 |
| Sunset view in Debrezeyt back in 2014 :) |
Experts do say, if you want to be happy, be grateful. This e-mail is
to do just that - to express my
gratitude. I have so much to be grateful to you
and people like you. I feel indebted for your positive influence and
encouragement that I have received this past year and beyond. Without a doubt,
I have grown so much, personally and professionally in these past six months.
I admit at the end of each December, I find myself recycling some of
my previous New Year resolutions. I nonetheless, like many; I approach the
first day of the year with a new energy and a new list of targeted goals. But
most of all, a new spirit of can do attitude.
2015 is already looking a promising one, and by all means, I plan to
keep it that way. But first, cheers to the just concluded 2014. It was a great
year indeed. In 2014, I was fortunate to have met and spend sometime with a lot
of successful people whom I call are achievers and doers. People who have contributed
and continue to contribute tremendously for the betterment of humanity in their
respective arena.
Even though, the lessons I have learned this past year were plenty,
the biggest lesson I feel I have absorbed is, how the achievers seem to share
one particular characteristic. They all seem to be driven by their fear of
failure as much as they are driven by the clarity of their vision. It is as if
they share a trait that is almost egotistical. It is a pride thing to many of them,
some sort of an innately understood measure of self-worth. They are very
decisive individuals, and subsequently, prioritizing comes naturally to them. They
could find themselves in the presence of the most important people, and yet,
they are unfazed by it. They waste no time, if it does not contribute to their overall
goal somehow. They do what they want. They don’t yield. They lead.
There is so much to be learned from meeting and spending time with new
faces in new places. It allows you to enter their space and observe things from
their perspective, however small of a window that might be. When you are genuinely
curious to learn why people do what they do? What drives them? Why some people
go far in life where others have failed? You start to look at things
differently. You start to lose your point of reference from which you are used
to judge people’s actions or there lack off. Instead, you start to see things
from their view as though you are following their visual patter through one glimpse
of snap shot at a time. You get stimulated, and subconsciously you start to adapt
their ways. There, in the process, you pick up cues why they do what they do,
and like that, learning happens to you.
With a little luck make it a fulfilling year to you and your loved
ones.
Be the brighter star of the day,
But, if your zodiac calls for the night
Then be a full Moon
and reflect the sunlight.
Best of wishes from Ethiopia
~ Daniel
 |
| Enjoying a coffee break with coworkers |
Revolution or regime change is definitely a decisive slogan; but, for whom, by whom and at what cost exactly? 
In light of the Charlie Hebdo, Boko Haram and other extreme acts of violence, our approach and our reactions to such tragedies will determine our collective progress. Our resolve to give
others the benefit of the doubt, and our tolerance towards those we fervently
disagree with, will determine our collective security. We tend to perceive
justice as an end point solution, it is not at all. It is a reaction. The
verdict of its fairness often left in limbo. Ultimately mastering the needed
strength to forgive those who do us wrong will be the uncontested formula for
peace.
Ethiopia is a cultural
paradise. There is one too many religious and national holidays celebrated here
so frequently. The beauty about it is that, they are celebrated so colorfully
with unabated energy. 
