Top quotes from SheHive Nairobi
SheHive Nairobi brought together aspiring Motherland Moguls and established speakers and personalities from diverse sectors. Those who missed can only hope for next time. In the meanwhile, these choice quotes from speakers are sure to inspire and motivate. Wanjira Longaeur, Radio and Television host Wanjira is a well-known radio host with Capital FM Kenya and television host with EbonyLife TV’s Moments Kenya. On the last day of SheHive, she spoke on the business of the entertainment industry. – “Do your best you never know who is watching.” – “Mindset helps. I chose to see opportunities everywhere and in everything I do.” – “If people want to tear you down, kill them with kindness.” – “One of the worst things a director can do is to leave their audience bored.” – “Entertainment keeps moving but the camera doesn’t play.” – “Ignorance is a choice. We are in 2016 for Pete’s sake! We have the internet!” Hilda Moraa, Founder and former CEO of Weza Tele Ltd Weza Tele’s industry is tech and at SheHive Nairobi, its founder Hilda shared tips on how to get started in the tech business. – “Failure has been the key ingredient in my success.” – “If you are sitting and thinking that you are a woman in business. Then you have to be at your best to compete.” – “Don’t fear sharing your ideas, sharing could give you much needed feedback. However, protect the uniqueness of your idea, Protect your team, talent, data and execution from competition.” Dr. Helen Gichoci, Managing Director, Equity Group Foundation As an ecologist Helen dished out insights from her experience being president of the African Conservation centre and African Wildlife Foundation. – “You got to have (thick) skin in the game for anything to be of value to you.” – “Form follows function in a business. Find the problem, opportunity and the service you want to offer and the business will follow suit.” Bob Collymore, CEO Safaricom Bob heads East Africa’s fastest growing company. His talk focused specifically on gender equality and inclusion in the workplace. – “Find your purpose, and then you won’t have to work for the rest of your life.” – “What is my personal drive? Trying to make a difference and leaving a positive footprint.” Lindsay Caldwell, Founder One Acre Fund Among her achievements, Lindsay is also an operations management specialist. – “You have to co-opt other ideas for your business to work.” Winnie Mwangi, VC fund Winnie has established her career working with investment companies. At SheHive Nairobi she talked about what investors look for in a business when deciding whether or not they will invest in it, – “When pitching to investors, under promise and over deliver.” – “Gerald George Patton said, ‘If everyone is thinking alike, then someone is not thinking.’” Eunice Nyala, Executive Coach, Etiquette Xllent Company At SheHive Nairobi, Eunice used her coaching experience to teach the audience how to develop leadership styles and how women leaders behave. – “We admire people who have etiquette. If you don’t have it, work on it. Start working on your tone.” – “Women should dress the part, it’s one of the most important visuals we are judged upon.”
Verbal assault on Senator Oluremi Tinubu reminds us that Nigerian politics is not a safe space for women
“I will beat you on this floor, rape and impregnate you and nothing will happen”. It’s totally understandable if you need a break after reading that. We were shocked and shaken, and understand that others may be triggered. That these words were spoken by a Nigerian politician, in the chambers of the Senate, towards a fellow senator just makes things even more disturbing. This isn’t the first time Senator Dino Melaye has been embroiled in scandals, usually around him being horrible towards women. His first wife, Tokunbo Melaye reported that he had physically assaulted her and posted bloody photos online to back her words. Similarly his second marriage to Alero Melaye was marred by allegations of abuse and was short-lived. And it doesn’t end there, in a bizarre move earlier this year Melaye criticised Governor Adams Oshiomhole for marrying a Cape Verdean woman rather an a Nigerian one. The situation in the Senate It’s clear that Melaye is not the greatest fan of women. Knowing his penchant for unruly behaviour, we have to ask how he has maintained his influential position in politics. Given his background, perhaps it’s not surprising that he verbally assaulted and threatened Senator Oluremi Tinubu while she addressed the senate a few days ago. Here’s what senator Tinubu said; “I think [Melaye] needs to know that every senator here represents their constituencies. And that there is no need to threaten anyone. We are seeking and working towards reconciliation, yet you are busy issuing threats.” In the Senate, senators usually address their peers, this is standard and is usually accepted calmly. Yet Melaye grew so infuriated with senator Tinubu’s comments that he charged towards her and had to be held back by other senators. To us, it looks like he reacted this way because a woman called him out. Both senators belong to the same political party and work together in the same space yet it’s clear that Melaye has zero respect for his colleague. The lackluster media reaction While this story has been shared all over the media, a number of newspapers are calmly overlooking Melaye’s threat of rape thus reducing the sexualised nature of his threats. Not surprisingly, Melaye has denied his comments and has claimed that he was provoked. Then again, the news reports we’ve followed showed that the media are either showing Melaye’s excuses or senator Tinubu’s husband’s words of support. We would like to know senator Tinubu’s side of the story. We are frequently reminded that Nigerian politics is not a safe space for women. Even outside the halls of power, women politicians are often described as obnoxious or rude by the general public. Some people just aren’t comfortable with women in this field. Clearly, this needs to be remedied but Melaye’s outburst just shows that we still have a long way to go. Some may be quick to point out the uncouth nature of Nigerian politics when discussing this matter. But what stands out to us is this; no matter how accomplished a woman is, she will still have to deal with blatant sexual harassment. Also pertinent is how nothing concrete is being done to deal with it.
