Buggin Out

I’m not afraid…ok so who am I kidding?

2011-02-16T00:12:00.000-08:00

I’m addicted.

I guess a whole lot of the people I interact with are addicts too…and our fix is that lethal S substance. It’s the whole reason we sit through insane inane meetings every week. The reason we roll out of bed on a weekday morning…whimpering on the realization that it is not the weekend.

I’m talking about salaries.

A quick glance on my timeline each morning has people griping about what day of the week it is. (incidentally, twitter makes for a GREAT calendar for tracking days of the week)

The mood becomes positively electric as the end of the month approaches. It's like everyone has been given a shot of euphoria…offers to throw rounds (at least in the pre Mututho era) and parties all round..

Then a week later, the griping begins.

But what happens when the opportunity to wean yourself off a salary comes along?

I’m kinda struggling with that. A young startup with a great deal of promise has approached me and said the dreaded words: “Lets deal”

Now they don’t have the same organizational structures as my employer. They don’t have the medical packages and cushy allowances. They are promising insane hours and a very real threat of public humiliation should Murphy begin to actively enforce his laws. And the product they want to take to market will put me squarely in the glare of the public.

If it does go well, its still not all deviled eggs, caviar and pink champagne. There are a list of heavy hitters who have sunk quite a bit of their money and they are expecting a handsome return. So in terms of payoff..I’d way over there in the back of the park.

That said and done, I do know that the path to wealth does not have salary affixed to it. Every company alive today did so because an individual somewhere stood up and decided to create something. And the urge to create something and leave a legacy is pushing hard on me…

I have to make that call soon. Whether it turns out to be right or wrong is immaterial for now. What counts for me is the courage to choose the path less trodden.

Wish me luck.

For Angel. The beautiful little girl that died of a broken heart.

2010-07-16T12:20:00.000-07:00

For Nganga and Susan,

We grieve with you. Cry with you. Laugh with you. Pray with you. She is yours by birth and ours collectively by blood. I have no words in which to express this loss. But words aren't required. Our eyes say it all. I found words from others who have experienced such loss. I'll share them with you. For you shall not walk alone on this dark path. We'll walk with you. Physically. Mentally. Spiritually.

If tears could build a stairway,
and memories a lane,
I'd walk right up to heaven,
and bring you home again.

If every tear we shed for you,
became a star above,
You'd stroll amongst the angels in heavens garden,
Lit by everlasting love

A thousand words can't bring you back,
We know because we tried.
And neither can a million tears,
We know because we cried.

An Angel in the book of life,
Wrote down our baby's birth
And whispered as she closed the book,
"Too beautiful for earth"

Death leaves a heartache,
No one but God can heal.
Love leaves a memory,
No one on earth can steal.

They say that time in heaven is compared to the blink of an eye on this earth. Sometimes it helps to think of Angel running ahead of you in a field of beautiful flowers and butterflies. So happy and completely caught up in what she is doing that when she looks behind her, You will already be there.

I love you Nganga and Susan.

I love and miss you Angel. Wish you were here.

Yo! 13 year old me...listen up

2010-07-10T03:56:00.000-07:00

Right...so some peeps on my time line...have been doing letters to their 13 year old selves. After that you're to tag 4 other tweeps. My tagger as it were is @mwirigi (read his letter here) So here goes..

Dear Sam.

Its your last year in Nyahururu. Dad's brilliant game plan for getting you into a national school is about to fall to pieces. No worries though. Those interviews paid off and you are going into what is possibly the best high school experience a young man can have.

Your eldest bro and sis are already in India. Big sis sends Archie comics and stickers which raise your "coolness factor" among your peers. Don't let it get to your head though. Learn to share stuff...there is always enough to go round.

Mom will be leaving the country for a few in a very short while. No hiding behind her skirts anymore. make peace wit your dad early. He doesn't get you...but he means well...seriously.

