Families are finding it more and more challenging to stay afloat in today’s economy. It becomes even more difficult if the couple is not reading from the same script. This forum is for couples who are keen on securing the future of their families. We shall be exploring the different ways that couples can strengthen their financial base and secure their family’s future.

Topics for discussion include:

1. Effective management of resources in your marriage (including human resource)
2. Teamwork in marriage
3. How to empower your dependents (including the extended family).
4. Goal setting (short-term, mid-term and long term goals)
5. Adequately prepare for retirement.

Who is this Forum for?

* Couples who are preparing for marriage
* Couples in the first 10 years of marriage
* People (either individuals or couples) who would like to adequately prepare for retirement

Date

Saturday, 25th March 2016

Time

1.30 p.m.

Venue

Nairobi (Details about the venue to be communicated to those who confirm attendance).

This forum is free to attend. It is very limited sitting and on a first-come-first-served basis. We shall close as soon as we are full. Bring a notebook and a pen to take notes (A MUST). Very interactive session.

Susan Catherine Keter is a life coach, mentor, motivational speaker, freelancer and blogger.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Financial.Literacy.Africa/?pnref=lhc
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SusanCatherineK

To reserve your slot, go to http://www.susancatherineketer.com/
Click on ‘Contact’ and make your reservation.

Kathy grew up in a rural area. Her family was not wealthy by any standards but they never lacked. Her father was a head teacher in a local school and was a disciplinarian even at home. She and her siblings grew up afraid of him. Her mother was a small scale farmer and very hard working. Kathy – the last born of six siblings – had the added disadvantage of being bullied by her elder siblings, from a young age. She grew up shy and with self esteem issues.

School life was alright and Kathy was above average in performance. She completed high school successfully and joined a college in the city of Nairobi for a diploma in hair dressing and beauty. Barely 6 months in college and she was already in a serious relationship. Her lover Eddy was around 10 years older than her, had a stable job with an international organization and was living in an upmarket suburb in the city. Probably she was naive or her self-esteem issues worked against her because she got pregnant months into the relationship. By that time she had not even met any member of Eddy’s family. The two had not discussed anything about marriage. She was terrified of her father and could not imagine going home to explain that she was pregnant.

Early Marriage

Eddy welcomed her to move in with him which she gladly did. She continued attending college but avoided going home because of fear of her father. Her parents realized what had happened when she was in the last trimester of pregnancy. They did not complain that she was already married. Probably being a single mother would have rubbed her parents the wrong way but now that she had already settled down with the father to her unborn baby, her parents had no quarrels with her.

Kathy settled down to life as a married woman without much formality. She and Eddy never discussed anything about their future neither did they set goals. He paid bills and all was well. She stopped attending college the month before her due date. She was due to sit her final exams in 6 months’ time but she had to defer her studies because of the pregnancy. A few weeks later they were blessed with a bouncing baby girl, who brought a lot of joy to their home.

Stay at Home Mom

Mother and baby were in good health and Kathy felt strong enough to resume her studies when the little one was 3 months old. Eddy however would hear none of it. He said that the baby was still young and could not be left under the care of a nanny at that stage. She held her peace and continued to take care of herself and the little one. She brought up the issue again when their daughter was 7 months old but Eddy totally refused to allow her to go back to college. She was completely dependent on him so she needed him to pay the college fees. He refused. She settled down to life as a stay at home mom against her will.

Eddy continued paying the bills and the family did not lack. Two years later the couple was blessed with a son. He brought a lot of joy to the couple. Kathy had resigned herself to life as a stay at home mom and no longer brought up the issue of resuming her studies.

Domestic Violence

Things started changing after the birth of the second baby. Eddy would regularly come home late, sometimes past midnight. She initially would stay up waiting for him but as it became the normal way of life, she decided to let him be. He became harsh with her especially whenever she asked about money. But the worst was yet to come. She was shaken to the core when he hit her for the first time after an argument over money. He apologized and told her that he was tired and had been going through a lot and that was why he lost his temper. But the beatings happened again and again. She had never completed her studies so she lacked the credentials to enable her get a job. She was dependent on him. By that time she was a mother of 3 and jobless.

