Quality for a lifetime
April—May 2008
Entrepreneurship Getting back on your feet
Investing wisely Ladders to success
Management ~ Customers ~ Bad News
Quiet Time
Managing Editor Wangari Kimani Advertising Executives Frederick Mwarangu Nahashon Mithanga Contributors Winnie Mwangi Design and Photography
Happy Easter Esteemed this month is about collecting the pieces. From hearing the experiences of different people in the media and seeing first hand what the political crisis has done, it is only right for us to do this one.
Frederick Rukungu On December 30 2007, you woke up a business mogul, and spent the night as a pauper on the run Nahashon Mithanga for his life. Not because you had unscrupulous deals that had finally caught up with you. Not because Distribution & Circulation the taxman had frozen all your assets. It’s just that your neighbor had been mentally poisoned against you. Eagle Afric Holdings Ltd. Published by: Eagle Afric Holdings Ltd. P.O. Box 24329, Karen 00502 Tel: +254 020 3597825 E-mail: info@esteemedonline.com Copyright Information Esteemed is a bi-monthly magazine published by Eagle Afric Holdings Ltd. Views expressed in the articles and contributions are not necessarily those of the publisher. All rights reserved. While every reasonable effort has been made and precautions taken to ensure the accuracy and integrity of the content herein, neither the Esteemed team, nor its advertisers, nor printers can accept responsibility for any damages or inconvenience that may arise there from. The views expressed within the publication are those of the authors exclusively and not necessarily those of the Esteemed owners. Any material sent to us will be treated as unconditionally assigned for publication and may or may not be acknowledged as receipted. This material will also be subject to scrutiny for unrestricted editing and commentary at the discretion of the Editorial team. All content, including adverts created by Esteemed are Copyright of Eagle Afric Holdings Ltd. and may not be recreated in part or in whole without prior consent of the publishers. Copyright ©
If this crisis has taught me anything, it is the simple fact that you can water down my efforts and burn the fruit of my labor, thus reducing me to nothingness; but as long as I have the will to live and fight on, as long as I hold onto the come back spirit with my eyes looking up to God. You have not destroyed me. You may have spiraled me back to ground zero, but just like the phoenix, I will rise up again and conquer even more ground, with double the success. I am reminded of the story of Joseph. He was the beloved son of his father and his brothers just couldn’t handle it. So they dumped him in a well and sold him off for a couple of lousy coins. He lived the life of a slave, from being the apple of his father’s eye. His perseverance and faith in the God he had been brought up to worship kept him going; and God remembered him and smiled upon him. What did he become? The 2nd in command in the land of Egypt where he came as a slave! Eventually the same brothers who disliked him for who he was bowed down at his feet as they would to a king. All am saying is this, if you have been reduced to nothingness in this crisis, wait upon God. He will surely come and open doors that may never have been opened if you continued to thrive in the place you woke up in on December 30, 2007. We have plenty for you in Esteemed this Easter period. Doing the balancing act for those of us handling both employment and side jobs. We also have ideas to help those affected get back on their feet with a lot less hassling. In quiet time, I have no words to summarize except say, PLEASE READ!!!!!!!!!! Thank you for your continued support and for sure, you guys are just the greatest readership an Editor would want to develop with. Keep that feedback coming! With lots of love
Wangari INSIDE THIS ISSUE Picking up the pieces 3 The story of Joseph Business Principles 4 Above the circumstances
We are glad to have a cup of coffee with you
Investing wisely
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Customer relations
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Human relations
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Your say is shared Dear Esteemed, It is always a pleasure to read you since you started. Your articles give some of us a sense of direction and without your input, it feels like we are set to fail. As in, if Esteemed with all its fire could fall, who can’t fall at start up? Where had you gone off to? We thought you have collapsed and just couldn’t go on! Our apologies for going off just like that.. We had a few hitches and we had to work through them if Esteemed was to go anywhere. But like our theme with this edition goes, sometimes it is through the adversity that we grow stronger and achieve much more. The comfort zone for Esteemed had to die and that is why we rose back as Esteemed Royalé! - Wangari Dear Editor
Quiet Time
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Where can I get your older issues? On our website www.esteemedonline.com. Let us have your feedback. - Wangari
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Entrepreneurship
picking up the pieces
W
e at Esteemed were not left untouched by the chaos that hit the country. We were pulled to empathize with our brothers and sisters that were affected and we just could not sit back and watch it on TV or read the papers. Esteemed is about making all of us feel esteemed. That’s exactly what we tried to do in our own small way. Joseph wonders what happened and how can he find the strength to move on They may have shattered my dreams but they didn’t kill my spirit. If anything, they just fuelled it.
