When I take people to Uganda I usually give them some simple rules to remember. If they follow my advice, they usually do pretty well. Here they are...
1) When in doubt, keep your mouth shut.
2) Forget about time, enjoy the relationships
3) Always keep a flashlight and a good pocket knife with you at ALL times.
4) Never promise anything, even a "maybe" will turn into a "yes" after you are gone
These rules, cover just about any situation in Uganda. Oh, sure there are others, but these are core.
They are list in order of importance, but by far the biggest is the first one. So many times I have seen Americans get into a situation by talking too much. I believe most Americans think that if they keep talking then eventually they say something that will make a difference.
The reverse is actually true. A wise man will listen carefully to what is said and take the time to think about the response.
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