Just the Two of Us
As I mentioned in Part 1, we originally had 15 students and two faculty as part of the team when we started out in late January/early February. While it would have been nice to have a larger and committed team with us, Nancy and I both feel that we have benefited a great deal from being on the ground from start to finish. Being involved in all aspect of the program has enabled us to come up with creative and exciting ideas to make the program even better. In fact, we have already looked into making the development of SE 101 "2.0" a guided independent study course in my MBA program. Over the next few months, I will be working with Nancy to improve and expand the curriculum, based on our experiences teaching it, as well as based on our knowledge of the Kenyan business community and culture. Nancy's vision is to "perfect" the program in Nairobi and then to adapt it for the rural areas. Who knows, perhaps this program can serve as a model for other countries in East Africa and beyond?
Graduation Day
Today was graduation day. After two long days of completing the business plans, we finally were able to celebrate all hard work over the past three weeks. I suggested last week that we should make it a cultural day as well so I asked everyone to wear traditional Kenyan clothing, if possible (I wore my traditional shirt). The ceremony was held in the church hall at my site in Kimathi. In addition to the graduates, attendees included representatives from the Ministry of Youth Affairs, ICT, past graduates, and church elders. After opening remarks from Nancy, each graduate read out their personal mission statement. It was inspiring to hear them speak passionately about faith, family, friends, community, and self-actualization. Next, Nancy and I handed out the graduation certificates and pens as each graduate came to the stage. Over the remaining part of the ceremony, some of the guest speakers gave words of encouragement and commendation for their achievement in the program. I gave the "closing" remarks - I spoke about how much Nancy and I have been inspired by their commitment to their communities, touched by the friendships we have made, and impressed by how much the students have learned and grown over the past three short weeks. I said that our role is but to be a small catalyst to unleash their potential: this is just the start - success is within them and it is up to them to pursue it. I also mentioned that joining the SE 101 program in its third year has been great timing for me because I witnessed the coming together ofthe pieces - the involvement by the Ministry of Youth Affairs, church groups, universities, and businesses to carry out the mission and vision of the program. It was personally gratifying to see all the hard work by Nancy and her previous team members pay off. I closed the ceremony by saying how I hope to return next year not only to continue building the program, but also to witness their growth as entrepreneurs.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Back in Africa, Part 15 – “The Beginning of the End”
After two intense weeks, this is going to be an even more intense final week. All the hard work done so far will be pulled together into one coherent plan. I'll be wrapping up the final two workshops on Monday and Tuesday, with Wednesday and Thursday allocated for completing and typing business plans at Jose's Kimathi Information Center. I can already see the weariness setting in to the faces of the students, the facilitators, and of course, Nancy and me, but I would not have it any other way. Starting up a business and becoming an entrepreneur is hard work and I want everyone to look back on these three weeks and be proud of what they have achieved.
Still, this is going to be a bitter sweet final week. While on the one hand, we are looking forward to the end of the grind, on the other hand, Nancy and I feel we have collectively made 60+ friends. I have enjoyed seeing my students' evolution from being shy and unsure of themselves, to being more confident and sure-footed. I see my role as being a small catalyst to help them unleash their potential. While this program has been an intense learning period, the real hard work has just begun. As my student John pointed out, success is within all of them - my hope is that we have given them the tools, knowledge, and guidance to achieve it.
Nancy asked me if this has been a transformational experience and I said no, that it is more of an evolutionary experience. I went through my transformational experience when I was in Sierra Leone 14 years ago. I have been a little surprised, though, at how comfortable it has felt being here. After finding my bearings in the first three days, it has felt like a second home. I wrote in Part 1 that I cannot explain "why Africa?" but I have come to see that it is because I admire their community-mindedness, friendliness, and culture. Of course, that is not to say that I do not see the complicated issues plaguing this country and continent but it is because of all these issues that I admire their spirit even more. I will go back to Canada with a better understanding of what community, gratitude, and simplicity really mean.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Still, this is going to be a bitter sweet final week. While on the one hand, we are looking forward to the end of the grind, on the other hand, Nancy and I feel we have collectively made 60+ friends. I have enjoyed seeing my students' evolution from being shy and unsure of themselves, to being more confident and sure-footed. I see my role as being a small catalyst to help them unleash their potential. While this program has been an intense learning period, the real hard work has just begun. As my student John pointed out, success is within all of them - my hope is that we have given them the tools, knowledge, and guidance to achieve it.
Nancy asked me if this has been a transformational experience and I said no, that it is more of an evolutionary experience. I went through my transformational experience when I was in Sierra Leone 14 years ago. I have been a little surprised, though, at how comfortable it has felt being here. After finding my bearings in the first three days, it has felt like a second home. I wrote in Part 1 that I cannot explain "why Africa?" but I have come to see that it is because I admire their community-mindedness, friendliness, and culture. Of course, that is not to say that I do not see the complicated issues plaguing this country and continent but it is because of all these issues that I admire their spirit even more. I will go back to Canada with a better understanding of what community, gratitude, and simplicity really mean.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Back in Africa, Part 14 – "About Feedback and Fears"
Reviewing the Feedback
In part 13, I posted all the feedback that the students submitted anonymously. For the most part, there were no surprises. The areas for improvement centered on a few themes, namely better control of some of the discussions and starting on time. While I have tried to let the discussions flow organically because the students were so passionate, there have been a few instances where some individuals hijacked the topic. When discussions were led by the facilitators, I was careful not to interfere too much to avoid appearing to undermine their credibility and authority. However, now that I have developed a stronger sense of the class dynamic, I will be more diligent about moderating the discussions more firmly.
In a previous blog, I wrote about having a soft start at 8 am and a hard start at 8:30, with lateness being recorded and penalized. I was trying to be sensitive to the difficulties in getting reliable transportation but now I realize that with a great deal of content left to cover, I need to start promptly on time. Time has been wasted waiting for people to arrive and by accommodating them, I was actually condoning their tardiness. I spoke to a others in the local community to get some input and they unanimously supported a hard start at 8 am; if this is not done then the students will start to take the program for granted.
Facing Our Fears
I have been told that there is a tendency here to put forth the best face even if things are not going well. This can be isolating so I want to provide the opportunity to keep in contact with each other.. Therefore, as a continuation of our group discussion, I asked the class how they were feeling about becoming entrepreneurs - were they scared, discouraged, enthusiastic, and/or optimistic? Most were anxious and unsure of themselves (as would be expected in any new entrepreneur). The fears articulated were about competition, not getting a loan, defaulting on a loan, and not being able to sustain and grow their business. As the teacher, I tried to address their fears with specific tactics, but it was gratifying to see other students chiming in with moral support. We heard some encouraging words about finding a way, and not giving up if faced with an obstacle. One person brought up a movie he saw in which a new born pony was struggling to walk, fell down, got up until one day he was able to outrun all the other horses. He pointed out that even if others do not see your potential, you have what it takes to succeed within. We only had a half an hour left in the class so we did not have much time to have a thorough discussion. Still, I think that this brief exercise was helpful in partially addressing their concerns. When the program is over, we will be providing monthly meetings during which each can share their progress, challenges, and concerns with each other. We also have arranged mentors from some of our program partners to mentor the graduates with practical and on-going advice.
Posted by Kirby Leong
In part 13, I posted all the feedback that the students submitted anonymously. For the most part, there were no surprises. The areas for improvement centered on a few themes, namely better control of some of the discussions and starting on time. While I have tried to let the discussions flow organically because the students were so passionate, there have been a few instances where some individuals hijacked the topic. When discussions were led by the facilitators, I was careful not to interfere too much to avoid appearing to undermine their credibility and authority. However, now that I have developed a stronger sense of the class dynamic, I will be more diligent about moderating the discussions more firmly.
In a previous blog, I wrote about having a soft start at 8 am and a hard start at 8:30, with lateness being recorded and penalized. I was trying to be sensitive to the difficulties in getting reliable transportation but now I realize that with a great deal of content left to cover, I need to start promptly on time. Time has been wasted waiting for people to arrive and by accommodating them, I was actually condoning their tardiness. I spoke to a others in the local community to get some input and they unanimously supported a hard start at 8 am; if this is not done then the students will start to take the program for granted.
Facing Our Fears
I have been told that there is a tendency here to put forth the best face even if things are not going well. This can be isolating so I want to provide the opportunity to keep in contact with each other.. Therefore, as a continuation of our group discussion, I asked the class how they were feeling about becoming entrepreneurs - were they scared, discouraged, enthusiastic, and/or optimistic? Most were anxious and unsure of themselves (as would be expected in any new entrepreneur). The fears articulated were about competition, not getting a loan, defaulting on a loan, and not being able to sustain and grow their business. As the teacher, I tried to address their fears with specific tactics, but it was gratifying to see other students chiming in with moral support. We heard some encouraging words about finding a way, and not giving up if faced with an obstacle. One person brought up a movie he saw in which a new born pony was struggling to walk, fell down, got up until one day he was able to outrun all the other horses. He pointed out that even if others do not see your potential, you have what it takes to succeed within. We only had a half an hour left in the class so we did not have much time to have a thorough discussion. Still, I think that this brief exercise was helpful in partially addressing their concerns. When the program is over, we will be providing monthly meetings during which each can share their progress, challenges, and concerns with each other. We also have arranged mentors from some of our program partners to mentor the graduates with practical and on-going advice.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Back in Africa, Part 13 - "Feedback"
My philosophy is that I will ask a question even if I may not like the answer, provided that I receive good information. Now that we are slightly more than half-way through the program, I asked the class (including the facilitators) to write down and submit their feedback about the program to me anonymously. The two questions I posed were 1) What did you like about the program, and 2) What should we do better? For now, here are all the responses that have been unedited except for a few changes for clarification. I'll comment on the feedback in a separate blog:
Posted by Kirby Leong
- The thought that I have is that the program is good for us cause we know all the processes and aspects of running a business I personally appreciate that but I would suggest if you can organize a guest speaker from a bank to come and tell us how the banks give loans and what criteria they use cause I think it is more to our advantage because these are the institutions we will approach to fund us after finishing the program. Otherwise I do once again appreciate what you guys are doing.