Life without a source of income was difficult now that her husband was physically abusive. She could not go back to her parents with 3 children. How would she take her children through school if she left her husband? Could she expect her parents to educate her children?

A New Lease of Life

Help came in the most unexpected way. She was tossing and turning in bed one night and could not sleep. Her husband sometimes slept out and this was one of those nights. She got out of bed and went to the living room. She sat down at the computer. She had never done much with the computer besides going to Facebook and following discussions in different groups, most which were little more than just gossip. For some reason, this time she noticed an update from a group that she had not noticed before. She had no idea how she ended up as a member of the group but she was thankful that she did.

Finance Matters

The Facebook group focused on matters to do with finances. There were different posts by people who were struggling with diverse financial challenges. There were many good ideas discussed in the group that she had to get a notebook and a pen and take notes. She hardly slept that night as she researched different ideas that she learned from the discussions. That night was the turning point in her life.

Kathy discovered that even though she was unable to complete her course in hair dressing and beauty, she could perfect the skills by learning from online resources. She would spend all her free time online practicing different hair styles. She practiced braiding, weaving and styling. She started by practicing everything on herself. She took photos of everything she tried out even if it did not turn out as well as she anticipated. She saved every coin that she could spare in order to buy products for her practice.

Hair Salons

She visited the hair salons in her neighborhood and introduced herself. She would show them the photos of what she was capable of and leave her contacts. Short term jobs started trickling in. Sometimes it would be for just a day to stand in for an employee who was absent due to an emergency. Other times it was as an extra hand when too many clients turned up at the same time. Her skills improved tremendously when she got the opportunity to practice on clients.

It is now almost one year since Kathy stumbled on the Facebook group. She has learned how to market her services online and gets clients regularly. She makes sure to take photos of all her creations, to use in her marketing efforts. The situation in her marriage has not improved but she is no longer desperate. Her income is growing consistently and if the worst comes to the worst and she finds herself out in the cold, she has somewhere to begin.

Her plan is to gradually buy the equipment to enable her run a fully fledged mobile hairdressing service. That way she will not need to rely on employers but will be able to be fully self-employed. It is going to take time to get there because the equipment is not very cheap, but she has a very clear plan and is determined to get there.

Secure Your Future in 4 Simple Steps

The economy is not doing too well but you do not have to go down with it. Become the master of your own destiny. Do you love experimenting with different dishes? Do you enjoy drawing in your free time? Baking? Writing? Styling hair? Applying make-up? This might be a hobby or something you trained in but are now out of job. Anything that can fill a gap in society can be transformed into an income generating venture.

1. Do your research

Don’t rely on the knowledge you have. Research widely. Invest in good books. Consult online resources. Invest in a refresher course if you can. Look for someone who has succeeded in what you are endeavoring to do and learn from that person. Getting a mentor will shorten your learning curve. If you can volunteer so that you acquire the necessary experience, that will make your progress even faster. You will not only get an opportunity to learn but will grow your networks by meeting potential clients and business partners, increasing your chances of success.

2. Plan methodically

For most people, a hobby is something they do for enjoyment purposes. They don’t give much thought to it. They want to experiment with a recipe; they just get some ingredients together and try it out. If you purpose to turn a hobby into a business, ask yourself critical questions such as whether you will still enjoy doing it when pressure to meet deadlines and to satisfy clients comes into the picture. Try out with a few clients, on voluntary basis if you can. Spread the word among people in your circles and try out your services with them. You can give them free service in return for their honest feedback. Remember that experimenting with something is different from fulfilling clients’ orders. Don’t plunge into the deep end without testing the waters first.

