There are three things that I promised myself I would do when I got back to Kenya. The first was to make an effort to meet more people. The second was to pursue adventure in the great outdoors in this beautiful country of ours. The third, I cannot disclose here or now. We all have our little skeletonised secrets and I’ll keep mine for quiet company.
Anyway, I heard about the #NairobiTweetup about a month back and I couldn’t attend it due to climbing, crawling, and dying up Mount Kenya at the time. Then I heard about this one and decided to jump in. After all, it was a chance to meet new people and see things from a different perspective. I genuinely believe that networking is not only healthy for business but for individuals to grow as people as well. As a race, we can learn so much from one another if only we give ourselves the chance to open up and talk. I see the world very differently from how you may see it. Your world could be completely different. And I’d like to see it.
Anyway, back to the tweetup.
Mercury bar and lounge at ABC Place was the venue. I love that place, hate the prices. Starting at 3pm, it started at about 4pm. Usual timing here in Kenya. We’re all used to it. So I got there with a mild hangover from the night before and when it did get going, it was wonderful. The ambiance, the smiling faces of the pretty ladies, the friendliness of the entire group, the cold beer, the laid back aura, it was fantastic. We all introduced ourselves with our name, twitter handle and what we do and then the speakers were in the spotlight.
I’ve met Ahmed a couple of times to talk about a possible business venture and every time he comes up with new ideas. Even if we don’t go into business together I’m sure we’ll end up collaborating on a project sometime in the future. Ahmed reminds me of those cowboys in the old westerns. His gun would be his mouth and his ideas would be his brain bullets. He’s got enough charisma to carry a crowd. The thing with him is he’s not only a concept man, he actually puts things into practice and that’s a quality I believe is lacking in a lot of people. Ahmed spoke about his T-shirt business FluidTees and how it was born a little less than a year ago. He spoke about how it’s evolved through social media and how people can use these mediums to grow their businesses.
Next was Kirsty. Kirsty was wonderful to meet. She exudes passion for what she does. You can see it surrounding her. She’s a genuine soul who wants to help change the lives of thousands and she’s doing so through Vision Africa. Kirsty gave us stories about the children that the charity helps and how the kids are creative, clever and keen to learn. If she was nervous about giving the speech (which her blog says she was) then she did not show it at all. She spoke with the articulate power that passion lends to those with vision and hope. She and the Vision Africa website can say what they do better than I can so make sure you visit it at http://www.vision-africa.org/ and follow her on twitter @VisionAfrica for more information. Hopefully we're going to collaborate on setting up a football match with the kids so if anyone wants to jump in on that then do feel free.
The two speakers left us all with thoughts about growth, change and aid resonating in our minds. I learned a lot from just listening to them. I learned that there are many people out there willing to change this world we live in. I learned that there are individuals who sacrifice all the superficial little crap that builds up around our lives just to help other people and that has stayed with me. I learned that through passion and persistence, you can achieve your goals. Being the pessimist I am, I learned that there’s hope for humanity yet. The power of words is ours to harness. We must use it wisely.
The old cliché of every little helps comes to mind here so do your part, no matter how small it is. Or else I’ll hunt you down and probably cut you a little.
No comments:
Post a Comment