Ini's MUSE

I have been thinking about the concept of the work before the work. Every major thing I have built - the consulting practice, the Africa CEO Roundtable and Conference on Sustainability and Responsibility (The ARCSR), the breakfast meeting - Sustainable Conversations, the CSRFiles publications, and the books I am currently writing- none of them arrived fully formed when I needed them. They were possible because of years of preparation that did not look like preparation at the time. The research done quietly. The relationships tended without an immediate agenda. The craft of facilitation refined across hundreds of rooms and thousands of hours. The intellectual frameworks developed not for a specific client, but because the questions themselves mattered to me. There is a version of ambition that is always in a hurry, always chasing the next opportunity, the next visibility, and the next launch. And I understand it. I have lived it. But the leaders I most respect are the ones who have buil...

Hello Muses, Trust you are all doing well.  Lately,  I've been thinking about leadership issues and its attendant effect on those we lead. In particular is the leadership of our nation Nigeria. Looking through my notes from years back, I found this post from Victor Oladokun in 2013 following the resignation of Pope Benedict's resignation from the Papal. I read through it again and thought to share, as they hold true even this day. Do read and let's share our thoughts. 7 Leadership Lessons from Pope Benedict's Resignation in 2013. 1. KNOWING WHEN TO QUIT: There comes a time when every leader has to look him or herself in the mirror and say, “Its time to move on.” There is no indignity to this. Just a recognition that (a) they have fulfilled their roles in the season of time they have occupied their respective positions of influence and (b) it is time to pass the baton on to a new generation that can run with the vision with a new sense of p...

Hello Everyone, happy new year and may 2017 do us all real good, Amen.  Been away from blogging but since I need to get out of this writer's block that is making Sister Joy send me midnight greetings, I've decided to rev the brain up a bit. In my over 35 years of working (yes you read right - I'm due for retirement), three books have made profound impact on me like never before.   I’ve always been drawn to books around strategy and unusual thinking and had just finished reading The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli in 1989, when I stumbled on The Art of War by Tun Tzu. If you are deeply interested in military strategy and understanding political power, or you are a political junkie like me, then the The Prince will speak to you. Most people  hold that it is the handbook for a would be tyrant, but indeed understanding it within context of your existing situation is important. Machiavelli took a rational approach in analyzing government and politics...