“You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.” These are the words of Steve Jobs that resonate deeply, more and more as I move through life!
Confusion: Finding Direction After Graduation
I graduated from college, and I felt completely lost. I had spent 4 years in college pursuing a degree I wasn’t sure about. Looking back now, I would tell my younger self to make that big move and ditch the course! What was I going to do with this degree after school? I decided to take the bold step of returning to school after my undergraduate studies to pursue something different. In the meantime, I came across a WhatsApp story on Wangechi’s story. “Are you struggling to bridge the gap between in-class learning and Career needed skills? Join us at The Bridge” My salvation was here, and it felt like an oasis in the desert. It was a real opportunity to begin figuring out what my career would look like. The Bridge was just the beginning.
Opportunities for gratitude: Joining the Impact Africa Network Fellowship Programme
Fast forward to now, from the Bridge, I was absorbed into the Impact Africa Network fellowship program and started in the Learning & Development team, which I didn’t quite understand at first. Owning the Learning & Development of our team has led me to learn all aspects that make a successful business. I recently identified a numbers issue on an investor report (financial model) that turned out to be a big save, and in that moment, I could feel the growth sprouting out of me, like branches growing out of me!
I have learned about sales, marketing, data analytics, venture capital & angel investing, financial modelling, fundraising, storytelling, and most importantly, the treasure that is a growth mindset. I have read insightful books and mental models that have taught me critical lessons in decision-making, critical thinking, and dissecting complex problems to find solutions. I have been honoured to host some of the greatest minds in their fields in this world, @AlanEagle and @RandFishkin, in such insightful sessions. I have met some amazing people in person, like @Adrien Amen, who has been such a mentor to me, and I am abundantly grateful. I hope I can continue to be worthy of the opportunities I get!
Embracing a Growth Mindset
Your mind can play tricks on you if you do not watch it. A growth mindset demands that you appreciate the truth that nothing in this world is out of your reach because you can learn it. I have learned I am water; I can morph and mould myself into millions of versions of myself and be good at all those things. Like Naval Ravikant's famous JRE quote, “Specialisation is for insects.” You are a multi-talented, multifaceted human being, and with this mindset, you’re unstoppable. This realisation starts in your mind, and you have to know it for yourself.
Journaling for Confidence and Building Self-Awareness 
“Confidence is built the way Kisiis build their house: from the inside.”
Borrowed from Jackson Bikozulu
That stressful and scary moment that you’re feeling every time you are doing something out of your comfort zone, is the moment your confidence is built. You have to master the courage, especially to say yes in your 20s, ask questions, and figure out how to do the task at hand. I’m learning how to journal and, even more importantly, how to read back my journals from an outsider’s perspective. I see the patterns, the opportunities, the unities, and the blessings I have received in my life so glaringly. Journaling will teach you to be there for yourself—to be your cheerleader, critic, and solace. Writing about doing things that you were struggling with previously will build your confidence.
Networking in Your 20s: Cultivating Meaningful Connections for Success
Who you work with matters: I argue that in your 20s, it is both the quantity and quality of friends and mentors you have around you that matter. You need an incredible network of people constantly challenging you from every direction. I have been privileged to work with some of the smartest people in Kenya, the kind that will force you to level up, to the point that there has been no room for mediocrity in my life.
I am constantly oscillating between being stressed about how I need to level up and the immense feeling of gratitude for these young people if I'm being honest! Growth is uncomfortable, but now I want to constantly run towards the "monsters" that scare me, to bask on that edge.
Connecting the dots:
Through this journey, the dots have started to connect for me. Working on learnings for all these departments, I had the opportunity to attend sales training, a massive shout out to @Thomas Kaberi, and attend financial modelling mentorship sessions with the one and only @Frank Mweu, who continues to be more than a blessing to my journey. I can’t forget a very special soul in this journal. I met one of the most amazing mentors in learning and development to this day, @Kevin Wakuze. If I get stuck, he is only a mentorship call away! My journey has begun making sense, and I trust the pieces will fall into place. I’ve learned to follow my curiosity—that nudge that picks one thing over another and that spark that you feel for one thing that you don’t feel for everything else.
Join the Money Tribe: Empowering Young Professionals for Financial Success
Finally, my greatest lesson: happiness lies in the continuous realisation of a worthy ideal. Finding something worthy and becoming good at it—doing it as if I were doing it for the Lord! In this era of my story, my worthy ideal is becoming financially free and spreading this money mindset to other young people like myself! I am working on a project known as Tribe, which I think is just perfect. I am proud to be a part of the money tribe and the next generation of financially free individuals. If you’re interested in learning how your money will work for you, join the tribe! Drop a DM, and I'll reach out to you!
Ps: Gratitude is the bedrock of all good things, I am excited to see other gratitude stories motivated by mine!!