Repeat after me: "Tooth hygiene is NOT optional". There is a reason why Sharon your deskmate eyes cross when you speak to her. However, her brown teeth are NOT your fault....technically.

You will have a totally bitching Dec wit your cuz Leo who will introduce you to fast chicks, clubbing and alcohol..often withing 5 minutes of each. And while it is generally excellent to have backup when engaged in a bar fight, don't abuse the privilege.

Your last fight with bro2 is coming up. You will lose. Badly. Seriously...he will smack the black off you. Love him regardless...coz you asked for it.

Lil sis looks up to you. You might think she's a pain and a crybaby...but she's a LOT deeper than you think. And that sarcasm thing you do....trying to be all snarky and cynical. She grows up to school your ass in it. But you get over it...eventually.

You ant Tony have started the chick hunt thing. Remember the "Rock of thought" where you laid out your strategies? Thats when Tony started being more than just your cuz..and became one of your best friends. Oh...and those chicks you'll be going after? It won't work out...but the chase will be fun. And no...almost 20 years down the line, you still don't get chicks.

All in all...you're a pretty solid kid. Keep the love of reading (strictly non textbook) alive. It will serve you well. You know enough to realise you don't know much at all.

Stay hungry. Stay foolish.

Who to tag.....hmmm

I'll go with @shuhi @milonare @nbad_kitty @magaribina

So you are a critic eh? Get a life....

2010-05-25T04:47:00.000-07:00

I think critics suck.

They suck eggs. Green nasty 50 day old eggs that are putrid, smelly,disgu.....i think you get the picture.

I guess we are all guilty of unleashing criticism from time to time...a kind of differing of opinion of what something is presented as and what we perceive it to be. I have no issues with this kind of expression and actively encourage it. It would be a dull world indeed should we all be singing off the same hymn book (which is why the bible's vision of heaven scares the crap out of me..)

But the part i detest is the vicious sniping of another human beings effort. I don't like chick flicks...and so i don't watch em. As Tupac said in lord knows which track (is he really dead?) "You don't have to like it, but please respect it..."

I love what JAB did with the HAHE vid and I got rather disturbed by some of the negative comments that got put up on the bands facebook page. They weren't constructive...just the usual "This is a shit video....by 2 yr old brother could do better..." vibe.

Sorry. They can't.

Which is why the final speech/review from Anton Ego in Ratatouille are so apt.

*SPOILER ALERT*

If you have not watched the movie yet...what on earth are you waiting for??

"In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little, yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face, is that in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so. But there are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new. The world is often unkind to new talents, new creations. The new needs friends"

Be a friend to the new....

Goliath doesn't like rocks

2010-05-14T02:55:00.000-07:00

Right...so CCK gazetted new rules that aim to regulate the abuse of a dominant companies dominant position.

Well...here's my 5 cents (adjusted for inflation)

1. In any sector of any economy...the dominant player calls the shots. Kenya Airways can (and does) charge a premium for inland routes in Africa. Simply because there isn't a viable competitor that can offer the number of connections and frequencies it offers to these destinations. By the same breadth, Safaricom finds it very profitable to keep its users in a walled garden where they can be milked in relative peace and serenity. Breaking the "Safaricom club" is probably the key case study for most marketing professionals now. 1st person to crack it can expect to cash in heavily...until big green counters.

2. Kenyans accept and embrace mediocrity. You see it in the leaders we elect, in the poor standards of service we put up with from government and some businesses (KPLC are you listening??) and more area than i care to delve into. Safaricom has been no exception and has in the past been consistently underwhelmed subscriber with sub-par service. That said, the green giant is trying to up its game in terms of service delivery and have succeeded in some measure.

3. The contentious 3G licencing fee: CCK set the fee at $25M. Safaricom ponied up the cash and went happily on its way. Zain (then Celtel) felt the tag was too steep at the time and focused on improving the quality of its calls. Well....i guess we all know how that turned out. In their defense, Zain had little option as far as broad band strategies to pursue are concerned. The only other viable alternative is Wimax...which is a "fixed" as opposed to mobile technology. Wimax has a considerably steeper acceptance and upgrade path for consumers and presents several integration issues for a telco. Compound that with a lack of available spectrum and you are left with a sitting duck.

