Here are the things Walter S. Odhiambo wanted as a child: A big job. A good life. A beautiful wife. That last one, especially, was a non-negotiable. So he went out and got one. He considers himself easygoing, affable, a man who has come to accept his lot in life. He doesn’t do small things, doesn’t do small talk, and doesn’t play small.
It wasn’t always like this. Before he became the National Director of SOS Children’s Villages International, before travelling the world, before his wife and all that jazz, there was a life of bricks on his back.
“I learned that even relatives can be plastic,” he says, of his childhood, “I became an adult too young.”
But he also learned Rhumba Bakulutu, the music of the gods, and how to hear his ancestors in the guitar riffs of Franco, Madilu, and Josky Kiambukuta.
What can you tell me about yourself that is not on your LinkedIn?
I am married to one wife, and have children. I’m a family man. And my hobbies too, how I spend my free time. I’m a big lover of Rhumba music, especially Rhumba Bakulutu.I dance quite a bit, haha! I enjoy life.
How did you get into Rhumba?
It’s one of those things that you acquire. I was born and raised in Mombasa. And as a small child, my dad loved me. I would be the guy he calls to go with him to meet friends on weekends, in Rhumba joints. At home, I was the house DJ, and when he had visitors, I did the selection [chuckles].
Then I developed a taste for reggae music, because in Mombasa, people loved reggae. When I joined university politics, I started listening to rap music – Ice Cube, RedMan, Ice-T, and NWA, the rebellious rap.
In my first three jobs, I went into modern music, soul and the like. I hung out a lot at Choices and Bubbles nightclubs. After that, I went back to Rhumba, and I was back home [chuckles].
What is the one thing you want most people to understand about you?
People tend to get my personality mixed up. They think I am an extrovert, but I am not [chuckles].
I’m actually an introvert. I get more peace when I recoil. Crowds suck my energy. That’s how I do my me-time: I recoil especially to water sounds. I’m a water person. I have a lot of energy, and when I withdraw, it sometimes makes me look like a snob, haha!
What kind of loneliness do you carry?
Leadership is lonely. But I guess that is for most people. Because of your leadership role, there are spaces you can’t enter with others. You need to be vulnerable with your staff, but as a leader, there is a level you can’t go.
From a family front, we were brought up as eight children, and then we all scattered, and I miss that.
Are you the firstborn?
No, I’m the third born. But I act like the firstborn. I’ve had the responsibility since I was in high school. Taking care of the family. Taking care of myself.
What did that cost you personally?
I did adult roles as a child. A lot of guys I know were still children in high school. Sometimes I look at the risk propensity – when I was starting work, I would see where my peers were investing. I could not do that. I had to take care of my siblings back home.
I could not take a risk like going abroad like some of my friends, because what happens to your people then? Even the choice of woman you have, you look at many factors that other people may not.
What did you learn too early?
I learned that relatives can be plastic; I should not have learned that. It created a wall between me and some of my relatives. When my father retired, and he used to take care of other people, they didn’t give back even though they could.
It shattered my innocence. I was not mature enough to learn that human beings can be vile and uncaring. Even as an adult, there are people I have struggled to warm up to.
Are you living the life you thought you would at this age?
Yes, as a child, I thought I wanted to be a leader. I have. I wanted a beautiful wife, which was a non-negotiable. I have a beautiful wife. A good job and a beautiful wife. I am living that.
I wanted to do better than my father; I decided that in Class Six, because when I was going out with him, I noticed there were people saluting him, and there were people whom he saluted. I wanted to be the guy everyone salutes [chuckles].
What does success mean to you beyond money?
Being happy. We really underestimate the value of just sitting and not having to think about things. It’s a very powerful feeling that, at this age, starts hitting you. Success is what I feel inside, being able to do the thing that makes me happy, the way it makes me happy, at the time it makes me happy. The right person brings fulfilment, sometimes I just sit and smile, looking at my family.
What habit has best served you in your life?
Hard work. I learned early that your life is in your hands. Nobody is coming to save you. When I’m focused on something, I work hard on it. I consider myself disciplined, and I can be very adaptable and resilient. Sometimes my wife thinks I’m too cold. I tell her there are things you can control, others you can’t.
And what unhealthy habits have you had to unlearn?
Sometimes, the issue of loving life too much gives me the wrong priorities. Sometimes I say, ‘If you die, you die’. But at the expense of something that probably could be better.
At the end of your life, what will you consider a memorable life?
If I can pick one, two, or three differences to planet Earth that I would have contributed to, I’d be happy. Why I have to do better than my parents is so that I can propagate standards in society. It should also be the same in these leadership roles, to make a difference, as God has been gracious to me.
In my clan, I have pushed the bar, despite the odds – the schools I went to and the jobs I have worked. In my retirement home, I have put up a Wall of Fame to remind my grandchildren of my contribution to Earth because of the work I’ve done.
Walter Odhiambo is a lover of Rhumba music, Formula 1 and family life, passions he says help him balance the pressures of leadership.
Photo credit: Lucy Wanjiru | Nation Media Group
Congratulations. What’s on your bucket list?
I really want to go to Antarctica. The place I’ve never been, there’s this resort I see on YouTube where you land on ice, you live in the middle of ice, Antarctica. I think it’s an 18-hour journey [chuckles]. They fly there once a year, and it is very expensive.
What are you looking forward to doing this weekend?
I’m a big fan of Formula 1. F1 returns after the problems we had in the Middle East. My team, Red Bull, is not doing very well, but I’m hoping in this break, they’ve sorted out the problems they have.
I’m a big fan of Manchester United in the EPL, and I can’t wait to win more games. I have a friend who is celebrating his 50th birthday, so we’ll be heading to Maanzoni with my wife for that.
Give us some good advice.
Enjoy your life. This is something I learned much later. Sometimes, we are too hard on ourselves. We don’t celebrate on the journey. If there is something you can do now, don’t wait; do it.
We miss small opportunities to celebrate, and then when it’s time to celebrate, we are too exhausted to celebrate. I used to have a colourful life, but I was always looking for that big day [chuckles]. Enjoy the journey.