- The program is good and I like Kirby's sacrifice and determination to see that everyone finishes their business plans. I personally appreciate and feel humbled by what Nancy and you are doing. God bless.
- The workshop was eye opening. Interesting and makes one person think. More practical issues should be addressed.
- Kirby - assist the facilitators on arguments by the class on particular issues of dispute because we waste a lot of time and sometimes go off topic. From Monday (sic the last week of the program) let us start writing the business plan so that we don't pile up everything to the two days we will be at the Cyber (sic cyber cafe). The facilitators to insist on looking at our work so that we are guided as we move on. The class is very interesting and all the facilitators including you Kirby are doing a great job.
- The workshops have been wonderful and it has really opened my eyes to many things I never knew. I liked the interaction between the facilitators and the students and especially our chief facilitator Kirby show have shown a big deal of understanding. What I didn't like is when some of the participants were trying to (confuse) each other with things that never related to the topic of the day and hence drifting away the whole group resulting to a waste of time. I with time could be extended to have longer discussions.
- I like the way ur teaching us - Kudos to that. The way ur providing sweets for us - ur motivating our moral to answer more questions. That's good. Let's improve our time. If it's 8:00 am let it be 8:00 am.
- I think you guys are doing a good job. Just to encourage you to keep it up. Maybe encourage more support for one another after the workshop.
- When we answer we get a candy it makes people want to answer and be attentive. It's better when we answer the questions to our fellow colleagues. It shows we are learning and can teach. We don't remember to put God first. We should be praying at the beginning, tea break, and when we dispatch. Am enjoying ma self. Hope you too.
- The programme has been very educative in that I have learnt many things that I never knew. It was inspiring since I learnt to always look at the bright side no matter what the situation. Thank you Kirby for the sacrifice you made to come all the way. May God bless you. By the way, Kudos to all the facilitators, too.
- We should have some time to discuss our business fears and how we can solve them to be successful. Time of discussions to relax under the tree or on grass to change the class environment esp after break. Have some time for interaction to encourage team building. Get info on how we can study at the University of British Columbia and if we can get scholarships. Have follow-up programme to stay in touch and know how the training as been helping us.
- It has been a great experience. Keep it up! I suggest we should have prizes to the best students whose who were very active. Thanks all facilitators. Keep it up. I have known financial plan. How to do market survey. Thanks for every time. I hope the last day will be great wonderful lunch.
- Things I like. I like the learning. The group is one of a kind. The interaction makes you learn social cohesion. Things you think we should do: I think we should spent extra hours to learn better than to rush thro' topics.
- The experience is great. I am personally learning new things everyday from everyone as they learn from me too. One thing that we should really control is the many discussions within a discussion. It's the only thing that grieves me. Lastly, may this program continue all over. It's so great!! God bless.
- The speaker/facilitator taking us through a topic should always ensure the class remains within topic at hand. Class is interactive and many ideas are generated. More Q&A sessions should be set up.
- I appreciate that am learning a lot from this workshop from Kirby and the crew, the interest they have, to listen to a question or comment posed to them. The workshop is a good idea, am also getting inspired from real life stories and am also educated in the sense that now I know what kind of CSR I would do for my company. To me it's a God given opportunity meeting so many people with different ideas that have really contributed to my business plan. I have also learnt basic business management, loans & cash investments. To me I have no comment on the things not done because today I am many steps ahead in terms of business, money & the leverage part of it. Thank you Kirby and your team. God bless you indeed.
- I like the different stages of learning the Marketing part, the financial part and also presenting your business plan. People are given opportunities to air their views. Things I didn't like - people discussing more of an issue that is out of topic.
- The programme needs to be not once a year but at least twice a year so that many people could benefit from it especially those who didn't join the class of 2008. The business plan booklet that we are given needs to have more pages for more explaining. It limits the business planner to express the business further. Honestly I have appreciated the Resource Guide and also the Homework Booklet. Kirby has been great. A good speaker, easy to understand and he should come again.
- The people here are friendly and supportive. The facilitators are very helpful in all the workshops that we have covered. People should learn to whisper especially (sic another student). People should learn to listen to others when they are talking and not to intrude without permission and by shouting. Are we really going to finish typing the business plan in 2 days? What if one doesn't finish? Then what?
- Being that I have carefully surveyed the market, I know what business will be like but because of it being on the higher side financially, may be you could link some of us with potential business like for me VESTAS or another other organization thinking at expanding into Kenya.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Back in Africa, Part 12 - “Everyone Has a Story”
A Lightbulb Moment
Having recovered from the soccer game, we started the day by completing the previous day's workshop on applying for loans. Ann, one of my star facilitator/Strathmore students, led the group through the best practices for loan interviews. Inadvertently, she touched on a key missing piece of our program when she said that if you are refused for a loan, you have to persevere, learn, and keep trying. She brought up the example of Edison who failed countless times before inventing the light bulb but view each setback as a stepping stone to his success. During the break, I happened to have a discussion with my student, John, whose palpable passion and yes, perseverance for community development is inspiring. He commented on Ann's presentation, mentioning that as a community builder, he, too, feels deeply committed to empowering the youth with a sense of self-confidence and esteem (I hope to tell Ann and John's stories soon but for now I'll tell you what happened on this magical day). But he's not just talk - he does the walk. His work in the community has involved counselling and mentorship to youth who are often lost to HIV/AIDS, drugs, and crime. As he was speaking about his work, I realized that our program, while it does an excellent job of teaching the technical aspects of starting up your business, does not include a key piece to address the barriers to success: belief in oneself. I asked John if he thought it would be a good idea if we spent part of the day sharing our stories of perseverance, to which he emphatically replied "yes"
Changing Course
I was still a bit apprehensive about opening up a dialog about this because it would have been simpler for me just to focus on the preplanned curriculum but I felt that it would be worth exploring. That said, I was not delusional to think that we could instill belief in oneself in 60 minutes, hours, or days. I also wanted to avoid it being a session of banal self-help expressions like "think positively" and "be confident in yourself". More powerfully, I wanted it to be about sharing our stories where we had to struggle to overcome obstacles. As the Amanda Marshall song goes, "everyone has a story" and I wanted to provide a safe forum in which my students could voluntarily share theirs. I was careful not to put any pressure on anyone to speak, although I did encourage them to do so if they wanted.
Walking the Talk
To set the example, I started with my own story about how I fumbled about in my 20's without any plan, dabbling in banking for 19 hellish weeks, each day of which I absolutely dreaded going to work. I was not getting along with my manager, disliked the negative culture, and was simply not well-suited to the role. Even though I left the role, I was proud that I tried as hard as I could to make it work. I need to be able to look back and say that I didn't give up. Ironically, I think I could be a pretty good banker now, if I chose to be one. I then found myself in the role of a fundraiser for a capital campaign. I was jettisoned into a small city to raise several hundred thousand dollars in a hospital campaign but I had little clue how to go about it; but, with a lot of hard work and determination, I succeeded in the end. I spoke about how I stared down my fear of failure, and in doing so, felt unusually liberated.
Next after a two year diploma course in computing, I worked in the telecommunications industry which was subsequently decimated by the dot com meltdown. I was unemployed for 6 long months and to make matters worse, I had just purchased my home and was thus faced with mortgage payments and other on-going expenses. I shared that when you perceive little opportunity, you can become pessimistic about life, which is how I think many in my class feel about their lives. That said, I told them that I rediscovered my resolve to improve my situation. I had to patiently find my way back up to where I was before the dot com meltdown over a number of years: two steps forward, one step back and sometimes one step forward, two steps back. In the process, I told them that I learned about the importance of patience, perseverance, and self belief even when things look bleak because that's when you need them the most. I also told them that unlike me, you should have a plan A, B, and C, rather than allow your life to be dictated by chance. It's OK to change your plan as circumstances change, but it's always good to have several plans. All these points are certainly well-suited to a budding entrepreneur. When I finished, the class applauded me for sharing part of my story.
Meaningful Sharing
What ensued over the next hour was a meaningful sharing of experiences, each one followed by applause. One student who I did not realize was highly regarded for his appearance of success, spoke about how he coped with his employees stealing his entire inventory, leaving him in debt. Another one spoke about how he had to pay his own school fees when he was still in elementary school. He briefly shared how, as soon as school let out, he would swing a business deal within a month to pay the fees. His life has been one of early self-reliance - most everything he has achieved, he has achieved on his own. What is remarkable is that even though his family life was "bad", he is one of the most positive, optimistic, happy people I have ever met. Yet another student spoke about how her current successful business is being sabotaged by those who do not want her to succeed and how this has been stressing her. Still, she is adamant that she will succeed. You would not have known that she was struggling with these issues from speaking with her. I encouraged the other women to speak up if they wanted to, and another one other almost did, but she was afraid of becoming too emotional because her "story is very sad". I was careful not to pursue it any further but reassured her that this is a safe environment to share if she felt comfortable in doing so. The hour went by quickly, and at the end, the group said that they wanted another opportunity to share their stories and fears as they prepare to launch their businesses. The mood was noisily jubilant at the end of class and I would like to take all this as indication that this foray was a success. I appreciate that it's a sensitive area to venture into and I am very aware of protecting people's privacy; by sharing our stories, my goal was simply to remind everyone that we are the same, regardless of appearances of success or lack thereof.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Having recovered from the soccer game, we started the day by completing the previous day's workshop on applying for loans. Ann, one of my star facilitator/Strathmore students, led the group through the best practices for loan interviews. Inadvertently, she touched on a key missing piece of our program when she said that if you are refused for a loan, you have to persevere, learn, and keep trying. She brought up the example of Edison who failed countless times before inventing the light bulb but view each setback as a stepping stone to his success. During the break, I happened to have a discussion with my student, John, whose palpable passion and yes, perseverance for community development is inspiring. He commented on Ann's presentation, mentioning that as a community builder, he, too, feels deeply committed to empowering the youth with a sense of self-confidence and esteem (I hope to tell Ann and John's stories soon but for now I'll tell you what happened on this magical day). But he's not just talk - he does the walk. His work in the community has involved counselling and mentorship to youth who are often lost to HIV/AIDS, drugs, and crime. As he was speaking about his work, I realized that our program, while it does an excellent job of teaching the technical aspects of starting up your business, does not include a key piece to address the barriers to success: belief in oneself. I asked John if he thought it would be a good idea if we spent part of the day sharing our stories of perseverance, to which he emphatically replied "yes"
Changing Course
I was still a bit apprehensive about opening up a dialog about this because it would have been simpler for me just to focus on the preplanned curriculum but I felt that it would be worth exploring. That said, I was not delusional to think that we could instill belief in oneself in 60 minutes, hours, or days. I also wanted to avoid it being a session of banal self-help expressions like "think positively" and "be confident in yourself". More powerfully, I wanted it to be about sharing our stories where we had to struggle to overcome obstacles. As the Amanda Marshall song goes, "everyone has a story" and I wanted to provide a safe forum in which my students could voluntarily share theirs. I was careful not to put any pressure on anyone to speak, although I did encourage them to do so if they wanted.
