Thursday, 29 December 2011
02:11 | 
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Volunteering is one of the various ways one can experience true happiness am sure for me and many others who care for the well being of the human race, I would consider it one of the most modern ways of civilization. I mean civilization is not all about eating well cooked food, driving the best car, wearing the most modern clothes and so much more..... that we refer to " luxurious"
"Who is willing to work for no pay at all?" is the volunteer experience. Giving freely your skills, energy and of course time and dedication. In today's world a volunteer experience is definately important. It is one of the humbling experiences that all the youth in today's world ought to acquire.
Looking around in today's world of unemployment and lack of relevant skills the youth ought to figure out how they should consider gaining experience through volunteering what they theoretically learnt at their various learning institutions.
Various non governmental organisations have come a long way in terms of giving back to the society and involving the youth in development . One such institution is the KiBO foundation in Uganda. I have not yet come across such an organization in East and central Africa, believe me... Yet KiBO is making a lot greater impact, than I may say many other old bearucratic organizations.
Looking around in today's world of unemployment and lack of relevant skills the youth ought to figure out how they should consider gaining experience through volunteering what they theoretically learnt at their various learning institutions.
Various non governmental organisations have come a long way in terms of giving back to the society and involving the youth in development . One such institution is the KiBO foundation in Uganda. I have not yet come across such an organization in East and central Africa, believe me... Yet KiBO is making a lot greater impact, than I may say many other old bearucratic organizations.
Kudos to KiBO foundation. The idea is that the youth know better what is good for them and their respective communities.
KiBO foundation is a non profit making organization that was established in the year 2007. The foundation was set up with an aim to instill the youth with necessary skills in ICT and Leadership.
The word KiBO refers to the highest peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa. Therefore KiBO was set up with an aim to propel the youth to great heights. KiBO foundation has two managing directors; Abraham Temu and Judith Butagira-Temu. Beside the two directors the foundation has an accountant(Allen) , receptionist(Diana) two tutors( Jonathan Ebuk and Patricia Ayo) and a librarian( Emmanuel Masaba).
In Kampala, the foundation is situated at Kansanga, a Kampala suburb, Nkuzongere road plot 796 Lujumwa house.
KiBO offers the youth a chance to learn skills in ICT and leadership free of charge, beside learning the youth have the responsibility to give back to the community as the KiBO's mission is "Changing communities and lives one partnership at a time" Basically students undergo a three months course where they learn various computer skills such as typing and computer application packages. After the course they are expected to team up, initiate a project and implement it. The scope of the project aimed at giving back to the community in various ways. To date five groups of youths from Sub-Saharan Africa have had an opportunity to undergo this wonderful program.
Some of the projects that have successfully been run are; The facilitation of Nsambya Babies Home, Mulago Cancer Ward, and Deaf Link Uganda. These projects have depicted the real value of this program, as the turn out to join the upcoming classes has been quite high. This is a clear indicator of the program's impact.
Indeed the KiBO program is a unique one, having undergone it I can tell stories and stories. One most important aspect the youth gain is employability. Youth from Sub-Saharan Africa, where unemployment have with time shot up, should consider undergoing mentorship before they start the search for any job. The reason behind this is that they lack basic professional skills, and to add salt to injury in Africa am sorry to write, the education system is too theoretical than practical.
In the near future the KiBO facilities might be too few to meet the growing demand. What do we do??
In my view the youth should scramble for charity opportunities. One main reason to my view is that, in charity you will experience less discrimination based on your education background, religious, and also nationality.
So far I have participated in quite a number of charity events. Most of these, I still hold quite vivid memories and lessons. Late last year I actively participated in the initiation of the project to raise awareness about the deaf in Uganda. I was elected the vice treasurer of the group but later before the finish line my boss( treasurer) threw in the towel and I therefore became the treasurer. Initiating the project meant a lot of planning and action at the same time. This is where team work and team dynamics was of great essence.
Try and think, a group of 15 youth seated in a round table trying to brainstorm the best way forward, and each of them has an idea that he or she thinks is best. At this point we had to go by consensus. During this time we had been allocated an abrupt three weeks through which we were expected to initiate the project and fundraise to fund a budget that we had already prepared, We had to work out how to raise ugx972,000. Coming up with fundraising strategies was really a task I mean it was no easy task. Some members thought it was better for us to raise the money by only staging a charity concert, others thought it was best for us to carry out a charity car wash and call it a day, while others thought we had to carry out the two tasks in order to accomplish our goal, ugx 972,000.
