LEADERSHIP
Are You Humble Enough To Be Objective ?
By Dr . Wale Akinyemi
Thank God the electioneering season is over in Kenya and now we can get back to mending relationships and building the nation .
Elections are very difficult periods in Africa and friends become enemies and even family members sometimes turn against each other . This is so sad and yet the politicians for whom they have fought soon get united in handshakes and their life goes on yet so many relationships get destroyed in the process .
This is a season of transition . It is a season when some will learn first hand how transient power is and how fickle people are . They will discover that people they once saw as friends and supporters have shifted their loyalties . They will discover that people who would step out of meetings to pick their calls are no longer picking their calls . They will discover that people were never loyal to them but to the offices that they held . They will discover that the people who would pick their calls at the first ring will now send them messages saying they are busy . It is not going to be an easy period for a lot of people .
I remember going to visit someone who was highly placed in the government many years ago . The house was a beehive of activity . There were security personnel outside and people had to undergo serious scrutiny before being allowed in . After he left the government , I went to visit him again and there was no one outside . When I rang the doorbell he opened the door himself and we had a very quiet uninterrupted evening .
Those who are going in should remember that those who are going out once came in . It ’ s never permanent . Never forget that power is transient and people are fickle .
There are people who have been waiting for you to be out of government so they can show you exactly how they feel about you .
I remember the story of a friend who was a marketing director for a very big company in West Africa . Everyone wanted a piece of her and she had a personal assistant to take care of the never ending calls . She was always in the media and she was a bonafide corporate celebrity .
The day she lost her job , it was over . No one
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Elections are very difficult periods in Africa and friends become enemies and even family members sometimes turn against each other . This is so sad and yet the politicians for whom they have fought soon get united in handshakes and their life goes on yet so many relationships get destroyed in the process . cared about her anymore and she promptly went into a depression . This is about to happen to many people who are about to find themselves outside power . My advice to them is to get over it and to determine to build themselves into brands that need no office to be influential .
The power a lot of people have is directly connected to the offices they hold . Yet , history is packed with stories of people who held no political or corporate leadership office but who are respected global icons and brands . The Rev . Martin Luther King junior , Bishop Desmond Tutu , Mahatma Gandhi and many others like them come to mind . We also think of people like Jimmy Carter who became more globally relevant and influential after leaving office . We cannot but mention Barack Obama who continues to win awards long after leaving office - the most recent being an Emmy award for outstanding narrator in the Netflix production , Our Great National Parks .
In Africa we have our statesmen like former president Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria who raised the bar in African politics forever . Before the final vote tally or announcement from the electoral commission , once it was evident that he could not win even if all uncounted votes were for him , he called his opponent to congratulate him . It was a rare display of sportsmanship and statesmanship from an African leader . It has earned him the spot as Africa ’ s number one democrat and he is now the go to person for all things peace and democracy on the continent .
Building personal brands and identifying causes that they will spend their post office life on is very important as leaders prepare for post office life . In fact , the preparation
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