Being a content creator comes with the amazing opportunity to share your creativity with an audience. You bring them into your world, take them on a journey and teach them something new. I’ve had the opportunity to consume content from African creators on various platforms and although I’m not the content creator police, there are a few things I think they should avoid.

The Comparison Trap

Comparison kills creativity. There’s no harm in learning a few tips from other creators to make your content better. However constant unhealthy comparison will keep you from focusing on what your audience wants. Be yourself, be unique. You might have fairly similar content to another creator but you can’t deliver it the same way. Your audience will appreciate that about you.

Being Lazy

When you set out to be a content creator, decide that you’ll put in the work to ensure that your audience is served well. There’s a tendency for creators to think about the benefits they’ll get from a content platform before they think about the work they need to put in. Granted, some content creation platforms will present opportunities for your benefit but that shouldn’t be your main motivation or else you’ll get impatient and quit. Put in the work. You reap what you sow.

Selling Their Soul

When it comes to the issue of working with brands and advertising their products, don’t be tempted to do it only ‘for the money’. I’ve seen African content creators on Instagram who advertise products all the time. You can tell that it’s all about the ‘schmoney’. Your followers trust that you will endorse products that are reliable and that you trust. It won’t be long before they recognise that you’re pushing brands for your own benefit without them in mind.

I’ll end by saying that Africans should be proud of their heritage. We have rich cultures and the ability to tell our authentic African stories. We shouldn’t shy away from that. The tendency to make our content westernised is something of which most of us are victims. Can you imagine someone looking at all your content and not even getting a single hint that you’re an African?

Over to you.

Truth be told, I haven’t been following Ugandan bloggers. The few that I used to follow weren’t consistent and when they dropped off the face of the world wide web, that’s where it ended. Early this year, I discovered a few more Ugandan bloggers. This #winterabc2020 challenge has taken it to a whole new level. Where have all these bloggers been and how did I not know about them?

Benjamin Watch

His posts are interesting and quite detailed. They tug at your emotions, whether it’s sadness, joy, or surprise. He speaks his mind without reservation on a multitude of issues. He’s also a supportive blogger who does his best to share the voices of fellow African bloggers by retweeting their posts and sharing their links. He goes the extra mile to read and comment on all these posts. That’s dedication if you ask me.

Dr. Paul Kasenene

Dr. Paul Kasenene is a medical doctor who specialises in nutrition, weight management and functional medicine. As I’m on a health journey, I have a particular interest in his content. His blog is a plethora of information that will make the hardcore sweet addict give up their guilty pleasures for better health. He also touches on some emotional health issues since they eventually affect our physical health.

Lisa Romans

Besides the fact that she’s an amazing writer, her words exude inspiration. I’m usually a skimmer of long posts, but her words are captivating and take you on an exciting journey that you don’t want to end. To me it feels like she’s smiling every time I read her posts. It’s like having a conversation with a friend. Also, we agree on the ideal dream destination, Maldives!

Those are my top 3 for now. Number 4 and 5 will come in due course and I’ll add them, hopefully before the challenge ends. As I’ve only been exposed to other Ugandan bloggers for a little bit, I haven’t been able to interact with a lot of their content in this short time.

I can’t claim that I’m into social media that much. I just opened a twitter account a week ago and it still looks like a complex jigsaw puzzle. I’m mostly on Facebook and Instagram, although I’m more of a consumer rather than a creator – something I’ve decided to change this year. Nevertheless, I still have lessons to share.

Stick with the platform that works best for you

You can’t be everywhere and that’s fine. Each platform has their pros and cons. Try each one out and see what works for you. It might be the limited characters on Twitter to suit your short punchy thoughts or the visual nature of Instagram to share your love for pictures and photography. I’m just starting with Twitter and it might be too early to tell but I think it’s awesome.

There are mean people out there

Keyboard warriors are for real. They are quick to tear you down and make you wish you never existed on the face of social media. Sometimes it’s in response to what you’ve posted. This means that when you make a post, you should be ready to stand by it no matter what. Posting anything on the internet means it may not resonate with everyone. But some people are just plain old bullies. You must have a thick skin.

Comparison can kill your creativity

Social media has led some people into a depression because they thought their life wasn’t good enough. I’ve seen them admitting it on YouTube. It’s hard not to compare your life to others’ sometimes. All this does is stifle your creativity because you think you have nothing to offer. Be you. Get better everyday. Your only competitor is who you were yesterday, that’s all you need to know.

