A couple of days ago, I had the pleasure of being in attendance to a dinner hosted by Strathmore university where Dr.James McFie was one of the speakers. This was the evening of recognizing the people who had sat for the CISA/CISM exams in 2014 and passed having attended the review classes at Strathmore. Therefore we all reflected on the many hours we spent preparing for the exams, the anxiety on the very day and even more anxiety waiting for the results.
After the reflection on the past, it was time listen to the speakers Dr. McFie talked about 3 countries and what we could learn about them. Haiti, Germany and Greece while drawing a stark contrast between Germany and Greece.
Lets start with Haiti, at some point in history, it was one of the wealthiest country in the world. However through mismanagement and embezzlement of resources, not considering the earthquake, it is one of the poorest country in the world. The moral of this story was exactly what is happening in Kenya right now. So much good maybe happening but then the general outlook is that a few stealing from our public coffers. Anyway before I start ranting, Dr. Mcfie, reiterated on the need to think forward, to create a Kenya where our kids will thrive.
On the juxtaposition between Greece and Germany, he gave the major difference between the two in terms of their attitude to work. The greek apparently don’t like working. It is no wonder right now they are on the brink of Euro zone exit. The Germans on the other hand are really the epitome of an industrious people. It reminds me of how the informal movie industry is quite thriving in Nairobi where people’s weekends are about watching the latest series and stuff.
His talk was only 20 minutes long but left quite an impression on me; probably for a lifetime. The biggest takeaway being, it is important to think of the big picture and ensure you work hard while creating a proper work life balance.