Nancy at week 13

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by Nancy Cherotich

I do not know why but the pressure to lose weight has been too high. It felt like everyone but me was exercising or on a particular diet. The number of people jogging around the estate increased, my timeline was filled with before and after photos from people who are clearly working harder than me. The pressure was just too much it made eating my birthday cake very difficult. I sat in bed at night after indulging in cake eating torn between sneaking back to the fridge to finish up the little piece that had remained and going on my knees to pray that the punishment I will receive for my bad behavior should not be more than 500 grams.

The last time I had such kind of pressure was sometime back when it seemed that everyone around me was starting up a business; side hustle is what they called it. People were thinking of how to get money. Rearing chicken and quails, selling hand bags, sex toys, shoes, alcohol and many other things. Let me be sincere, when it comes to business ideas, I am totally handicapped. I like to think of myself as a happy customer to the business minded people. Saving I can, but sitting down to think of a business to start is asking for too much from me. Even with all that pressure around me I could not think of a single business to start. There was this time I was chilling with my friends when the money and business topic came up. Everyone had this brilliant business idea that they talked nonstop about. When they realized that I was very quiet, they asked me to tell them what business I think we should start. After thinking for a while, I told them “We can buy botis of whiskey halafu we sell shots to people on the streets.” After a long silence and stares, which I mistook for awe, I was dismissed as drunk and ignored for the rest of the night. The idea still sounds good to me and I am willing to partner with any sponsor. I need to prove that I was not high.

My search for business ideas has led me to places I never thought I would go to. A friend I had not been in touch with for years, texted me. At first the talk was the normal catching up conversation then she told me that she was thinking of quitting to concentrate on her business. I was impressed to say the least and I told her the same. She then requested me to accompany her to Westlands that weekend to check out her investment and give my views on the same.

I obviously agreed and we set up the date. I do not know why I did not bother to ask her what kind of business she had set up. Probably it is because somewhere in my head I was convinced she had constructed some apartments and wanted to rent them out. People in real estate are the ones who use the term investment a lot. I told myself that I will ask her if she needs a caretaker because I was very willing to be one. That meant staying in one of the houses for free, which in my head translated to more shoes and handbag; for me not for sale. On Saturday I woke up early, dressed and went to Westlands. She directed me to some building and I thought she probably wanted us to have coffee before proceeding to see her investment. I had spent some time on the internet researching on how to be a successful caretaker so I was very ready.

She picked me at the entrance of the building and led me to the top most floor. “Ah, she is opening a hotel.” I told myself when I saw chefs standing outside and tables filled with snacks and juice. I started walking very close to her to ensure that every one noticed I well knew the hotel owner and we are very close. She told me to proceed and enter some room which I assumed was part of the hotel as she stopped to talk to someone. I found myself inside a hall filled with people who were listening to some presentation.

My friend came in almost immediately and led me to a seat. The presenter was talking about someone who was earning so much money to the point all he was doing was going for holidays all through the year. Something about him being a top performer was mentioned. Few other slides of people who had achieved equal amount of success were shown as everyone in the hall kept gasping in awe and clapped. I also clapped although I had no idea why I was clapping.

After they were through with the slides, a group of people were called to go in front of the class and one by one they explained how they had joined the group by paying some fee, worked hard and managed to recruit a lot of people who also paid joining fees. They were now earning a lot of money from their hard work to the point all of them had quit from their day jobs and were spending a lot of their time going for holidays and dining at five star hotels. I took time to observe the speakers and could not fail to notice that one had a chipped nail, another one had a torn shirt, another one had a suit that looked two sizes bigger and I, for a moment, thought that being their personal stylists would be such a perfect business idea. I kept imagining the number of visits I would make to the salon and designer clothes I could own if I had the amount they claimed to earn. I then remembered reading somewhere that the rich do not like wasting their money on such vain things as they are busy investing, so I stopped judging. As people who wanted to join the investment were called to take photos, I also stood up and I left for my house. Just like other business ideas, I also failed to understand this. I left it for those who know better.

As the pressure to lose weight increase, I have decided to do it a day at a time. Birthday week is still on but from the look of things bad behavior ended with the cake. The scale says I have added two kilograms. That was expected bearing in mind my current hairstyle and the fact that I have not been exercising but I will get there. I will soon be tormenting some souls with my before and after photos. I promise.

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56 Comments
  1. Love the honesty. The ups and downs are expected;
    you’ll be back on the wagon…sooon….as i look
    forward to a slice of cake.

  2. I so relate to the pressure… everyone around me is either getting married or having babies,cant help but wonder did i miss the memo?

    1. Lol! I share the same sentiments. There has been a baby boom and don’t even get me strated on the wedding invitations!!!!

      1. i know the pressure and feeling too well, until relatives start whispering in low tones, “kana ena gathina” , i don’t have a problem,my timing is just too different from the masses.

  3. Hahaha….I was also conned into going for one of those meetings by a ‘friend’ of mine-waste of time SMH. Keep up the awesome writing and don’t loose the motivation as you proceed on the weight loss journey 🙂

  4. can buy botis of whiskey halafu we sell shots to people on the streets.” Hehehe chero come on!
    I also got invited by a friend to such a meeting where everyone is extraordinarily hyped up and make you feel like you are such a failure in this life …
    Nice read though

  5. Lol Chero..something about this whole post is very funny.As people who wanted to join the investment were called to take photos, I also stood up and I left for my house.

