Fortune favours the bold

Dear graduate,
Some light years ago – well, just 15 years ago – I was in your shoes, grateful to be ending that part of my life and hopeful for the next. I had dreams. I had hopes and some ambitions. Some of those came to pass, some didn’t but I lived, I learnt, I progressed, so here are a few things I would like to share about that journey of mine.

Work is work, so work. Nine months after graduating I did not have a job. I had walked into many institutions, with the encouragement of my friend, Betty.

We visited especially government ones and NGOs, placing our CVs wherever we could. Some receptionists were kind and wished us luck. Others just looked at us like we were wasting their time. Nothing came out of that. Instead I spent those months washing, cooking, cleaning, ironing and doing many other chores in my parents’ home. Sometimes I had fun doing it, but to be frank, many times I was bored and felt envious when I heard some of my friends had already got jobs. After nine months, I got a placement in a bank and mum realised she had to get a maid. I was happy to finally have a job but doing those chores at home helped me. I spent my time learning to make different recipes, and finding ways to do house chores well but quicker. Plus, my parents gave me a healthy sum of money as thanks for helping out in the house. So, whatever work you get your hands on, whether it is at your aunt’s salon, father’s school or mother’s farm, work. You will get either skills, or payment or experience; and each is important.

Make use of the networks you have. In hindsight, I should have kept in touch with the people I worked for during my S.6 vacation, or the long holidays when on campus. I worked with a small company that provided Internet services and also volunteered with World Vision Uganda. If I had kept going back to offer services, even if they were voluntary, I would have grown the network of people I knew as well as expanded my CV. I would have gotten myself some good referees and mentors.
Those were opportunities I did not seize. If you have had the good luck to work with a company, however small, go back to offer some services and grown your network and skills. As said earlier, you will be the richer for it months down the road.

Do one thing at a time. There will be the pressure to get a job, marry, start a business, buy a car, move out of home and so many other things. Having all these things is good, but trying to get them at a go will squeeze life out of you. Plus if you are chasing 10 things at once, seven of them are bound not to get enough attention. So pick the things you are sure you can do and start working on them. Have friends or relatives you are accountable to. And have fun while doing all this. It is true after all what they say, the journey itself is half of the fun.

Have a goal. From the time I was 13, I knew what I wanted to do. CNN hypnotised me and I decided I was going to work for the media. I did not do Mass Communication at university – I did not get the required points – or any course in journalism then. But I knew it was the media I wanted to work with. So after university, I took on any small jobs with newspapers and newsletters. I wrote for a small newspaper.
I helped friends edit any piece of work. I read as much as I could about journalism. I ended up working with a bank but not for long because my heart was not there.

I kept my eyes fixed on journalism and looked for any opportunities there. And it helped. A whole lot. Because by the time I finally got a job in the media, I had some skills to put to use. You might not have an idea of what you want to really do. And that is not a horrible thing. You still have time to decide. But the earlier you do so, the faster things will fall into place.

Along the way, you might have to drop some ideas or dreams. I decided I might not do so well on TV and felt print was the best place to go.
Besides, I liked writing and editing even more. So I settled happily for that. Decide what you want to do and work at it picking any opportunity however small.
Start from there and grow. It is true that the statistics look grave. Unemployment rates are high. The cost of living is not any better. But fortune favours the bold. Be bold with whatever you have and run with it.
Good luck!

cbeyanga@ug.nationmedia.com