“If it works, it works”: CEOs on fear, faith and fresh starts in 2026

Eric Kimani, Palmhouse Dairies Executive Director

“I am getting younger and younger.”

What has brought you excitement over the course of the year?

It has ended on a strong note, having begun on a gloomy one, almost on all pillars of my life. My commercial interests and spiritual levels were down. Everything felt low. Now I feel rejuvenated and in good health. The companies are doing better than I thought, so I generally ended better than I started.

How then would you describe the year, with a word, a song, or a drink?

Haha! It was a celebratory year for me. I was particularly happy with my health markers; I am in good health, but God forbid I don’t speak out of turn [chuckles]

What did you stop chasing in 2025?

It's becoming clearer that I can't chase time. I need to stop hurrying. I read that in book, “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry” by John Mark Comer. And if there is one thing I want to eliminate this year, it is hurry. I want to just enjoy life and take it a little slower.

But you've also written a book on abundance (Wisdom For Abundant Living). What has been abundant in your life in 2025?

Without sounding religious, the abundance of grace in my life. Everything, the puzzles seem to fall in place, and I can only call it unmerited, unearned, and undeserved. I'm grateful for the grace upon my life.

Is there a habit you returned to or left in 2025?

The one habit I have consolidated and improved totally is keeping fit. I've improved on my spiritual anchoring.

What else have I left to improve? The problem with me, I only see the good parts [chuckles]. And, I'm keeping more commitments to myself.

What boundary are you drawing for 2026?

Well, I think Alan Jackson has sung the song, “The Older I Get.” The older I get, the more I pray, and also the older I get, the more I don’t give a damn [chuckles].

If there's a truth or a tip that you could give to anyone stepping into 2026, what would that be?

Positivity and an abundant outlook, even in the midst of all the difficulties. You know, funny enough, life just happens to all of us, whether you live in Mathare or Runda or wherever.

Life will still happen, whether you like it or not, so why not face it with a more positive outlook and a more abundant belief, and agree with yourself that it will be okay and it will be better?

What is a small shift you will make that will make the biggest difference in 2026?

To take it easy. I tend to do a bit too much, too many things. Good things, nothing I regret, but I want to just take it a bit easier.

Did you keep the promises you made to yourself in 2025?

The two resolutions I kept were: One, I was to keep closer to my friends. A couple of friends whom I hadn't seen for many years I didn't see or hadn't kept my promise to check up on them. That I have done. And two, is to get closer to God. I have done better than that previously. That was a resolution I made, and I have been a better person by far.

What has been 2025’s most unexpected drift?

My daughter gave birth to a baby boy. That was the greatest gift this year and it lifted me. Now I keep getting younger and younger [chuckles].

Grace Murugi, Digital.AI Founder

“If it works, it works.”

What was this year's most unexpected gift?

After years of being in the corporate space and working for Scan Group, Safaricom, and Oxfam International as a digital strategist, I decided to gift myself and start my own company that is empowering organisations and individuals with knowledge in the AI space. Now I get to set the tone, do the things that I am most passionate about, and set the culture for my organisation and empower people, which is my way of giving back.

What fear or longing did you confront in 2025?

Fear of the unknown. When you're starting an organisation, you don't know what's going to happen on the other side, whether it will or won’t work out. But everything you have ever wanted is on the other side of fear. If it works, it works. If not, we pick ourselves up and go again.

What mistake did you make in the year that has set you up for later success?

I've always been authentic. So maybe the mistake is not toeing the line or keeping the peace, and that sometimes comes with consequences. I speak my truth, and that sometimes lands me in trouble.

What's a personal memory you are carrying into 2026?

Remembering my why. It keeps me focused, and my why is family. I have a picture on my phone, a wallpaper of my family, and when things get thick or I am frustrated, I simply think about my family and want to keep going.

What habit helped you survive the year the most?

Resilience. Keep going, even when things are not going as expected. Actually, the way I started the year and the way I'm ending it are completely different. I have a totally different life, and I owe that to resilience.

What are you personally more careful about now that you were least careful about last January?

How I spend my day. I was a yes-er to everything, so the way that I spend my time has definitely become more strategic now than it was in January. I would join meetings and attend events, and do all sorts of things. Now I am particular about how I am spending my time.

What's your kick-ass moment of 2025?

Launching my firm. That was brave.

Describe your 2026 with a song, a dance, or a meal.

2026 is a dragon fruit-flavoured ice cream. You don't know what's coming, but if we're brave enough to do the things you said we do, we will be surprised by the outcome.

What do you hope 2026 will answer for you, personally?

I'm hoping that 2026 will be calm and that I'll be brave. I'm an adrenaline junkie. I've done things like skydiving, bungee jumping, ziplining et al. but I think at some point I stopped being brave.