Take a hiatus once in a while

Social media could disappear just the way it came. Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating a little bit. My point is, you can live without it for a couple of days. The constant notifications, scrolling on the phone, requests for immediate responses, DMs, interesting posts can take a toll on you. Once in a while, turn it all off, clear your mind. Work on personal projects and connect with those around you.

What have you learnt from social media? #winterabc2020

I considered skipping today’s challenge for #winterabc2020. The topic got me feeling all sorts of emotions. I’ll do the best I can.

Emmanuella wasn’t always called by that name. When she was born, her parents named her ‘Linda’. She changed her name several years later as an adult following a personal spiritual experience. It was a morning in December, almost Christmas time, Emmanuella came from Emmanuel ‘God with Us’.

On Thursday 14th July ‘many’ years ago she was born at the University Teaching Hospital in Lusaka, Zambia. She was a big baby. In fact, when her mother was pregnant, the midwives thought she was having twins. She went to Baba’s Nursery School and then Lake Road School.

At age 7, her father had to move back to Uganda for work. The family of 5 started a new life in Uganda in December 1990. Her sister was 5 and her brother was about 2 months old. She started school at Kampala Parents School but something changed. All of a sudden school wasn’t fun anymore. She missed her old friends. She struggled with class work.

In 1995, her parents took her to a girls’ boarding primary school in the hopes that she would focus better. The trauma of boarding school soon faded and she settled in. She met some awesome people and made some good friends. Her handwriting got better, thanks to the school headmistress who was so strict on cursive handwriting. She checked every student’s school book for progress. Secondary school and University taught Emmanuella the joy of friendship, the pain of loss and the hurt of accusation and betrayal.

Emmanuella met Jesus in September 2009. He changed her life. That’s when she learnt the meaning of love. Pure and unconditional love.

She got married to her high school friend George in 2010 and had two sons, Ezekiel and Kenaniah in 2015 and 2018 respectively.

After 10 years of working in an industry she was not passionate about, she found her purpose through writing. Writing makes her feel alive. Whether it’s a simple blog post, an article for a client or a meaningful social media post, there’s something about writing that gives her life meaning.

Emmanuella is still on a journey of self discovery.

Thinking about it right now makes me salivate a little bit. You can’t deny the inviting aroma and rich flavour of smoked fish mixed with groundnut sauce. In Luganda, it’s called ‘ekyenyanja mu binyeebwa’ loosely translated to mean ‘fish in groundnuts’.

A couple of years ago whenever I was in the middle of town by lunch time, I’d go to a small cozy local restaurant to enjoy this dish. After a little while, they stopped taking my order because they knew exactly what I wanted: ‘ekyenyanja mu binyeebwa’. When cooked well, only a handful of dishes taste better than this mouth-watering combination. And boy did this restaurant cook it well. Sadly, the business closed.

Just like several other meals, each person has their own method of cooking it with their preferred added ingredients. Also, the quantity of fish and groundnut sauce depends on the number of people who’ll enjoy it. Trust me when I tell you to cook a little extra because you’ll have people wanting seconds of this finger-licking goodness – yes, sometimes we eat with our hands.

I adapted this method and tweaked it to my own preferences. You can tweak to your taste as well.

1. Wash the smoked fish thoroughly to remove any dirt. Carefully remove all the bones (especially for children and the elderly). It’s also nice to enjoy your meal without picking out bones repeatedly. Break up the fish into bite-size pieces. Cover and put aside.

2. Cut onions, grate some garlic and chop some tomatoes.

3. Heat a little vegetable oil in a saucepan, fry the onions until they start to brown. (If you don’t cook with oil, you can brown the onions with a tablespoon of water – make sure they don’t burn). Add the garlic and salt. If you’re into stock cubes and masala spices, you can add them at this point. I prefer mine without. Continue frying for a few minutes.

4. Add the tomatoes cover the pan. Cook with medium heat and stir occasionally.

5. Add the smoked fish pieces, then pour enough water just to cover the fish. Cover the pan and let it boil. Reduce the heat and let it simmer for two minutes. Remove the fish from the sauce, cover and set aside.

6. In another saucepan, mix the groundnut paste with half a litre of hot water and stir well until it’s smooth and thick. Pour in the fish stew, mix well and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and let it simmer until the sauce is cooked. Taste to check if the salt is enough. Add if necessary.