Walking the Talk
To set the example, I started with my own story about how I fumbled about in my 20's without any plan, dabbling in banking for 19 hellish weeks, each day of which I absolutely dreaded going to work. I was not getting along with my manager, disliked the negative culture, and was simply not well-suited to the role. Even though I left the role, I was proud that I tried as hard as I could to make it work. I need to be able to look back and say that I didn't give up. Ironically, I think I could be a pretty good banker now, if I chose to be one. I then found myself in the role of a fundraiser for a capital campaign. I was jettisoned into a small city to raise several hundred thousand dollars in a hospital campaign but I had little clue how to go about it; but, with a lot of hard work and determination, I succeeded in the end. I spoke about how I stared down my fear of failure, and in doing so, felt unusually liberated.
Next after a two year diploma course in computing, I worked in the telecommunications industry which was subsequently decimated by the dot com meltdown. I was unemployed for 6 long months and to make matters worse, I had just purchased my home and was thus faced with mortgage payments and other on-going expenses. I shared that when you perceive little opportunity, you can become pessimistic about life, which is how I think many in my class feel about their lives. That said, I told them that I rediscovered my resolve to improve my situation. I had to patiently find my way back up to where I was before the dot com meltdown over a number of years: two steps forward, one step back and sometimes one step forward, two steps back. In the process, I told them that I learned about the importance of patience, perseverance, and self belief even when things look bleak because that's when you need them the most. I also told them that unlike me, you should have a plan A, B, and C, rather than allow your life to be dictated by chance. It's OK to change your plan as circumstances change, but it's always good to have several plans. All these points are certainly well-suited to a budding entrepreneur. When I finished, the class applauded me for sharing part of my story.
Meaningful Sharing
What ensued over the next hour was a meaningful sharing of experiences, each one followed by applause. One student who I did not realize was highly regarded for his appearance of success, spoke about how he coped with his employees stealing his entire inventory, leaving him in debt. Another one spoke about how he had to pay his own school fees when he was still in elementary school. He briefly shared how, as soon as school let out, he would swing a business deal within a month to pay the fees. His life has been one of early self-reliance - most everything he has achieved, he has achieved on his own. What is remarkable is that even though his family life was "bad", he is one of the most positive, optimistic, happy people I have ever met. Yet another student spoke about how her current successful business is being sabotaged by those who do not want her to succeed and how this has been stressing her. Still, she is adamant that she will succeed. You would not have known that she was struggling with these issues from speaking with her. I encouraged the other women to speak up if they wanted to, and another one other almost did, but she was afraid of becoming too emotional because her "story is very sad". I was careful not to pursue it any further but reassured her that this is a safe environment to share if she felt comfortable in doing so. The hour went by quickly, and at the end, the group said that they wanted another opportunity to share their stories and fears as they prepare to launch their businesses. The mood was noisily jubilant at the end of class and I would like to take all this as indication that this foray was a success. I appreciate that it's a sensitive area to venture into and I am very aware of protecting people's privacy; by sharing our stories, my goal was simply to remind everyone that we are the same, regardless of appearances of success or lack thereof.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Back in Africa, Part 11 - “Having a Field Day”
Today was the day our two classes would meet for the first time to play a game of soccer. Nancy and her Kibera team arrived at my site around 11:30, ready to play. Unbeknownst to me (and Nancy), members of the Kibera class were part of a soccer team and when we first saw them, we all thought, OMG - they look like really good soccer players. My team, in compaison, seemed more pedestrian. It was like in the Karate Kid where he goes up against the juggernaut of the opposing team, which I guess, made me the Pat Morita of Kimathi team. The only problem is that I know very little about soccer and have not played it in over 15 years for good reason.
As the teams walked onto the field, Nancy and I watched from the sidelines. The women of the two groups formed cheering sections on opposite ends of the field. Once the game began, our cheering section started to trash talk the other team (OK, I may have encouraged them - a little). As you can imagine, this incited the other cheering section so now we had two sections trash talking each other in Swahili (it was all in good fun, though). For example, one of my students starting yelling "Domo, Domo" which means loud mouth in Swahili. Kenyans love their soccer, though, as any hint of momentum for one team elicited shrieking screams from the sidelines. Since we played on the field next to our site, our game drew the surrounding neighborhood out to watch. From the looks on their faces, I think they thought we were crazy with all the shouting, screaming, and trash talking. At one point in the game, someone from the other team said to me that my team was so bad that we should take up tennis. I shot back by saying that "I could beat them all in tennis" but then he countered with "but this is not tennis". In the end, my team lost 3-2 but I thought we did a great job against a much more experienced team.
However, the highlight of the day was at the end of the day when my team captain brought everyone together in a circle to stress that while we came to play soccer, they had an opportunity to support each other's entrepreneurial dreams by working together. For example, he said that his camping equipment rental business could work with the tour company that another student is wanting to start. With that said, he asked each person to state their name and business idea to help everyone identify the potential synergistic opportunities. I was really proud of both teams for transforming a highly competitive soccer game into one of shared opportunities.
Posted by Kirby Leong
As the teams walked onto the field, Nancy and I watched from the sidelines. The women of the two groups formed cheering sections on opposite ends of the field. Once the game began, our cheering section started to trash talk the other team (OK, I may have encouraged them - a little). As you can imagine, this incited the other cheering section so now we had two sections trash talking each other in Swahili (it was all in good fun, though). For example, one of my students starting yelling "Domo, Domo" which means loud mouth in Swahili. Kenyans love their soccer, though, as any hint of momentum for one team elicited shrieking screams from the sidelines. Since we played on the field next to our site, our game drew the surrounding neighborhood out to watch. From the looks on their faces, I think they thought we were crazy with all the shouting, screaming, and trash talking. At one point in the game, someone from the other team said to me that my team was so bad that we should take up tennis. I shot back by saying that "I could beat them all in tennis" but then he countered with "but this is not tennis". In the end, my team lost 3-2 but I thought we did a great job against a much more experienced team.
However, the highlight of the day was at the end of the day when my team captain brought everyone together in a circle to stress that while we came to play soccer, they had an opportunity to support each other's entrepreneurial dreams by working together. For example, he said that his camping equipment rental business could work with the tour company that another student is wanting to start. With that said, he asked each person to state their name and business idea to help everyone identify the potential synergistic opportunities. I was really proud of both teams for transforming a highly competitive soccer game into one of shared opportunities.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Back in Africa, Part 10 – “Finance and More Finance”
Visit from the Ministry of Youth Affairs
Last week we had the pleasure of being visited by a representative (Demaris) from the Ministry of Youth Affairs. This ministry's mission is to support initiatives that promote youth development, particularly skills training and employment. Demaris visited our two sites and came away highly impressed by the interactive and participative nature and content of our program. Nancy, Jose' , and I are meeting with the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Youth Affairs next week to discuss how we can partner with them to advance this program, and most importantly, to support our students once they graduate. That has been the crucial and the most difficult gap that we have been trying to fill - that is, to provide financial support and mentorship for our graduates.
Introducing and Reintroducing Financial Planning and Management
With Marketing, Part 1 completed, it was now onto Financial Planning and Management, Part 1. My other two facilitators, Boniface and Gary stepped up to the plate to deliver the workshop. They did a good job of covering topics such as supply and demand, income statements, gross profit(loss), net profit(loss), start-up expenses, cash flow statements, and break-even analysis. However, based on the class reaction and feedback, I realized that it was a bit ambitious of us to cover so much material in one session, especially for an audience which has had little/no exposure to business, let alone financial statements. With this in mind, on the weekend I created supplemental materials with clear examples to help reinforce the learning. The following week it was great to see that the class understood the concepts and could work through the examples, and more importantly, apply them to their own business plans. The clear highlight was when I walked into one of the break-out rooms and saw a few students working through a cash flow example for other students. They were teaching each other! I joked with them that they were trying to put me out of my (unpaid) job. I think this moment is an example of what ignites the passion of teachers to continue teaching.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Back in Africa, Part 9 – “Traffic Hell”
Usually I am up by 6 am (I know my co-workers at SAP Business Objects won't believe this), downstairs for breakfast by 6:30 am, in transit by 7:15 am, and arrive at the class by 7:45 am. My daily commute is chaotic and stressful because I have to travel through the downtown core to get to the site. Competing with all the other cars, bicycles, motorcycles, large and small buses, and pedestrians for the congested roadways is a daily adventure. I marvel not only at the ability of drivers to create four lanes of weaving traffic out of two lanes, but also the ability of pedestrians not to get run over. Signal lights are routinely ignored as cars barge their way, inch by inch, into lanes. If one were to obey the traffic signs and signals, you would not be able to move as other vehicles and pedestrians would get ahead of you. As we stall in the backlogged streets, the black exhaust from large diesel buses spew into the air and into our lungs. I still have not quite been able to complete one commute without closing my eyes, as we come within mere inches of hitting another car or pedestrian. Pedestrians in particular cross at any point on any street and dodge lanes of traffic by running across one lane, pausing, and then running across another lane. While I dread this daily kaleidoscope of near death experiences, the evidence is there to indicate that "it works". I just need to have more faith in it. Still, I am very cautious when I cross a street, even to the point of looking right, left, diagonal, up, down, forward, and backwards on a one-way street. It seems I cannot tell where a vehicle may be coming from.