In one of our encounters with the IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons) we met Joseph. A young man in his late thirties. By the time he was through with his story, our entire team was wondering. In his shoes, could we have kept up the fighting spirit? As you see the situation through Joseph’s eyes as brought out by Esteemed, say a prayer and thank Jehovah God that he kept you from this nightmare. Our one question to Joseph was - What is your story?
Joseph’s answer It is amazing that this is what my life has been reduced to - a story. (He smiles before the next statement) I am businessman. Before the elections I had three shuttle matatus on the Nakuru Kisumu route, 3 acres of land in Kitale and I had just finished paying for a 10 tonnes truck from the showroom. My house stood on a five acre piece of land. I did all the landscaping and design. It took me years to come up with a design and this was to be the first time we spent Christmas and enter into a new year in the house. But I guess that was not meant to be. My wife was operating a salon in Eldoret town as well as a grocery shop. Today, I am a house guest in a friend’s The truck was insured, so once we are able to get back to sanity in this country, I will go to Kisumu and recollect. The land in Kitale is for my children’s future. They may have burnt the maize but the land is still productive so God willing, I will go and recover. As for my house, God will renew my architectural mind. I will call you guys to come and see the finished product.
rented house. What pains me the most is knowing that all my dreams, went up in flames, and what was not in my compound at that time was either vandalized or forcefully taken away. The maize in Kitale was all burnt down, the truck is a mere shell after all the important gadgets were removed as it was in transit from Uganda; and the house - an empty shell. I did not owe anyone anything. I have never raised a hand at anyone. All I did was work a little extra hard and extra smart to make sure my family did not know the poverty I grew up in. I was employed in an architectural firm when I graduated from campus and I knew that I wanted to be independent so I saved quite some bit of my salary. Then I put one matatu on the road in the city. It was blessed and it paid itself back. The gains I made formed a bigger capital base and soon they were three. It took discipline and constant watchful spending. I accumulated the wealth I have and I
Starting over
Joseph’s house completed after building for 3years. It cost Kshs. 3 million to build but it took less than a litre of paraffin and one match stick to bring it all down thank God that He gave me wisdom to save up and so I am not rebuilding my life from nothing. I am don’t have much of a choice about getting back up. My wife and children still need me to be successful. I am responsible for their well being. If our lives as a family were preserved then there has to be a way to rise back up. Have I learnt lessons that if given a million years I wouldn’t put myself through that class? Yes. You will have plenty of friends as long as you have the money, but as soon as you hit a down turn, they disappear - fast. I have also learnt that they who laugh with you may not necessarily be laughing; rather they just might be showing their teeth yet hating your guts and plotting your downfall. In business, you have to spend money to make money. I love my mother for many reasons. One being that she taught me the culture of saving and frugal spending. I know what living poor and living rich is about. In business, you should not put all your eggs in one basket and remember this - when you harvest, some seed is replanted, some is kept aside for a rainy day and some is offered as thanks giving to God. Your future depends on your present. I know I will rise again and not to the same levels. Higher
This is what I know about starting over after something like this. It has to start from inside my heart and mind. I need to forgive all those who destroyed the fruits of my labor. Some of them are my own employees. Some of them are business partners or rivals. Bottom-line is, they are all people I will work with again. But granted, I will not turn my back or let them stand anywhere behind me. Lest they plunge another knife. I wish I could say to my wife that I will restock her shop and operationalize her salons. It cannot all be done at once. It needs time to build and effort. I know God is not so unfair as to make me spend another twenty years to rebuild our lives. My story is similar to that of Job in the Bible. The man suffered greatly, his children, his cattle, his businesses, his property, his health and It is a long road to reeven his wife’s love. When it was all over, God replenished everything one covery. Difficult but we hundred times more such that he had 200% of his initial worth. Why not me? can make it