7. Add the fish pieces to the sauce, reduce the heat and simmer for two to three minutes. Serve hot. I love to pair it with steamed sweet potatoes or posho/ugali but any other staple will do. Don’t forget the vegetables.

An even tastier version of this sauce is when it’s steamed in a smoked banana leaf (luwombo). Don’t ask me how that’s done. For now, I only enjoy that when I visit a local restaurant.

Bon Apetit! #winterabc2020

I made it to day 2 of the #winterabc2020 challenge. Yippee!

I know, I know. You’re wondering how bad my self-discipline is, that I’d be excited about day 2. Well, if you knew the goings-on in my life right now, you might extend a little grace. But, like I said in yesterday’s post – no excuses!

When I first thought of starting a blog a few years ago, my intention was to write whatever came to my mind. I felt like there was so much going on in my head and I needed to put it down and share it. I went ahead to research what blogging was about and how to write great blog posts. There was a lot of information, most of which was was helpful. To be honest, some of it was confusing (in relation to my intentions).

For example:

‘Niche down. Have a specific topic.’

My reaction: ‘But my thoughts aren’t niched. One day it’s this, and the next day it’s that’.

‘Use the word ‘you’, not ‘I’.’

My reaction: ‘If I’m writing about lessons I’ve learnt and experiences I’ve had, how do I not use ‘I’?’

‘Use a paid platform so that readers will take you more seriously.’

My reaction: ‘Erm, let’s not go there.’

All this threw me off, and I didn’t start blogging for a long time because I wanted to do it right or not do it at all. I eventually realised that all the above advice was justified, especially for a professional blog. This year, I decided to throw out a lot of rules and start blogging anyway.

So, why do I blog? I’ve since settled for these reasons:

To inform

To entertain

To educate

To inspire.

My posts may not have a specific topic and there may be a bit of first person going on. But with each post, if one person will obtain information or find entertainment, learn something new or get inspiration, that’s my goal. That’s the purpose of this blog.

The sort of challenge where I must commit to a specific daily activity gives me the heebie-jeebies. I passed on a blogging challenge last month because I believed I wouldn’t stick with it. This month I’m throwing all negative self-talk out the window and believing that I can do it. A friend posted this challenge on a Whatsapp group. When I saw it, apprehension hit me first but I thought about it a little bit more and said to myself, ‘Hmm, why not give it a try?’ So here goes.

Introduction

I’m Emmanuella Baliddawa Akankwasa from Kampala, Uganda. I love Jesus. I love words. Reading is my thing. Writing is also my thing, and I’m still learning. Career-wise, there’s a lot of rediscovery and reinvention going on because such is life (more on that in another post). Currently, I work as a freelance writer/copywriter. I help businesses connect with their audiences through written content like blog posts, social media content, and so on. I’m also the wife of my sweet high school friend (lol) and mom of two amazing boys.

Commitment Pledge

I commit to posting consistently on this challenge until 30th June, except weekends. No excuses. When I feel unmotivated to write, I’ll do the one thing to get me back on track and that is to just start writing (sorry, no clever advice here).

Let the #winterabc2020 blogging challenge begin!

I was minding my own business in the bank, waiting for my turn to transact at the counter. I think I was reading a newspaper. All along he had been sitting there, at the manager’s desk. I could only see the side of his face, so I thought that I was mistaken. Then he turned and I saw his full face. I froze. All of a sudden, my heart started pounding and I no longer felt like reading the day’s paper.

Memories of being teased and bullied in primary school flooded my mind. Interestingly, every time I thought about it before that day, it didn’t feel like this at all. I had no idea that I would feel threatened when I saw ‘my bully’ almost 20 years later. That day in the bank, I still considered him a threat to me. I remembered his name, both his names. He hadn’t seen me so I made sure to lift the newspaper to cover my face completely, just in case.

When it was my turn to go to the counter, I did it swiftly, looking away so that our eyes didn’t meet. By the time I had finished my transactions, he had left. I kept thinking to myself, ‘Why do I feel like this almost two decades later?’ It’s more than likely that he’s not the same person he was then. Everyone grows and changes. I’m not the same person I was a year ago, let alone 20 years ago. So, why was I threatened? The more I thought about it, the more I realised that it was a painful event in my life that I never addressed. After 20 years, I needed to free myself from something I never knew was still there.