July 21st is a special day for me. Christmas, for me, comes in July - on July 21st! Today is a special July 21st for me because I'm starting a new decade of my life. As I enter this new season, I'm thinking of what the rest of my life will be. Life is short and we need to constantly be asking ourselves the question, "Am I living a life that is making a difference for those around me?" Bob Buford once said, “None of us know when we will die, but all of us, if we wish, can select our own epitaph”. Man's greatest challenge is to live a life that leaves a solid legacy behind him. This July 21st, I'm asking myself ten key questions that will determine the rest of my life. Here are the ten key questions that are foremost in my heart right now (there's a bonus question after the ten):

1. Am I going to be one of the boys and get the affirmation of mediocrity or will I step out of the herd and blaze a trail of accomplishment?

The idea of affirming people has been around for a long time. Dale Carnegie’s 1936 masterpiece, ‘How to Win Friends and influence People’, has helped so many people over the years to develop a people-centered perspective that has enabled them to empower others positively. I would highly suggest a reading of the book. When you focus on self, all you care about is personal accomplishments. But when you learn to affirm others, you empower them to accomplish great things.

2. Will I be enticed by the promises of wealth or will I live an epic life based on my true capacity?

Nothing excites me more than the person who gives up financial gain for the sake of developing his or her personal potential. When you live with such a philosophy, growth is never a problem. It’s potential-centered thinking that sets the pace for the kind of legacy a person will leave behind. Again, when one is not blossoming in life, the pre-dominant question is “What can I get (or receive) from this situation?” When one is in bloom, the pre-dominant question is “How can I grow in this situation?”

3. Am I tempted by the life of ease and play now, or am I motivated by the desire for living my best life possible?

There are two kinds of people in life: eagles and turkeys. Turkeys are usually show-offs. Nothing pleasures them more than just having fun - 24/7. Then there are eagles. These are usually focused and goal-oriented people. They'd rather engage in something that enables them to grow and grow others than just play and have fun all the time.

4. Do I want to live a life of comfort and convenience or will I soar towards a better life in which I make an even greater difference in society?

John F. Kennedy said, ” And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you -ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.” Most people are looking for security from their leaders. Those who blossom in life find ways in which they can significantly contribute to their country and community.

5. Am I going to settle for the acceptance of my peers and friends or will I aim for the excellence that comes from the pursuit of a cause that is greater than my personal dreams?

Do you know what happens to crabs in a bucket? As one of them tries to make it's way out of the bucket, the others will always pull it down. Think of people now. Many people don't even attempt to climb out of the bucket because they enjoy the acceptance of mediocrity. They'd rather hang with the boys and girls rather than excel with the men and women who are making a difference.

6. Am I satisfied with adding value to my community or will I go for the more rewarding joy of multiplying value to the world?

Value multipliers impact and influence other people greatly. The great thing about being a value multiplier is that you are able to empower people to be organized and do something positive. What a beauty! You multiply value by passing along the best in yourself to other people. I’m always pleased when I hear from people I led in high school and at the university. They always say things like, “Herman, that idea was awesome. It took our group to a whole new level.” While those short-term moves were great for whichever group I led, the best thing is that they felt empowered.

7. Will I be a jack of all trades and master of none or will I stand out from the pack and be a master of one thing?

This is my pet peeve. We engage ourselves in too many things nowadays. I acknowledge that in life we have to wear many hats but it becomes a problem when those hats don't fit us! You've got to find the hats that fit you. You were born with purpose and potential inside you. The sun's rays do not burn unless brought to a point of focus. Find your magnifying glass and let those rays burn!

8. Am I going to fill up my life with things and events or will I go for the right things and events?

Most people’s undoing is that they short-change themselves by being involved in too many things. Life for them is measured in numbers - how many activities, how many parties, how many friends, etc. They believe that the more events/activities they engage in, the better their lives will be. Wrong! We need to go for quality. It's not how much activity you engage in but the productivity you manifest! It's not how many parties you go to, but the quality of the parties. It's not how many friends you have but the richness of the friendships you have.

9. Is my prime desire to have a stable life or am I willing to tap into the joy of living significantly?

We live in a unique day and age. It's so easy to live a stable life by simply being mediocre. I think we need to go beyond stability to success. You may have seen the movie Click. I'll put my own spin on it. It's about this guy who wants to live a stable life and acquires a remote from Bed, Bath and Beyond that enables him to control virtually every aspect of his life. We can't control everything in life. Success comes when we engage with variables that we can't control. Let's go BEYOND stability. Let's strive for success.

10. Am I laboring in my work at the expense of my family or am I creating a legacy for those whom I love and society in general?