5 lessons learned from not protecting my business idea
I am part of an entrepreneurial Facebook group (we’re now over 7,000 members strong). Let’s divide the group into two; techies and non techies. One of the most asked question by the non techies is, “I have an idea for an app and I’m looking for a developer. How I can I protect my idea?” In order words, how do I prevent a developer from running off with my idea, claiming it as his own, working on the idea himself and making millions of dollar off it? The response is usually the same; make him/her sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). This question always reminds me of my own experience with my second developer which I will share with you. I first met him in the summer of 2014. I got to know he was a developer during our introduction but I was still poking around my idea so I said nothing. Over the next few weeks, our friendship grew. When I had figured out exactly what I wanted to do, I gave him a call and discussed my idea briefly. I also told him I wanted to build a small team; no more than four -including both of us. He said he could help with this. The next time we spoke, he informed me that one of the developers he had available was going to work for Google and would not be available. The other developer was working on a project. He advised me that the best way was to get started with just the two of us . In the meantime, he wanted a one page Word document about my idea. I wrote a one and half page explanation of my idea and emailed it to him -without a non disclosure agreement. For many other reasons, it all fell apart. We never got started; neither did I ever speak with his developer friends. Here is what I have learnt since then; 1. Execution is all that matters Ideas are like opinions. Everyone has one. I know that’s not how the saying goes but you catch my drift right? Do you realize how many million people are in the world? Do you know how many million people are thinking of the same idea you are thinking of? Well, I’ll put it this way then. A person can steal your idea, but cannot steal your vision. Like the non techies in the group, I was afraid of my idea being stolen that I became worried sick, almost lost appetite and drove myself crazy with paranoia for no reason. Do you know how much willpower it takes to execute an idea? Even if your idea is stolen, the execution will be different. No two executions are quite alike. 2. You are the visionary As the non techie, if your idea holds any depth, meaning, you’re not looking to make a quick buck. You truly want effect change in a particular industry and change the world, you are the visionary. As the visionary, it is likely that you’re more committed than anyone else will ever be. As it is right now, I am mentally, physically, wholeheartedly committed to OneSavvyDollar and creating value for my readers in ways I cannot even begin to describe to you. 3. Domain protection I have always been an advocate of getting a good business name and buying the domain name. It is a relatively inexpensive way to protect your business. Most companies run domain name promotions periodically. Even if the developer steals my idea tomorrow, surely, it will never be named OneSavvyDollar. He is going to have to pick a different name. 4. Ideas change upon implementation Until you actually begin to implement an idea, you never quite know how it will turn out. What I wrote as a one page document does not even begin to surmount to the changes and challenges my developers and I faced the moment we started working on this. But an idea does not necessarily stay in its original form from inception. The interesting part, the idea continues to change because I let my users guide me to what they want (to a reasonable extent.). You can only understand this when you begin to match action to words. 5. A rule is only as good as its enforceability It’s one thing to have a non disclosure. It’s another thing to be able to be able to pursue it should there be any violations. We watch movies and believe the rules apply all the time. But it doesn’t quite happen that way. In the case of the Face book lawsuit between the Winklevoss twins and Mark Zuckerberg, the Winklevoss twins had the resources. Here are five fast facts about them: They were born in South Hampton and lived in Greenwich (read as ritzy areas). They attended Harvard. They are Olympians and competed in Beijing 2008. Their father is a professor at Wharton, an author and entrepreneur. He owns a technology and consultancy companies. They hired a high power law firm. Can you understand now what I mean by resources? Truthfully, you most likely do not have the luxury of the time or the resources to pursue developer should the idea become a hit; particularly, if you are the sole business owner. Don’t forget it’s a game of probability; an idea could either be successful or not. If Facebook wasn’t successful, they never would have bothered.