My best friend emailed me this link to a news story about the traffic in Nairobi: http://www.mytelus.com/travel/article.do?pageID=home&articleID=2967875
Posted by Kirby Leong
My best friend emailed me this link to a news story about the traffic in Nairobi: http://www.mytelus.com/travel/article.do?pageID=home&articleID=2967875
Posted by Kirby Leong
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Back in Africa, Part 8 - “Solving Tough Problems”
A Rediscovery
As I was packing for my trip, I came across a book that I had read a few years ago called "Solving Tough Problems" (Kahane) that I highly recommend buying. In it, the author Adam Kahane describes his experiences helping groups solve our most pressing issue - how to work together to solve the problems we have created. Kahane's 25 years of experiences facilitating and leading teams from such diverse groups such as Royal Dutch/Shell, Intel, PriceWaterhouse Coopers, Federal Express, Government of Canada, European Commission, and the Congress of South African Trade Unions is an inspiring read. He has also facilitated cross-organizational leadership teams. For example, in South Africa in the post-apartheid era and in post-genocide Guatemala.
Three Types of Complexity
The book discusses three types of complexity: dynamic, generative, and social. High dynamic complexity is when cause and effect are far apart in space and time. For example, how apartheid-era educational policies affect present day employment prospects for black South Africans. High generative complexity occurs when the future is unfamiliar and unpredictable. Under these circumstances, solutions cannot be created in advanced based on what worked in the past, but rather must be developed as the situation unfolds. Finally, high social complexity occurs when people who are part of the problem look at things very differently, with different assumptions, values, and knowledge.
Summary of Key Learnings
Kuhane summarizes his key learnings in ten suggestions:
1. Pay attention to your state of being and how you are talking and listening. Notice your own assumptions, reactions, contradictions, anxieties, prejudices, and projections.
2. Speak up. Notice and say what you are thinking, feeling, and wanting.
3. Remember that you don't know the truth about anything. When you think you are absolutely certain about the way things are, "add in my opinion" or "from my perspective" to your sentence. Don't take yourself too seriously.
4. Engage with and listen to others who have a stake in the system. Seek out people who have different, even opposing perspectives from yours. Stretch beyond your comfort zone.
5. Reflect on your own role in the system. Examine how what you are doing or not doing is contributing to things being done they way they are. Also, you can't be part of the solution if you are not part of the problem.
6. Listen with empathy.
7. Listen to what is being said not just by yourself and others but through all of you. Listen to what is emerging in the system as a whole. Listen with your heart. Speak from your heart.
8. Stop talking. Camp out beside the questions and let answers come to you.
9. Relax and be fully present. Open up your mind and heart and will. Open yourself up to being touched and transformed.
10. Try out these suggestions and notice what happens. Keep on practicing.
Co-creating in Kenya
In my opinion, this exemplifies the greatest that community has to offer. It is the bringing together of people to co-create a new reality that is rooted in truth but and is fed by our collective dreams. After re-reading the book, it occurred to me that we do, in fact, have an opportunity here to help co-create a new reality for these group of young adults. I will need to be fully present to listen openly and honestly to their stories, challenges, hopes, and dreams; similarly, I need to be willing to share mine.
Posted by Kirby Leong
As I was packing for my trip, I came across a book that I had read a few years ago called "Solving Tough Problems" (Kahane) that I highly recommend buying. In it, the author Adam Kahane describes his experiences helping groups solve our most pressing issue - how to work together to solve the problems we have created. Kahane's 25 years of experiences facilitating and leading teams from such diverse groups such as Royal Dutch/Shell, Intel, PriceWaterhouse Coopers, Federal Express, Government of Canada, European Commission, and the Congress of South African Trade Unions is an inspiring read. He has also facilitated cross-organizational leadership teams. For example, in South Africa in the post-apartheid era and in post-genocide Guatemala.
Three Types of Complexity
The book discusses three types of complexity: dynamic, generative, and social. High dynamic complexity is when cause and effect are far apart in space and time. For example, how apartheid-era educational policies affect present day employment prospects for black South Africans. High generative complexity occurs when the future is unfamiliar and unpredictable. Under these circumstances, solutions cannot be created in advanced based on what worked in the past, but rather must be developed as the situation unfolds. Finally, high social complexity occurs when people who are part of the problem look at things very differently, with different assumptions, values, and knowledge.
Summary of Key Learnings
Kuhane summarizes his key learnings in ten suggestions:
1. Pay attention to your state of being and how you are talking and listening. Notice your own assumptions, reactions, contradictions, anxieties, prejudices, and projections.
2. Speak up. Notice and say what you are thinking, feeling, and wanting.
3. Remember that you don't know the truth about anything. When you think you are absolutely certain about the way things are, "add in my opinion" or "from my perspective" to your sentence. Don't take yourself too seriously.
4. Engage with and listen to others who have a stake in the system. Seek out people who have different, even opposing perspectives from yours. Stretch beyond your comfort zone.
5. Reflect on your own role in the system. Examine how what you are doing or not doing is contributing to things being done they way they are. Also, you can't be part of the solution if you are not part of the problem.
6. Listen with empathy.
7. Listen to what is being said not just by yourself and others but through all of you. Listen to what is emerging in the system as a whole. Listen with your heart. Speak from your heart.
8. Stop talking. Camp out beside the questions and let answers come to you.
9. Relax and be fully present. Open up your mind and heart and will. Open yourself up to being touched and transformed.
10. Try out these suggestions and notice what happens. Keep on practicing.
Co-creating in Kenya
In my opinion, this exemplifies the greatest that community has to offer. It is the bringing together of people to co-create a new reality that is rooted in truth but and is fed by our collective dreams. After re-reading the book, it occurred to me that we do, in fact, have an opportunity here to help co-create a new reality for these group of young adults. I will need to be fully present to listen openly and honestly to their stories, challenges, hopes, and dreams; similarly, I need to be willing to share mine.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Back in Africa, Part 7 - “Play Dirt”
Posted on Aug. 14, 2008 11:47 AM
I have been playing tennis since I was 13 years old (and boy am I tired). From the moment I landed in Nairobi with my tennis rackets, I have been asking where the tennis courts are located. I heard about three tennis clubs within the first week - Railway Sports Club, Nairobi Sports Club, and the Impala Sports Club.
Railway Sports Club
The Railway Sports Club borders one of the major roads in downtown Nairobi and is within walking distance from where I am staying. One afternoon I packed up my rackets and made the short trek. The Railway Sports Club has a basketball court, a small pool, three tennis courts, and a small restaurant/pub/club house. When I stepped onto the tennis courts, what I thought was red clay was actually dirt. White chalk lines defined the court, in addition to an old net. I had never played on dirt but was willing to give it a try by hitting with one of the tennis coaches. Over the next 15 minutes, the ball skidded, hopped, and ricochet unexpectedly as it hit exposed hard rock or coarse dirt. Moving on the dirt was precarious which made me tentative about sliding or running for fear of injuring myself. After the 15 minutes of essentially picking up balls that sprayed all over the place, I decided to pack it in. I gave up. The dirt beat me good.
Nairobi Sports Club
I also checked out the Nairobi Sports Club but I needed a member to recommend me before I could join, even for the three weeks that I'm here. One of the staff members told me that it's difficult to find people to play with anyway, so I moved on.
Impala Sports Club
My next trip was to the Impala Sports Club which required a 20 minute taxi ride to get there. The club has five dirt tennis courts, a rugby field, cricket field, pool, and a state of the art gym. I played two sets of tennis against the coach on the slightly better courts and it was manageable. I lost 6-4, 6-4 but had a pretty good time playing in the afternoon sunshine, although I found the smog and altitude a bit difficult to deal with. Afterwards, I decided to join the club given its facilities and nominal fee of $12 for the month.
Jim Davis Tennis Academy
Despite joining the Impala Club, I was feeling discouraged by the apparent lack of hard courts but then one day someone mentioned the Jim Davis Tennis Academy. A tennis academy? I looked it up in the phone book and hopped in a taxi, eagerly anticipating what the tennis academy was going to look like. It turns out that it is on the way to the Impala Club but it's quite hidden on a small side road, nestled amongst homes in a quiet neighborhood. The academy was built about 20 years ago (by Jim Davis who lives on the compound) and has three (fast) hard courts and four coaches. I played one of the coaches and won 7-5, 6-3 and am looking forward to playing the others. I also met a Japanese political analyst who is working in Kenya, and I'm looking forward to playing him on the weekend.
Posted by Kirby Leong
I have been playing tennis since I was 13 years old (and boy am I tired). From the moment I landed in Nairobi with my tennis rackets, I have been asking where the tennis courts are located. I heard about three tennis clubs within the first week - Railway Sports Club, Nairobi Sports Club, and the Impala Sports Club.
Railway Sports Club
The Railway Sports Club borders one of the major roads in downtown Nairobi and is within walking distance from where I am staying. One afternoon I packed up my rackets and made the short trek. The Railway Sports Club has a basketball court, a small pool, three tennis courts, and a small restaurant/pub/club house. When I stepped onto the tennis courts, what I thought was red clay was actually dirt. White chalk lines defined the court, in addition to an old net. I had never played on dirt but was willing to give it a try by hitting with one of the tennis coaches. Over the next 15 minutes, the ball skidded, hopped, and ricochet unexpectedly as it hit exposed hard rock or coarse dirt. Moving on the dirt was precarious which made me tentative about sliding or running for fear of injuring myself. After the 15 minutes of essentially picking up balls that sprayed all over the place, I decided to pack it in. I gave up. The dirt beat me good.
