THE GIFT OF CHANCE

Will there come a day when someone in the crowd will stand up and say they are because you took chance on them?

Uchumi Supermarkets, even though fading away, gave me an opportunity that I would say launched me into a career path I cherish. I love Uchumi. They took a chance on me when I was fresh from college in 2008, naive and my career path still very foggy. They took a chance on me. I joined them as a management trainee. I was among a team of 13 freshmen. One full year of intense training on anything retail - people management, operations, customer service, retail finance, procurement, warehousing.....I worked with some of the most brilliant managers like Mr. Muhindi, Mr. Mwakima, Marion and Margaret. I was naive but they taught me how to be bold. They taught me how to make decisions that are smart and sometimes not so smart. They taught me that it's not a crime to make mistakes. With this confidence in went all out and did my best. I put in all my energy. Most of the time I used to work 7 days a week. I would report at the branch at 6am and get home past 11pm. I was so passionate about my job. Uchumi was my everything. Within a few months my manager at Ngong Hyper would trust me with branch keys. It was exciting. Until one day I lost the keys. I think they dropped in a matatu early morning as I commuted to work from my house in Kawangware. I panicked. I've never ever been in panic like this gloomy day. I thought I would be arrested and get locked. I switched off my phone and went hiding. Around noon I decided it was enough. I felt stupid for being swallowed by fear. I showed up at the branch. In my mind I knew I would be sacked, at the very least. They had already requested spare keys from HQ. When the branch manager, Mr. Muhindi saw me, he went down with such an hilarious laughter. I didn't know why. He parted me and told me that he's worked with Uchumi for 20 years and he's lost the keys 5 times. I never got even a verbal reprimand. Amazing. This taught me a lot. That the people we interact with have flaws. In fact some of us are terribly flawed. But we grow and learn, and with opportunities, we have all the potential to be great.

People need a chance in life. They have weaknesses, we know. We all do. This should not be a disqualifier if they've got good attitude, are men and women of integrity, shows energy, will and enthusiasm, you can chance on them. Because someone, too, took a chance on you some day in the past.

Let's build our teams by giving them chances, mentoring them and training them. Somewhere in the future, you'll look at them and nod in approval for their accomplishments.