I get where the 3 entrants are at. They all have mother companies to report back to....and their balance sheets have more red stuff than all blood-banks in the region combined. So they will call for back up and hope that they get some kryptonite rock....coz a pissed of Goliath has the ability to drop kick their butts into 3 continents..

Be afraid David(s)/. Be very afraid.

Writers Block ....is it transmitted through dandruff?

2010-05-07T01:07:00.000-07:00

OK. I admit it it.

I may be in over my head where this blogging thing is concerned. The most critical thing about it is that i simply won't make the time for it. That's why I deeply admire the peeps whose blogs I follow. It takes some dedication to think up a topic, write out a draft, refine it and put it out there for the unwashed masses to consume.

Then you come back to check out the comments and find:

Nothing
the juvenile clowns with their "1st!!!" and other similarly trivial input or
the born critic who claims they can type better using their teeth and wonder if you substituted grey matter for warm dog vomit.

But in their midst, there are the gems who give you valuable feedback and insight. And more often than not, these would be the seeds of the next story you embark on exploring.

In the meantime, i wonder what timing works best for these endeavours...I've contemplated doing a 5 am post...but the blankets consistently execute their seize and detain campaign on me...

sigh..

Kenya Constitution (illustrated)

2010-04-13T02:55:00.001-07:00

A summary of key items and issues of the harmonised draft by Njeri Gakonyo.

Its a good start to understanding some key issues affecting the adoption and subsequent implementation of the harmonized draft.

in reference to: Kenya-constitution-illustrated-Nov-2009-circulated-2.pdf (application/pdf Object) (view on Google Sidewiki)

Insights into the Makmende viral phenomena (please don't hurt me...)

2010-03-26T02:38:00.000-07:00

The one liners describing our supreme Kenyan hero Makmende...the man who uses viagra in his eye drops...just to look hard.

There are a ton of one liners about the "Man" and the legend.

This post is not about that.

Lets get back to the basics. Makmende (as described in archers excellent post ) refers to a fictional kenyan superman that kids in the 80's and 90's referenced when interacting (read pounding the cr*p out of each other) at the play ground.

The lads at Just a Band gave birth to a persona larger than life. So what are the ingredients that contributed to the video going viral?

There is no ONE reason why videos become viral but there are a few observations I can make about the characteristics of these videos. A typical viral video will have some combination of these 7 characteristics:

1. Content:

The content VERY uncommon. It takes a LOT of discipline to re-create such content (Not a "fly car" or booty shaking chic in sight). Plus, even if you were able to re-create it, the duplicate may not fly the way the original took off.

2. Chance:

This can happen to the surprise of the video creators. Just a Band have publicly admitted that even in their dreams they didn’t expect the video to gain the popularity it did.

3. Characters:

The characters are believable if a little sterotypical. They take you back to the pretend fights lads would have at the play ground.

4. Comical:

The video captures a totally comical moment..the subtitles during the abduction scene and the final "boss" fight are surreal. And the credits left me DEAD.

5. Community:

The community participates and becomes part of the experience. Immediately after posting up the video on you tube, a facebook fan page and twitter blew up.

6. Creativity

Extreme creativity. While many kenyan video makers stand at the pool of creativity and gargle, the JAB team has donned flippers and dived in to the depths. Their entire body of work speaks for itself.

The danger with radical success such as Makmende is that it can get out of hand with everyone but the maker cashing in. Check out the links page on the facebook Makmende page. While this is a minor infringement, its only a matter of time before someone seriously begins considering using this character in some ad campaign (Peter marangi anyone??)

I just hope the boys get paid.

Dude...seriously...where have you been?

2010-03-19T02:54:00.000-07:00

Well....this is awkward!