  6. Now you’ve made me want to eat cake, with cream on it. Can’t remember the last time I had one of those.

  7. Chero,Do not feel pressurized to lose weight or conform to the expectations of society. Keep exercising to keep fit; To keep you motivated you should also be checking your cholestral level, fat percentage and your heart rate,I’m sure there will be some positives even if they do not show on scales…Nice read

    Maybe you passion in biz is to be a fendi lady dealing in shoes…maybe…Give it a shot.The good thing is that you wont be buying you own shoes but you will keep on wearing different shoes everyday and selling them off to unsuspecting customers

      1. Mara, off topic. My daughter is also called Mara. I’d love to know the origin of your name. If you dont mind

        1. Mara derive from the Bible, the story of Ruth and Naomie. Remember Naomie had lost her sons and while weeping to the Lord, she told Ruth “dO NOT CALL ME Naomi, CALL ME mARA FOR THE lORD HAS DEALT BITTERLY WITH ME” RUTH 1:20.

  8. Keep your eye on the goal.The challenges are just small detours which will make the win sweeter!

    Also, quit comparing yourself to friends and all.It’s a cancer that eats you up. Do what you love and are good at and everything else will fall into place. There’s always someone ahead of you and another behind you.

    You go girl!

  9. Keep your eye on the goal.The challenges are just detours which will make your win sweeter.

    Also, quit comparing yourself to others. It’s a cancer that eats you up. There’s always going to be somebody better than you and another worse off.So, do what you love and everything else will fall into place.

    You go girl!!!

  10. Your honesty & determination is very inspiring (ignore the clichéd compliment, it comes from a good place). Keep going!:-)

  11. My weight is spiralling…..gym didnt work out….have tried green tea,lemon tea,sugarless tea,no wheat…small portions. my next big thing is walking about 2km in the evening ! You inspire me though so far am doing nothing about it!

  12. Chero would you have quit your job to concentrate on being a caretaker?? ama ingekuwa side hustle hehehe. when you start exercising again the 2kgs will be easier to shed.

  13. Loved reading this . Not everyone can be an entrepreneur . All the best in your weight loss and staying healthy . Keep writing 🙂

  14. That 2nd paragraph…….I’m thinking, no I’m sure I’ve read it before. On a different blog. Plagiarism maybe??????

        1. I’m not rude,you are behaving like a politician by making unsubstantiated claims.If you are sure you read it somewhere, you should have waited to remember where you read before making such allegations!

  15. So just to motivate you. I am on a weight gain mission. Am targeting 55 currently at 50. I get major frustrations when I hit 49! All this eating and it’s not adding up (see what I did there!)

  16. by all means let us sell shots of whisky in town i simply love the idea especially to those queuing for shuttles and buses….. count me in 🙂

  17. Network marketing is not for every body I too do not get it.don’t feel guilty for enjoying your birth day unaruhusiwa.

  18. I totally feel you on the business ideas. Completely and most absolutely handicapped. I don’t mind contributing to the capital. but beyond that I can only give ideas on how to improve what is already there. Makes me question whats my purpose sometimes

  19. First of all, why do they all use the same ambiguously crafted message when inviting you for these presentations? Are they hoping that once you receive it you will immediately rejig your already packed calendar and/or drop everything that you are doing and make dash like Forrest Gump to the venue?

  20. Great post Nancy.
    I “appreciate” the blueballs (was your friend conning you, or were they all … forms of Apple’s late Jobs ‘simplicism’? =)
    Keep it up.

  21. As always, that was a fantastic read. All the best in your journey and do remember to maintain proper posture. This has helped me lose some belly fat and practically flattened my belly as my core muscles are encouraged to work even when I’m doing routine stuff like walking or sitting.

  22. Sounds like you have my type of friends Nancy…wote wako na business ideas and they have already started working on them. Talk about pressure. Me, well am just here waiting for some sort of light-bulb moment, the kinds I hear are worth a million dollars. But till then, am taking life one step at a time.

  23. Love the one for supposed multi-level marketers who have seemingly made it but are wearing ill-fitting clothes. Totally relate. I am not so good in business either and don’t bother with all the multi-level marketing fads going around. They will collapse as soon as they came up. Keep it up. You will get back on track, no worries. You are an inspiration.

  24. What part of the business are you guys not understand. Some of you guys have mentioned a few names of designers or places you shop or eat it. That’s what network marketing is, it’s telling people about a product that you use for are excited about and you get paid for doing so when they purchase. Most people have never taken time to try to understand the industry and it’s far from a scam or a scheme. Keep in mind people are becoming a business owner when they join the network marketing company therefore you need to learn how to be a business owner and not an employee. That’s where most people mess up there they come in acting like they are an employee and she get paid for hours and not productivity. Many of you will throw a lot of money away in traditional investment not understanding the fall risk and you think that’s okay for when somebody tells you something outside of the norm you cash it out or give it a bad name. Anyway that’s just my 2 cents from a business owner’s standpoint!