Business Principles For sure, the corporate world is a serious jungle. Cut-throat competition, serious undercutting in business deals, back-stabbers, compromising of principles and so much more. Name it and its there. Despite these cruel circumstances, I want to believe that there are a few good people out there that stick to certain principles in their lives. Good people don’t survive easily. Their game is fair and square through various strategies, some of which are shared in this page
Necessity is the mother of invention
When someone you were working with on a certain project snatches the rug from under your feet, what do you do? Sit and whine, get angry and revenge, or do you get angry, forgive and re-strategize? Try this last one, it should work better than the rest. You see, when the need and craving for something is driving you, the word impossible ceases to exist for you. If you are not satisfied with the way things are going, quit whining and get down to work. By the way, don't just work hard, work smart too. When you work with the problem in mind, it takes longer to resolve; but once you understand the problem and work with a solution in mind, then you will ultimately, and within a shorter time, have a great solution. It is when all ways and avenues look like they do not exist, that you need to create one. Look at it this way, if you are on a journey on a rocky mountain, and you come across this huge boulder that you cannot walk around it, climb over it, or move it and the only way is to go back the way you came, chisel yourself through t h e boulder. It may take you months
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Conceive, Believe & Achieve to make a big enough dent for you to go through but still, you will be finding a solution and not giving up on the journey. Never give up when the option of being inventive/ creative still exists in the list of options
or perceived and that is the beginning of your woes. You need to be smart and pick your battles. Know who to answer back and how. Know who are just empty debes clanging the loudest. Know who are coming for your neck and heart. It is Shake it off when you learn your When someone says enemies and friends something negative about that you know who, your business or about when, what, where you, what do you do? and how to fight. Sulk all day and let those There are people words and opinions take who cause you misery your joy and purpose? just to know what We forget that people’s makes you tick. They words are just that will drive you up the wall with anything and words. Unless of course we take and attach everything they have. You need to have learnt meaning to them. When someone from the yourself well enough to know how to avoid blues comes over offers some destructive such battles. Reserve your criticism the It is when all ways and avenues look like they do not exist, energies for bigger battles first reaction like when your competitor is that a you need to create one. would be to taking away every customer get angry and ask them what right do they you have considered loyal. In such a battle you think they have to criticize. But remember this have to gather all your wits round about you before you blurt out a retort. He/ she was not as proper armory for war. Imagine if you God’s assistant during your creation. When spend all your time micromanaging. You won’t God was charting out your professional and even know when problems invade your office personal life, God did not ask your critics for Don’t be chicken. Be the eagle that you have been set to be
their opinion or their input. Learn to take it all in stride. Let them criticize, but don’t internalize. Let it not get under your skin. Let it rest on the surface as they speak and when you walk away from them, shake it all off like chicken does after it is rubbed down in dust. Learn from the constructive one, but discard the destructive
Pick your battles like a professional Have you ever watched a movie with alley cats. Those animals have learnt this survival skill perfectly. They know which battles to fight, which ones are just not worth it and which will bring death. The corporate world is more like that alley. You are busy doing your thing and someone sees you as a threat—real
Eagles don’t scratch the ground for food like chicken. They don’t peck at bull backs for ticks like egrets. They also don’t hang around for a carcass like vultures. Eagles hunt from high above. They are skilled to see a fish swimming in a fresh water lake and before long, they are lifting the fish off the water with their claws. An eagle is smart and creative. Being smart and creative allows you the perfect skills to jump at an opportunity presented by people who are either too blind to see their lot or are simply too lazy and stubborn that they refuse to step up to their responsibilities. If managed properly such gusto of stepping up to a challenge that everybody rejects might lead to high positions of authority and great achievements.
Business Principles
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Conceive, Believe & Achieve
The bull fighting in Luhya land The Maasai initiation festivals The Lamu cultural week The bomas of Kenya The Mijikenda and Pokomo The Dorobo Others pay through loans, others save for a lifetime. Just to visit our country. We are residents. How much of it have we seen or experienced?