Eunice Nyala, CEO Etiquette Xllent: All leaders make a lasting impression
Being a leader and a woman for that fact, requires a lot from the feminine fabric. It goes against the grain but it is true to say that women are judged before we even speak. 80% of decisions made about a person are based on other people’s perception alone. This was what I gleamed from Eunice Nyala’s talk on developing a leadership style at SheHive Nairobi. Eunice’s entrance into the SheHive Nairobi was propitiously noticed. True to her mantra, ‘All the leaders making a lasting impression’ Eunice is a head turner with radiant skin who gracefully sashayed in heels and an African outfit ensemble on a lazy Sunday evening in Nairobi. More often than not, as women we like to create mental barriers for ourselves. We sell ourselves short and let ourselves be held captive by our own narrow thinking. We may have perfected the art of holding ourselves ransom by trying to live by societal expectations. Most times the chains that prevent us from being free are more mental than physical. We need to recognize that people are different and capitalize on our weaknesses and strengths when developing our own unique leadership style. Eunice’s advice continues; Learning… There is something new to learn every freaking minute. No one is an encyclopedia of knowledge. Stereotypes accentuate on how women tend to be chatterboxes but we have to stop talking to learn something new. Take a minute to learn something about and from your cleaner, gardener, or valet parking attendant. It’s unprecedented that the most overlooked sources are wells of inspirations. Walk, poise Are you that lady boss, whose graceful entrance to a building commands attention and respect? Do people shush or scuffle to their desks when you walk in? Rather, do you walk in and Jane the office chatter box continues with her tête-à-tête. How you walk, conduct yourself and command attention dictates the respect you get from people around you. Pay attention to women in leadership The tides are changing and more women are taking up leadership roles. It’s time we evaluated and learned how those in leadership behave. Some of First Ladies of African countries, the Duchess of Cambridge, the Queens of the world are a few women of well-thought-of demeanor. Hats off to these ladies! You’ve got to research on them, emulate them, act out and from there acknowledge what makes you stand out. Leadership is everywhere We can choose to delve into the debate on whether leaders are born or made. However that’s a topic for another day, let’s not digress. Life provides each and every woman a leadership position 24/7 /365 days a year. If you doubt it then let me preempt. A mom is a leader at home. A teacher is a leader at school; you are the leader of your siblings and at the chama (Swahili for a women’s group) you could be the voice of reason. Seize these and many other opportunities and practice leadership skills and you will easy lead people. You can have an executive presence from the onset; you don’t have to wait for an elective position to be a leader. Utilize the power of networking Networking is formal opportunity bequeathed to us. This is where we get to share our competencies with people who may give us a hand. It’s a chance to expend the power of entrepreneurial and professional circle. Lonesome girls don’t perform well in professional and corporate workplace. More importantly it’s where you could meet your next partner, client, mentor, friend, even hubby. However, things could get embarrassing when swimming in the murky waters of networking. There are four things to do in this event Be strategic about your networking event choice. Do your research and get know something about the attendees beforehand. Get to know people, what they do and better yet have their contacts. Always acknowledge the people you meet in the room. Plan your questions in advance and ask smart questions. Leave a lasting impression. If you want to be remembered, speak out for yourself and ask questions. Dress like a leader Work on your dress code. It’s one of the visuals that will be used to judge you. It’s been over emphasized and may sound cliché but be purposeful in your dressing and be conscious of what you wear. You can choose to identify an executive leader and try to borrow from their style. Lastly be authentic in your dress code and be mature in how you speak to your colleagues in order to earn their respect. There is need for etiquette in everything we do in all aspects of our lives. It’s not one size fits all. All individuals have varied needs. A parting shot from Eunice, “We admire people who have it. If you don’t have it, work on it. More importantly, work on your tone.”
