One for the Process

It feels good to be back on this keypad typing the 199^th article on Richie Online. We have come far indeed and when I look back at how the blog has evolved, I am pretty sure I never saw it coming this far.

For those of you that may not know, this started out as an "evangelization platform" – an actual pulpit, if you may. Then, thanks to some metamorphosis (positive or negative, depending on how religious you are), Richie Online turned into some sort of megaphone for communicating different important issues and a bin for emptying madando when they were at the verge of making my head burst. The thing is that creating and sustaining this platform has been a joy ride and I have enjoyed every step of the way.

As we approach 200 articles on this blog, I am left with a question on how I want this platform to be over the coming years. There have been several suggestions along the way with others suggesting a divorce with Google for a better platform at RicheOnline.com. Others have gone on to suggest that I need to commercialize the talent by finding some space in one of the weekly papers. From the financial perspective, finding a space in the papers sounds more plausible but that may mean an end to these free pieces that we get to enjoy weekly (well, not weekly). Perhaps I should get a Richie Online reader-sponsored trip to Cape Maclear so that I can sit down on the sands overlooking the clear waters of Cape Maclear. Perhaps a stint on Nthumbi Island may help with the clarity.

Talking about visions for the future, we have at one point dropped the “when I grow up I would like to be a policeman” line to the teacher when we were in junior primary school. I remember blindly saying that I wanted to be a doctor but that was before the exposure. In the midst of confusions on ambitions and being bombarded with different career exposures and opportunities, I ended up being a doctor. That was probably one of the toughest six years of my life but it was through that process that I ended up being a doctor. As junior doctors, we tend to have this feeling of being inadequate and the hunger for more so you tend to hear people saying they would like to become surgeons, opthalmologists, health economists, physicians, paediatricians, proctologists and many other weird things that are hard to pronounce. I am in the pool and I happen to have my own dreams. Looking back at the six years of medical school, I know that if I am to get to where I want to be, I will have to go through an equally gruesome process for me to be really good at what I will be. That brings us to the topic of the day.

As young people (even old ones) we get to have our own dreams and aspirations. We always have a trajectory which we want our lives to take in the lines of career, family, finances and whatever else. No one would like to live a life of a low standard and we all dream in color. I mean, going back home to a mansion overlooking Chirimba down in Chapima Heights along with a wife and two beautiful kids wouldn’t be bad. Asa young person, I have always fallen into conversation with peers on hos we would like to have the best of cars and houses just like other people have uniquely done in town. The thing that has been lacking, however is the question of how the others have done it.

I was, last week privileged to attend a celebratory lecture by Prof Henry Mwandumba, the Deputy Director of the Malawi-Liverpool Wellcome Trust, the organization I am currently working with. He took us through his story coming from early primary school through high school to tertiary education and one thing that came out clear is how he went through a lot of steps and processes, harnessing the opportunities as they came along. That, is what I like to call the process of becoming and it is one thing that we need to learn to accept and embrace if we are to become something.

I have highlighted the issue of career. Most times, we tend to fantasize different career trajectories, admiring the people who are making money from consultations in projects, law firms, managing grants, private practice medics, chartered accountants, ana a Adadi and whoever else people consider successful nowadays. That is not wrong but to complete the picture, we need to pause and think about what those people may possibly have gone through to achieve the current status. That always gives a good picture of the feasibility of adapting oneself and creating similar paths to success.

It wouldn’t be me if I don’t drag the Richie Online Love Curriculum into this. You may have seen some memes of beautiful couple with the opening caption “this could have been us, but….” Around in the social media. What those try to show are a sense of inadequacy in other relationships (and perhaps the fact that some are just walking alone without partners/spouses). I will not talk about picture perfect relationships as that has been discussed in earlier articles so I will stick to the subject of the day. What we need to realize is that the relationships you admire take a bit of effort to build. All night texting until the phone heats up. The endless, hour-long phone calls. Lots of gifts and spending a lot time together. There will be people who will discouraging you from the start, telling you that what you are doing us a bit of an overkill, but the one thing you have to remember is that things don’t just come to perfection overnight. They need time and effort. Perhaps one thing that is leading to a lot of breakups, divorces and failed relationships is the lack of effort.

Another important aspect to include in this discussion is leadership. As people, we belong to different institutions which require teams of people to spearhead different operations for their day to day functions. Getting to be in a leadership position may come as a matter of a simple appointment or a vote but that is not without problems. Usually, people have their own biases which affect their choice of leaders. That, then brings us to the issue I earlier discussed in my article on leadership (well, probably) regarding the process of becoming a leader. Cutting a long story short, involves studying the goals of the organization or body you are heading and having a vision of developing the organization and future leaders for the same. All that cannot happen overnight and when we are vying for leadership positions or choosing leaders, this is one quality we should be looking for; we need someone who has gone through the process of being a leader.

We could apply the same reasoning of going through the process to the fields of parenting, ministry (I have a couple of men of the collar who read this), development and many other fields of life. Finances? Perhaps I should add a bit more on this one. You may know the popular actor and martial artist, Jackie Chan. According to reports I read (not sure how true, but let us assume it is), Jackie Chan is not leaving any inheritance for his child. Asked as to why, he was quoted saying that if his son is an able man, he will make his own money – adding that if he is not able then there is no reason as to why he should waste the money Jackie worked hard for. There is a phenomenon we observe more often than not when rich people die leaving worth for their children. Sometimes all the money and assets get blown away faster than they were built and the children end up being broke. That, in my view happens when the people end up with huge amounts of money without going through the process of making money. No more explanations.

I could continue writing, but I guess I have communicated and you have gotten the point having endured the article to this end. If you have gone through the right ones of the past 198 articles, you might have noticed that I am more of an outcome oriented than a process-oriented person. I like to focus on the end as opposed to the means. That being said, the process of becoming is also important ad that is why students need to study for the knowledge and not for exams. Cheating? Non-starter.

One might wonder as to how different this article is from the call to action I wrote earlier. While acting is the bridge between a dream and actualization, there is a need for the understanding of the processes involved. That guides the action and keeps it focused. Eeetu.

I am taking suggestions on what we can do for the Richie Online 200^th article celebration next week. Lakeside party? Barbecue in Naperi? T-shirts? A fun truck around the major cities, maybe?