With our daily obligations at the foundation to attend regular class instructions in computing ( one of KiBO Foundation's pillars) we thought it was impossible for us to fundraise in three weeks, and of course we suggested a reschedule of the project fundraiser and implementation date. Do you know what this meant? We had programmed our minds that we could not make it within the allocated time. In the nick of time it came to our knowledge that we had to beat that target. Finally, we didn't beat the target.
Luckily the December holidays were approaching and we broke off for two weeks of holidays. During this time, the project committee (Chairman, chairperson, Treasurer, secretary and their assistants) decided to meet and strategize the way forward. It was during this time that we decided to split into smaller groups each consisting of five members. This helped us a lot especially when it came to carrying out specific tasks like marketing. The KiBO tutors also helped us a great deal on how we were to approach the public, how we were to get the best site for a charity concert or a car wash.
After the holidays,we were back to work as usual but this time we had to do it. The experience was really fantastic, since with only a week to prepare, market and sensitize people about our work, we managed to raise ugx 250,000(equivalent to US$125) from the charity car wash.
Most important about the 5Th class first fundraising event, was that we learnt how to attract attention. We had quite a big white piece of cloth at the entrance to the washing bay that read "CHARITY CAR WASH, HELP CREATE AWARENESS ABOUT THE DEAF" in addition Shafic, one of us, in collaboration with Kampala Musical School band, staged quite attracting classical music, you should have been present to see us matching on the busy Ggaba road. We even polished shoes as a means of raising the funds, I just wish you were there, you would have left with a smile on your face and your shoes sparkling, I guarantee you, though for the socks you would have paid a thousand dollars for them to be cleaned!
As VB ( VOLUNTEER BIG), even after KiBO I look out for more charity opportunities. Its really fun.
"Each class is always unique in one way or another" said Mr. Abraham Temu as he briskly took the 5th class through the KiBO program orientation. This sounded vague to us, actually I thought he was more of a very aggressive marketer. True to his words, each of the groups that have to date joined this program has always had a unique experience as well as opportunities. Currently the sixth class is fundraising for a project to facilitate Treasure Life Center youth group in Kamwokya. A comparison of this class and our class makes me envious; this guys are really having fun! That's life.
In my earlier post I mentioned how we managed to initiate the project to raise awareness about the deaf in the society. The main pipeline of our funds were; a charity car wash, a social connections event and donations from friends as well as corporates. Thanks to all who donated and participated, they must be reaping more than the habitual hundred folds. If you didn't please do so for the 6th class, contact me and I will hook you up with them, watch this space!
A target of ugx 972,000 (equivalent of Us$487) seemed to high for us. Within three weeks of hard work we had almost managed to raise all this! However the budget ended up in a slack. With this I imply that we had more than enough money to spend. The slack occurred due to our earlier plan to plaster and varnish the Deaflink Uganda building, but we had to relinquish this plan since all these were not too essential to the deaf youth.
In a short while we were off to spend what we had labored for, this was one of the captivating moments especially for those of us in the 5th class that were privileged to participate in the purchases of what was long awaited. Prior to this we were all accustomed to buying cheap and saving; this is common I know you also do it!! But guess what? We had to spend all the cash! Wow it was quite exciting approaching the cashier and realizing that the treasurer had more than enough money for us to spend, sounds like spend thrifts? This is charity, YOU SPEND ALL YOU RAISE YOU DON'T SAVE!
"Big things come in small packages" You could tell this during the project implementation day. The jolly faces of the deaf youth spoke volumes. The joy of a brand new white board, a T.V set (21 inches), a DVD player(an original sign language translated version of 'THE SECRET'), flip charts, markers and exercise books. All carefully selected to meet their most urgent needs. However, the climax of the day was the ugx 200(equivalent of US$0.1) that we handed over to the Ms. Nassozi( Deaf Link Uganda director) as the remainder of all the expenditure.
It is crucial however to note that all these did not happen in 'ideal situations'. I mean it is better said than done. When we set out to do things most often we expect perfect and favorable conditions, correct me if am wrong, only to find out that we have to overcome challenges, defeat name them! This is the true meaning of success, success is overcoming, beating the odds. Lucky enough as members of the 5th class, we did not at any time sit down and say," Oh God we can't just do this, its rainy!" we worked through the challenges and won in the spirit of yes we can..
"Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan "press on" has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race" Calvin Coolidge. In a short while we were off to spend what we had labored for, this was one of the captivating moments especially for those of us in the 5th class that were privileged to participate in the purchases of what was long awaited. Prior to this we were all accustomed to buying cheap and saving; this is common I know you also do it!! But guess what? We had to spend all the cash! Wow it was quite exciting approaching the cashier and realizing that the treasurer had more than enough money for us to spend, sounds like spend thrifts? This is charity, YOU SPEND ALL YOU RAISE YOU DON'T SAVE!
"Big things come in small packages" You could tell this during the project implementation day. The jolly faces of the deaf youth spoke volumes. The joy of a brand new white board, a T.V set (21 inches), a DVD player(an original sign language translated version of 'THE SECRET'), flip charts, markers and exercise books. All carefully selected to meet their most urgent needs. However, the climax of the day was the ugx 200(equivalent of US$0.1) that we handed over to the Ms. Nassozi( Deaf Link Uganda director) as the remainder of all the expenditure.
It is crucial however to note that all these did not happen in 'ideal situations'. I mean it is better said than done. When we set out to do things most often we expect perfect and favorable conditions, correct me if am wrong, only to find out that we have to overcome challenges, defeat name them! This is the true meaning of success, success is overcoming, beating the odds. Lucky enough as members of the 5th class, we did not at any time sit down and say," Oh God we can't just do this, its rainy!" we worked through the challenges and won in the spirit of yes we can..
Emerson once said “nothing is ever accomplished without enthusiasm and the more enthusiasm the better. Besides waiting to start anything is always wrong. Get it going now, once you break the inertia and start it rolling, an idea takes on a life of its own and starts going into areas you never dreamed it would fit in; it creates opportunities; it bowls over barriers and leapfrogs objections and overwhelms logic.” I thought I would illustrate Emerson’s words better but one man once said “the words speak themselves” hope you have been to Africa and met street dwellers who pretend to understand this language that they say ‘came by ship’. Any way that’s how they eke out a living, forgive me for story telling, back to business now.
I once asked myself, ‘how did I come to know KiBO foundation’, if you are an avid reader of my posts you will bear me witness that it was a process, and life is all about processes by the way, nothing is “boom” and if it is, then try and question the “boom” I don’t mind a recap if this is the first time you are enjoying this blog. Sometimes back I was so much possessed with some micro finance ideas; in fact I had laid down a model that would replicate that of the famous Nobel peace prize winner Prof Yunus of Bangladesh. My hypothesis was to come up with a program that could offer free entrepreneurial skills to traders in Kampala. I remember sitting in my room every day for a fortnight struggling to come up with a pleasing proposal that could see all the micro finance institutions scramble for it and of course me! They say (I won’t tell you who in particular) “the hardest part when chewing a piece of meat is near the bone” Hahaha I had managed to chew all the tendons by developing a fantastic proposal but the meat adjacent to the bone was rocky and bloody leave alone being hard.
I remember quite vividly how some ‘dude’ told me after my meeting with him.” Thank you, this is a good idea and I will discuss it with my boss, could you also send me a soft copy of the work via my email address?” Right away I knew that was a stale deal. That very week while still trying to sell my idea I found posters all over Kansanga. The KiBO 4th class was advertising calling upon the public to turn up for a car wash in great numbers. That was the beginning of a journey I LOVE TO HAVE BEEN PART OF. After the KiBO program I have been through lots of opportunities, as Emerson said break the inertia and start rolling.
Let’s love what we do, if you don’t love what you do or where you work look for a means of doing so. I once hated an apartment that I once lived that was two years ago, guess what today I believe that was the best I have ever lived in.
Would you mind to know what I do? Watch out my next post I will tell you what I do, what I aspire to be and lots more, If I delay to put it up I don’t mind you giving me a shout via my email address (paulnjuguna87@gmail.com).
If someone asked you ‘what makes you tick?’ what would be your answer? I mean we live in a world where some of us are into drug addiction, homosexuality and whole lot more vices. In a way that makes them tick and 'survive' mind you not in a jungle. I believe each of us has got something that makes us endure. I recently watched one of Joyce Meyer’s evangelical broadcasts and there is a sentence she said that really got me moving, ‘be a prisoner of hope’ just think about it… Being a prisoner of hope probably in a maximum security prison of hope. A few days ago I also watched one of the recent unfolding episodes of the famous ‘Prison break’ I got startled when ‘Sarah’ told ‘Teabag’ that she had known what had made him tick (live without medication) when he was in prison together with his accomplices in crime (Lincoln Barrows, Michael and the rest) I just won’t tell you what Teabag did to Sarah for that comment, get your own copy and watch hehehe.