Bob Collymore, CEO Safaricom: Women are high achievers
Bob Collymore is a man many people admire. It’s in the simplicity and efficiency with which he runs the fastest growing telecommunications firm in East Africa that draws people’s attention. But just what is his secret in running such an organisation in East Africa? At the recently concluded SheHive Nairobi, Bob dished out some of his secrets. – I pay attention to the micro-inequities to make a significant impact in my organisation by articulating and ensuring that diversity and inclusion is acclimatized for by the organisation. Sadly, after years in the corporate industry I have noticed that women don’t step up for gender roles. The African culture plays a gender bias in the African work place. It’s not that women are few; there is significant gender balance at the workplace. It’s just sad that women didn’t vote for other women. Is it because we don’t trust other women with leadership? I don’t know. – Currently in Africa there are few women in the tech space and in leadership. Imagine you were challenged to list the top 100 women in leadership you know of within five minutes. You would probably start by churning out names fast but by the 25th name, I bet you start scratching your heads. It’s not so obvious. – My disappointment with women in leadership is that the more they ascend the ladder; they tend to adapt masculine behaviour. I already have men around me. I certainly don’t need women acting out as men. I would appreciate women being women. They should maintain their femininity when they hold these positions. – The company’s advertising strategies are geared towards diversity and inclusion. Nowadays we have Kenyans of Indian, Asian, European and American decent in our ads. Unfortunately we have live in a misogynistic society and it’s a shame that in 2016 we still thrive on the same. Women should stop playing the victim game. The society is harsh towards women but the best women can do is to always win. – Safaricom thrives in East Africa by empowering women in all frontiers. We have a nursing home that caters for children of our staff between ages of one and fourteen. Women at Safaricom get more leave days and they get less hours of work after the leave is over. – I am happy that when one of our regions was facing stiffer competition for a fierce competitor, I appointed a lady to head the region. So far she managed to turn things around and that’s the best performing region in the entire organization. I am proud of what she has been able to achieve and if she could do it better than the men then it’s a validation to you women that you are high achievers. My advice to everyone is that you find your purpose and you won’t have to work forth rest of your life. Also acknowledge that where you come from doesn’t define where you will end up in. What drives you?
Janet Kibuthu’s 5 tips on setting up a solid communication firm
I met Janet Kibuthu, a solid entrepreneur in the communications space, at the recently concluded She Hive Nairobi. She has a communications and advertising background and a Master’s degree in finance. Interesting, isn’t it? I thought so too. “A lot of people do not understand why I had to study finance, and the reason I give them is that when setting up a communications firm, financial knowledge is crucial. Without financial literacy you will be setting yourself up for a major disaster”, she posits. She is a passionate business woman whose vision is to empower women and girls with the resources to thrive in business and life. Janet publishes one online magazine for women in business, “Lady Entrepreneur” and another for spiritual nourishment, “Truth and Spirit”. Her book, “Weight Loss for Moms”, helps women who have just had babies to not only maintain a healthy lifestyle but to also enhance their self-esteem and regain their foothold as new mothers. Further to that, she is an entrepreneur running a communications outfit named Eclecti Communications. Eclecti communications, is a leader in design, communications, and marketing especially for the real estate and hospitality industries. “We offer state of the art branding and communications solutions especially for commercial properties and hotels .We connect with consumers and developers especially through opportunities the digital space offers”, she adds. The reason Eclecti communications is advancing at this niche market is that, in real estate there’s an ever-increasing demand for homes, hotel investment products and office spaces. She adds that a huge chunk of the company’s clients in the diaspora; UK, Canada and the United States. This is an area of communications and branding that Janet feels young people could capitalize on. So how does one build such an empire? – No fear: Janet asserts that fear is an element that never goes away and could be an impediment that will keep most people away from their destinies. Just do it. – Surround yourself with like-minded people: Look for mentors who will see something special in you and will assist you to add value to your life. – Financial management: Is a crucial life skill when it comes to entrepreneurship. How are you going to run a business if you can’t budget, read financial statement, or if you can’t figure out your liabilities vis a vis your assets. With these sound tips Janet further advises that there are a lot of opportunities out there for young women, the secret is to go all out and take complete advantage of them. – Take the risk: starting a business doesn’t have to be capital intensive but one should at least have some resources to expose the company to potential clients. Visibility is key when setting up a new company and it costs money. – Have faith: The one person who will make or break the company is the owner. It’s simple, if you do not believe in the company, no one will.
