Posted on Monday, November 17, 2014

Constantly Improve Your Position

The Acumen East Africa Fellows Program is a one-year, fully-funded leadership development program that gives 20 individuals from across East Africa the training they need to accelerate their social impact and leadership potential.

It was a long written application process followed by an intense telephone interview. Before I could exhale, it was time to plunge into a fast-flowing river. There was a promise of breath-taking vistas, rapids and the possibility of my kayak capsizing.

But I still launched off. And what a rush it was! This was the Acumen Fellows Selection Program for 2015. Intense, nerve-wracking and phenomenal it was. All the participants had to prepare a one-minute elevator pitch. And to make sure that we completely understood the instructions, there was ’60 seconds’ added within brackets.

There I was ready to launch my pitch. Just to make sure that I wasn’t going to flounder, I had written it out and committed the main points to memory. Thirty seconds to my pitch, everything changed in my mind. It was not a conscious thought process. It is as if something took over my thinking. My pitch vaporized into a fine mist.

Posted on Monday, November 10, 2014

What You Can’t See Will Hurt You

It was a sunny morning out in the yard. I was a boy doing what boys my age were fond of. Tinkering with my toys and tools. Then out of nowhere, a loud thud startled me out of my adventure. Heart pounding, I looked around for the offending culprit.

There it lay! Twitching, bleeding and feathery warm. A pigeon had flown into the window of our Volkswagen Kombi van window. I picked it up hoping that the bird was just stunned. After a few more twitches, it went limp. And I was sad.

This tragedy could have been avoided if it had only flown five inches higher. The pigeon could see, but it lacked the knowledge of the foreign obstacle. Just because it didn’t see the glass didn’t mean that there was a clear flight path.

Posted on Monday, November 3, 2014

Into The Wilderness

#LBC_Think is my thought series to help you kick-start your week. Every Monday morning, fix your favorite cup of coffee, tea or cocoa and enjoy your weekly nugget.

For the majority of us, starting a new week is like a journey into the wild. You have carefully crafted plans and goals. There are targets and deadlines to meet. Then life happens. You get a punch in the stomach that leaves you winded or wounded.

Thinking of this took me back to an episode of ‘Survivorman’ featuring Les Stroud. He was on a one-night camping trip with only food rations for one dinner and one breakfast. Then he gets ‘lost’. He has to figure out how to survive for seven days.

Les dug into his ‘bag’ of survival skills. He identified wild lettuce (nutrition and moisture), trapped squirrels for meat, and carried fire in a soldering bundle. Although he had carefully planned his one-nighter, things changed. What saved him was that he prepared both mentally and physically to face the challenges.

Posted on Monday, October 27, 2014

Beat The Blues And Live!

Your 4 tips to free you from your blues...

One morning, my five-year old daughter declared; “I Love me!” It got me thinking of my era of dreaded Mondays. The day I sang the blues. Nostalgia of the past weekend hung on me like a heavy, wet veil.

By declaring her love for herself, she created a space of opportunity and possibility. She connected with her inner self. That small action declared that no matter what the day threw at her, she would be fine.

One day I declared that the unpredictability of my dream job was far more valuable than the dread of losing my day job. It felt like the intoxicating freshness of the crisp early morning air. I connected with my inner self.

So. Monday. We meet again. We will never be friends—but maybe we can move past our mutual enmity toward a more-positive partnership.” ~ Julio Alexi Genao

Posted on Monday, October 20, 2014

Do You Have A Hero?

Today I begin a short thought series (#LBC_Think) that will run every Monday. Think of this as your boost for the week ahead!

Twentieth of October is Heroes’ Day’ in Kenya. It is a fitting day to begin this new series. Also referred to as Mashujaa Day, it is a celebration to collectively honor all those who contributed towards the struggle for Kenya’s independence.

Many other nations have there own Heroes’ Day. In Sri Lanka, 28th November is the day they remember the 1819 Kandyan rebellion against the British invasion. In 2014, it will be the 196th commemoration! The United Kingdom will on 21st October mark her 3rd National Heroes Day.

Whether we like it or not, we all have personal heroes who have influenced us in one way or another. They have helped to shape our thinking, actions and behavior. You will be amazed how much impact they have on your life, career or business.

My challenge today is: Think of four people who are your personal heroes. Over the next four weeks, pick one of your heroes and write down how they have influenced your life. My four heroes are my dear mother, Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela and Joseph Okema.

If you haven’t thought of this, I encourage you to take about fifteen minutes and consciously identify some of your lifetime heroes.

Who are your four heroes? Click here and in one or two sentences, share how they inspire you in the comments below.

photo credit: Alex Jilitsky via photopin cc