THE MILLENNIALS & THE 2017 GENERAL ELECTIONS IN KENYA

One would be hard pressed to predict the outcome of the 2017 General Elections in Kenya given the twists and turns of political innuendo at the beginning of the year. While the 2002 elections were about the re-introduction of the multiparty democratic process, the 2007 elections were marred by ethnic violence. The 2012/13 elections were about devolution and constructional transition, the dominant agenda in the 2017 elections will be about “corruption” and character - without factoring in the voice of the millennial generation. We need to look around the globe to appreciate the accruing evidence that the outcomes of the 2017 General Elections will be far from the traditional form.

The millennials are a global citizenry of young people tied together by a common upbringing facilitated by tap water, color television, child rights, cell phones and all the Apps on the internet super highway. They are the “instant” – you want it you got it generation. The millenials were born and grew up into a near perfect world in terms of food, shelter, education, water and human comforts that were a high society privileges less than a decade before the year 2000. Kofi Annan’s MDGs have a lot to do with forming this generation. This generation did not want for anything neither do they want anything. Anything will do. However, the millennials are no longer children they are adults, have joined the workforce and have families that now dictate the sentiments of the largest bloc in national populations. The millennials command attention in alarming ways. 

In 2008 the pre-millennial voted in Obama and later tipped the scales on the adoption of the new constitution in Kenya. They were also credited for what was labeled the Arab Spring. Eight years later In 2016 the millennials in full control of the voting bloc led the exit or Brexit of the British from the EU. It was a trending topic, not to mention that it was so sassy “brexit”. The Millennials went on to other remarkable upsets including voting in Trump as the president of the worlds most powerful nation. On the face of it there does not seem to be much going on here. However, once you look past the face of these events and the irrational decisions that fly in the face of conventional wisdom, you come face to face with the millennial culture. The millennial culture is characterized by instant joy and short term gratification and “I will do it just because I can”. The millennial culture feeds of what’s trending, the insta-gram, texting and plugged-in. To be friended or to be unfriended is an instant traumatic decision that is more important than long term happiness. The millennium culture does not need to be rational, moral or even have reason to act, it just depends on what is trending. It is not conservative nor loyal to any value or virtue system or even itself. The millennium culture baffles conventional wisdom, defies logic and confounds pollsters’ right off the bat.

Many political candidates will be spending millions of shillings buying voter loyalty, drawing up posters, dishing out election promises, castigating their enemies and extolling their own virtues. Nonetheless, one viral tweet will destroy hopes and dreams of many candidates on the eve of the elections and bring into office a surprising mix of leaders who will ask themselves “how did we get here?” The successful candidates will be more surprised that their voters who will promptly unfriend them within 24 hours and leave the nation saddled with a new leadership challenge. The losers will miserably claim ethnic loyalty, rigging and produce pre-election polls data to support their claims. The electoral administration will be under siege to explain the faults of whatever voting technology will be in use, but there will be nothing technically wrong with the system. However, this is not the only surprise that the millennials will present the nation. In a few short years they will form the backbone of the nations workforce and take over leadership of the economy. With the millennials in charge it can only be surprising!

Allan Bukusi is the author of the following eBooks

Thinking Leadership in Africa

How to Prosper in employment

Transforming Africa

The Master Trainer

THE MILLENNIALS ON LEADERSHIP!

Millennials are a bright, young and wide eyed, eager for instant success generation that grew up in times around the turn of the millennium (the year 2000). However, the majority are laid back, work phobic individuals content to follow anything that is trending. While millennial adore celebrities, the millennial culture can hardly be described as “go getting” even though they are awed by innovations and new releases of old products. The millennials grew up in a world of high provision and have managed to globalize and make normal a culture of what used to be for “spoilt rich kids”. But why must we even consider millennial attitudes on leadership. The truth is the millennial generation will soon be occupying both local and global leadership positions and therefore we must be prepared for a change of guard in leadership styles, approaches and principles in this generation. The challenge with millennials is not that they can’t be led, it is that that they do not know what they want. The millennial culture considers achievement or success without application of effort as legitimate and something to be emulated.

While the age old virtues of leadership like character, discipline, hard work, ethics, sacrifice determination, responsibility, teamwork and integrity and other like values have been pre-requisites for the identification, selection and appointment of leaders and leadership assignment, the millennial culture of individualism, instant-self-gratification and moral indifference does not make for the effective development of traditional leaders. Indeed anyone that practices traditional virtues may be shunned if not looked down upon by a fun loving crowd. This would mean that either a new type of depraved leadership would emerge to satisfy the needs of filial millennial followers.  Or that the role of leadership will be reassigned to the lowly less fortunate in society who cannot afford to participate in the millennial culture. Nonetheless, the apathy of the millennial culture towards leadership has so challenged the values and principles of hard work, ethics, social order and governance that perhaps for the first time in the history of the world the offices of leadership will pass from the rich to the poor, from the knowledgeable to the ignorant and from the moral to the depraved in one generation! Simply because millennials would not care less who does leadership for them so long as they are able to continue having fun. This generation will redefine leadership in ways we can only imagine.

One could say that Millennials present a leadership challenge or that they are providing leadership, but then perhaps it is time we reviewed what we need in our leaders quite apart from what we want from them. Popular sentiments are hardly the way to define the character of leadership because popular sentiments change all the time. Is there a leadership core that is immutable or leadership simply a tool of him or her who has it? These are questions the millennial generation poses to leadership everywhere.  

Allan Bukusi

The Millennials are here to stay!

THE MILLENNIALS ARE HERE TO STAY!