It's been 10 months since the last blog post...which doesn't say much for my writing ability...or commitment for that matter.

So here's a quick recap of whats been happening:

I now work 2 jobs: 3 days a week project managing for these guys and another 3 days for my crew here
Family size increased by one. Step right up Isis Muthoni. (who incidentally really REALLY like the kung-fu kick assery sounds)
I discovered mindmapping with freemind and mindjet. I can't recommend the two enough. If you really want to use both halves of your brain to solve a problem or just plan out what direction your life/project/random event is taking, then the mind mapping may just be the tool for you
Read the GTD (thats Getting Things Done for those not in the know) book and now trying to implement it in my life. Apparently, there are some synergies between GTD and the 7 habits...in that the 7 habits give you a road map of what to do and GTD gives you the how. I'll be doing a monthly review of how that's working out.
Did an outward bound trip with family over Easter. Kilimanjaro and Elephants in the morning are awe inspiring to say the least

And lots of mundane drudgery...

Ah well. On to the next. Going for weekly updated from here on out.

Layoffs in 2009: A Kenyan Perspective

2009-05-04T02:24:00.000-07:00

"Many people quit looking for work when they get a job" - Anon

The global economic crisis has spawned numerous stories of industries laying off workers in a bid to shore up their books and weather the storm. Kenya for the most part has not been deeply affected...till now.

Most of you heard about or read about this story early in April. Well, this post tells the story of a "statistic".

March 31st 2009 - Bloodbath Monday. The story has been played out in different settings around the world. Going through all the emotions would take an entire site and a panel of eminent psychologists. A basic summary of the whole timeline is:

The early morning managers meeting resulting in grim faced executives in power suits. (Since the dress code is normally quite relaxed, I guess the execs needed all the armour they could muster)
You access card only works on your floor (security guys are instructed to inform affected parties that there is a "problem with the system")
You are locked out of your computer network account (see above for excuse given)
Affected parties are shepherded into the boardrooms for the coup de grace (The criteria was not "performance based", the dating equivalent of "Its not you, its me")
Final settlement and clearing with a gentle reminder that while we can take all the time we need to clear out our effects, it would nice if we could clear off quickly.

So, on the morning of March 31st 2009, I went to work as an employee. By 12.30 pm, i was on the street.

Its not all doom and gloom though. While i do miss the telco freebies (those tied in pretty well with my love of all things gadgetry) I did come out with some unexpected benefits which include:

A fully paid off car after only one car payment (talk about being debt free!)
A significant amount of corporate goodwill and close relationships with those left behind that can be leveraged in future dealings with said company.
A detailed knowledge of how the enterprise as a whole works. I have since discovered that this is information that a large number of suppliers find extremely valuable...
An opportunity to take a real holiday and the finances to make it happen
The time to start exploring various entrepreneurial projects that I simply too busy to follow up on initially. These will be blogged on later as I crystallize the ideas
An opportunity to really touch base with my wife and child in more meaningful ways

In conclusion, there are some do's and don't out of this experience that I'd like to share with all those in similar situations:

DO go for counselling and outplacement services (when and if available) - You are out of your comfort zone and its is quite likely that there you may have significant anger issues as a result. Deal with the anger as it will impede progress in other areas of your life
DON'T take it personal. Irrespective of the relationship you had with your boss, tough decisions had to be made and your number was called. You are only a victim if you believe you are.
DO leverage your contacts. Talk to the people you know. Let them know you are in the market.
DON'T burn bridges: You have considerable goodwill and many of your former colleagues will try to help you find something quickly. Nothing kills such initiatives as an ill-timed rant either verbal or written. If you don't trust yourself to say anything nice, say nothing at all

So...here is to a fresh start.

1st Post!

2008-03-27T06:56:00.000-07:00

Aw shucks!

And to think i only created a blog so that i could go off and troll other people's posts...

Ah well, time to think up some meaningful content!