Shamim Ehsani, Marketing Director Tribe Hotel: The inefficiencies of other hotels guided us in developing our brand
Shamim Ehsani is the co- founder and marketing director of the Tribe hotel, a five star hotel in Kenya. It’s a family business he started with his brother. One of the speakers at the recently concluded SheHive Nairobi, Shamim shared his lessons learned from working in the hospitality industry. A unique experience “Coming back to Kenya from Boston I had no knowledge of hospitality. My brother and I started this hotel from a consumer point of view. After traveling across the world, there are things we despised in many hotels. we hated having to pay for Wi-Fi, uncomfortable beds, bad showers, thin walls , billing disputes, empty minibars , non-functional plugs, scratchy sheets , stupid hotel policies, breakfast ending at 9.00am, overstuffed and under stuffed pillows and lack of generosity. These inefficiencies became our guide to developing a brand. We made an entry point into business by identifying the hospitality market gap in Africa built a luxury hotel.” Have a proper vision From the onset, Shamim and his brother wanted a hotel that looked to have been inhabited by a new-age tribe for a short while before embarking on a nomadic journey. The hotel didn’t have to look brand new rather they wanted a warm habitable place. In their architectural design antiques, crafts and interior decor all come together to complement each other and tell the story of this futuristic tribe. Have a unique proposition The tribe’s proposition is its team and the ambience of the hotel. It has a diverse team with unique personas. Apart from their qualifications, the vibrant team possess unique eccentricities that are amusing. Shamim knows his team by name and respective qualities. “Dan loves bird watching (weird); during the interview Anthony had a funky jacket and Lilian loves and adores fashion and magazines. Nick, Ken, Jackie, Carmeline have warm personalities and great smiles. My staffs appreciates good food and have great taste in dining, we often find ourselves visiting similar places.” Branding Shamim and his brother wanted to revolutionise the industry. The hotel was instrumental in reorganizing the industry from the conventional rack rates set by tour operators into best available rates. They put a huge focus on media and social media. They further contracted a reputable Hollywood PR company to take the hotel up to a celebrity status. Years into the industry the PR efforts paid off, they have bagged accolades since 2010 such as the Hot List awards, and World Travel Awards to name a few. Accept criticism Despite being told off by a big consultancy that brand name (Tribe) would be the windfall of their venture, Shamim’s team stuck with their guts, cocked their guns and went ahead with their name. Shamim felt that the consultant was a little bit conservative whereas he felt the Tribe name was punchy, kickass and powerful. “Initially they wanted to brand our hotel as Moto however Motorola began campaign with a similar name.” Leadership Shamim attests that Tribe hotel has been able to maintain leadership in the industry through authenticity. Competitors can mimic your idea but that doesn’t mean that you remain complacent. Through a robust leadership and comprehensive training, the hotel had the highest rate of staff retention. The entire team undergoes a courtesy and hospitality training for months before getting into operations. Advice to women entrepreneurs in hospitality As a woman in hospitality, you need to get staff to buy into your vision. We encourage our staff to be friendly to customers. Our staff are approachable and confident. We train staff to acknowledge that they are equal as any guest. We are flexible to let staff interact with clients after work.