3. Wear your brand, be your brand

Publicity is critical for the survival of any brand so put your brand in front of people at all times. Wear a t-shirt or some other outfit promoting your brand. Carry a branded diary. Get your favorite mug branded. Ensure that your brand stands out in all your social media profiles. Wear the colors of your brand. Brand yourself on social media. Volunteer in the community when there are events such as clean ups, walks, marathons or other events that can give your brand free publicity. Ensure to always be well branded during such events. Don’t give people the opportunity to forget your brand as that will give the competition space to overtake you.

4. Identify partners and build a support network

Business is about people. Successful people build networks. A lone ranger is a broke stranger so keep your eyes open for opportunities to connect with people who can help push your brand. Are there businesses that can stock your product, can refer you to potential customers? Are there opportunities to support each other with other upcoming business people? Bartering is a viable way for upcoming businesses to grow so explore possibilities of collaborating with other upcoming businesses.

Last but not least, be persistent. Put in the hard work and avoid short cuts. Building a profitable business is tough and comes with challenges so do ensure to have fun doing it or you will not keep it going long enough. Reward yourself for every achievement no matter how minor it is.

This article is written by Susan Catherine Keter, life coach, mentor, motivational speaker, freelancer and blogger.
Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Financial.Literacy.Africa/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SusanCatherineK

Life for Charles was not smooth right from childhood. His father was alcoholic and rarely contributed to the family’s welfare. His mother was a teacher in a local school and she doubled up as a small scale farmer. 

A writing career falls in the category of consulting. I believe that majority of us are familiar with some people who are consultants. A consultant is an individual who provides professional or expert services in a particular field to either an organisation or individual.

A consultant provides expertise that a client lacks or support that a client is unable to fulfill for various reasons such as not having that specific function in the organization. The consultant charges a fee in return for their professional services.

Freelancing

Consultants can work at a consultancy firm or operate as independent consultants (freelance). In some cases, some experts work as consultants for a particular organization. The fields are diverse; book keeping, journalism, legal matters, medicine, administration and so much more.

I want to focus on the freelance writer (the consultant). Those who are employed probably by publishing firms or media houses adhere to the terms and conditions of their job contracts. The topic of identifying your niche is already covered in an earlier blog article so I will not discuss it.

As a writer, you will need to understand what it means to be a consultant or a self-employed individual. It means that you will be running your own business. The success of that business is entirely up to you. Let us look at some of the functions you will need to take care of in order to run a successful writing career.

Setting Up The Business

As with every other business, you will need to make critical decisions about the set-up of your business. This includes matters such as business registration and premises. Ensure that you are operating according to the law by getting your business registered. Where will your business operate from? Will you work from home or will you operate from an office?

If you opt to work from home, put into consideration matters such as working space, reliability of Internet connectivity since writing requires a lot of research which often needs to be done online, possible distractions from the rest of the family especially if you have young children or other family members who could be spending long hours at home. Do you have some free space that you can convert into your office and is it conducive to long hours of work?

Working hours are also important to think about when you are setting up a consulting business. Will you work full time or part-time? If you will work part-time possibly because you have a job or another business, how will you make sure that you meet clients’ deadlines?

Tools

Every business requires some tools of the trade. To be able to operate a writing business, you will need to own a computer and to have reliable Internet connectivity.

There are places that have unreliable power supply, with power blackouts being the order of the day. How will you ensure that power blackouts will not cripple your business especially because writing assignments come with very strict deadlines? Will you invest in back-up power? Will you have an alternative place to work from when such happens, maybe a nearby cafe with Internet connectivity or a cyber cafe?

Skills

A writer earns a living through writing. This means that writing is a required skill. A good command of the English language is a must. You will need to be a good writer, a skill that can be nurtured and perfected through investing in time to learn. A good writer is widely read so reading widely is a requirement.

Read as much as you can every day. Read stuff in your niche and in other niches too. Read fiction and non-fiction. The key is to get exposed to different styles of writing.