I'm hoping that 2026 will be the year when I go back to those things. Also want to learn a new skill, and I am thinking of going deep sea diving and later to Barista school to learn how to make coffee professionally. If you know a good school, tell me.

Claire Munene, AJUA Chief Experience Officer

“I will still choose the road not taken.”

What has been the most exciting part of your year so far?

Accelerated learning and testing out the things I'm learning in the area of customer excellence and AI. The failures are now making it easy to know which situations I can avoid.

Personally, the most exciting thing this year has been the book project “Why Intentionality Matters” and getting together with women and going around and sharing my experiences and my journey so that other people can pick up and grow.

I'm blessed to have had an opportunity to be able to pour into someone else's life from my own experience.

When you look back over the year, what feelings come to you?

Roller coaster, and the periods of silence where you just had to be still to think and move forward. Roller coaster in the sense that things move very quickly around the bend, and then you come to the slow places where you need to adjust the tempo again. It’s been like a dance whose music you don't know, but you have to pick up the tune.

If I were to freeze a moment in time for you in 2025, which one would it be?

Whoa. Rest with my family, a week away in Shela at the Coastal region during the Easter period.

What did that do for you?

It was amazing because it was not just my nuclear family but also my in-laws and my mom. It was a time to share and catch up with how everybody was doing and to rest, refresh and reset. And enjoy.

What are you leaving in 2025?

Haha! Trick question that one. There is a word that keeps flashing in my head, but I am worried about saying it. The word is high-pressure, and how to allow seasons of high pressure, but the problem is not the pressure, but the acceptance of it. I want to make an intentional choice not to take on other people’s pressures. How do I say that in English? [chuckles]

How are you different from the Claire you were in January 2025?

I am more resolute. When I am pulled into things, I pace myself, rather than jump in hook, line and sinker. I need to live a little, and many times when you give yourself away too much, you leave nothing for yourself, and that can be exhausting. Leave something for yourself.

Describe your 2025 with a meal, a song, or a dance.

It was definitely not Rhumba haha! 2025 was like making naan bread. I actually learned how to make naan bread by the way, and it has different ingredients, flour, yeast, water et al.

My 2025 begun with setting plans, commitments and responsibilities, but now the kneading is the hardest part, and that could be messy but it built the strength and structure that I needed. And I know I have to learn some patience, because even after kneading the dough, you set it aside to rise.

That period of waiting and the patience required have been extremely uncomfortable, and that is how 2025 feels—because naan cooks on intense heat and high pressure.

What is your word for 2026?

From the author Robert Frost. This is my rendition: I will still choose not the road less travelled but the road not taken.

Dr Maxwel Okoth, founder of Ruai Family Hospital

“This is my year of take-off”

What has been this year’s most unexpected gift?

Cutting all the noise and listening to myself and choosing inner peace.

What has inner peace looked like?

Self-awareness, clarity of mind and knowing what you can and cannot handle. Basically, not trying to be a hero.

What belief or assumption about yourself has this year proven wrong?

We plan, but things won’t always go according to type. Our industry has had a lot of turbulence this year, and you may have had your own strategic plans, but the world has its own, and you need to be agile to adjust and conform to the realities of the moment.

What has been your proudest moment of 2025?

Understanding the value of family and just being present. I have achieved a lot personally. I finally floated on water, after 38 years [chuckles]. I can’t swim, but I can float haha! And I have been consistent in working out.

Did you keep the resolutions you made in 2025?

I needed to know how to ride a bicycle, but I haven’t done that. I learned how to float on water, and I resolved to start playing golf, which I have. I also went back to business school.

How are you different from the man you were in January 2025?

I am more aware and have come to know when to say no, which was a struggle for me because I almost thought I’d please and be there for everyone, forgetting myself.

Nowadays, I listen to myself first, “Is it worth it?” Still, I also plan to be a more present dad, and just trying to be there for the business, despite it being a tough year, but making things work all the same.

How have you kept sane despite the upheaval of the year?

I was losing it [chuckles]. Working out consistently has really helped me a lot. That and prayers, waking up every morning and whispering to God a prayer that He may hold you despite the upheavals.

Describe your year with a song, a quote, or a meal.

There are two songs I have sung this year. One is “Gracefully Broken” by Tasha Cobbs Leonard. Sometimes God breaks you to fix you. The other is a Tanzanian song, by Neema Gospel Choir, and the song is “Nikurejeshee.”

What is your top tip for 2026?

A man’s toughest years are their mid-30s to their 40s. I close the chapter of my 30s as I enter the 40s in 2026, and I want to believe I have run the runway, and I am ready for take-off; and I pray to God to allow me to take off to the highest of heights.

This is a year of take-off, despite the challenges, we stay focused and keep pushing on. Have the faith that God will make it work.

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