Meet The Inventor of Kommon Sense

Victor Prince Dickson is an innovative inventor, writer and motivator. I got to know about him through a certain proprietor in a school who told me about a game called Kommon Sense that teaches you morals and ethics and at the same time helps you be a good communicator. I said I had to meet this man, the opportunity came when he was organizing the Kommon Sense Inter-College Competition in Jos, I saw the program being publicized on Passion Connect Initiative wall on Facebook, followed the it all the way to Jos and attended it. That was where I got to meet the Founder. 

Fortunately he agreed to have me interview me and asked to partner with his company (What a great privilege). Here is the interview:

    PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND TELL ME WHAT YOU DO?

My name is Victor Prince Dickson, I am from Ikot Eboh in Etinan Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State. I was born on the 13^th of June, 1978 at Ikom, Cross River State. My growing days were quite mobile; born in Ikom, moved to Bauchi, then back to Calabar. I finished my Secondary education in Kafanchan, Kaduna State before leaving for Lagos. From Lagos I came to Jos for my University education and was posted to Kogi State for service (NYSC) and now am based in Jos.

I am a graduate of the prestigious Department of Theatre Arts, University of Jos. Presently, I am the Inventor of Kommon Sense, Founder of Micro-Reality Thinking Academy, Author of Thinking Field Workbook, Creator of T-Field  Thinking Apps. I work with El-spice Media Group as the Executive Director. My expertise extends to Design Thinking, Scriptwriting, Film directing, Business training and general consultancy on Creative communications and Entrepreneurship.

      HOW DID YOU COME ABOUT THE GAME KOMMON SENSE? WHAT WAS YOUR INSPIRATION?

First I have to correct an impression, Kommon Sense is not a card game, it is a communication tool which is in a card form. If you make the mistake of approaching Kommon Sense as a game, you may end up being embarrassed. However, it has all the elements of a game, maybe that’s why most people easily refer to the tool as a card game.

As I moved, listened, watched, learned, discussed and read, I was really disturbed with the way the world was becoming destructive. The next challenge for me was how to teach wisdom since it is an abstract? Then I remembered that another name for wisdom was common sense, however, common sense was not common. So I began searching for how to make common sense common. I then realized that to do this, I must teach people the art of exploring chances, and the art of identifying and evaluating choices as well as the art of connecting chances and choices in a consequential order and this required deep thinking and communication skills.

I reasoned that IF and when, we can all learn to evaluate our chances, interrogate our choices and connect their cause to the effect, this will help us to fully appreciate meanings, from there become conscious of our thoughts, words and actions in relating to ourselves, our friends and neighbours. In the long run this will lead to confidence building, mutual  appreciation, tolerance, discipline, respect even in diversity, justice, friendship, peace and love. With these ingredients, the society will improve and the world would become a better place.

To implement this, I needed an innovative platform that will make the lessons fun and interesting, simple but very inspiring and most importantly continuous and incremental. A platform that will be mobile, that can be applied formally and informally, something that will work even when am not around.  I wanted a learning platform that will not depend solely on technology a tool that will need very little accessories. A pack of cards fulfilled all these criteria.

So I decided to take advantage of ‘peer pressure’ and convert it to ‘peer education’ based on the principles of critical thinking and strategic communication. In simple tense, that was how Kommon Sense came into existence, it took close to 4 years to do all these, from conception to development, design, testing and demonstration.

It is two years now since we released Kommon Sense, I’m glad that Kommon Sense is performing much more than I envisioned.

CHALLENGES

Finance and sponsorship

WHILE GROWING UP, WHAT MOTIVATED YOU? WHAT WAS YOUR PASSION AND INTEREST?

I always wanted to find harmony with the universe and the Creator of the universe. I just wanted us to be friends. That is why any time I think something is out of place in the general working of the universe like war, injustice, etc; I just feel the urge to do something to correct it. This is the driving energy to everything I do and what defines my interest.

     EXPLAIN YOUR MOTIVE FOR THE KIC PROJECT?

Kommon Sense Inter-College Competition (KIC) is a unit of Kommon Sense that seeks to take and apply the values of Kommon Sense to Senior Secondary students through a competition format. With KIC, we want to catch them young so that we could begin to build values, ethics and morals into their learning and growing process. This we believe will make them patriotic; it will equip them with a leadership mentality and provide a balanced perspective for professionalism. In building and expanding their capacity to think and communicate strategically, we hope to raise a generation of young Nigerians who will rebuild Nigeria and make it the best and the most outstanding country in the world.

KIC NIGERIA 2015 is the maiden edition.

    WHO PLAYS A KEY ROLE IN YOUR DECISIONS?

My spirit and my soul.

   WHO ARE THE PEOPLE WHO MENTOR AND INSPIRE YOU?

I don’t not have a direct mentor, and for those who inspire me, they are too numerous. Sometimes it is just a trailer passing with a sticker by the side, sometimes it is children playing, sometimes it is a book, sometimes films, sometimes interviews, stories, it is most difficult, but I do know that I am most directed from the inside than from the outside because I believe that there is a spirit in man and the inspiration of the Almighty gives understanding”. However, there are people who encourage me through words, hugs, referrals, finance, prayers, criticism, in some cases insult, who do you call, who do you leave out. A big Dilemma! But these four will always stand out, my mother, Oge Anyaji, Prince Charles Dickson and my Pastor, Margaret Inusa Meka.

    DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING YOU REGRET NOT DOING?

Not starting early enough to put my ideas to use.

    IN TEN YEARS FROM NOW, WHERE DO YOU SEE KIC?

In ten years from now, KIC NIGERIA will be KIC GLOBAL; from this pilot episode we are going national, from then to KIC AFRICA and then KIC Global Challenge.

      HOW WOULD YOU ADVICE YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT SOMETHING BUT DON’T KNOW HOW TO GO ABOUT IT?

It is difficult to give a blanket advice because every passion is peculiar to the person and environment. However, some factors for success are the same. Be humble enough to ask and learn, be patient enough to serve and grow, be courageous enough to be original, be truthful enough to be trusted, be disciplined enough to prepare, be open enough to adjust and correct, be friendly enough to help you gain friendship that will help you grow,  be strong enough to survive bitter and good criticism, be shameless enough to believe in hard work, be contented enough to never pull anyone down on your way up, save your soul from anger and angry people, be grateful enough to remember your Maker, most importantly, let your motive for success be in harmony with the laws of the universe. After then, all you need do is hope, faith and love.

      CLOSING WORDS?

It is not enough to talk good, the time has come to do good. Let it be known that anyone who takes the fence or claim grey is by every means worse than evil.

 Written by Shalom David