Write every day, in season and out of season. Write about your experience riding in a matatu, about a program you have watched on TV, about some new equipment you bought about your friendship with one of your buddies and everything else that you can write about. Becoming a good writer takes practice so keep writing and don’t stop.

Plagiarism laws

Plagiarism – which is the act of taking someone else’s writing and making it your own – is a very serious crime and you must never be guilty of it. To guard against plagiarism, research widely before writing about a topic.

Research from more than one source and only take notes in point form, not as complete sentences. Avoid saying anything in the exact words of someone else no matter how it perfectly fits in with what you want to say. Always say it in your own words, your own style.

Time Management

To become successful as a consultant you will need to master the time management function. A business is not just one thing so you will need to know how to utilize your time effectively. This means that you devote more time to the most important activities.

What are some of the activities that will take up your time on a day-to-day basis?

Publicity and Marketing

I say this time and again; that if you bake the yummiest cakes on the planet and they are sitting on your kitchen table and no one knows about them, you are not in business. And if only your neighbors and relatives know about your cakes, you still are not yet in business. Yours is actually a hobby.

So if you are a great writer but no one knows about it, you are not in business. Writing for you is a hobby. To turn it into a business, you will need to structure your skill or talent into a business then you also have to be visible to a large number of people. Publicity is what will bring in business.

The Worldwide Web has made this easy, but mastering the use of the Internet takes time and effort. Are you going to use a blog for publicity? Will you post regular videos on Youtube? Will you have a business page on Facebook? Will you use other social networking sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram?

Will you pay for advertisement? It is critical to begin with the end in mind, to identify your target market and come up with a strategy how they will know about your existence and the services you offer. Factor in the time you will devote to publicity for your business. This is an important activity and you will spend a lot of your time doing it.

Sales: Sourcing for Clients

Clients are the lifeblood of your business. Without clients, there is no business. Clients don’t normally come knocking on your door; you have to look for them. How are you going to ensure flow of clients? Once you identify your niche, that will help you get clarity about who your ideal clients are.

The next thing is to know how to pitch them. For example, if you write content for blogs and websites, where will you connect with potential clients? Will you register on platforms for freelance work?

Will you pitch blogs that you already follow and find out whether you can write guest blog articles? Sourcing for clients is an activity that will take up your time regularly and you need to factor it into your schedules.

Retaining Your Existing Clients

Repeat business is very important so keeping your business in the face of your existing clients is very important. Will you write a regular newsletter or how do you plan to keep in touch with your clients? Will you send them goodwill messages during seasons such as Christmas or New Year? Will you send them a message every time you have something new to report?

Writing for clients and submitting the finished work is not all it takes to build a successful consulting business. There are administrative tasks that need handling such as invoicing clients, record keeping and filing tax returns.

Writing

As a writer, you will spend a lot of your time writing. You will need to factor in the time spent researching about different topics and doing the actual writing. Be prepared to work long hours especially when you are starting out.

Be prepared also for a period of time when you will not have income yet. Plan how to finance yourself and your business in the initial stages before you get clients and begin to earn.

If you enjoy writing, a writing career might be for you.

Would you like to earn income as a writer? Book a coaching session here.

This article is written by Susan Catherine Keter, life coach, mentor, network marketing professional, freelancer and blogger.
Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Financial.Literacy.Africa/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SusanCatherineK

I have received numerous messages from people who are seeking to make money as writers. Some are people who have been hit by the retrenchment bug and are desperately seeking ways to pay their bills. There is a lot of hullabaloo about online writing and everyone wants a piece of the cake. I would like to say that not everyone can be a writer, but there are some practices that can improve our chances of success in the field of writing.

Have a Curious Mind

To be successful in any field that requires creativity becomes a lot easier if you are immersed in it during most of your waking hours. To become a good writer, nurture you creativity. Observe what happens around you. Listen to stories of people around you; on social media, in public places, in the office; everywhere. These are normal day to day stories that are shared by ordinary people. Learn to be creative about what you observe every day.