SheHive Nairobi Exceeded My Expectations
She Leads Africa opened its doors to Nairobi on June 30 to hold the first edition of SheHive Nairobi at Nairobi Garage, Westlands. This marked the beginning of what was to be four days of great insights from badass entrepreneurs and professionals in Kenya. Bootcamp sessions The first two days saw the All Access ticket holders being taken through training sessions by SLA co-founder, Yasmin Belo-Osagie. These were intimate, personalized round-table sessions that gave lessons on entrepreneurship and looked into each participants’ area of business while giving tips on how to improve it. Yasmin gave us an exercise that involved coming up with questions we would ask potential customers. This was an eye-opener to most of us on the direction we should be taking. Day two had the same set up as day one; round-table, intimate, one on one, Q & As, a few exercises here and there. We also had a surprise guest speaker to start us off: Ory Okolloh, co-founder of Ushahidi. Ory took us through her journey in entrepreneurship and the challenges she faced while starting out. She gave us insights on how to balance being a mother, a wife and an entrepreneur. She was quick to add that not everyone you expect to help you will do so, and recommended surrounding yourself with people who support your dream to make your journey bearable. Getting into business Day three saw a shift in the set up. We had the weekend pass ticket holders come in, more speakers, a move to a bigger room and more activities on the program. We started with a team-building exercise that saw the winners getting hair products – I can’t deny that it felt good to be on the winning team. Maureen Murunga, Founder & NEO of Amadiva was the first speaker on the list. It was while she was speaking that something hit me about getting into business; you never know what to expect. You just don’t know. One day you will be rearing to get your business off the ground, armed to your teeth and ready to face any obstacles head on, only to be forced to relocate for one reason or another. Or only for you to realize you are pregnant and need to take it slow. Maureen and Ory brought out one point crystal clearly: nothing is predictable in business. For you to succeed, you’ve got to learn to roll with the punches. When the petite Hilda Moraa, founder of Weza Tele came to speak about her journey in the tech industry, she stressed the fact that surrounding yourself with like-minded people will help your journey in the business world, something she attributes her immense success to. Winnie Mwangi who is an Investment Manager-LGT, took us through retail business. She talked about the importance of location and the expectation of investors when they choose to invest in your company. She mentioned something that surprised me; just like a marriage, the chemistry between the investor and entrepreneur should be right otherwise the relationship will not work. Chemistry people! Who would have thought. When Dr. Hellen Gichohi (who is not so keen on being referred to as Dr.) took the stage she dished out punchline after punchline; accountability and transparency, funds follow function, knock doors and seek opportunities. Hellen who is the CEO of Equity Foundation, is witty and very engaging. She stressed the need to have a functional system in place that will ensure that your business runs smoothly through and through. Any loopholes in the system could be to your detriment. This was echoed by Andreata Muforo, an Investment Director at TLcom capital partners who talked about women as funders. The entertainment industry and importance of gender equality Four speakers done in day three and the last day of SheHive Nairobi came so much sooner than I expected. There was nothing easy about our Sunday morning as we started off on a high note. High because Wanjira Longauer is energetic, bubbly, witty and oh-so-humorous! Easy to see why she excels in the entertainment industry. Wanjira is a Radio host at Capital FM Kenya and a Television Host at Ebony TV’s ‘Moments Kenya’. The takeaway I got from her session several laughs later was the need for women entrepreneurs to always trust their gut because it never misleads you. I can vouch for that since I am a big believer and follower of my instincts. Lindsay Caldwell took us through her journey in the different business ventures she undertook before settling on Angaza as Director of East African Operations. Lindsay stressed that a true entrepreneur is a doer and not a dreamer. We now had three more speakers to go, two of whom were male – the only male speakers we had. Shamim Ehsani, Marketing Director of The Tribe, talked about the deliberate branding that they envisioned for the hotel from the beginning. How they ensured that it stood out from other hotel establishments, not only in the country, but in the world. Something that has given them bragging rights of being among the top 100 hotels in the world. Bob Collymore, CEO of Safaricom, followed hot on the heels of Mr. Ehsani. He addressed gender equity and its importance not only to the economy but also to the company. He noted that a company does well if it is aware of the importance of gender equity. We were then to close the session with Eunice Nyala, Founder & CEO of Etiquette Xllent. Eunice took us through the do’s and don’ts of professional etiquette from dressing to poise to body language to tone of voice to demeanor. It was interesting to note that we sometimes communicate negatively – unintentionally so – by the way we dress or by the tone of voice we take. It was a bit sad to see SheHive Nairobi come to an end. We had networked and learned so much in four days, we did not know what to do with ourselves now that
6 things to consider before launching your Youtube channel