You and your destiny are God’s property. Trust me, you can’t sell your soul to the devil and expect your owner, who has full ownership rights, to let you go just like that. So before you put a price tag on your neck saying this is what my business, my family and myself are worth, remember to ask He who They say everyone has a price. owns you and has been a driving factor for the success of your business and family. What’s yours? Know this: Nothing you do, noth- I once read a story of a doctor. She was a You just can’t afford to entertain ing that happens to you is a sur- good person worthy of a high political office negative thoughts prise to God but her commitment to family and children It is said that the biggest enemy we have is Be perceptive - opportunities are effortless to come by. If you listen carefully, they will be in the words of your friends, the complaints of your staff, the complaints of your customers and those of your competitors. The opportunities will not stand up and say here I am come and take me. If anything, they come veiled so that not everyone will hear, see or smell them.
cherished business, He will. It may not be on your time frame; but know this, God does not forget His own. He had a plan of your life long before you came into the picture, so relax and seek Him to reveal the plan to you that you may do His will and become the success that He has destined you to be.
In the Bible, God says that He knew us even before we were formed in our mothers’ wombs. How great is that? That even before our parents got together and decided to have a kid who turned out to be you, God knew that you would grow into a president, a preacher and a successful businessman. God knew, that you would get into a business deal where you would lose everything you had and you would need Him to rebuild your fortunes. So when your business is suffering or you are going through a dry spell of non-paying clients, it is no surprise to the Lord. God knows of things that will happen to you that you have never even conceived in your mind. So fret not when things go haywire. Neither forget the Lord God when things are on the up and up for you. When you cheat someone in business, God sees that, when you tell God to carry out vengeance on the one who has destroyed your
and her husband made her stick her grounds and say no to the offer of being an Ambassador. The big boys calling the shots got to her though. Her doctor husband was called in for an emergency at the local hospital one rainy night. He never made it as a truck with a drunk driver mangled his car at a junction. Long story short, her kids were enrolled in the best schools, she was given a house in the most expensive part of the country she was being assigned to and she moved. As far as she knew at that time, her husband’s death was an accident like any other. Years later after serving her country with dedication and love, she learnt that the very people who signed her up, killed her husband. She left but what she did not know was that she had already served her purpose anyway, as far as her employer was concerned and they were even wondering how to get rid of her.
ourselves. You are what you think yourself to be. If you believe yourself to be a failure, that you can never be much of a success, sure enough that is what you will turn out to be. In business, you have to believe in your success. Failure may exist but it doesn't have to be your oath. Your business will resonate your mentality. If you are driven by customer satisfaction, that is what will emanate in your business. If you believe in treating your employees well, you will have a very low turnover rate. If you believe that your business is a failure, you will surely fail in everything you venture out to do. It begins in your mind and works itself from there. So fill your mind with the positive even when the direct opposite stands as obvious. Good thoughts influence your actions towards positive, enriching results. Success is for those driven towards a goal that can only be achieved by positive thinking.
Investing wisely
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Cleaning your way to success
Becoming a winner is pegged on one great decision. To be a winner.
very lucrative business of cleaning other peoples laundry. When you consider the middle aged women who go round estates seeking temporary assignment to clean launIt starts from the mental and dry may not have much else to do; but one heart felt decision to be a thing is certain. They do walk away with success and not fall short of enough income to last a week. this.
This edition brings you the
For a load of wash, they will earn between Kshs. 100 and Kshs. 250 If they wash for two people, that would mean Kshs. 500 per Saturday and Kshs. 2,000 for a month if they work Saturdays only. If however the same lady does one wash load everyday - Monday to Friday for Kshs. 200 and two on Saturday, that adds up to Kshs. 1,400 per week and Kshs. 5,600 per month. The client provides the water, the soap and the washing basins.
So because we consider that everyone wants to earn, we will avoid the target market of these ladies and go for a more uncovered ground. Boarding students in high schools, colleges and universities. Apart from the high school students who live within the school confines, the rest live in hostels. The business idea Set up a laundry mart in the vicinity of hostels and high schools. Why?
To free up the consuming time taken when doing personal laundry ier for the students
How will it work for college and university students?
By setting up a self running
Set up is the same as that of
Students are shown how to operate the machines.
The students come with their laundry to the laundry centre, within the school compound. The centre has a reserved quantity of detergent for every kilogram of wash.
