 |
My sister is one example of an employer who does not condone mediocrity in relation to anyone who works for her. She ensures her house manager is at least a form four leaver, and not just a form four leaver, she should be able to converse articulately in the Queen's lingo. She probably has been hit by the Nairobian bug whereby she would like her tot to speak adenoidally.
Okay, I have been privileged to attend a number of Birthday parties with her in posh places. The bashes are usually for tots whose mums' she is a pal. Since she has not mustered the art of Nairobi driving, she lets me do the donkey work. But I also love driving and on arrival in the parties, I get to also take snaps.
To cut the long story short, Nairobi tots in leafy suburbs are crisp and emphatic in their expression.They have been taught to freely and eloquently speak their minds without fear but also using a language that is apt and diplomatic. They rarely do obscenities and say sorry, thank you and ask for permission every now and then. Me thinks this demarcates them from those who don't take issue in bringing up their children to be responsible and well-mannered.
So away from children, interviews in Kenya are very had to come by. Forget about the jobs. In fact, most people go years before attending interviews because employers are maybe looking for something that most people don't have. Other than the papers, there is something that employers desire. The oomph factor.
Today, I read that those companies that
invest in students straight out of campus or create their own campuses and
operate in areas where there is a pool of like minded companies, their ability
to thrive is very high. At times they make super-normal profits as they discover cutting edge talent in its prime. Forget about those that think guys should be profitable in their late twenties to early forties. In countries or companies that know the essence of delivery, investing in human resource at a time when its fresh is not only beneficial but also long lasting.
But in Kenya, we have what we call an excess supply of labour that employers term to be half-baked. While employers in the USA are baking the students to be able to shape and change the products they offer, in Kenya sorry to say this, we let the cream rot or they end up in jobs that emaciate and disillusion their spirits. Some wonder why they struggled all that long only to be reduced into a contrivance of aiding another in perpetuating his dreams while at the same time being paid peanuts because you have nowhere else to go.
On my part, if going by the number of applications I have made and the lack of replies I have never got are anything to go by, then outside KEPSA-KYEP, I could have possibly not secured any interview.
A brief interlude. KEPSA-KYEP was a project that the ministry of devolution inherited or came up with in order to help the youth in securing internship that would contribute in helping them get job experience to be employable. Chances are, some get retained and become proletariat while others became blue collar or those who were witty establish their own companies where they can bid and secure tenders and the rest is history. While not everyone can be successful, there is always a time when lady luck must smile on you.
On my side, I feel that I am currently doing that which is giving me more than just experience. I get to learn a lot as a teacher. Like I learn that there are guys who are slow learners and need to be taken slowly. Okay, to be sincere, I had this notion that guys are the same. But come to think of it, some people really need to be given some time before they can grasp scholarly content no matter how mundane you may think the topic is.
But in Kenya, we have what we call an excess supply of labour that employers term to be half-baked. While employers in the USA are baking the students to be able to shape and change the products they offer, in Kenya sorry to say this, we let the cream rot or they end up in jobs that emaciate and disillusion their spirits. Some wonder why they struggled all that long only to be reduced into a contrivance of aiding another in perpetuating his dreams while at the same time being paid peanuts because you have nowhere else to go.
On my part, if going by the number of applications I have made and the lack of replies I have never got are anything to go by, then outside KEPSA-KYEP, I could have possibly not secured any interview.
A brief interlude. KEPSA-KYEP was a project that the ministry of devolution inherited or came up with in order to help the youth in securing internship that would contribute in helping them get job experience to be employable. Chances are, some get retained and become proletariat while others became blue collar or those who were witty establish their own companies where they can bid and secure tenders and the rest is history. While not everyone can be successful, there is always a time when lady luck must smile on you.
On my side, I feel that I am currently doing that which is giving me more than just experience. I get to learn a lot as a teacher. Like I learn that there are guys who are slow learners and need to be taken slowly. Okay, to be sincere, I had this notion that guys are the same. But come to think of it, some people really need to be given some time before they can grasp scholarly content no matter how mundane you may think the topic is.
Away
from teaching and books, I have realized that most job seekers including those
in employment usually fail to attach proper documents like certificates and
testimonials when applying for jobs. Like yours truly. Again, even if we do, we
fail to tailor make the letter and CV to suit the job we apply for in relation to the content and even the referees.
That
time when I will stop being lazy and write a compelling cover letter that is
clear, concise and straight to the point accompanied by a resume detailing all the
relevant information needed, then I will have hit two birds with one stone. Yet
I am not doing that, I am hoping that lady luck will smile on me just like she
did when I got shortlisted by KEPSA to be among the few who were to be
incubated for the job market.
However, today I learnt one very important information that improved my ken. That in relation to banking, when a customer deposits money in the bank, he is a debtor. While the lexicon explain that a debtor is someone who owes another party money, in the finance world parlance, when someone owes you, the party is a creditor or when you are to pay the party, you are the creditor. English ilikuja na meli.
However, today I learnt one very important information that improved my ken. That in relation to banking, when a customer deposits money in the bank, he is a debtor. While the lexicon explain that a debtor is someone who owes another party money, in the finance world parlance, when someone owes you, the party is a creditor or when you are to pay the party, you are the creditor. English ilikuja na meli.
SITUONANE.
[Photo
Source: Foter.com]