If you asked me what makes me tick, I would probably prepare a podcast about it. I joined university two years ago and throughout this time I have come to appreciate the various developments that I have been through. Currently I work with Worldwide Logistics (One of the leading freight firms in East Africa) as a Sales and Marketing officer. Before joining WWL I had a chance to work in charity at KiBO Foundation. The package at KiBO is a whole lot enormous that this space is inadequate for me to elaborate all what I did with KiBO. It is through KiBO that I came to know how to blog as well as the essence of blogging and therefore am also a renowned blogger. If you asked me, I would tell you “I love what I have been through” Of course there is a reason as to why the bat prefers an upside down posture.
In a nut shell, having the right experience in the long term makes me tick, at the end of a busy day I know I spent a couple of minutes with the director of a large company and probably I learnt from his or her negotiation skills. That’s a lesson to me. A new day into my daily hustles? Am wiser.
It is until you recognize what drives you that you will be able to capitalize on your strengths. So what makes you tick? Please share this post with 5 of your friends, hope you don’t ask for a reward. Why don't you also leave a comment of what makes you tick? Lets build the Volunteer For A Cause community, isn't it?
If you asked me what makes me tick, I would probably prepare a podcast about it. I joined university two years ago and throughout this time I have come to appreciate the various developments that I have been through. Currently I work with Worldwide Logistics (One of the leading freight firms in East Africa) as a Sales and Marketing officer. Before joining WWL I had a chance to work in charity at KiBO Foundation. The package at KiBO is a whole lot enormous that this space is inadequate for me to elaborate all what I did with KiBO. It is through KiBO that I came to know how to blog as well as the essence of blogging and therefore am also a renowned blogger. If you asked me, I would tell you “I love what I have been through” Of course there is a reason as to why the bat prefers an upside down posture.
In a nut shell, having the right experience in the long term makes me tick, at the end of a busy day I know I spent a couple of minutes with the director of a large company and probably I learnt from his or her negotiation skills. That’s a lesson to me. A new day into my daily hustles? Am wiser.
It is until you recognize what drives you that you will be able to capitalize on your strengths. So what makes you tick? Please share this post with 5 of your friends, hope you don’t ask for a reward. Why don't you also leave a comment of what makes you tick? Lets build the Volunteer For A Cause community, isn't it?
If someone asked you ‘what makes you tick?’ what would be your answer? I mean we live in a world where some of us are into drug addiction, homosexuality and whole lot more vices. In a way that makes them tick and 'survive' mind you not in a jungle. I believe each of us has got something that makes us endure. I recently watched one of Joyce Meyer’s evangelical broadcasts and there is a sentence she said that really got me moving, ‘be a prisoner of hope’ just think about it… Being a prisoner of hope probably in a maximum security prison of hope. A few days ago I also watched one of the recent unfolding episodes of the famous ‘Prison break’ I got startled when ‘Sarah’ told ‘Teabag’ that she had known what had made him tick (live without medication) when he was in prison together with his accomplices in crime (Lincoln Barrows, Michael and the rest) I just won’t tell you what Teabag did to Sarah for that comment, get your own copy and watch hehehe.
If you asked me what makes me tick, I would probably prepare a podcast about it. I joined university two years ago and throughout this time I have come to appreciate the various developments that I have been through. Currently I work with Worldwide Logistics (One of the leading freight firms in East Africa) as a Sales and Marketing officer. Before joining WWL I had a chance to work in charity at KiBO Foundation. The package at KiBO is a whole lot enormous that this space is inadequate for me to elaborate all what I did with KiBO. It is through KiBO that I came to know how to blog as well as the essence of blogging and therefore am also a renowned blogger. If you asked me, I would tell you “I love what I have been through” Of course there is a reason as to why the bat prefers an upside down posture.
In a nut shell, having the right experience in the long term makes me tick, at the end of a busy day I know I spent a couple of minutes with the director of a large company and probably I learnt from his or her negotiation skills. That’s a lesson to me. A new day into my daily hustles? Am wiser.