Each student uses the machine on a first come first served basis
Benefits?
Students can get to read and socialize more as their laundry is cleaned
Students are less tired and their clothes are cleaner and more presentable as they also get to use the facilities of ironing and starching
the high school. It may however be outside the hostel because of the management rules
For busy students, you can have one or two staff members to do the laundry for them in exchange for a higher fee.
The fees charged are worth the hassle saved
What do you need to set up? 1.
Conduct a research to assess the viability of the idea in your intended area of operation
2.
Business plan
3.
Proposals for the institutions you will need to approach
4.
Capital to:
buy the initial equipment and consumables market your service get a license for operations set up the enterprise 5.
Premises to set up the first shop
6.
Action plan built around the concept of Plan, Do, Check and Act (PDCA)
T
oday, investors sacrifice and spenders enjoy. Tomorrow, investors enjoy and spenders keep working. If you buy a house today, you may have to work two jobs to make the mortgage payments now but you may own the house without debt in twenty years. If you give up TV tonight, you can take an evening course and in six years earn a college degree. If you start training today, you may be sore tomorrow and a black belt in four years.
To make laundry cleaning eas-
How will it work for High School students? block with the retail washing machines.
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Fortunate is the young man or young woman who learns, early in life, to use imagination, and doubly so in this age of greater opportunity. Imagination is a faculty of the mind, which can be cultivated, developed, extended and broadened by use. If this were not true, this course on the Fifteen Laws of Success never would have been created, because it was first conceived in the author's imagination, from the mere seed of an idea which was sown by a chance remark of the late Andrew Carnegie. Wherever you are, whoever you are, whatever you may be following as an occupation, there is room for you to make yourself more useful, and in that manner more productive, by developing and using your imagination. (Adapted from General Introduction to the LAW OF SUCCESS COURSE By Napoleon Hill)
Invest in yourself. Most wealthy people save between 15% and 20% of their income. Invest in fields in which you have a specialized knowledge. If you sell cars, invest in the auto industry. If you are a real estate broker, buy income properties. Be sure to diversify your holdings by investing in a retirement plan and a noload mutual fund. There is a time value to money, so the earlier you start investing the better.
Invest in things that appreciate rather than spend on things that depreciate . Secure your own retirement (adapted from success.org by Bill Fitzpatrick)
NB: Publishers Disclaimer: The publisher is not engaged in the business of rendering financial, legal or other professional advice. If such advice and or information is required in relation to the investment idea highlighted herein, the services of professionals should be sought. No responsibility for loss occasioned by any person acting or refraining from acting as a result of material in this publication can be accepted.
Growing every day Working with you everyday We will stop at nothing or else f g n i h al? yt ateri ad an m e l r a i y Wh neur repre t n e good
At Esteemed Magazine, our concern is not how you spend the money. It is how you make it.
Learn from other people’s experiences Internalize and adopt applicable business principles Build Ethics into your business Esteemed Magazine - Quality for a lifetime
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Customer relations Have you ever considered your customer (s) as the person (s) who are going to give you their time, help or money, so you can have everything that you ever wanted in your life, your business, for yourself and your family? When you get this perspective cultured into your business agenda for the customers, then you will begin to treat them differently and better. Customers are ever so important because they are your greatest marketing point.
The jigsaw puzzle that is customer relations - a combination of many factors leads to customer satisfaction
Most people can’t give up their lunch hour to solve a customer’s problem. You can
Here are some hard hitting truths about customers:
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appreciate your customers Listen to them. They let you in on a lot of information that you will not get elsewhere. About competition, about their needs, new opportunities, your staff, your performance in the market and in the office etc
them. Write a letter saying that you value their business and as an MD, sign it personally. It mean a lot to that client. People who feel appreciated will remain loyal and will become your goodwill ambassadors as they happily sing your praises to others.
Appreciate them. Imagine you take a vacation in a five star hotel every three months with your children, and none of the staff even bother to learn your name or mark your favorite dinner table when it is you and your wife only? You’d feel under valued. That’s the same way your customers feel when you don’t even take a minute of your time to appreciate
Support them. Customers will always come back to you for something. They expect that if they are loyal enough to give you their money, it won’t hurt you to give back a little inform of support. They could probably be organizing a charity walk and all they want is your staff to participate. It would make a difference between losing and keeping that customer’s business.
