Be an empty cup, willing and ready to be filled with knowledge

By Amb. Emmanuel Mwamba
Everytime I write a motivational or experiential article, I receive diverse reactions and feedback.
“Uplifting, helpful, motivational, insightful, helpful”.
But it is different when the article is about advise on business, entrepreneurship or investment.
I notice certain readers take great exception and quickly begin to comment; ” You are a worker an employee, you are a civil servant. So what experience do you have about business? You have a good job, stay in your lane, you can’t talk about it, you can’t coach us about entrepreneurship!”
I’ve seen these similar remarks ormcomments on seasoned business and entrepreneurship motivational speakers such Rev. Walter Mwambazi and Chibamba Kanyama.
But if these assertions were true, a catholic priest would not counsel a married couple, a man would never be a gynecologist, a woman would not be a urologist , and no doctor would be a pediatric.
I’ve run business before and failed, but I continue to learn and hope do it better. I’ve done many things where I only succeed after failing, sometimes many times.
In life, you try and fail, until you succeed.
If you do not wish to succeed, stop trying!
If you are afraid to fail, do not start that project.
For only those that tried and failed, that rose when they failed, that risked when it looked like an inevitable loss, actually do succeed.
So success is an emblematic jacket to be worn by only those privildged to; refuse to stop trying, that refuse to stop risking, that looked failure in the eye and stood up, that dared to do the impossible.
Or you have a choice, aim so low that you actually achieve all your low goals!
Or aim so high that even failure, will be so high up the food chain that it will be admirable and great success to those that aim low.
But my invaluable lessons training coaching come from all those interactions as a banker, journalist, writer, administrator and Diplomat.
Probably my biggest life and other lessons came from the most worthy, if but an unlikely source.
I sat to learn for ten years, practical great lessons in Democracy, governance, politics, policies, divinity, and humility, under the feet of Zambia’s Second President, Dr. Frederick Chiluba(May His Soul Rest in Eternal Peace).
He had such immense experiences, deep understanding, empathetic approach to life.
He walked from his early life as a poor boy raised by his grandmother in the rural areas, to an ideological communist, who became a trade unionist leader, who became a pioneer of Liberal Democracy in Africa, who served as Zambia’s President for 10 years.
When he was President of the Zambia Congress Trade Union(ZCTU) for over 20 years (from 1971 to 1991), he literally spent most of his time in Geneva, Switzerland, as he was privileged to serve on numerous International Labour Organisation (ILO) committees.
“Manueli, some say I am uneducated and that I am a former bus conductor!.” He would say this giving his favourite funny chuckle.
“Can you be judged by the casual work you did or temporal life you led, during your gap year or early life?” He would ask.
“I literally superintendent over and helped craft labour and employment policies, worker- friendly company policies, worker and social mobilisation skills, human rights and that’s the work I did for decades.”
“During this period I visited many nations, attended numerous conferences, workshops and trainings!” He said.
“To determine the ‘Decent Work Agenda’ we needed to know, study and understand regional and national development and various economic policies as labour matters are an integral part of the economy”.
“So why would someone wish to judge my capacity to be a leader, or my understanding or preparedness to run the country based on the casual job I took in my teens?”
“Surely should I be judged from the casual work I did as a teenager, as a sisal worker in Tanzania in 1953?” He said, holding a copy of the Time Magazine that had described him as such.
“Or the temporal work I did when I left school? What about all these lessons and training I’ve obtained over the decades?” He would wonder.
Similarly, I had no idea how much I knew and learnt until God gave me other opportunities and offices to serve.
The surprise comes during the application of such immense knowledge to different and unique circumstances that will appear to the observer as being applied naturally.
You would be constantly amazed at the transformational approach, impact and change you bring to every aspect you touch.
So the lesson for today is that listen and learn from others, do not judge and prejudice.
Seperate the wheat from the chaff, pick the fruit from the shell, and sort the valuable from the worthless.
Don’t shut your vessel full, be open to new ideas and shared experiences.
To be better, to achieve, to prosper, you have to learn every day, accept that you do not have all the knowledge.

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