It is until you recognize what drives you that you will be able to capitalize on your strengths. So what makes you tick? Please share this post with 5 of your friends, hope you don’t ask for a reward. Why don't you also leave a comment of what makes you tick? Lets build the Volunteer For A Cause community, isn't it?
If you asked me what makes me tick, I would probably prepare a podcast about it. I joined university two years ago and throughout this time I have come to appreciate the various developments that I have been through. Currently I work with Worldwide Logistics (One of the leading freight firms in East Africa) as a Sales and Marketing officer. Before joining WWL I had a chance to work in charity at KiBO Foundation. The package at KiBO is a whole lot enormous that this space is inadequate for me to elaborate all what I did with KiBO. It is through KiBO that I came to know how to blog as well as the essence of blogging and therefore am also a renowned blogger. If you asked me, I would tell you “I love what I have been through” Of course there is a reason as to why the bat prefers an upside down posture.
In a nut shell, having the right experience in the long term makes me tick, at the end of a busy day I know I spent a couple of minutes with the director of a large company and probably I learnt from his or her negotiation skills. That’s a lesson to me. A new day into my daily hustles? Am wiser.
It is until you recognize what drives you that you will be able to capitalize on your strengths. So what makes you tick? Please share this post with 5 of your friends, hope you don’t ask for a reward. Why don't you also leave a comment of what makes you tick? Lets build the Volunteer For A Cause community, isn't it?
This month is a different one, guess what? The post below is by Aswani, a great friend from Pune, India. That's the power of a virtual world.
And you can follow him easily on -
Twitter - http://twitter.com/aks2008
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/aswaniks
Blogged- http://www.blogged.com/profile/aswanis
Blogcatalog - http://www.blogcatalog.com/user/aks2008
Twitter - http://twitter.com/aks2008
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/aswaniks
Blogged- http://www.blogged.com/profile/aswanis
Blogcatalog - http://www.blogcatalog.com/user/aks2008
A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign which said: “I am blind, please help.” There were only a few coins in the hat.
A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.
Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy. That afternoon the man who had changed the sign came to see how things were. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, “Were you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?”
The man said, “I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a different way.”
What he had written was: “Today is a beautiful day and I cannot see it.”Do you think the first sign and the second sign were saying the same thing?
Of course both signs told people the boy was blind. But the first sign simply said the boy was blind. The second sign told people they were so lucky that they were not blind. Should we be surprised that the second sign was more effective?
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Moral of the Story: Be thankful for what you have. Be creative. Be innovative. Think differently and positively.
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Moral of the Story: Be thankful for what you have. Be creative. Be innovative. Think differently and positively.
Invite others towards good with wisdom. Live life with no excuse and love with no regrets. When life gives you a 100 reasons to cry, show life that you have 1000 reasons to smile. Face your past without regret. Handle your present with confidence. Prepare for the future without fear. Keep the faith and drop the fear.
Great men say, “Life has to be an incessant process of repair and reconstruction, of discarding evil and developing goodness…. In the journey of life, if you want to travel without fear, you must have the ticket of a good conscience.”
When I was a young boy I always heard over the radio about New year's resolutions, I understood them as habits I had to change for a brighter year.
Whats a resolution any way, is it worth spending your time to come up with? If you could allow me to guess, my answer would be YES! There is this wonderful book by the title '7 Habits of the most effective people' It therefore means contrary to the title, there are '7 Habits of the most ineffective people' and I believe they are countless. Funny enough habits are repeated actions, its believed that if you repeated an action daily for 3 weeks it would materialize to a habit. This rings some bells... Don't you think that each of us has a potential to harboring more than seven habits of the most ineffective people?
The making of resolutions especially the so famous 'New year resolutions' is therefore paramount for effectiveness and precisely for benchmarking. However making resolutions is one thing while accomplishing them is another. Did you fail to achieve last year's resolutions? I have an answer from not having achieved last year's. Quite fantastic, isn't it?
Number one ingredient is FOCUS, with it follow these steps:
Done!
My first New Year's resolution is to change the face of this famous blog. I will tell you rather I will invite you for my reward party, no doubt it will be a party.
Happy New Year and I wish you all the best on your resolutions.
