innovation begins with simply refusing to accept that something cannot be done.
I’m definitely looking forward to reading more of your journey and understanding the vision behind MaxOhr Technologies.