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Always treat the future as now!

By Strive Masiyiwa  Always treat the future as now! ____"Before anything else, preparation is the key to success..."* The other day as I read your comments here, I came across this question: “Strive Masiyiwa what's the current position of Liquid Telecoms with regard to Artificial Intelligence? What's your word to Africa regarding Artificial Intelligence and the need to fast follow it?” I’m sure some of you who saw Innocent Madanhire's question thought to remind him about the extensive interview I did with James Manyika, Senior Vice President of Alphabet, the parent company of Google last year. Just in case, he didn’t see it, here it is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXiVw1jZybA As James noted in the interview, I have been talking about Artificial Intelligence in my own tech circles for at least 15 years. As a professional engineer, I make it my business to stay current in developments in my field, as you would expect say a doctor to remain current in
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Russia has threatened to shoot down NATO planes in the Black Sea as tensions over a possible World War 3 explode further to worrying levels.

Russia  has threatened to shoot down  NATO  planes in the Black Sea as tensions over a possible  World War 3  explode further to worrying levels. French Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu, told  RTL : " Russia 's behavior in 2024 is no longer at all the same as what we experienced in 2022. This can be explained by the fact that  Russia  is in difficulty on the battlefield in  Ukraine . "You have Russian takeover attempts. A month ago, a Russian air control system threatened to shoot down French planes in the Black Sea. It's as old as the Cold War, we have the return of Russian positioning particularly aggressive.  Russia  plays with thresholds of aggressiveness." He also warned that Putin could interfere with the European elections this year by "injecting false content" or "attempting to approach the candidates."

IMF Approves New $941m Loan for Cash-Strapped Kenya

Radio France Internationale Nairobi (AFP) - - The International Monetary Fund said it has granted Kenya a new loan of more than $941 million to help buttress the finances of the cash-strapped East African nation. Kenya is grappling with a host of economic challenges including a vast debt mountain, cost of living crisis and tumbling currency. The IMF said in a statement published on Wednesday that its executive board had approved the $941.2 million loan, with an immediate disbursement of $624.5 million. Total payments under various credit facilities amount to about $2.6 billion, it added. The Washington-based agency said it forecast Kenya's economic growth at around 5 percent this year, from an estimated 5.1 percent in 2023. "Kenya's growth remained resilient in the face of increasing external and domestic challenges," said Antoinette Sayeh,  IMF  deputy managing director and acting chair, said in the statement. 'Ongoing support' The credit arrangements for Ken

Take care of yourself__"The first wealth is health".

By Strive Masiyiwa  A few weeks ago I went to the doctor. I will tell you what he said about my health at the end, but first read this: Twenty years ago, I arranged to meet a well-known British international businessman who invested a lot in Africa at the time. We agreed to meet for dinner at a leading hotel in London.  After a good meeting, we started to walk out of the restaurant when he suddenly collapsed in the lobby. There was total pandemonium as they rushed to get medical assistance. Being London, an ambulance arrived in minutes. I jumped in the back with him as paramedics wrestled to keep him alive. He had had a heart attack and had to have triple bypass heart surgery. Sadly he died a few weeks later. He hadn't been sick and his sudden death surprised everyone. And yet as I reflected on it, and later discussed it with a doctor friend who knew him, I realized he was very laid back about his health despite having a hectic business life. Even during our dinner, he

The ability to get up from failure defines an entrepreneur.

By Strive Masiyiwa #Reflection: The ability to get up from failure defines an entrepreneur. __"I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed”. Michael Jordan Michael Jordan is not only one of the great athletes in the history of sport, but he was I think the first athlete to become a billionaire. And he did so when he retired and became a successful entrepreneur. I will never forget the first time I saw this quote on a huge billboard in New York. I completely choked up and allowed the tears to run down the side of my face. It cut deep into me as it brought back floods of memories of my own failures: businesses that had collapsed; countless projects that had failed to take off; failure to raise money for things only I knew could succeed but no one else had believed in me. Failed partnerships that ended in total acrimony. Countless, countless failures that never made headlines and the humiliation of those that did. Then there were the

21 skills that will pay you forever

Career, Internet, and AlibabaMa was not lucky

Career, Internet, and Alibaba Ma was not lucky, if we are talking about achieving a corporate career. He failed no less than thirty job interviews. When he applied to KFC, 23 of 24 candidates were accepted 23 (guess who didn’t get a job; yes, it is all about Jack). Ma believes that he was not accepted by KFC due to his unattractive appearance. According to Chinese standards, he is considered to be ugly. Later, he managed to get a job as an English teacher at a local university with a salary of $12-15 a month. Jack Ma saw his first computer in 1995 when he was 31 years old. It was during the time when he went to the USA as a translator. He was told about the “internet”. So, the first word Ma entered into the search bar was “beer”. Search results included American beer, Belgian, and any beer you could want, but not Chinese. And when Ma realized that there was no information about China on the American internet at all, he understood that it could be a good opportunity to “intr