Whats a resolution any way, is it worth spending your time to come up with? If you could allow me to guess, my answer would be YES! There is this wonderful book by the title '7 Habits of the most effective people' It therefore means contrary to the title, there are '7 Habits of the most ineffective people' and I believe they are countless. Funny enough habits are repeated actions, its believed that if you repeated an action daily for 3 weeks it would materialize to a habit. This rings some bells... Don't you think that each of us has a potential to harboring more than seven habits of the most ineffective people?
The making of resolutions especially the so famous 'New year resolutions' is therefore paramount for effectiveness and precisely for benchmarking. However making resolutions is one thing while accomplishing them is another. Did you fail to achieve last year's resolutions? I have an answer from not having achieved last year's. Quite fantastic, isn't it?
Number one ingredient is FOCUS, with it follow these steps:
- Write down a list of your New Year's resolutions on a piece of paper preferably on your diary. Most of all be sincere with yourself.
- Work out each on its own and after accomplishing it, cross it. This will give you a sense of achievement and therefore more energy to achieve the next.
- Finally, allocate a reasonable reward after every achievement.
Done!
My first New Year's resolution is to change the face of this famous blog. I will tell you rather I will invite you for my reward party, no doubt it will be a party.
Happy New Year and I wish you all the best on your resolutions.
Performance Measurement aims to establish how well something or somebody is doing in relation to a plan.
Do you measure your performance anyway? Well, a week ago a friend told me how she had decided to run herself like an organization. I was quite intrigued and I had to quickly suggest to her that being her accountant was good for me. Of course I had the wrong picture. My next question was how she would accomplish that...
"You see, successful business enterprises customary develop yard sticks through which they assess performance after a given period. For instance, they prepare budgets to the various items such as sales, costs and profits. At the end of the financial period, actual results are compared against the expected. If the enterprise deals in two products Biscuits and Yummy donuts. Through the actual sales results and budgeted sales of the two products, the entity can be able to make an informed decision such as ' if the sales of Yummy donuts are exceedingly higher than those of Biscuits, then, it would be profitable if the entity majored in Yummy Donuts' Or as well make a point of investigating why those of Biscuits are low.
This was a puzzle to me, therefore I asked her the correlation between myself and a business organization. " For you to run yourself as such, you need to be honest with yourself and develop yardsticks such as:
- Books I have read in a month to improve my knowledge of what I do.
- No. of professionals that I have been able to network with.
- Increased income out of further studies.
- e.t.c
Read on Performance Management:
Best Practices in Planning and Performance Management: From Data to Decisions (Wiley Best Practices)
Performance Management: Key Strategies and Practical Guidelines
Karma is a concept in Buddhist teaching which means " For every event that occours, there will follow another whose existence was caused by the first and this second event will either be pleasant or unpleasasant." This may sound complicated but my version is " What goes around comes around!" Am quite sure someone might have told you that or you might have uttered that as well. Physics also has its version of Karma! " For every action, there is a reaction"
Sometimes in life we find ourselves in situations where " Life is really awful" I would say thats Karma! Realising this effect is essential since you develop a culture of more care in decision making. You may be in a really bad situation, 90% is not out of bad luck but Karma. However knowledge of the karma effect is not helpful at all if you do not learn one thing....That is to fix things.If you are in a really bad situation, fix it!
Last year alone, I did really really bad things and this year without further ado I had to fix them. For instance, I used to offer voluntary blogging lectures at KiBO Foundation. However there a came a period when I was really busy and all I could do was to offer empty promises. I would say ' I will be there at 10.00AM sharp' come 10am I would never surface. Good enough I came accross this Karma teaching and decided to fix what I had messed up. This was however tough as students that I was supposed to lecture had graduated. How could I fix this??? The first thing was to humble myself and then luckily and idea struck me, ' If I could offer free lectures to all KiBO alumnis these students would catch up! That was it. My proposed lectures are scheduled to commence next month.
Sometimes the mishaps that we encounter are actually not out of bad luck. It's Karma. When bad things happen, learn to fix them. Last year I did some nice things as well and am enjoying but for the bad things I did am fixing them slowly as I already have them on a list.
My Karma understanding is 'Make the right choices and fix the bad things' What about you, have you experienced this concept??? Do you think Karma works???
To learn more on the Karma concept, grab yourself a copy of this comedy series: (Complete season 1-4)
To learn more on the Karma concept, grab yourself a copy of this comedy series: (Complete season 1-4)
“An 84-year-old woman has just been rescued after spending 10 days under rubble, while a sixteen year old girl escapes barely alive from the wreckage of a house near her college in Port-au-Prince after two weeks.”