Nairobi Sports Club
I also checked out the Nairobi Sports Club but I needed a member to recommend me before I could join, even for the three weeks that I'm here. One of the staff members told me that it's difficult to find people to play with anyway, so I moved on.
Impala Sports Club
My next trip was to the Impala Sports Club which required a 20 minute taxi ride to get there. The club has five dirt tennis courts, a rugby field, cricket field, pool, and a state of the art gym. I played two sets of tennis against the coach on the slightly better courts and it was manageable. I lost 6-4, 6-4 but had a pretty good time playing in the afternoon sunshine, although I found the smog and altitude a bit difficult to deal with. Afterwards, I decided to join the club given its facilities and nominal fee of $12 for the month.
Jim Davis Tennis Academy
Despite joining the Impala Club, I was feeling discouraged by the apparent lack of hard courts but then one day someone mentioned the Jim Davis Tennis Academy. A tennis academy? I looked it up in the phone book and hopped in a taxi, eagerly anticipating what the tennis academy was going to look like. It turns out that it is on the way to the Impala Club but it's quite hidden on a small side road, nestled amongst homes in a quiet neighborhood. The academy was built about 20 years ago (by Jim Davis who lives on the compound) and has three (fast) hard courts and four coaches. I played one of the coaches and won 7-5, 6-3 and am looking forward to playing the others. I also met a Japanese political analyst who is working in Kenya, and I'm looking forward to playing him on the weekend.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Monday, August 11, 2008
Back in Africa, Part 6 - “The Facilitators Take Over”
My Team of Facilitators
As mentioned previously, I have a team of students from Strathmore University, one of the top business schools in East Africa, helping me to facilitate the class. I have/had five students working with me: Ann, Kevin, Boniface, Vincent, and Gary. Nancy and I met them the weekend before the program started and they have, for the most part (see below) turned out to be a solid group of smart, young students. Of the five, only Ann is completing her masters; the others have either completed or are in the process of completing their undergraduate degrees. They were initially quite shy and quiet around me but have since opened up and been more relaxed.
At the end of the last session, I decided to assign a group of students to each facilitator to mentor them. For the first hour or so of each morning the mentors will be working with their students to work on the business plans and answer any questions they may have. It's critical to continuously be working on their plans based on the workshops and feedback that they received. Writing good business plans is difficult, so I just encourage them to do they best the can and anticipate that they will struggle and get frustrated, but that we are here to help them through it. I am beginning to see that our constant reassurances and one-on-one interactions is paying off but the real test will be if we see solid business plans in the end. The feedback I have so far is that they appreciate the individual/small group attention.
First Up: Kevin
Kevin led the marketing workshop and he covered not only the curriculum but also added material from his own marketing courses. One thing I learned is that there are 7 not 4 P's of marketing: the other three are people, physical evidence, and process. I'm did not quite understand the part about physical evidence (or maybe I misheard) but it was interesting nonetheless. The other unexpected addition was the environmental analysis - normally we use PEST or political, economic, social, and technological - but now it's PESTEL. The E and L stand for environmental and legal (I think). Kevin did a good job of introducing the components of marketing, which also included target market segmentation and marketing strategy, and even SMART objectives and competitive advantage. I tried to assist only when I thought I could help him along with examples or questions to the class, so for the most part, I left him to teach how he wanted.
Kevin also did a good job in applying the concepts and principles to one of the business ideas in the class (a kindergarten). The concept of a target market proved difficult to get across, however, because many of the students just assumed your target market is anyone who needs your product or service. I was careful to spend a lot of time on this because unless you are clear as to who your customers are, it will be difficult to develop an effective marketing strategy and mix. Kevin did a good job of leading the class on defining the target market for the kindergarten so I was pleased to see that. Still, I expect that I will have to come back to this a few more times.
Managing the Facilitators
For the most part, I have been very pleased with my team of student mentors/facilitators because they're very smart, capable, and engaged in what we're all trying to do. I say for the most part because I had the unpleasant task of firing one of them today. Unlike the rest of the team, Vincent was not engaged at all - in fact, he was surfing the web on his cell phone during class discussion and actually fell asleep. His cell phone crashing to the floor woke him up. I told him after class that it was not personal and that it was just not a good fit. He stoically accepted the decision and left. I was a bit concerned about how this might affect the rest of the team but they supported it; Ann surprised me when she said that she's a business woman who has fired people before and it's "just business". I asked Jose' about Vincent's stoic response and he said that it is typical of Kenyans not to fret or get overly frustrated with a particular situation. Generally speaking, he said that if one thing does not work out, they accept it, and then move on (to find another way to their goal).
Managing the Students
Managing the facilitators is one thing but managing the students is another. Lateness tends to be a chronic issue with the students and I dislike having to remind everyone about being prompt. I'm leaning towards not being bothering with tracking lateness and absences because for those who attend classes on time, they will receive more help. Ultimately, an entrepreneur must be self driven and for me to enforce attendance and promptness, well, will not likely improve their chances of success. Either they have "it" or they don't. That said, one thing that I must enforce is the completion of the homework. If a student does not complete their business plan then he/she cannot graduate.
Revisiting Mission and Vision
One topic that I thought I would not have to cover is mission/vision statements because I had removed them from the resource guide and homework booklet. I edited them out because the information was incorrect and I thought (erroneously) why do they need them? You should have seen the enthusiasm and passion the students had for writing them. I remembered that Jose' told me that many of them are discouraged by the lack of opportunities and so by allowing them to articulate their purpose and dreams was a powerful experience. One student, John, described how he wants to create a centre for disadvantaged youth to market their goods. In doing so, John aims to empower the youth, to provide them with the opportunity for a better life than one which could be afflicted by drugs and HIV/AIDS. It was clear that he feels a deep sense of purpose about the mission and vision - and it was amazing to witness it. One other student, similarly lit up when she was articulating her vision for a kindergarten that would provide esteem building activities and support. Her love and devotion to the children of her community clearly was the driving force behind her ambition. I told the class that, yes, you're going into business to make money, but what is it that motivates you to do this particular business? Since we are teaching social entrepreneurship, I have realized that the mission and vision statements are personal and not just about the business. At the end of the class, two students shook my hand to thank me for teaching them about mission and vision statements (all those times I have gone through developing them for various organizations and companies paid off). Recalling the different business ideas, I see that many of them are rooted in community development and I could not help but smile when I listened to their dreams. As I mentioned before, the typical Kenyan education system is one where the instructor lords over the students, imparting knowledge but the students have little, if any, opportunity to engage the instructor. I see that having someone empathetically listen and support them and their dreams is having an impact, although it will take time to build that trust and comfort.
Posted by Kirby Leong
As mentioned previously, I have a team of students from Strathmore University, one of the top business schools in East Africa, helping me to facilitate the class. I have/had five students working with me: Ann, Kevin, Boniface, Vincent, and Gary. Nancy and I met them the weekend before the program started and they have, for the most part (see below) turned out to be a solid group of smart, young students. Of the five, only Ann is completing her masters; the others have either completed or are in the process of completing their undergraduate degrees. They were initially quite shy and quiet around me but have since opened up and been more relaxed.
At the end of the last session, I decided to assign a group of students to each facilitator to mentor them. For the first hour or so of each morning the mentors will be working with their students to work on the business plans and answer any questions they may have. It's critical to continuously be working on their plans based on the workshops and feedback that they received. Writing good business plans is difficult, so I just encourage them to do they best the can and anticipate that they will struggle and get frustrated, but that we are here to help them through it. I am beginning to see that our constant reassurances and one-on-one interactions is paying off but the real test will be if we see solid business plans in the end. The feedback I have so far is that they appreciate the individual/small group attention.
First Up: Kevin
Kevin led the marketing workshop and he covered not only the curriculum but also added material from his own marketing courses. One thing I learned is that there are 7 not 4 P's of marketing: the other three are people, physical evidence, and process. I'm did not quite understand the part about physical evidence (or maybe I misheard) but it was interesting nonetheless. The other unexpected addition was the environmental analysis - normally we use PEST or political, economic, social, and technological - but now it's PESTEL. The E and L stand for environmental and legal (I think). Kevin did a good job of introducing the components of marketing, which also included target market segmentation and marketing strategy, and even SMART objectives and competitive advantage. I tried to assist only when I thought I could help him along with examples or questions to the class, so for the most part, I left him to teach how he wanted.
Kevin also did a good job in applying the concepts and principles to one of the business ideas in the class (a kindergarten). The concept of a target market proved difficult to get across, however, because many of the students just assumed your target market is anyone who needs your product or service. I was careful to spend a lot of time on this because unless you are clear as to who your customers are, it will be difficult to develop an effective marketing strategy and mix. Kevin did a good job of leading the class on defining the target market for the kindergarten so I was pleased to see that. Still, I expect that I will have to come back to this a few more times.
Managing the Facilitators
For the most part, I have been very pleased with my team of student mentors/facilitators because they're very smart, capable, and engaged in what we're all trying to do. I say for the most part because I had the unpleasant task of firing one of them today. Unlike the rest of the team, Vincent was not engaged at all - in fact, he was surfing the web on his cell phone during class discussion and actually fell asleep. His cell phone crashing to the floor woke him up. I told him after class that it was not personal and that it was just not a good fit. He stoically accepted the decision and left. I was a bit concerned about how this might affect the rest of the team but they supported it; Ann surprised me when she said that she's a business woman who has fired people before and it's "just business". I asked Jose' about Vincent's stoic response and he said that it is typical of Kenyans not to fret or get overly frustrated with a particular situation. Generally speaking, he said that if one thing does not work out, they accept it, and then move on (to find another way to their goal).
Managing the Students
Managing the facilitators is one thing but managing the students is another. Lateness tends to be a chronic issue with the students and I dislike having to remind everyone about being prompt. I'm leaning towards not being bothering with tracking lateness and absences because for those who attend classes on time, they will receive more help. Ultimately, an entrepreneur must be self driven and for me to enforce attendance and promptness, well, will not likely improve their chances of success. Either they have "it" or they don't. That said, one thing that I must enforce is the completion of the homework. If a student does not complete their business plan then he/she cannot graduate.
