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Recently, I spoke to form four candidates from 29 schools in Meru County. The lingering question was how they can improve their performance in the forthcoming KCSE examination, and how to prepare adequately in the remaining time.
I hereby summarize my talk into 4 points.
1. Internal conviction, the first step to success in life. Whereas we like looking outwardly, the Holy Grail of our existence is looking into ourselves, our values, competences and weaknesses. In life, we have two battles, the internal battle and the external battle. We spend considerable energy fighting the external battle, but REAL success is to be found in winning the internal battle. This is the battle of conviction. We must convince ourselves that we are worthy of success. That we are capable. That there is a way out.
I asked students these questions, which I would like you too to ruminate over:
Do you know NOTHING? All of them resoundingly answered NO
Do you know EVERYTHING? All of them answered NO, and I agree because nobody knows everything about anything.
Do you know SOMETHING? All of them answered YES, and you too can agree that you know something, however small it is.
Preparing for any event, is therefore convincing yourself that you know SOMETHING.
The story of David and Goliath is an apt example of the elephantine obstacle our students see in examinations (and we see in many undertakings in life).
David was a novice; untrained, young, naive but responsible. Goliath was a mammoth of a human, skilled, experienced, arrogant and self-assured. The epic events of that day, which have reverberated throughout history, teach us that conviction is greater than physical might.
David encountered the usual discouragers: his brothers, king Saul and Goliath. They couldn’t fathom how the young man wanted to commit suicide by facing the giant Goliath.
Yet David was assured, and having convinced himself (winning the internal battle), he was ready for the external battle.
and he won it!
2. Examinations are not the end of life. They are not even the beginning. They are just a minor step in the journey of life. So, the main thing about examination might not be that you highly excelled, but that you actually tried.
I outlined to the students the existence of opportunities in universities, colleges, technical institutes, village polytechnics and even apprenticeships.
Many students think missing university is equal to missing life. Wrong. There are many other places to acquire skills.
I reminded them that knowledge is power- they ought to know what opportunities exist in our country, and that virtually every grade (including an E) can fit somewhere in our tertiary education. There is absolutely no excuse for an E to transition into drunkenness, despair and thuggery. Such a student can start tertiary education as an artisan, and find his way into a meaningful existence.
3. The value of having a goal in life
There are two ways of going about life: trudge through it aimlessly, or have a specific purpose for it. This can be broadly applied in life, and narrowly in the forthcoming KCPE and KCSE.
The goal should be SPECIFIC.
The goal should be written down. Writing down is the initial step of writing it in our hearts. It translates a trivial covenant with ourselves into a serious commitment which is binding.
The goal should then be meditated upon, until we get convinced about it.
It is almost a cliche that success in examinations is not equal to success in life- and I fully agree. So, what should the students aim to achieve? This brings me to the last point.
4. Don’t get into the examination with an aim to compete. Set your own goal, and compete with it. It does not matter what everyone else achieves. It matters if you achieve what you set out to get. Life is a personal affair. Inevitably, all students will take different paths in life. Competing with themselves is therefore a sure step to success.
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