Moments before the deadly earthquake, the old lady and the sixteen year old girl were happily enjoying life just like you and me in a far island in the Caribbean. As fate may have had it, over 200,000 people did not survive the deadly earthquake. Many of these were bread winners, children and youth hoped to lead tomorrow, loving fathers and mothers. Life will never be the same for this nation. What a huge disaster?
Over 7000 miles away from the agony and the devastation, a campaign is initiated to fund raise for the many orphans as well as countrymen left homeless in Haiti. Good enough more than US$ 150000 is raised within days of the commencement of this initiative. This could not be enough given the magnitude of the disaster. Pledges continue to trickle in as high profile musicians plan to set up a huge jam session for Haiti of which all proceeds shall be channeled to aid the sons and daughters of Haiti. To make the donations quite dynamic, bank accounts have been set up as well as mobile phone sms channels. If you are in Uganda and reading this, get your phone and SMS the word ‘HAITI’ TO ‘8198'
Ugandan youth have not been left behind either. Far away from Kampala Serena hotel where the appeal was publicly commenced, a team of youth at KiBO Foundation sit quietly as they ponder the devastation in Haiti. To many, Haiti seems too far a place to connect with, but as the Deputy High Commissioner of the republic of Trinidad and Tobago H.E Andre’ Laveau narrates their history we all get empathetic. Black as we are but most of them sons and daughters of slaves men driven to the Caribbean Islands during slavery in the 16th Century to work in the plantations for little or no pay. However, the Trinidad and Tobago- Uganda Cultural Association president Mr. Anthony Samuel puts it, ‘We are all equal regardless of race, creed and color’ this was enough for the KiBO youth to kick off a fund raising drive.
Come and join us in this appeal wherever you are. Just imagine it was you trapped in that rubble screaming for help.
I came across these lyrics and thought they would change your perspective to the various circumstances you encounter daily. Am aware lovers day is approaching... may be you could dedicate it to someone but read through and grasp something.
When you try your best but you don't succeed
When you try your best but you don't succeed
When you get what you want but not what you need
When you feel so tired but you can't sleep
Stuck in reverse.
And the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something you can't replace
When you love someone but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?
Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you
And high up above earth or down below
When you're too in love to let it go
But if you never try you'll never know
Just what you're worth
Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you
Tears stream, down your face
When you lose something you cannot replace
Tears stream down your face and I...
Tears stream, down your face
I promise you I will learn from my mistakes
Tears stream down your face and I...
Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you.
Before you complain..., TRY, EVALUATE, LEARN AND YOU WILL FINALLY DO IT EXCELLENTLY.
Do you really need TQM? I guess you do… Well, TQM is a renowned practice for its ability to turn individuals from rags to riches. In business, it has continuously improved various brands profitability as well as the investor’s return on investment. Have you wondered why some individuals in life work hard while their paychecks do not reflect the hard work? Definitely a button lies somewhere waiting to be tweaked, none other than TQM.TQM is simply Total Quality Management. A philosophy explained by the phrase ‘Get it right first time and improve continuously.’ In lay terms ‘First impressions always last’ fortunately or unfortunately once a white garment is stained, it may never sparkle.
What happens when someone shows up for a job interview in shorts? On the other hand what happens when you purchase a product /service only to realize that you paid 50% more? Do you go shopping there again? Unless you were nuts…
How then could you use TQM to your advantage?
- If in business, emphasize for ‘first time success’ when dealing with suppliers and customers. Hence, deliver a quality service / product safely and on time.
- Let people know you for being ‘the best’, ‘most efficient’ and ‘time conscious’
Planning for a date? Please be well prepared or else you lose someone forever… Could it be worse?
“A brand that captures your mind gains behavior. A brand that captures your heart gains commitment.” Were the wise words from the famous Kent Huffman. It had not clicked my bald head why the KiBO Foundation has become so popular among employers, key stakeholders in the ICT Ministry in Uganda as well as in neighboring countries and obviously the youth. That was until today when I met Kent Huffman over a cup of coffee. ‘A brand that captures your heart gains commitment.’
CAUTION: Please note: Am not trying to drum up anything here.
Personally I would paint a successful ‘brand’ with a few phrases and words; Uniform, Clear in objectives, consistency and continuity. A powerful brand is developed out of uniform ingredients in all the packages, it is continuously maintained to keep satisfying more customers and it clearly targets a particular consumer group.
