Take A Chance On Somebody!

A prayer I once made to the guy upstairs when I wanted to join the media world went something like this:

“Lord, I just want someone to take a chance on me. Just ONE chance! And I will work my hardest and never look back…”

That chance did come along and here we are today. This story today isn’t about me. It’s about a young lady called Aisha Wanjiku. I can’t quite pin point where we first met but what I do know is I had seen her on Tv on small segments, we have been meeting at media events and launches and all that. Then we found each other in an Elite MCs WhatsApp group, then she sent me an email making an inquiry about something. Then we recently met at Ongea summit and we chatted. That was probably the longest we chatted. It was cool. I took a liking to her. She reminded me of me when I was getting in the big leagues, hungry and ambitious. Eish that girl challenged me.

Weeks later, I received a call asking me to be a host of a show that was to air on Maisha Magic East. I met up with the creator of the show, listened to what they said and went home to think about it. For many people out here, this is a NO BRAINER. Just say yes! to this opportunity, and be on TV! I am trying to branch into the African market being “Africa’s Finest” and all so this is a way in right? Well…

Couple of things:

1. Timing: I have learnt to say ‘no’ and ‘not yet’ to opportunities because the timing is off. I have just joined a new radio station and want to crack it before I start jumping to other pools. If I do it at once, the schedule has to make sense to me.
2. The Elevator : Please understand, when I started out in this industry,  I did everything and indeed I believe as you start out, DO EVERYTHING. You need to get your name out there. Do the most in terms of gigs and opportunities. That helps you know and grow. As you become established however, choose. Why? So you specialise and become more defined. You must also choose so that you can send the elevator back down. You AWE it to others so they can have a similar chance. Can’t always be about you, you, you. It’s much bigger than that.

So I called up the creator of the show and passed on this opportunity. I knew he wanted a lady with talent, looked good, spoke Kiswahili well. I remembered Aisha. I told him I had FULL CONFIDENCE in her and he would be lucky to have her. Ladies, when was the last time you took a chance on another lady like that? In this media world of ours, I know we are scared of saying words like FULL CONFIDENCE. But fear should never deter us from doing the right thing! What you do is float that name, back it up with facts and then call up the other lady and tell her “Girl, my word is on the line here. I believe in you so I know you will ace this.” Let them see the gravity of the situation and that you have taken a chance on them. So that they take themselves seriously as well. Which is exactly what I did.

 You may ask, why talk about this? I mean don’t you subscribe to the school of thought: Tenda wema nenda zako? Aren’t you tuning your own horn? Lol. I am proud of myself yes, that I have matured to this level but the reason I write this is so that you see women can indeed help each other. We are not (always) our own downfall. We have to speak more about these stories so we can change the narrative. Guys will always mention in a board room for example how they assisted someone else get that deal. We ladies hide in the shade of ‘humility’ and ‘the Christian thing to do’. I say let them know so other ladies have faith in others and know they can approach them for help or a good word.

I am super excited for Aisha Wanjiku as she starts on her new journey on Gani Kali. Watch that girl. She’s got something good going and I will be here when she needs me.

To my fellow established media girls, and guys, we have a God given obligation to bring others to this level. They don’t have to be your friends, or roll in the same circle. They just need to have the talent. Let’s not HOG on all opportunities that come along. Pass some on. You just might be creating room on your plate for something bigger.

I am a strong believer in that.

Conquer Your World.

-Africa’s Finest-💋