Nothing dominates life more than work. Every day we are working! Small wonder that the Sabbath was created for us. Even though we must work to keep in order to keep life moving, we must do so in the context of family. Work should not revolve around family but family around work. My family is my first priority, not my work. I am a family man, not a work horse!

Bonus Question

Am I living for the next level or developing a legacy for and with my family, friends and people in general?

People today are consumed with the idea of going to the next level in their lives, be it in their relationships, careers, finances or other area of life. July 21st might seem like going to the next level for me but I find the idea of going to the next level to be too limiting. My paradigm is that we need to be consumed with the idea of the kind of legacy we will leave behind at the end of the seasons of our lives. Thinking about your legacy every day, rather than thinking about the next level only, makes you a better leader. Thinking about a legacy makes you other-people centered while thinking about going to the next level tends to make one self-centered.

One of the issues that faces our generation is a dearth (or even the death, in some places) of rich culture. Globally, many ethnic traditions, langauages and rituals are being eroded as the massive flood of Western culture and thinking creeps over the previously unreached hills and terrains of non-western cultures. In almost every continent on earth, there are many aspects of culture that are being eroded. This erosion of culture largely started with the enslavement of peoples and continued with the colonization and conquering of foreign lands.

One of the primary aspects of culture that is being wiped out very fast in Africa is local languages. While I live in America, I normally call my home country and talk to my family there every now and then. It surprises me that most of my nephews and nieces do not speak my mother-tongue at all. They understand bits and pieces but they just do not speak it at all! Also when it comes to African attire, most of it has been replaced by Western attire. Granted, some of it was skimpy and had to be gotten rid of. However, there needs to be a certain aspect that is preserved.

Many indigenous customs have gotten lost over the years. The aborigines of Australia, the Indians of North America, the Maya of Central America, the Tuareg of the Sahara, the Maasai of Kenya, the San and Pygmy peoples, the Inuit of Canada, the Qashqai of Iran, the Sami of Scandinavia and the Chamorros of Guam are just some of the indigenous peoples that have lost many aspects of their culture in the name of civilization.

We can become custodians of culture by encouraging indigenous people to preserve their culture. Teach their way of life to new generations, write books in their native languages, build museums for storing artefacts and memoirs from their past. Of course we are not naive to not think that civilization will one day over-run the whiole world. But we must develop a way of becoming custodians of culture.

Ever since Senator Barack Obama declared his intention to run for the American presidency, I've been hounded by questions as to how I, as a Kenyan living in America, feel about his run. The questions have come while riding the Metro, eating at a restaurant, at Toastmasters meetings, at church, and believe it or not, while seated on a dentist's chair undergoing a root canal!

Kenyans are happy that a son of a son of their country is running for the presidency of the United States. It is an important time for America because a credible African-American with a real chance of winning is running. Citizens of both nations recognize that it is high time for Kenya and America to begin to work together and explore more avenues of interdependence.

Barack Obama is an American citizen. He is not running as a Kenyan. While we (Kenyans) share a connection with him because his father was a Kenyan, we do not have any claim to his attention as a possible president. If Barack Obama does become president of the United States, he has no obligation to the people of Kenya because he is an American citizen representing his people.

American missionaries have been going to Kenya for generations. The U.S. was an active supporter of Kenyan independence. And one of America's top legal minds and civil rights leaders - Thurgood Marshall, later a Justice of the Supreme Court - went to Kenya as a volunteer and helped to draft the first Constitution. Thanks to the Terminator's father-in-law, Sargent Shriver, thousands of young women and men have gone every year to live and work in Kenya as Peace Corps volunteers.

On the other hand, thanks to the "Kennedy Airlift," planeloads of young Kenyan leaders came to the United States in the months immediately preceding Kenya's independence. As a matter of fact, Barack's father came to the U.S. because of the Kennedy Administration's life-changing policy. My own father came to the United States in 1978 to study agriculture in Washington, D.C. and promptly flew back to Kenya for a senior position in the government. Right now, there are over 7,000 young Kenyans studying in colleges and universities across the United States, more than from any other country on the African continent.

Kudos to Barack for his audacity and good luck to his campaign.

Kenya is a country full of diversity. There are over 41 tribes and people of many nationalities from all over the world. What Kenya needs is a leader who will effectively represent each of these tribes. The current crop of leaders have outlasted their times. We need fresh leaders born after Independence. These are the people who will take the country to the next level.

Kenya, and many other African nations, need leaders that are trained and educated in leadership. Many of our leaders in the past have been poor leaders who stuck to power for too long. Our nations have been robbed of their potential because of individual interests that have practically disrobbed the countries of their national resources. It's time for new leadership.