RESPECT THE HUSTLE

Business today is not conducted the way it was a decade ago. The digital age has ushered in a marketplace for savvy techies to establish themselves in the digital space, find clients from all over the globe, innovate, create, track, monitor and measure their productivity / inventory among many other things. What was considered unnecessary to established businesses a decade ago is now a necessity to the same businesses to retain their existing clientele as well as recruit new ones. The same market space has room for fresh talent who are taking advantage of it to set themselves up as worthy competitors to the established brands, creators and innovators of cutting edge next level ideas and executors of visions that once never made it out of boardrooms. So the marketplace has changed and with change comes various complications.

As the youth, we are the biggest beneficiaries of the digital workspace as well as the most exploited, especially in Africa. For me to write a single blog post, I have invested substantial resources in terms of time and creativity, which are my most valuable resources. The time spent in research to make sure I’m neither misinforming nor misdirecting, to be sure that I have facts to back my opinions up and statistics to support where necessary. Creativity to weave the data collected into words in a succinct, flowing fashion that is both educative and informative to you, the readers, who also walk away with a lesson or several. The internet connection and power source to keep me connected and my gadgets powered up, so that I can deliver my content to you. Same goes to all those using the various digital platforms to conduct honest businesses, be it providing products or services, showcasing their skills / talents or creating content to serve a particular brand purpose. We may not wear suits and sit in offices daily but we too play our part in the workforce that powers the economy.

It therefore causes great pain to see the youth fighting unemployment by using the resources at their disposal while struggling to make ends meet by their bootstraps, the powers that be either undermine the effort put into their work (simply because they haven’t clocked in to work) or seek to frustrate their work by heavily restricting the creative space and imposing unrealistic taxes on platforms that are not even owned by the nation but merely hosted. How, then, are the youth to flourish? How are they to escape poverty and the effects of it? How are they to innovate or move the country forward, if the policy makers and potential clients are working against them? How are they to survive if they are paid in exposure? How are they to thrive if their clients promise to pay them and when the time comes, they disappear like Houdini? How are we to trust said employers if they can’t even honor a simple commitment to pay talent and consultants? All these hows shine a light on the glaringly obvious hole that is exploitation of the young work force, which is at risk of draining the country should these harsh work conditions reach tipping point.

As Kenyans, we are our own greatest enemies by stealing from the hand of the masses to feed the 1%. We need to respect each other’s hustle; it doesn’t matter whether you understand it or not. The bottom line is that hustle is a key component of the economy just like yours, and they can coexist in the same space. We also need to understand that as clients and employers, exposure never paid the bills or that HELB loan. The opportunities that were available back then are not the same ones that are available now, and everyone is carving a piece of Kenya for themselves where they can thrive as individuals and contribute to the economy. Respect and support that, at the very least in the spirit of nationalism. Don’t undermine it.

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