A Message from Papa Tom
June 27 – July 1, 2018
Lweza Training & Conference Centre
Kampala, Uganda
I said after the first Dream Big Conference three years ago in Nairobi, Kenya that the magical dynamic of gathering in one place a group of our superstar scholars was one of the most special memories of my life. This year, is that possible, was even better. There were more of you. 100 scholars from 19 countries joined us in Entebbe, Uganda. Like last time, the powerful mix of young people from so many countries, who appreciate their education, who are so busy doing such good things in their communities and who feel driven to give back and create social change felt explosive.
One of my great pleasures at both the Dream Big Conferences has been to give the opening keynote address. I feel so proud of all of our WMI Scholars and it is so special to stand before you to welcome and to impart what I hope is a well-received message. I intend to do this every three years for as long as I can walk up to the microphone.
In Nairobi, I shared with you the importance of education, my belief that we are a gift from God and that we should give in return, that I believe that a small group of people can change the world, and finally to Just Do It!
This year, I wanted to go further, so I added to these four important ideas, eight more to create in one place “Papa Tom’s Twelve Best Ideas of How to Live Your Life”. I promised to share them again in writing after we all got home, so here it goes:
- Listen more talk less. Yes, listen, really listen. Don’t be busy planning what you are going to say in response while you are listening. If what you heard was particularly valuable, write it down.
- Learn the difference between urgent and important. Admittedly, some things are both – a fire in the room, for example. Most things are not. Education, training, a friend in trouble are important. Many phone calls and interruptions are not. The key is stay focused and to prioritize.
- Education is the most valuable tool you can use to change the world. Nelson Mandela went further. He called education not a “valuable tool” but a “powerful weapon.” The key is never, never stop educating yourself.
- We are a product not of our circumstances but rather of our decisions. There is no question some have it easier, a lot easier, just by their birth circumstances. I include myself in this group. However, hardship is opportunity. Wealth is not success. Decisions matter. In the end, we all must take responsibility for our own destiny and what we accomplish.
- They thought they could bury us but they did not know we were seeds. Wonderful words from a Mexican poet. Seeds grow. The takeaway here is never, never give up. As I tell folks facing adversity, when a “door closes, a window opens.”
- Seek first to understand, then to be understood. Yes, education, again, listening again. Do both, again and again.
- Never doubt that a small group of committed individuals can change the world. As the quote from anthropologist Margaret Meade continues, “Indeed it is the only thing that ever has.” I believe this. I have lived this.
- What we are is our gift from God; what we become is our gift to God. This is the plaque that hung on my kitchen wall when I was growing up. Be grateful for your blessings. Give back. Pay it forward.
- Fake it until you make it. This one sounds a little out of sync with much of my advice. What it really means is believe in yourself. Become who you want to be. If you want to be a leader act like a leader. If you want to be a professional, act professional.
- Fail Again, Fail Better. Don’t be afraid to fail. Learn from failure. As WMI Student Scholar Alpha Habib Bangura said at our conference, which I like even better than my “Fail better,” “Fail forward!”
- Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. It really has never been better said than these words by Jesus Christ. This concept undergirds most all of the world’s religions. To me it is the ultimate show of faith and respect. Live it. When you miss the mark, go to bed and get up the next day and try again.
- Finally, our very own, Dream, Plan Do! In long form: Dream Big! Plan Well! Just Do it! Do this. It works.
At the close of this year’s DBC, WMI Graduate Scholar Juma Omala led us in writing letters to ourselves in some future year. I chose to write to myself on the date of January 12, 2032, the day I will turn 80 years old. Writing this letter was a good exercise for me. I hope it was for the others who did it too. I wrote mostly about my family and my by then almost 60-year marriage with my wonderful wife who you know as Mama Carol. At the end of the exercise, I shared what I wrote about our Scholar children, which is what all of you are to us. Let me share it again here:
Your WMI Scholar children now number some 2000 from more than 40 countries. They make you feel so very proud. As you had hoped, they are making very big changes in their communities and the world. Two, you believe, will soon be the leaders of their countries. Many serve as cabinet ministers and important positions in their countries. The doctors and other medical scholars have cured and cared for, literally, millions of people. All of the Scholars are “giving back” and making so much difference in the world. To this day, they are superstars to you, every one of them.