Keep a journal

Do not trust your mind too much as it has a habit of forgetting stuff. Keep a journal. A journal helps you to have a record of so many stories and ideas that can come in handy in your writing career. Write in your journal every single day without fail. It definitely helps to have diverse ideas written down and which you can turn to when you need to come up with a piece of writing.

Keep a notebook with you at all times. Write a good idea as soon as it comes to you. Maybe you are sitting in public transport or queuing in a supermarket on a busy day and you observe something that awakens some idea in you. Don’t wait till you get home in the evening to write it down. Jot it down immediately so you don’t risk losing it. You will have time to expand and perfect it later.

Don’t take life too seriously; Have fun

Don’t take life too seriously. Have fun learning how to be become a writer. Put in the hours of practice by writing every day. Write stuff you enjoy to write about. The more you write, the better. Make sure to enjoy the journey. Success is not handed to anyone on a silver platter; the unsexy truth is that success does take hard work and sacrifice. So get busy learning how to become a writer and the best way to do that is to read widely and write, write, write….

“Write, write, write and write again and you will get it right.” – Ngugi wa Thiong’o

Success Takes Thousands of Hours of Practice

To become an expert in any field takes thousands of hours of practice. Do you know the saying that genius is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration? That is true of everything including writing. Think of what it takes for athletes to become successful in their careers. Is it just about talent and interest? Is it all fun or is there some pain that comes with training to become an expert in any chosen field?

The Power of A Good Name

Build a good name, be a person who can be trusted to keep your word. Never, ever use shortcuts and cut corners in an effort to make some quick money. A good name is like a currency note; no one has much use for a fake one.

Be authentic. Do not try to be a copy of someone else. Write based on who you really are and what you have learned. Learn to empty yourself on paper and you will gradually become a good writer. A good writer has a unique style, a signature way of writing.

Find Your Niche

Don’t give in to pressure and accept projects that are not your style of writing. Find you niche and focus on becoming the best at it. That is the way to a successful writing career. For example if you are a non-fiction writer, do not bow to pressure and accept a fiction project simply because you have some bills to pay.

Every successful person is known for something specific. Try to imagine Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg promoting designer clothes or handbags and you will get an idea of what I am talking about. The saying ‘do what you love and the money will follow’ is true even in writing. Do not try to do something simply because you think it will make you money or because it is popular. Give yourself permission to be you; to have your own unique style of writing.

The key is not to begin your writing career writing for the market. Begin with what is in your heart, work on being good at it then learn how to monetize it. Being fake will kill your writing career even before it begins. Be proud of your own unique style even if it takes time to open the floodgates of the magic currency notes that fatten your wallet. Taking time to develop your unique writing style is like patiently watering the Chinese bamboo; it will give you long term success.

A writer is an artist. Every real artist has a unique style. Have you ever read a piece that is so real, so authentic it makes you cry, keeps ringing in your mind over and over again and just won’t be forgotten? Does that make sense?

A Mentor Shortens Your Learning Curve

Get yourself a mentor. Learning from someone who has been there, done that shortens your learning curve. Look for someone who is getting the results you are looking for and learn from that person. If you can get an opportunity to be an apprentice of that person by working for him or her, you will receive the best mentorship possible. A mentor does not necessarily have to be someone you know in real life. Technology has made dissemination of information very easy so you can learn from your chosen mentor’s published books, website, Youtube channel and other available information. Take advice. Accept correction with grace; don’t be defensive. The reason you are not yet successful is because you still need to learn.

A writing career can be extremely rewarding and can give you a reliable source of income even in your sunset years. Give it the seriousness it deserves and you will enjoy success for many years to come.

This article is written by Susan Catherine Keter, life coach, mentor, network marketing professional, freelance writer and Blogger.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Financial.Literacy.Africa/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SusanCatherineK