Customer service is important for the customer, but essential to your business. Without customer service, you don’t have customers and you don’t have a business. Sometimes it calls for you to presume your customers are your equals because they are. Speak with and not at or to your customers. Build in the culture of customer service within your entire organization, not just the small customer relations department. Great customer service ought to be a prerequisite of your business. Customer is always first, not always right. It petrifies me every time I here someone saying in a resigned voice with shrugged shoulders - “the customer is always right!” How can I sell you a vehicle spare part, you go interchange it with another one and then come claiming it is what I sold you based on the premise that the customer is always right, It doesn’t work that way. The customer comes first, because we rely on his purchase to make our income but that doesn’t mean they are always right even when it is too obvious that they are on the wrong. Work at solving customer related issues first hand and professionally without making them look bad, but don’t lose your business in the name of adhering to a false presumption! Customers buy appeal. In addition to the product, customers will always buy into you as the sales person. Sometimes, it may not be that your product is superior to the competition. It is because of how you treat your customers. As much as you are a salesperson, overshadow that with you being a customer service person. In this economy full of insurance and assurance packages, we are more likely to give ear to someone who introduces him/ herself as a personal financial consultant rather than a life insurance salesperson. You don’t run a business solely dependent on finding new customers. The customers you acquire need to be retained and loyalty in your product and service developed in them. The loyalty is built by concentrating on service with an attitude clear to everyone that customer retention is very important to your business - both staff and customers. Customer compliments and complaints are important tools to improve efficiency. In this case, you need to consider that nobody knows your product better than
your competitor. Just as nobody sees the football game mistakes as well as the spectator, the customer knows your product better than you think. They use it, they spend money on it, they recommend it to others. So when they compliment you or raise a concern, you had best listen. Your staff is your number one customer. Though we are yet to cover this aspect of customer relations here at Esteemed, please allow us to say this. Your employees are the most important level of customers your business will ever encounter. Their daily income and sustenance is pegged on the success of the product or service you are selling. If they do not own it, they will not sell it. They will be disappointed customers who will work at selling it for their own selfish gains and not for the companies benefit. Imagine a Sales Manager of Mercedes driving an Alfa Romeo; or an Account Manager of Nokia using a Samsung flap phone. Actually if someone like that came knocking on my office door, the first question would be, “if you believe in the product enough for you to sell it, what are you doing using the product or service of your competitor?” Allow your staff access to your products and services. You’d be surprised at its positive impact on your numbers!
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Human relations We live in a world where bad news is the order of the day. At home, on the road, in the office, with friends in the local pub and even at school.
20 Distinguishing characteristics of a Master 1.
Commits to ethical behavior.
2.
Matches words with actions.
3.
Strives for excellence.
4.
Works independently of criticism and praise.
5.
Organizes methodically.
6.
Stands tall.
7.
Listens to learn .
8.
Teaches softly.
9.
Tests strictly.
10. Proceeds patiently 11.
Treats everyone equally.
12. Assumes the lead. 13. Accepts responsibility 14. Seeks simple solutions. 15. Dares to risk 16. Reacts calmly. 17. Lives now. 18. Appreciates all life 19. Improves her/ himself. 20. Helps others. (adapted from success.org by Bill Fitzpatrick
In the work place, I have realized that one of the hardest tasks any manager has is to communicate bad news. In large corporate, it is easy to pass responsibility to others to do the communicating, or use e-mail or notice boards. In one man companies and smaller outfits, the burden squarely falls on the owner’s shoulders. So what is the best way to tell someone that you have to close down due to financial strain? The best way to tell someone they are fired? The best dirty, you had some wrong deals that compromised you or you were just not appointed for that business. Value your team. Downsizing affects everybody. When you have to do it, be human about it and do unto your team members what you would want to be done to you if you were in their shoes. The company values your input greatly and we will help as much as we possibly can but the company cannot sustain itself through the tough times. If you are a good employer, you might be surprised that your team would willingly stay on with you for less pay and fight to steer the company to greater heights. Be honest. If for instance you are leaving your employer for a competitor who is offering you more, sooner or later, your boss will find out that you are working for the competition. At your exit interview, if any, be plain but respectful, “I am leaving for better prospects but I am grateful for the opportunity you have continuously given me for contributing to the achievement of the company’s goals. I will be pursuing greater career advancements in the same industry but unfortunately, not within this company”.
