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Converge in Kenya
Apr, 2018
Converge Solutions CEO, together with our Kenya partners, visited a number of prospective clients throughout the country. It was a great week, where we met some key individuals that will certainly play a future role in the development of quality and accessible healthcare in Kenya.
What made the trip additionally memorable, was the seven hour road-trip to the Kitale project, during which we could get a deeper insight into the country and its people. Kenya is a country rich with potential, with highly skilled individuals and a desire for transformation. We believe that a strong partnership with local representatives is not only good business, but also speaks firmly to our vision for Africa. Pervasive access to quality and affordable healthcare across East Africa remains a challenge and Converge looks forward to contributing towards addressing this challenge.
For those who have traveled through the Kenyan countryside, it is remarkable how property is not only advertised for being on sale, but also for not being on sale. I think this is true for Africa as a whole and for those who have historically, acted in Africa without being OF Africa. It is time for Africa to act in a manner that and with partners that have a vested interest in its success. Africa is a continent ready for transformation, ready for business, but Africa is not for sale.
The Kenya trip served as inspiration to our CEO for one of his monthly newsletters, seen below.
COWS AND CHAIRS AND COURAGE
During a recent business trip to Kenya, I was confronted by an odd sight; a cow tied to a chair; not any chair, a plastic chair; those flimsy white ones that often seem to have one leg that is less dependable than the others. Those chairs that, probably more than any other chair in the history of the modern world, have caused their inhabitants no small amount of embarrassment, as they give way under you at the most inconvenient times.
What made this odd, was that said cow (weighing in at around 700 kilograms) was perfectly happy, or ignorant, to the fact that it was being held in check by said chair (weighing in at around 2 kilograms). During our moment of bedazzled wonder, the cow never attempted to go beyond the limited distance that the rope offered. It seemed completely unaware of the fact that its oppressor, was, in the larger scheme of things, mostly irrelevant and that, should it choose to do so, it was free to roam and graze at its heart’s content wherever the grass seemed most green.
I shifted my gaze from the cow to the undulating hills in the background, as my subconscious demanded control and forced me into an uncomfortable epiphany.
We too, are frequently, like that cow. We allow ourselves to be held back from our full potential, by boundaries or excuses that, if considered honestly for what they are, become irrelevant; and so, we realise that it is in fact, not the imagined boundaries, but simply fear that often holds us from greener pastures. (Of course there are also valid reasons in certain instances, and I generalise for the purposes of this letter.)
I’ve explored this phenomenon for years, talking to people much smarter than I, reading books, and marvelling at the unimaginable potential of people, and often, finding myself saddened by how that potential is never realised. Mostly, I’ve found that it was not so much the question of “what the future might hold” that was holding people back, but the question “do I have what it takes”?
The answer cannot be crisper than in the words of Henry Ford: “Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re right.”
Whatever it is, you are enough. The human capacity to survive and thrive despite any circumstances, is beyond imagination. In my limited experience, the one attribute that differentiate those who do from those who don’t, is the courage to believe – in themselves, in their vision and in their ability to achieve the desired outcome. Sure, there is much more to it than that, such as really hard work, but this is where it starts – the courage to take the first step. Many who have tried, might have failed, but 100% of those who didn’t try to begin with, share the same fate.
Courage and faith. Easily spoken, more difficult to put into practice, but the joy of looking back and seeing how far you’ve come once you’ve embarked on that journey, will leave you breathless.