Revisiting Mission and Vision
One topic that I thought I would not have to cover is mission/vision statements because I had removed them from the resource guide and homework booklet. I edited them out because the information was incorrect and I thought (erroneously) why do they need them? You should have seen the enthusiasm and passion the students had for writing them. I remembered that Jose' told me that many of them are discouraged by the lack of opportunities and so by allowing them to articulate their purpose and dreams was a powerful experience. One student, John, described how he wants to create a centre for disadvantaged youth to market their goods. In doing so, John aims to empower the youth, to provide them with the opportunity for a better life than one which could be afflicted by drugs and HIV/AIDS. It was clear that he feels a deep sense of purpose about the mission and vision - and it was amazing to witness it. One other student, similarly lit up when she was articulating her vision for a kindergarten that would provide esteem building activities and support. Her love and devotion to the children of her community clearly was the driving force behind her ambition. I told the class that, yes, you're going into business to make money, but what is it that motivates you to do this particular business? Since we are teaching social entrepreneurship, I have realized that the mission and vision statements are personal and not just about the business. At the end of the class, two students shook my hand to thank me for teaching them about mission and vision statements (all those times I have gone through developing them for various organizations and companies paid off). Recalling the different business ideas, I see that many of them are rooted in community development and I could not help but smile when I listened to their dreams. As I mentioned before, the typical Kenyan education system is one where the instructor lords over the students, imparting knowledge but the students have little, if any, opportunity to engage the instructor. I see that having someone empathetically listen and support them and their dreams is having an impact, although it will take time to build that trust and comfort.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Friday, August 8, 2008
Back in Africa, Part 5 - “Surviving then Thriving”
Let me introduce Jose' Njuki-imwe, one of our coordinators, and how we came to work with him.
The Accident
On a fateful day in 1980 when Jose' was four months old, Jose's nanny broke her routine of dropping off Jose' at his mother's grocery shop to go pick up his sister from kindergarten. The nanny decided to leave Jose' at home and rush out to school to pick up the sister, but before leaving she decided to start boiling water. When the nanny returned home with the sister, she saw that the house was on fire and burst into the home (and in the process burned her arm) to rescue Jose' . Fortunately, she did not leave Jose' on the bottom bunk bed like she normally does, but rather left him on the top bunk. By the time she reached him, the bottom bunk bed was in flames which was reaching up to the top bunk. Jose' suffered 3rd degree burns to half his body, particularly to his face and arms, and most of his fingers on his left hand were burned beyond saving. The nanny took Jose' in a taxi to the burn unit of the hospital and over the next nine months, Jose's mother spent every day attending to her son, helping him to heal, while the rest of the family helped run the shop. Incredibly the mother (and Jose' ) forgave the nanny for her mistake but the nanny felt so guilty that she resigned from her job.
Childhood
Growing up, Jose' found it very difficult in school. The other children discriminated against him for his disfigurement in such ways as always choosing him last in team sports and excluded him from groups. How did this affect him? His self esteem was so low in primary school that he developed a stammer and did poorly in school but with the unconditional acceptance from his family, he built up his confidence and most importantly, his kindheartedness. He ultimately saw this as a character building opportunity and used his natural social talents to win people over. Rather than allow this accident to fill him with bitterness and pity, he deliberately decided to transform the experience to one of deep meaning and purpose. Jose' feels a deep commitment to bring change to his community. The meaning he finds is "what matters is what change you can bring and not what you look like" and the scars are a constant reminder to him to "value yourself and the people around you and not disrespect others". Yet his worst moment to date was when he was asked by a stranger if he was a victim of the US embassy bombing back in 1998. He still gets asked frequently about what happened but he himself has never asked "why me?" Instead, Jose' has asked "what's my purpose?" largely due to his faith and family. Since his family never treated him differently or pitied him, he never pitied himself. His philosophy is that "you attract positive or negative to your life. If you pity yourself, you attract pity. You should not mourn yourself but rather find your purpose". Not surprisingly, Jose' feels no resentment or anger towards his former Nanny but rather feels she is the bravest person in the world for rescuing him. He is in fact looking for her now because "she is my hero for saving me".
Becoming an Entrepreneur
In 1999 after completing school, Jose' started distributing milk, bread, newspapers to his community. His true entrepreneurial spirit was unleashed when he set up a shop to distribute his goods. It became successful enough that he hired an employee to run it. After a five year detour as a cell phone technician for Nokia, he went back to his entrepreneurial roots. Two years ago he and two colleagues realized that his community (Kimathi) lacks proper access to information so he completed a comprehensive survey to assess what amenities/services does the community want to see. Aside from the need for a central notice board, his respondents also said they they wanted better access to the Internet. In particular, students needed to write papers and communicate with others, but at the time, they had to stay late in downtown Nairobi. While downtown is just 7 km away, the travel time could be up to 1 ½ hours. Furthermore, coming back to Kimathi late at night could also be potentially dangerous.
Seeing the need, he calculated that there are about 3,000 houses in his community with an average of two target market customers in each house for a total potential market of 6,000 people. The key issue for him was how to raise the start up funds of 250,000 Ksh or $3,600 USD, of which he only had 40,000 Ksh or $600 USD. For the 210,000 Ksh that he needed to raise, he approached Computers for Schools Kenya to sell the need of his community. They agreed to do a pilot program for which they contributed 13 Compaq Deskpro Pentium III computers and monitors. The remaining balance (210,000 Ksh) had to be paid off in installments. Hence the Kimathi Information Centre (KIC) was born. Part way through the debt repayment, Computers for Schools Canada, which works with the Kenya operation, saw the impact on the Kimathi community and decided to forgive the debt. KIC has expanded beyond a cyber cafe into a business training centre. He started organizing symposiums for youth, with the first symposium in March 2007 netting 237 attendees. His passion and vision is to empower his greater community with technological advantages to bridge the digital divide.
Social Entrepreneurship 101
But how did Jose' get involved with SE 101? A Sauder School of Business graduate was working for IDRC (International Development Resource Centre) when she met Jose' and promptly introduced him to Nancy. At the time, Nancy needed to pull together an SE 101 program in just three weeks because the organization that she was working with pulled out unexpectedly at the last moment. Impressively, Jose' was able to line up 37 students as well as the required facilities and materials.
This year, Jose' has organized the two sites, lined up guest speakers, invited government officials, and sourced program materials. He's also been very helpful in helping me to organize my class by taking attendance, encouraging the participants, and making the class announcements. Jose' is a gifted public speaker; he has a natural way of connecting with his audience that is impressive to watch. His passionate commitment to his community is even more remarkable.
Here is a link to his Kimathi Information Centre: http://www.kimathiinformationcentre.com/
Posted by Kirby Leong
The Accident
On a fateful day in 1980 when Jose' was four months old, Jose's nanny broke her routine of dropping off Jose' at his mother's grocery shop to go pick up his sister from kindergarten. The nanny decided to leave Jose' at home and rush out to school to pick up the sister, but before leaving she decided to start boiling water. When the nanny returned home with the sister, she saw that the house was on fire and burst into the home (and in the process burned her arm) to rescue Jose' . Fortunately, she did not leave Jose' on the bottom bunk bed like she normally does, but rather left him on the top bunk. By the time she reached him, the bottom bunk bed was in flames which was reaching up to the top bunk. Jose' suffered 3rd degree burns to half his body, particularly to his face and arms, and most of his fingers on his left hand were burned beyond saving. The nanny took Jose' in a taxi to the burn unit of the hospital and over the next nine months, Jose's mother spent every day attending to her son, helping him to heal, while the rest of the family helped run the shop. Incredibly the mother (and Jose' ) forgave the nanny for her mistake but the nanny felt so guilty that she resigned from her job.
Childhood
Growing up, Jose' found it very difficult in school. The other children discriminated against him for his disfigurement in such ways as always choosing him last in team sports and excluded him from groups. How did this affect him? His self esteem was so low in primary school that he developed a stammer and did poorly in school but with the unconditional acceptance from his family, he built up his confidence and most importantly, his kindheartedness. He ultimately saw this as a character building opportunity and used his natural social talents to win people over. Rather than allow this accident to fill him with bitterness and pity, he deliberately decided to transform the experience to one of deep meaning and purpose. Jose' feels a deep commitment to bring change to his community. The meaning he finds is "what matters is what change you can bring and not what you look like" and the scars are a constant reminder to him to "value yourself and the people around you and not disrespect others". Yet his worst moment to date was when he was asked by a stranger if he was a victim of the US embassy bombing back in 1998. He still gets asked frequently about what happened but he himself has never asked "why me?" Instead, Jose' has asked "what's my purpose?" largely due to his faith and family. Since his family never treated him differently or pitied him, he never pitied himself. His philosophy is that "you attract positive or negative to your life. If you pity yourself, you attract pity. You should not mourn yourself but rather find your purpose". Not surprisingly, Jose' feels no resentment or anger towards his former Nanny but rather feels she is the bravest person in the world for rescuing him. He is in fact looking for her now because "she is my hero for saving me".
Becoming an Entrepreneur
In 1999 after completing school, Jose' started distributing milk, bread, newspapers to his community. His true entrepreneurial spirit was unleashed when he set up a shop to distribute his goods. It became successful enough that he hired an employee to run it. After a five year detour as a cell phone technician for Nokia, he went back to his entrepreneurial roots. Two years ago he and two colleagues realized that his community (Kimathi) lacks proper access to information so he completed a comprehensive survey to assess what amenities/services does the community want to see. Aside from the need for a central notice board, his respondents also said they they wanted better access to the Internet. In particular, students needed to write papers and communicate with others, but at the time, they had to stay late in downtown Nairobi. While downtown is just 7 km away, the travel time could be up to 1 ½ hours. Furthermore, coming back to Kimathi late at night could also be potentially dangerous.
