Street Wise...She Asked for Money, But She Got a Cigarette Instead

We were all waiting at the bus stop, I checked the bus schedule and wondered why the bus was late. It was Sunday 2 p.m. Normally these are not busy times and there should be no delay. Anyway I decided to be patient with bus service and try not to get frustrated so I paid attention to what was going on around me. Then I noticed the lady sitting on the floor about 5 yards away begging.

Now let me confess. Sometimes I push myself hard to not feel pity for beggars on the street. I remind myself of the stories and reports I hear of how some of them are richer than the person who takes pity on them and gives them some money.

I also hear that sometimes they are the robbers or pick pockets molesting innocent people going about their daily lives. So my guard was up on this occasion. Then I noticed an act that completely changed my perspective. A gentleman (or should I say 'gangsta') drew near the lady and within seconds passed her some cigarettes, quickly she collected them and pretended nothing had happened. She continued begging. 

Who was fooling who? Is she really a beggar or just part of a gang? Did she really need cigarettes or money or food? Is the man who gave her the cigarettes doing her any good? 
Witnessing that act changed my thoughts about begging generally.  A beggar is not always looking out for food and maybe they are vulnerable to all kinds of exploitation. Their original reason for begging may be an insight into a much larger issue at the core of that practice.

My social media strategy

Wow! Planning for your online presence can be both exciting and daunting at the same time. Decisions about who your target audience are, their demographics for example age, income level, geographical location can determine the success and visibility of your online brand.

Having understood and articulated my target audience, I am now looking at which social media platform to use. Facebook jumps out quickly to me, but I want to be careful not to allow the non-professionalism typical of some of the facebook pages I have seen affect my brand. I also thought Twitter would be perfect for reaching those business and political leaders and policy makers across both the north and south but struggled with the thought of LinkedIN as well.

I am sticking with Twitter and Facebook for now, aiming to create a strong presenc ethere and then growing my network by adding LinkedIN in the near future

About Me

I am Gloria. Born and raised in Africa, living in the UK. I work in financial services and have had stints with public sector and non-profits. Please note that who I AM is not what I DO. In an ideal world they might be the same. In my world, they aren't. And that's OK.
I have a story. And I have a mission. But first of all I am Me.
Unapologetic me. unashamedly Christian.