Communicating the bad news way to tell your managing director that you are leaving? The best way to say that you were unable to clinch a deal that meant everything for the company? The starting point is developing a culture of communication. Negative news will always be existent and so the best thing is to nurture grounds of dealing with the downside of business before it occurs. Developing a culture of communication means that information is shared before it is too late. For instance, a marketing executive
will constantly be sharing the proposal she/ he is working on to sign up a new client. In these discussions with senior management and colleagues, it will be noticed if something is amiss. That way, it will be dealt with before the main meeting with the client. If still the deal doesn’t go through, the marketing executive will not have such a hard time saying why the client did not sign up. Don’t personalize issues. As a proprietor whose company is going under, don’t take it personally. Yours is not the first company to shut down. Neither will it be the last. Be objective in analyzing what caused your downfall. Poor management, competition played
when it is tough to give the bad news, grab the bull by the horns and charge. What’s the worst that can happen anyway? Sometimes I ask my colleagues one simple question (when they say I am daring) - what’s the worst that can happen if you dare the status quo? Sometimes communicating bad news is about saying the very thing that nobody wants to say. The other day we attended a company sponsored training and one of the ice breaking questions had to do with what each person intended to achieve at the end of the training. Tongue in cheek, I mentally asked myself, what’s the worst that can happen? Then I rambled on about how I hoped that it would build my résumé and I would be a great catch for the competition. Holding onto the bad news for the best time does not help anyone. So when it is tough to give the bad
news, grab the bull by the horns and charge. What’s the worst that can happen anyway? Wisdom an tact must reign. Contradictory? It might seem so but it is not. Even before you say “kama mbaya, mbaya” (if it’s bad, let it be bad). Wisdom must reign. If our boss comes in moody in the morning and he changes after two cups of coffee, don’t ride in the elevator with him just to tell him that his most valued client pulled out of a million shillings deal last evening. Be wise in knowing how and when you want to communicate the bad news. Lack of wisdom and knowledge is the greatest cause of downfall for mankind. Don’t be a victim of the same. Tact is knowing that saying, “I need a raise or I quit” will get you out the door faster without a recommendation letter than, “Sir, I appreciate the opportunity to grow with this organization but I feel that we need to work a little extra hard at motivating the team for more of their output.”
Join us in the next edition as we highlight the challenges of hiring and sorting your way through résumés. At Esteemed we respect that every great corporate and successful SME heavily relies on its Human resource and as such we are committed to giving the best Human relations info
Standing out When you last made a presentation did this happen:
Your audience dozed off Your audience made noises Your audience kept walking in and out You walked away with nothing but a simple morale boosting ‘good presentation’ pat on the back
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Quiet Time
what’s your biggest fear?
While going through some literature on Napoleons Laws of success, I decided to share some great input I got from the text in Quiet time. Every person on earth is afraid of something and unfortunately most of them are inherited. Hereditary in terms of family lineage, superstitions and beliefs. There are six fears which do the most damage and if left unchecked, they will completely hinder us from successfully pursuing any worthwhile undertaking in life. As we go through these fears, reflect to understand how they relate to you and more importantly, develop a strategy to work through and overcome them. Fear of Poverty Let’s be honest, every time one of our media houses airs a feature on a poor family in the slums, we silently say a prayer of gratitude to God that we are not the ones going through that. The very thought of poverty sends a chill down our spines because we know it means a whole lot of things. Sacrifices, no medical cover, no surety of a meal in the morning or in the evening, no surety of life tomorrow. The fear of being poor is so deeply entrenched that even the most egotistical man will do anything including injuring his pride to make sure he doesn’t end up poor. Yet everyday, we drive ourselves towards this state by the things we do and don’t do. We procrastinate, we choose to gratify our desires in the present at the expense of our future, we act selfishly so that our colleagues don’t go ahead of us. That’s your fear acting up and getting the better of you Fear of Ill-heath There is this new trend of using herbal medicine, herbal tea, herbal skin care, herbal make up and so on. All in the name of having a good healthy body. Ill health means you are relying on someone else to put a meal on your table; it means you can’t go to work, it means you deplete some of your hard earned cash. Fear of being sick is so real that some people end up self treating rather than visiting a doctor. Others are so afraid that on getting one sneeze from their babies, the next minute they are the doctors. Ill health may be because of your internal composition, or because you neglect yourself. Can you imagine an asthmatic smoker? What about a pneumatic bungee jumper? You need to take care of yourself and be armed with health related information so as to deal with this fear. Worry in itself is a source of ill health and it will mean dealing it from psychological to physical and social platforms. Take care of your body. Your body will take care of you in the long run.
