IMPETUS TO ACHIEVE: A GOLDEN HANDSHAKE CAN’T BE YOUR UNDOING
IF you have worked in any of these big organisations, be it corporate entities, government at all levels or any other, you will agree with me that whenever someone is retired before anyone expects, that generates a lot of talk. Sometimes, it even makes people get into some kind of somber mood as though the retired has just died. More often than not, those retired are seniors in the MWANAJITI organisation, working at the apex of the hierarchy having On Wednesday served for many years. So why is a golden handshake regarded as a funeral in Zambia? A Golden handshake is an informal term used to describe a severance payment given to someone as a result of leaving employment through redundancy or early retirement. Life in formal employment has a way of making Zambians very comfortable. We become so comfortable that we fail to commit ourselves wholeheartedly to the pursuit of an investment agenda during our working days. I do not know if it is the thought that there will definitely be income at the month end that causes this. Then one day, management decide that you are surplus to requirements at your employer. All of a sudden, you do not know what to do. The fact that you have never hustled on the streets in your life causes panic, you wonder how you will generate income to sustain life. This is where a golden handshake turns one’s days after formal employment into a nightmare. What’s funny is that employees in the formal sector tend to spend many days talking about how they want to invest in this and that. It has become fashionable to acquire some land away from the city and call it a farm, never mind that there is no activity there. Every individual talks about an investment agenda during his or her working days, but how many actually act on it? Very few if you observe carefully. The most important things, judging by actions of employees with decent jobs in Zambia, are driving nice cars, living in a plush house (including a rented one) and sending children to the most expensive schools. Usually it’s the things that the public can see that mean something to people. Now there’s nothing wrong with wanting a certain lifestyle, but if it will put you in a serious panic the day you are out of employment for whatever reason, then it’s worth re- thinking the importance of such choices. I find it strange that one would work at a decent job for many years only to wind up struggling financially in his or her last years. When you open your eyes to look around, you will find that such cases are plenty in our society. The worst part is that we get so used to doing our daily routine at work that even when we receive a lump sum payment upon retirement – early or otherwise – we do not know what to do with it. That is how it begins to vanish slowly but surely. For those who are forced to leave your organisations before you’re ready, I’m telling you that such an eventuality cannot mark the beginning of your downfall. You needn’t worry. If you have a lot on your plate in terms of living expenses, remember what some people say about life and lemons – when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. That little saying ably sums up the different ways in which people view the world. Our perception of things also tends to have a profound impact on the direction that we take, which in turns defines how we turn out in life. Therefore, whether it is tragedy or liberation when you leave your job is really a mindset issue. I know someone that quit a decent job recently. He did it to pursue his own interests and today he is buzzing, relishing the prospects for a new and better life out there. The element of freedom is fundamental in this life. Feeling chained never made anybody happy. You can achieve every ounce of greatness you feel you innately possess. In Zambia, we need to stop this culture of feeling the moment somebody leaves his/ her high paying job, destitution will start to creep in. Others even before the so- called downfall begins, like some shameless politician, immediately turning their backs on friends and family that fed them for years thinking these individuals are about to lose their glory days. That mindset is dangerous and mostly possessed by shameless and unprincipled elements. We must always understand that life involves different processes. In addition, whereas these are often interconnected, it is not always the case that one process will follow the other. For example, and I was taught this by my senior cousin, a university or college student will undergo the process of getting a formal education over a period of three to four years. The idea is to get a job upon graduation. Many young people take it for granted that the two processes – obtaining and education on the one hand, and getting a job after on the other – are supposed to aligned, but no. You can graduate and not get a job. Will your life end there because you only ever viewed one path through life? So to all Zambians that take it for granted that a golden handshake precedes one’s downfall, try to understand that life is a combination of so many processes. We may take for granted that certain processes always follow each other but no, it doesn’t work that way. There are so many things that can happen after the exchange of a golden handshake. Possessing a mindset that can understand that will set you apart. To be unconventional in your thinking is a blessing. It will make you analyse and see things differently. I for one will never see a golden handshake as one’s undoing. Instead I look at it as a moment of liberation, a moment when one is unleashed into Zambian society to give the next best productivity.
Share your views: muyangwamukuni@gmail.com Follow Impetus to achieve on Facebook