Seeing the need, he calculated that there are about 3,000 houses in his community with an average of two target market customers in each house for a total potential market of 6,000 people. The key issue for him was how to raise the start up funds of 250,000 Ksh or $3,600 USD, of which he only had 40,000 Ksh or $600 USD. For the 210,000 Ksh that he needed to raise, he approached Computers for Schools Kenya to sell the need of his community. They agreed to do a pilot program for which they contributed 13 Compaq Deskpro Pentium III computers and monitors. The remaining balance (210,000 Ksh) had to be paid off in installments. Hence the Kimathi Information Centre (KIC) was born. Part way through the debt repayment, Computers for Schools Canada, which works with the Kenya operation, saw the impact on the Kimathi community and decided to forgive the debt. KIC has expanded beyond a cyber cafe into a business training centre. He started organizing symposiums for youth, with the first symposium in March 2007 netting 237 attendees. His passion and vision is to empower his greater community with technological advantages to bridge the digital divide.
Social Entrepreneurship 101
But how did Jose' get involved with SE 101? A Sauder School of Business graduate was working for IDRC (International Development Resource Centre) when she met Jose' and promptly introduced him to Nancy. At the time, Nancy needed to pull together an SE 101 program in just three weeks because the organization that she was working with pulled out unexpectedly at the last moment. Impressively, Jose' was able to line up 37 students as well as the required facilities and materials.
This year, Jose' has organized the two sites, lined up guest speakers, invited government officials, and sourced program materials. He's also been very helpful in helping me to organize my class by taking attendance, encouraging the participants, and making the class announcements. Jose' is a gifted public speaker; he has a natural way of connecting with his audience that is impressive to watch. His passionate commitment to his community is even more remarkable.
Here is a link to his Kimathi Information Centre: http://www.kimathiinformationcentre.com/
Posted by Kirby Leong
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Back in Africa, Part 4 - And So it Begins
I woke up at 5 am this morning to prepare for the first day. I reviewed Workshop #1 - Introducing the Business Plan for about an hour, made notes about what I wanted to speak about, and outlined an agenda for the day. Nancy and I met for breakfast to review the final details, and she also gave me some great tips to get started on a sound note. I arrived at the church in Kimathi at 7:20 am for an 8 am start but by 8 am, there were no students, just the facilitators. It was not until close to 9 that we had almost all the students present, with the last one trickling in at 11 am. While we are particular about attendance and being on time, given that it was the first day, I was not too concerned about this.
As we had planned, Jose' welcomed everyone one and set the expectation that everyone must show up on time and work hard on their business plan. He also stated that we (Sauder) are educators and not funders but that we would help bring in organizations to help fund their businesses. After the facilitators and I introduced ourselves, I went around the room and asked everyone to introduce themselves and to tell us what they expect. I should have anticipated that almost everyone would say "to learn more about business".
I then reviewed the major parts of a business plan, knowing that most of the audience had never seen one. I kept emphasizing that it's OK if they don't understand it yet because we'll be delving further into each part over the next 17 sessions. Still, it was a lot of information without much context but then again, it was an introduction. I hope that by repeating things enough times in different contexts, that it will make sense and more importantly, that they can apply it to their business idea. That said, I'm uncharacteristically highly flexible so am willing to change direction at any time if it makes sense. I've learned that things often don't go as expected on this continent, so flexibility and adaptability are crucial.
Speaking of being flexible, our guest speaker from the ICT government agency unexpectedly showed up (he was supposed to arrive tomorrow) and so I welcomed him and asked him how much time he wanted to speak. He replied "10 minutes" even though we had allocated more than an hour for him. What I learned was that even though someone says 10 minutes, he or she generally means a much longer time frame. Our speaker, Victor, spoke about how ICT is supporting businesses that want to make use of the Internet in their core operations. I was a little surprised that his topic was not general enough for our group since many want to start businesses that have no technology component to them. But, in the end, the Q&A session went quite well so I think the students did get enough out of it.
After we spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon working on the assignment, that was the end of the first day. I was exhausted being "on" for the whole morning rying to manage the chaos of the first day, set expectations, create a supportive environment, and of course, teach. All in all, I'm pleased with how well the day turned out. I have a good group of eager students who are willing to learn and am supported by a very bright group of university students to help me teach the modules. And of course, Jose' is invaluable in helping me look after all the logistical details.
Posted by Kirby Leong
As we had planned, Jose' welcomed everyone one and set the expectation that everyone must show up on time and work hard on their business plan. He also stated that we (Sauder) are educators and not funders but that we would help bring in organizations to help fund their businesses. After the facilitators and I introduced ourselves, I went around the room and asked everyone to introduce themselves and to tell us what they expect. I should have anticipated that almost everyone would say "to learn more about business".
I then reviewed the major parts of a business plan, knowing that most of the audience had never seen one. I kept emphasizing that it's OK if they don't understand it yet because we'll be delving further into each part over the next 17 sessions. Still, it was a lot of information without much context but then again, it was an introduction. I hope that by repeating things enough times in different contexts, that it will make sense and more importantly, that they can apply it to their business idea. That said, I'm uncharacteristically highly flexible so am willing to change direction at any time if it makes sense. I've learned that things often don't go as expected on this continent, so flexibility and adaptability are crucial.
Speaking of being flexible, our guest speaker from the ICT government agency unexpectedly showed up (he was supposed to arrive tomorrow) and so I welcomed him and asked him how much time he wanted to speak. He replied "10 minutes" even though we had allocated more than an hour for him. What I learned was that even though someone says 10 minutes, he or she generally means a much longer time frame. Our speaker, Victor, spoke about how ICT is supporting businesses that want to make use of the Internet in their core operations. I was a little surprised that his topic was not general enough for our group since many want to start businesses that have no technology component to them. But, in the end, the Q&A session went quite well so I think the students did get enough out of it.
After we spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon working on the assignment, that was the end of the first day. I was exhausted being "on" for the whole morning rying to manage the chaos of the first day, set expectations, create a supportive environment, and of course, teach. All in all, I'm pleased with how well the day turned out. I have a good group of eager students who are willing to learn and am supported by a very bright group of university students to help me teach the modules. And of course, Jose' is invaluable in helping me look after all the logistical details.
Posted by Kirby Leong
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Back in Africa, Part 3 - “Preparing for the Start of SE 101”
The Social Entrepreneurship 101 (SE 101): Africa program is a three year old program that is not just about entrepreneurship, but it is also about social entrepreneurship. The program helps people start business ventures that help strengthen their communities. This could be done through providing employment to other community members at fair wages, minimizing harm to the environment, and/or providing products and services that their communities need. Professor Nancy Langton, the head of the program, is working with various local groups (government, schools, and businesses) not only to deliver entrepreneurship training, but also to provide support once the training is completed.
What is unique about SE 101 that is collaborative in its delivery. This year we have employed some local university students from the top local business school to help deliver the eight workshops such as marketing, financial management, operations, and strategy. More importantly, we provide a collaborative environment in which students, instructors, and facilitators teach and support each other. Traditional Kenyan education tends to emphasize a unidirectional approach in which the teacher/professor tells and the students just listen. There is little to no opportunity to engage in dialog to ask questions and to share information. Someone referred to this as "off the textbook" type learning. That said, it will be important for us to ensure that the students feel comfortable with this collaborative format.
On the weekend, Nancy and I met with Jose' Njuki-imwe to finalize details. Jose' has been instrumental to the success of the program and he has a fascinating story that I will tell in a future BLOG. He's one of those rare people you meet in life that make such an impression on you that, well, you cannot forget. Nancy holds him in high regard, and now I know why. I think you'll find his story, provided that I can do it justice, compelling, thought provoking and inspirational. Jose' has been organized a group of 71 students to attend our workshops. This means that Nancy and I will have to split up the group into two sites. We'll each be working with our own team of university students to facilitate the program. The two sites will be Kibera (the largest slum in Nairobi) and Kimathi (at a local church). I suspect that I will be working in Kimathi since Jose' will be there to help me, and Nancy will be working in Kibera.
I went into downtown Nairobi with Jose' as my guide to buy a cell phone, SIM cards, school supplies, and to make 70 copies of the curriculum and homework booklet. Since landlines are not reliable or common, cell phones are pervasive. It seems everyone has one. After buying the cell phones and school supplies, it was off to find a copying place. While there are many such places, few can handle the quantities that we needed. The resource book is 184 pages and the homework booklet is 37 pages so we needed 15,470 copies, which as 1.30 Kenyan shillings (ksh) each, cost a total of 20,111 ksh or about $310 USD (we also needed to bind the books at extra cost). Jose' and I scoured a section of downtown Nairobi until we finally found someone who could do it but in the end they subcontracted it out to two other businesses next door. Given that they were making copies of a business plan training manual, I could appreciate the irony. Of course, things happen and in this case the large photocopier broke down but credit to their teamwork and perseverance, they distributed the job across several smaller photocopiers and then delivered all 140 booklets to the hotel.
While we were able to get a lot accomplished, I'm starting to feel anxious because I do not know what to expect once the program starts. Since the students are not yet familiar with the curriculum, Nancy and I will be teaching the first day and I have not really delved into the material of the first workshop. Right now, I'm too tired to look at it so I'll wake up early to review the material more carefully. I think I'm a good facilitator/teacher but since I do not understand my audience that well, I'm getting nervous about doing a good job. Above all else, I'll need to be flexible to adjust my style to give them what they need. Jose' had said that many of the Kimathi group may lack confidence so I will be certain to set the tone that this is a safe and supportive group to make mistakes and learn. I'll continually state that we (the university students and I) are here to help them succeed but that we'll also challenge them to think critically about their business ideas. I hope it goes well...
Posted by Kirby Leong
What is unique about SE 101 that is collaborative in its delivery. This year we have employed some local university students from the top local business school to help deliver the eight workshops such as marketing, financial management, operations, and strategy. More importantly, we provide a collaborative environment in which students, instructors, and facilitators teach and support each other. Traditional Kenyan education tends to emphasize a unidirectional approach in which the teacher/professor tells and the students just listen. There is little to no opportunity to engage in dialog to ask questions and to share information. Someone referred to this as "off the textbook" type learning. That said, it will be important for us to ensure that the students feel comfortable with this collaborative format.