On the other hand, lets analyze the KiBO Foundation. First and foremost, ‘Uniform ingredients’. All the groups that have been mentored at the KiBO Foundation undergo practical class instructions in ICT and Leadership. This is further blended with a visit to particular Ugandan professionals at their work place for them to experience skills at work. On a higher notch, these students are required to volunteer at least 25 hours of service to a community organization of their choice. Finally, the group of students is tasked to identify a particular need in the community and fulfill it by mobilizing resources. In addition, ‘A clear target group’ the Foundation clearly targets a particular group of people in the society and that is none other than young folks between the age of 18 and 30 years.
As the various groups go through the 3 months course, certain values such as CSL (Commitment, Service to the community and Leadership in your sphere of influence.) and HIT (Honesty, Integrity and Trust) are imparted on them.
This is what has built the brand.
The result has been:
a. Young professionals who think outside the box
b. Young professionals who value team work
c. Youth that are leaders in whatever they partake
d. Young sons of the soil who value the development of their community and the country at large
That’s the KiBO brand in a nutshell, and the KiBO SLOGAN is, ‘Find you at the top...! KiBO! Find you at the top...! KiBO!
Monday, 18 April 2011
At the slopes of Mt. Kenya
After relishing a fast, efficient and reliable service, you are sometimes inclined to pay a little more. On the contrary, many or probably few are the instances when you almost defy paying. Not a wonder that the public eye has indefinitely spotted squabbles between service providers and customers. Should you be curious to know why the squabble, am pretty sure someone will not fail to scream out the dreaded phrase ‘What a poor service?’
Well, that’s a service. Most importantly, it’s not as tangible as your favorite soft drink and cheese burger. Moreover it will always be heterogeneous, implying that you will pay considerably the same amount of money any other time but your enjoyment or your value for money will vary with the service provider. The height of all is that you can never store it, frequenting a service provider is hence a life long task. The big question therefore, ‘Should we tip our service providers and if so by how much?’
Just Do It…
It’s a gesture of gratitude. Contrary to a bribe, it’s not given at the request of the service provider. Quite often, it will be awarded where the service provider offers exemplary services that surpass the client’s expectations. Think for a second… Isn’t exemplary service delivery therefore not entitled to a tip? As much as tipping is discretionary, these service providers face long hours of work and obviously a meager pay check. Hence such performance given the underlying circumstances should be rewarded.
Money being the most common form of compensation does not imply that whenever you are budgetary constrained you shouldn’t tip. A tip could be non financial. For instance, at the end of the year, you could consider tipping your child’s teacher by writing him or her a note of appreciation accompanied by a drawing done by your child. On the extreme, some folks may be poised to tip extravagantly. Well, there are no specified limits in tipping but a CNN Money report on tipping endeavors to highlight tipping etiquette in the different service industries.
Tipping Etiquette
According to experts at the Emily Post Institute in the Below is a guide of reasonable tips that can be awarded to different service providers. It however does not imply a moral obligation to tip.
Hair stylists
Suggested Tip: 15-20% of bill
The location of the service provider is irrelevant in determining your tip. It doesn’t matter if they work in a salon, rent their space or work out of their home. Most importantly, you cannot afford to take chances with him or her as your appearance is key.
Baby Sitter
Suggested Tip: One week’s pay and a small gift from the child
This will apply where she has worked for you throughout the year. A day care provider might deserve approximately Ushs. 50,000 – Ushs. 80,000 at the end of the year.
Personal Trainer
Suggested Tip: Between Ushs.50,000 up to the cost of a session
Such a tip would be a nice token of appreciation where you have an ongoing relationship with the professional and you feel you’ve received above average service.
Bodaboda (Motorcycle) Cyclists
Suggested tip: 10% of amount negotiated
Your safety is paramount especially when you decide to hop on our popular ‘Boda B’s’ most probably trying to avoid traffic jam. However most cyclists will charge you depending on your know – how of the town. Therefore a tip is not mandatory.
Restaurant Waiters
Suggested Tip: 15 – 20% of bill
According to experts, you should never fail to tip a waiter. However, where the service is awful make a point of informing the manager and at least leave a 10 percent tip.
The aftermath of the extravagant expenditure on the February 2011 General elections are here with us. A general financial stress is looming so I recommend that you give your service provider a little more.
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