Posted on Saturday, January 2, 2016

Lessons Of The Year

Why 2015 was my watershed year

To know goodness needs just a taste. Greatness, on the other hand, requires a mastery and a willing soul.

Consider the katana, a Samurai’s sword. It is a confluence of strength, finesse, and deadly artistry. In the right hands, the katana will cut through bone as easily as a razor blade on paper. But what keeps this millennium-old weapon so treasured?

The answer lies in the purest of steel in the hands of highly skilled smelters, smiths, sword blade polishers, and carpenters. To create one katana takes 15 men nearly six months. It is a tedious, patient and meticulous process.

Posted on Saturday, December 19, 2015

What Is Life?

Finding perspective in slow motion

It is 7:20 AM. I have just cleared a climb and shifted my gears. As I gather speed, my bike chain hums. The 50 km ride ahead of me has my heart singing. Then… “Ka-thump!”

I lie across a bonnet [hood] staring at a windshield. My feet still entangled in the pedal straps, I instinctively make an inventory of my body parts.

There is no pain and in an instant, I am back on my feet. I am angry! “Why did you have to join the road so carelessly?” I ask the driver when she finally rolls down her window.

“I am so sorry,” she says. “Are you hurt?” She keeps on asking me.

Posted on Friday, December 11, 2015

Why Patience Is Pivotal In Leadership

5 reasons leaders must practice patience

Put your hand up if you don’t mind getting stuck in traffic. Where I live, traffic snarl-ups can be legendary! My patience is tested at every turn.

Depending on the time of day, a 10-kilometer run takes fifteen minutes or two to four hours. If it rains, roll out the cameras. The same trip transforms into an epic. But more disturbing narrative is the abhorring behavior of some drivers.

They try to get ahead by all means possible. Some drive on sidewalks or overlap straight into oncoming traffic. The worst kind merge into an already busy intersection, with nowhere to go!

Posted on Friday, November 27, 2015

4 Leadership Myths Debunked

Is leadership what some make it to seem?

There is a misconception that leadership is about being strong, brash and indomitable. It is confidence, and above all, right of access anything they want.

Right out of college, I worked for a very difficult boss. I couldn’t wait for my workday to end. He would have fits of anger and spurts of cynicism.

My heart would skip a beat every time he would walk into my office. Being around him was like walking on eggshells. It was miserable! This is the season I wrote more job applications than I can remember.

But working with him was an invaluable experience for me. It taught me a lot about leadership. Here are the four key lessons from this experience.

Posted on Thursday, November 19, 2015

5 Pointers Why A Name Is A Lighthouse

Leadership is beyond a position

I sit and ponder on this we call life. What does it mean to live? Why are we alive?

Over the years, I have never tired of watching and reading of great men and women in sports. I scour the internet for clips of their art. Those moments inspire and stir me up to think of what is possible.

One characteristic endures in my heroes. It isn’t just their talent but something they exude from deep inside them. That is humility. Despite their fame and fortune, they remain humble and firmly grounded. They live from the inside and influence their environment.

It was early in the morning. I silently read and re-read the passing on of Jonah Lomu. His life’s clock stopped at 40. I am 40. He was once described as rugby’s version of Muhammad Ali, a heavyweight with global reach.

Posted on Thursday, November 5, 2015

4 Ways To Grow Your Social Brand

Getting real beyond just media

The phone rings but I don’t recognize the caller ID. But I pick the call anyway. It could be a prospective client. “Hello, I’m I speaking to Mr. Kimunya?” the caller asks in a not-very-confident voice.

This garage is trying to sell me an oil change and an oil filter for my car. The last time I used their services is months ago. I had gone in for an electronic wheel alignment.

I service my car every 5,000 kilometers per the manufacturer’s specifications. New oil, oil filter, spark plugs, air filter, brake alignment, and general inspection! For this, my regular mechanic’s cost is just a bit over what this garage is proposing.

At the eight-minute mark, it finally dawns on the caller that I am not interested in the service. Not to mention that I had indicated this two minutes into the call. Then, he makes me aware of their free vehicle check-up. I am at the end of my patience by this time!

Posted on Wednesday, October 28, 2015

What To Do When Conflict Strikes

A 5-step solution from coffee

The aroma of fresh ground coffee can prove irresistible. It evokes a deep sense of relaxation in me.

The only caveat is that its quality must be right. I don’t particularly appreciate the acrid taste of over-roasted beans.

Poorly roasted coffee beans are an assault on my taste buds. This when combined with the smokey smell of the burnt grind to evoke an emotional response. Immediately, my face contorts in protest.

At that moment, all systems activate to resolve this conflict. I will either request for a fresh cup of coffee or order another drink. The coffee barrister has to accept their poor choice of beans. I, on the other hand, need to give them an opportunity to redeem themselves. And this is the key to resolving conflict.

We can learn a great deal about conflict resolution from Starbucks Coffee Company. In his book The Power of Habit, Charles Duhigg describes how Starbucks’ employees undergo rigorous training to respond to customer needs. It is called the LATTE method.

Posted on Wednesday, October 14, 2015

Being Vulnerable Wins At Leadership

Why you must always lead from your authentic self

I am excited to share this heartfelt post from my friend Dr Faith Ngunjiri. She is the Director, Lorentzsen Center for Faith & Work, and Associate Professor of Leadership and Ethics at Offutt School of Business at Concordia College, in Moorhead, Minnesota. She blogs at Ruminating on Faith.

I have experienced both personal losses and professional failures in my life. As a leader, some of these losses and failures have been publicly visible.

Last year, I grieved through a failed adoption. Two weeks after we had taken a newborn home as her new parents, her birth family asked to have her returned. They wanted to raise her. Not only were we left empty-handed but it also crushed our hearts!

And that wasn’t the end of it. I was to facilitate our monthly leadership luncheon. My dean had announced I wasn’t available for the event as I was away taking care of the newborn. The girl’s picture was even shown to all present!

Over the next several months, I fielded many questions about our newborn. Each time, I had to explain that the adoption had failed all over again. To say this was a painful experience is to grossly understate the case.

Posted on Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Why Bends Straighten Us

3 thoughts from my bicycle diaries

The air whistles past my ears as my heart pounds in my chest. My lungs gasp for oxygen. The muscles burn as lactic acid builds up.

One of my major life goals is keeping my body fit and healthy. Over the years, I have tried running, aerobics and basketball with limited results. It was frustrating. But then I discovered the joy of open-road cycling. It gave me a new freedom.

No inhibition will come between my goal and I. My bike ride gives me time to do more than exercise. It is an opportunity to think free of any electronic distractions. I am off social media or my work. The most treasured of them all is the reflection and meditation.

But it was not all natural to me. My scariest moments have not been the steep climbs. It is in the hazardous bends and turns along the roads. I have to contend with loose gravel and a few nasty drivers who try to run me off the road.

Posted on Wednesday, September 23, 2015

How One Frontier Is Inspiring A Revolution

Bringing digital learning into any classroom

It all started with a seemingly innocuous statement, “It can’t be done, not in Africa.” That has inspired an innovation that will change access to online content and education across Africa and the world.

How One Frontier Is Inspiring A Revolution

I was at the launch of the visionary BRCK Education. It provides a holistic education technology solution that turns every classroom into a digital classroom.

And wait for the kicker… BRCK Education is designed and engineered in Nairobi Kenya for African infrastructure and internet needs.

BRCK Education evolved off a solution to provide rugged internet. BRCK is a mobile WiFi device that can go anywhere, do anything and is self-powered. All you have to do is insert a 3G data enabled SIM card in over 140 countries and broadcast a WiFi signal that you can share. Just like that!