On the weekend, Nancy and I met with Jose' Njuki-imwe to finalize details. Jose' has been instrumental to the success of the program and he has a fascinating story that I will tell in a future BLOG. He's one of those rare people you meet in life that make such an impression on you that, well, you cannot forget. Nancy holds him in high regard, and now I know why. I think you'll find his story, provided that I can do it justice, compelling, thought provoking and inspirational. Jose' has been organized a group of 71 students to attend our workshops. This means that Nancy and I will have to split up the group into two sites. We'll each be working with our own team of university students to facilitate the program. The two sites will be Kibera (the largest slum in Nairobi) and Kimathi (at a local church). I suspect that I will be working in Kimathi since Jose' will be there to help me, and Nancy will be working in Kibera.
I went into downtown Nairobi with Jose' as my guide to buy a cell phone, SIM cards, school supplies, and to make 70 copies of the curriculum and homework booklet. Since landlines are not reliable or common, cell phones are pervasive. It seems everyone has one. After buying the cell phones and school supplies, it was off to find a copying place. While there are many such places, few can handle the quantities that we needed. The resource book is 184 pages and the homework booklet is 37 pages so we needed 15,470 copies, which as 1.30 Kenyan shillings (ksh) each, cost a total of 20,111 ksh or about $310 USD (we also needed to bind the books at extra cost). Jose' and I scoured a section of downtown Nairobi until we finally found someone who could do it but in the end they subcontracted it out to two other businesses next door. Given that they were making copies of a business plan training manual, I could appreciate the irony. Of course, things happen and in this case the large photocopier broke down but credit to their teamwork and perseverance, they distributed the job across several smaller photocopiers and then delivered all 140 booklets to the hotel.
While we were able to get a lot accomplished, I'm starting to feel anxious because I do not know what to expect once the program starts. Since the students are not yet familiar with the curriculum, Nancy and I will be teaching the first day and I have not really delved into the material of the first workshop. Right now, I'm too tired to look at it so I'll wake up early to review the material more carefully. I think I'm a good facilitator/teacher but since I do not understand my audience that well, I'm getting nervous about doing a good job. Above all else, I'll need to be flexible to adjust my style to give them what they need. Jose' had said that many of the Kimathi group may lack confidence so I will be certain to set the tone that this is a safe and supportive group to make mistakes and learn. I'll continually state that we (the university students and I) are here to help them succeed but that we'll also challenge them to think critically about their business ideas. I hope it goes well...
Posted by Kirby Leong
Monday, August 4, 2008
Back in Africa, Part 2 - “Getting There and Getting Settled”
The Ride
As anticipated, it was a mad rush on my Tuesday departure day. The bus to was scheduled to leave at 3:35 pm and I had just finished editing the 249 page resource guide and 37 page homework booklets by about 1:35 pm after staying up until 2 am. I made the (big) mistake of entering two tennis tournaments the week and weekend before which led to me spending 8 hours on court on Saturday, waiting around all Sunday afternoon to play, and then playing a rescheduled match on Monday night. While the documentation still needs more work, I was able to edit it down from 249 pages to 181 pages. After completing the edits, a great friend of mine drove me to Kinko's to get a few copies made and bound, then it was off for a quick lunch, and then to the bus stop where we waiting in the rain for ½ hour. Sleep deprived and stressed, I was not looking forward to the 4 hour bus ride. From Seattle, I took a 9 hour flight to London and then after a 4 hour layover, I boarded a 9 hour flight to Nairobi. I arrived at 6 am local time and was grateful that the visa procedures were quite painless. What was not painless, however, was the 1.5 hour taxi ride that roughly covered about 1.5 miles to the hotel. The taxi ride was at times jolting and then boring, as cars jostled within inches of each other, alternatively stopping for long stretches and then speeding up to 50 mph. With seemingly no method to the madness, we bumped into another car (or it bumped into us) which led to my driver getting out of the car to engage in a shouting match with the other driver on a busy road. Undeterred, I remained calm as I accepted that this conflict needed to be played out.
The Accommodations
At the hotel, I checked in for a 26 day (!) stay in a "standard" room which can be described as "basic". Having stayed in highly questionable places in Africa, complete with bucket baths with dirty well water and limited electricity, I was somewhat disappointed in myself that I was feeling anxious about the room. Then again, I reminded myself that I'm not 21 anymore and I want to stay in a nice room. The universe must have been listening because the next day the management called to upgrade me to a superior room so I'm happy. One interesting feature of the hotel is that there are security guards on each floor by the stairs so going from my new room on the 5th floor to the lobby I have to pass through a gauntlet of guards - one set for the day shift and one set for the night shift. It was unnerving at first, especially since they wear dark blue uniforms and tend to stand in the dimly lit stairwells, but they have been incredibly friendly. So, if I choose to take the stairs, I do four rounds of greetings each way. I happened to ask the security guard on my floor to teach me some more Swahili words but now he has started a routine of quizzing me each morning. Of course I'm only starting to get the hang of it so I always just tell him that I "left my Swahili sheet in my room" to avoid the embarrassment. ;-) .
The Down-time
One habit I must break is watching way too much of the limited number of television channels. Even though I do not have cable at home, I have been watching the E! Network and its endless string of reality and entertainment programs. I probably know more about the cast of Full House than anyone should. Aside from E!, there's always the standard standbys of CNN and BBC but these channels get too depressing to watch. I finally unplugged the television to focus on reading, school work, and of course, prepping for the start of the SE 101 program. With this being the winter, there is not much to do outside as it so far has been a constant light rain; however, I have taken a few walks already around Nairobi. Aside from having to dodge cars as I try to cross the streets, and having to breathe in black soot from passing trucks, I have enjoyed the city's eclectic mix of towering buildings, classic architecture, and basic buildings. I'm feeling like this is the calm before the storm as I know there'll be lots to do in terms of logistics and coordination over the weekend. I'll let you know how the final preparations go.
The Language
For now, I'll leave you with a few Swahili phrases and words that I'm trying to learn:
* Good morning - Habari ya asubuhi.
* Thank you - Asanta sana
* Good bye - Kwaheri
* Good evening - Habari ya jioni
* Hi - Jambo
* Very good - Mzuri sana
Posted by Kirby Leong
As anticipated, it was a mad rush on my Tuesday departure day. The bus to was scheduled to leave at 3:35 pm and I had just finished editing the 249 page resource guide and 37 page homework booklets by about 1:35 pm after staying up until 2 am. I made the (big) mistake of entering two tennis tournaments the week and weekend before which led to me spending 8 hours on court on Saturday, waiting around all Sunday afternoon to play, and then playing a rescheduled match on Monday night. While the documentation still needs more work, I was able to edit it down from 249 pages to 181 pages. After completing the edits, a great friend of mine drove me to Kinko's to get a few copies made and bound, then it was off for a quick lunch, and then to the bus stop where we waiting in the rain for ½ hour. Sleep deprived and stressed, I was not looking forward to the 4 hour bus ride. From Seattle, I took a 9 hour flight to London and then after a 4 hour layover, I boarded a 9 hour flight to Nairobi. I arrived at 6 am local time and was grateful that the visa procedures were quite painless. What was not painless, however, was the 1.5 hour taxi ride that roughly covered about 1.5 miles to the hotel. The taxi ride was at times jolting and then boring, as cars jostled within inches of each other, alternatively stopping for long stretches and then speeding up to 50 mph. With seemingly no method to the madness, we bumped into another car (or it bumped into us) which led to my driver getting out of the car to engage in a shouting match with the other driver on a busy road. Undeterred, I remained calm as I accepted that this conflict needed to be played out.
The Accommodations
At the hotel, I checked in for a 26 day (!) stay in a "standard" room which can be described as "basic". Having stayed in highly questionable places in Africa, complete with bucket baths with dirty well water and limited electricity, I was somewhat disappointed in myself that I was feeling anxious about the room. Then again, I reminded myself that I'm not 21 anymore and I want to stay in a nice room. The universe must have been listening because the next day the management called to upgrade me to a superior room so I'm happy. One interesting feature of the hotel is that there are security guards on each floor by the stairs so going from my new room on the 5th floor to the lobby I have to pass through a gauntlet of guards - one set for the day shift and one set for the night shift. It was unnerving at first, especially since they wear dark blue uniforms and tend to stand in the dimly lit stairwells, but they have been incredibly friendly. So, if I choose to take the stairs, I do four rounds of greetings each way. I happened to ask the security guard on my floor to teach me some more Swahili words but now he has started a routine of quizzing me each morning. Of course I'm only starting to get the hang of it so I always just tell him that I "left my Swahili sheet in my room" to avoid the embarrassment. ;-) .
The Down-time
One habit I must break is watching way too much of the limited number of television channels. Even though I do not have cable at home, I have been watching the E! Network and its endless string of reality and entertainment programs. I probably know more about the cast of Full House than anyone should. Aside from E!, there's always the standard standbys of CNN and BBC but these channels get too depressing to watch. I finally unplugged the television to focus on reading, school work, and of course, prepping for the start of the SE 101 program. With this being the winter, there is not much to do outside as it so far has been a constant light rain; however, I have taken a few walks already around Nairobi. Aside from having to dodge cars as I try to cross the streets, and having to breathe in black soot from passing trucks, I have enjoyed the city's eclectic mix of towering buildings, classic architecture, and basic buildings. I'm feeling like this is the calm before the storm as I know there'll be lots to do in terms of logistics and coordination over the weekend. I'll let you know how the final preparations go.
The Language
For now, I'll leave you with a few Swahili phrases and words that I'm trying to learn:
* Good morning - Habari ya asubuhi.
* Thank you - Asanta sana
* Good bye - Kwaheri
* Good evening - Habari ya jioni
* Hi - Jambo
* Very good - Mzuri sana
Posted by Kirby Leong
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