So, you’ve decided to start your own Youtube channel. Maybe you were inspired by Toke Makinwa’s projection. Or maybe you are confident your make up skills are better than all those other beauty beauty bloggers. Don’t jump the gun, here are some points you should think through before taking your first vlogger steps. Technical skills The average Youtube video is about 4 minutes. In that short while, few of us consider camera angles, not to mention the recording and editing that probably went into making a video. Now you can go low-budget and own it but you can also choose to invest in a good camera and video editing software. Don’t be there thinking, I have a webcam. You’ll have to invest in a good camera both video and audio wise. Cameras don’t come cheap but if you have a good phone you can hack your way into appearing professional. Writing skills Before you start making your first video, you’ll have to test your writing and research skills. Choose a subject that matters to you, then start your research. You may not know if from watching Youtube, but some of the most successful Youtubers actually write scripts for the video. This is an effective way to ensure that you stay on track and get your point across effectively. It’s not cute to sit in front of a video going on and on. Put your writing skills to use when crafting your page, you’ll need a description to attract potential subscribers. Strategise Your book of plans should be titled, “How to make viewers want more of me”. What are you going to do to ensure that people keep coming to your page and watching your videos? There are number of questions you will have answer. How often will you post? What kind of topics will you cover? How will you remain relevant in a world of shortening attention spans? Draw up a calendar for your Youtube videos, plan ahead and make sure you follow your plans as closely as possible. Aim for quality over quantity. Confidence I have a friend…okay let’s be real, when I started blogging as a university student, I panicked as my page views increased. This increased when friends and family who I hadn’t told about my blog stumbled upon it, and left comments ugh. It was all a matter of confidence. If I was confident in myself back then, I wouldn’t have bothered. Confidence is even more important for vloggers. You’re putting your face out there for the world really, because the Internet never forgets. Grow an extra thick skin and brace yourself for all the haters that will surely appear. The name Sometimes the hardest part of starting something is coming up with a name. Ask anyone who has tried to register a business in Nigeria, it will sometimes seem like all the good names are taken. Then even when they are not, we wouldn’t advice choosing a username like “hotnike1987”. It’s a great idea to just stick to your legal names, but you can also choose to walk the creative path. Whatever you do, come up with a name that is catchy and related to your online personality. Creativity This comes in handy for when you’re coming up with topics. It will also show in your filming style. There’s more going on in your video frame even though your face will be centred. Think about the background, is it dark and plain? Consider making makeshift backgrounds for each video yourself. Don’t have the time? Try moving to different locations in your house/room.
Ruramiso Mashumba: More young women should consider farming
How many young women farmers do you know? None? Say hi to Ruramiso Mashumba. Ruramiso runs a horticulture farm in Marondera, Zimbabwe where she grows crops for export to the European Union and other African countries. Her passion for farming started as a child and though Ruramiso has worked abroad she returned to Zimbabwe to work on her farm. What’s it like to be a young woman and a farmer? Traditionally farmers have been known to look a certain way, mainly male and above 60 years. So, being known as a young woman farmer is exciting because it changes the status quo and lets people know that, ” Yes you can do it in spite of your current situation”. My father bought a farm when I was in form 2. He used to keep cattle. I went to Watershed college, a school which was next to our farm. Learning at Watershed school exposed me to the possibilities of agriculture. At my school agriculture was quite attractive because you would see the farmers children driving tractors and all so there was some prestige to it. Still, it wasn’t easy. I remember I used to cry a lot because of the struggle, especially the bullying from the boys but I was determined. After school, I got an amazing opportunity to work at a British company for two years then returned back to Zimbabwe to farm. What is the most amazing thing you’ve done as a farmer? To date my most amazing experience was being selected by AGCO Corporation to speak at their Africa summit in Berlin on the upscaling of small scale holders. After my presentation the CEO & President of AGCO gave me an award for influencing and leading women towards mechanised farming in Africa. I have since been able to mechanise my farm with their support. You mentioned your big business idea is to train women in the value of agriculture. Tell us more about that. Last year I held a farmer training at my farm where I invited the local community and stakeholders. I hope to be able to set up a centre where young people and women can learn the basics about agriculture. I believe the future of agriculture lays in the hands of those that are given custody of the land and are responsible to treat it in a way that future generations will benefit from. For example, climate smart agriculture is something that more people should know about. Climate smart agriculture is farming in a sustainable way that makes use of efficient irrigation system and disturbs soil structure only minimally. I’d like to share my ideas with others and encourage knowledge transfer. I am also passionate about indigenous organic grains. One of the crops I grow is a rice variety called Oryza glaberrima. This rice is native to Zimbabwe but is at risk of becoming extinct. Why should more young women be interested in agriculture? More women should start tapping into the vast opportunities in agriculture. Currently in Africa, 70 percent of women are players in agriculture but at primary level. Very few women actually own land and are running successful agribusiness projects. Agriculture is rewarding and it’s not just primary productions. It has many facets to it. In Zimbabwe, there is a lot of opportunity to develop the agriculture sector. We have a lot of underutilised land. Currently we are importing a lot of agricultural produce which we could be growing ourselves. This to me shows enormous potential. If you’d like to share your story with She Leads Africa, let us know more about you and your story here.