Posturing.

For some years now I have been part of the organizing committee for the largest golf tournament in the country and one of the big events on the continent golf-wise. The things we do for love. I found myself in golf administration eleven years ago and have served in various capacities over time. It’s one of those public service roles that I didn’t apply for but has been a huge eye-opener. It’s been like a master’s degree in volunteerism. I joke often that hii kazi we are paid with parking and mandazi.

It’s been a crazy week but fulfilling all the same. But it’s always weird how some fires keep lighting up every year at the tail end of the event planning. We are told insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results. So what are we doing wrong?  It is either inevitable to have some balls drop through the cracks in such a huge event or we just never learn. Could it also be a sign that our time is up and we need new thinking to take the event to another level?  While I agree there are things out of our control, especially with so many moving parts, I still feel we do have more cooks in the kitchen than we need. And that could be why some of our food ends up burning just before it is served.

I’m convinced the world would be a much better place if we had more workers than talkers. Is it possible to bask in the glory of position and still deliver on one’s mandate? I find that rare. Such people stand out because they are few and far between. Others are hardly noticeable because doing work is often not attractive. What’s attractive is showing off, pulling rank, and taking credit. Sadly majority are in this category. Such tabias have led to a lot of important stuff being left undone.

I wish we could just strive in our job and let our work shout for us. I’ve sat in meetings with many people appearing serious and offering what looks like valuable inputs and direction. Some even commit to certain deliverables but by the next meeting, they have done nothing and will push the blame on someone else. Folks who are keen to just do their work are then bombarded with calls giving them instructions to carry out, some being in the docket of those making those calls. Kweli when you want something done give it to a busy person.

The higher you are the fewer decisions you should be making. I agree with that management view but I have one issue. Most of the ones making very few decisions if any are not seating high up. They are down here with the watus but they try to chill (and act) with the big boys.

Why do we fight for positions for work we are not committed to doing? I know I’m asking a question with an obvious answer but I do believe we can only get to a certain level of excellence when we get more hands on the job and fewer opinions. Maybe I have been one of the talkers at some point too and I’m not proud of that. I’m a work in progress and hopefully in the right direction.

To progress in life and as a nation we will have to shift from that mindset of appearing busy and get on with real tangible and good work. Sadly the results of work, good or bad cannot be hidden forever. They will be evident for all to see and that’s where I freak out. That a job I was tasked to do was poorly executed or not done at all yet I have to somehow give an account for it. Of course, I could try to throw someone else under the bus and pass on the blame. But that can only go so far.

The taste of the pudding is in the eating. We will pull off this event but I still believe it would have been executed better with fewer (and the right) people in charge. I hope that the sponsors, guests, and spectators will enjoy the pudding this time around. It might taste better in the future maybe after I have left too hehe. I can say that comfortably now because I’m ok with transitions. #OnlyBIGThingsgoingforward.

May the desire to do good work be the reason we offer ourselves to serve. For we will reap the benefits of good work for a long time to come. May we shine because our work is shouting for us.