The “Millennials” are a population bubble that and grew up around the turn of the year 2000. This special group of global citizens share a remarkably similar cross-cutting, inter-ethnic, inter-racial community culture despite their dispersed location in every nation around the globe. Apart from the fact that they are young, non energetic and laid back denizens who do fun for a living, they can easily be described by the “insta” of instagram that delivers immediate, ecstatic freedom and unsustainable joy. Millennials characteristically lack drive for anything that resembles labor especially if that labor does not facilitate immediate fame or viral recognition.

Before you cast off, dismiss or shun this special group of citizens who make up a complete epoch in the destiny of humanity, it would be very important to examine the environment into which they were born. Just like it is virtually impossible for you to imagine what the world was like before you were born, millennials’s cannot imagine a world without tap water, color television, internet, cell phones, facebook and earphones! millennials grew up in the most empowered of times when the world was at its most educated, children’s rights most feted and 911 a global standard. Instead of teaching this generation to work we sent them to school, where we withdrew the power of teachers to discipline, for sixteen years and told them they could do anything they wanted. The only work they do is for charity. Because their parents grew up in lack they made sure the children would never be in want. The only word we taught them was Yes you can! This generation does not understand the word No. Morals are not a priority.  Millennials present a special challenge in the work place. They watch their dreams on flat screens. That makes it pretty hard for them to be motivated or remain inspired by anything. Their aspirations are sustained by what is current, cutting edge and trending.

Because the Millennials grew up without want they really don’t want anything. Neither do they have a natural desire to pursue, achieve or complete anything. Millennials aspire for good jobs but are just as ready to resign by sending a text message the morning after! Such are their relationships too; fickle, faint and based on imaging. Behaving like you are rich is considered the same as being rich. Trust is something you do when you want something back, while courtesy is reserved for friends who can be unfriended with a swipe of a finger. The social additions of alcohol, smoking and drugs have been replaced with texting, plugging-in and tuning out your neighbor.

Is there something wrong with millennials? Not really. This generation must find their lot in this segment of history, find a way to make a success of it and keep humanity alive for another generation. They simply unprecedentedly present the conflict of the ages where the values of the previous generation are denigrated, trashed as old fashioned - as a mark of progress. It happened and has been happening long before the days of the hippies. The millennials have an unmistakable culture. They are young, loyal to no one, not even themselves, they cannot deal face to face but crave instant gratification as the measure of success. Like every generation before it, the millennials are here to stay.

Allan Bukusi

To be king is all that matters

A King must have something for the people to do in order to rule them.  The pharaohs of ancient Egypt ruled their people by occupying them with building Pyramids to what end? To be buried in. The Kings of Europe occupied their people building palaces and castles for them to live in. These rulers somehow convinced the people that these were not just noble causes but causes worth working, living and dying for. The leaders of political states occupy the people with dreams of freedom, development and economic growth. Somehow we believe these dreams are worth working, living and dying for. It seems that to successfully engage people in a cause they are willing to work, live and die for is to succeed in politics. The people are the instrument; the cause is a decoy and the king the beneficiary. Try as I might I don’t see how this situation can be reversed.  Unless the cause benefits the people, perhaps to be king is all that matters.

Allan Bukusi

ONE EMPLOYEE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE

The power of one mind set to do all they can to do the best they can in the circumstances they are in is a remarkable demonstration of will power against wont power! Some people call it an attitude of gratitude, others call it appreciation of opportunity, and others call it making a date with destiny. These descriptions do not fully add up to the hearts quest to be the best they can be in every situation. Yet in every case of success you will find this streak of unique sober application to achieve what is achievable and walk away with the prize that others initially despise. The truth is that time and chance happen to us all. However only the wise among us see opportunity for what it is. So why am I talking about employees? It is because every day each of us gets a chance to change the world their circumstances and themselves. How many of us understand the power of that opportunity?

Allan Bukusi

Happy New Year - 2017!

Happy New Year - 2017

Warm greetings from this part of the world - January 1 2017. What comes to mind as I think about this year is “New beginnings”. It may sound obvious that a new year should mark a new beginning, but many people will continues as they have done for the past year save the change of date. It is only those who make a deliberate choice to use the opportunities that this year presents that will enjoy a new beginning.

As an individual, I must examine my circumstances and identify where a new beginning is necessary in order to conserve and focus my energies and attention on those things that I want to make a difference in. There are those that I work and live with and can significantly influence. but much as I may want to change their world, they must take the initiative - I can only encourage and help them achieve their new beginning. Then there are new beginnings that I am part of and have very little influence over such as the National General Election in Kenya.  If I do nothing the outcome will affect me. If I do something the outcome will still affect me though I can influence a small change. However, since I have purposed to take advantage of opportunity then the National Elections present me an opportunity to add my voice to the voice of the people for a better future. So you will read a number of political articles in this blog while the season (read opportunity) lasts.

I have already wished you a happy new year. Nonetheless, the last paragraph sound like a challenge. I guess that is what a new year does. It gives you a chance to change, begin again, but an option to continue to do the things you normally do (and this may not be a bad thing). The season of good will, forgiveness and acceptance and resolution remains in the air for but a short season. You need to make your choices today quickly because in less than a week or two the season will and form many it will be business as usual – thus the opportunity for a new beginning will be under seal for another 364 days.

Allan Bukusi

  

Running a business is mountain sense

Running a business is like climbing a mountain. There are rocks, boulders, brick sand, bush and thorn scrub. Sometimes you are on your feet at other times you are on your hands and knees. That is not sometimes, it is all the way up to the top. You really must want to do this. There are no short cuts.

Allan Bukusi,