Fear of death to fight is the one who It is said that the worst enemy reason we all want to live e som For does not fear death. es that we shall all die. forever, yet the Bible clearly stat every moment we have te ecia The best we can do is appr er eternal peace in eith for s soul our alive and prepare in hell going through nity heaven with Jesus Christ, or eter the best, it is only t wan to one g fire and brimstone. Bein ow in this lifenarr ght logical to follow through the strai der of walking won and awe time, so that I can enjoy the to seek unGod of d Wor the Read . the streets of gold otherwise, , fear this derstanding and a way to deal with you will die of worry!
Fear of old age I have often heard it said that old is gold. The fear of old age stems out of (a) the thought that old age may bring with it poverty; and (b) the fact that old age means approaching your end hence a choice of streets of gold or fire and brimstone. In our culture, there is the saying “ukuru uriaga wethe” that means old age feeds from our youthful life. If you get a good job with good income and you invest while still in your twenties, chances of growing poor when ld are minimal because you will have saved for old age. Your children won’t even need to sign you up in an old folks home. On the other hand, if you have lived a righteous life, adhering to the word of God and being a follower of the gospel,, what would make you doubt that your name is written in the book of life. Remember the Bible has it that the average lifespan of a man is 2 scores, 3 scores is an extra from God. Four score or 4.5 score is a bonus from the Lord in heaven. Live your life in the best way that you can to ensure you never say—I wish I know. Don’t do anything you will regret in your old age, because whether you like it or not, it’s coming!
re selling p they we o sh m e n g is o c e sid criti ld an agin Fear of the loss of love Fear of day and in why wou er , th lf o se e y n m th si l d to of lo g past a mal I wondere t because a ). n d Ever heard of the mysteries of love triangles? What about st e e I walked m gh u r la fo ers, the fir being (hair wig cizing oth as fear of ti ri d cheating spouses? What about people who willfully submit w c n toupees It e n o t? sp a e rather o thriv t to buy th ey would eople wh h r p to black mail over their love affairs? The very thought of T o t man wan . F u k o g. a b e in a com are w n I think that they own short ir is e not being loved by someone who has dedicated their lives d hair. Whe th ar in n m m o work before comes to ers than freedom e, to loving you, will drive you to do some insane, out of this thing that cizing oth njoy her e ti t ri c o e of her lif n s m ie ti id rg who d ng the n vi a a I world things. Its amazing how men and women are willing h their ene m at o is w th o h an w ticism a married ngle wom st such cri si in of to dare a perfect home with children just for a passion of a example, ga f st a o re is al e at if th be critic areer. It h c w ay r e m h so , , g n ge n ea fleeting pleasure. Its amazing how people are willing to ria g advanci what? I m hair amon tting and ith short estion - so u w q e mess others up while their own lives remain intact. A globe tro ar of s m e d F r e o d t. a differen , G od m ple two w st m m ju a si I m a ay A k as gentleman was once quoted as saying, having hang out in eird. ur path the w ean am w criticizes ts us on o m al d h rl ’t o it sn w s e e o e th clubs with women of all caliber, some who even drunk etim y, if air. It d that som it this wa ith long h any ways . Look at m it people w more bottle of beer than him, he would need to go back at! so to re in n g o s g ti ethin atten dwarfs u onto som if we pay e s criticism b u to his roots for a woman to love and a woman who would st to u n m u u . Woe means, yo to success not be taken from him by his mates, or by the pleasures of ng, then it zi ci ti ri c people are this world - the fear of the loss of love at work
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