Talking about my #MightyAfrican life, experiences, goals, etc through the #KonnectKouch
On one fine day in 2019, one member of Cape Coast Konnect - Lex Williams - had a bright idea. He asked that we have something like "hot seat" in this WhatsApp group run by the GhanaThink Foundation. We started a discussion around this and the result was the Konnect Kouch, a version of hot seat 
in Konnect Groups for its members. Since then, at different times and in different Konnect WhatsApp groups, we would have had Konnect members 
to volunteer as a Kouchee to be on the Konnect Kouch, on Saturdays & Sundays starting from 2:33pm 
. This is basically a personality interview. We at GhanaThink moved this #KonnectKouch into some of the Konnect meetups (3 hour networking events mostly in the weekend evenings) and also to Barcamps (free networking forums on Saturdays).
1 of our GhanaThink members, Mildred Adeaba, earlier in 2024, encouraged that we should run this #KonnectKouch for GhanaThink Members (in our own WhatsApp group). I volunteered to start this off. It was an exciting conversation, Mildred was introduced to GhanaThink by her elder sister, Marian Adeaba. She has been the Resources Lead for Barcamp Accra since covid-19. I have packaged some of the questions she and others asked to do this #MightyAfrican blog post. It talks about my life, interests, future, etc.
I'm Mildred and I'll be your moderator on the knonnect kouch today. Let's get to know @Ato Ulzen-Appiah more.Mildred Adeaba: What is your full name, and where are you from?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: My full name is Ato Kwamena Ulzen-Appiah. I don't use the Kwamena officially though. If you didn't know, Ato is a name for a Fante boy born on Saturday. I'm from Elmina. 
Mildred Adeaba: In which towns have you lived?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I've lived in Kumasi, Syracuse, Cambridge (Boston), Stanford, and Accra.
Mildred Adeaba: Tell us a fun fact about Elmina.
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Elmina is the first place in Sub-Saharan Africa that the Europeans first came to. It has several tourist attractions, including a walking tour that also includes the Elmina-Java museum, a museum about Ghana-Dutch history which is run by my uncle in honour and memory of his father.
Mildred Adeaba: Tell us about a childhood memory that shows how you grew up?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I used to frequent the library at KNUST campus to play tennis, football and read newspapers & lots of books to learn about trivia.
Mildred Adeaba: What's your religion? Where do you worship if you are religious? Have you changed places of worship before? If so, what was your precious place of worship?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I'm Catholic. From birth. I am a registered member of Christ The King Catholic Church in Cantonments, Accra like @Michael Sedinam Tenu but unlike him, I hardly go to church.
Mildred Adeaba: Interesting!! It must be nice to be able to trace your lineage.
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Yes. Ulzen is a Dutch name. My uncle - Thaddeus Ulzen - was interested in our genealogy, and that work led to the museum.
Mildred Adeaba: Eeeiisshhh!! Oookay! Conversation for another day.
Yeap.
Mildred Adeaba: Are you single, dating or married? If you are dating or married, how did you meet your partner?
What do you look for in a partner to date?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I'm married to Tracy Ulzen-Appiah (nee Asare). We got married on my birthday, December 31, 2016. I met her on July 24, 2009 through my cousin Jamie somewhere in Maryland (aka Maryland). Not Virigina o (Virgin land) 
I look for someone who is beautiful, bodacious, smart, is also interested in me, hard working, can take care of a home, we can vibe, cares about Ghana, etc.
Mildred Adeaba: What is your current occupation? How did you get into it?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I'm a social entrepreneur and a manager mostly now.
I got into social entrepreneurship thanks to GhanaThink, which we started in 2004/5. I got into management when I landed my dream job with Google, that's the professional role I've mostly played since 2011.
Mildred Adeaba: Who did you look up to growing up and why?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: As a child, I looked up to Kwame Nkrumah and Nelson Mandela. I wanted to be a very great man, I've always had a lot of ambition from childhood.
Mildred Adeaba: They were good role models then because you're a great man. 
What is your birthday and how did you celebrate the last one?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I was born on December 31, 1983.
For the last one, I soaked in love from family and friends, had a get-together with some friends at a Kenyan restaurant and then took my family out for a Chinese buffet.
Mildred Adeaba: What are your goals for this year? And the next 5 years?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: 2024 personal goals: * Write a lot more, and starting working on a book called Positivity Rules. * Make more progress towards building a house * Exercise regularly.
5 year goals: * Own 2 houses * Have 3 books out * Work on GhanaThink full-time
Mildred Adeaba: December!!
Best months to be born. What was your earliest achievement?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Winning an art competition in primary school. Unfortunately, I started to have other passions and lost my art talent.
Mildred Adeaba: Wow!
I can't wait to read your book. Looking forward to seeing you accomplish them. Tell us the best advice you've ever received.
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Hmmm, this is a tough one.
The first one that comes to mind is from my immediate mentor and GhanaThink co-founder. It's about marriage. He said, "marry someone who you know how to resolve disagreements and fights amicably and easily with".
Mildred Adeaba: Solid Advice!
Mildred Adeaba: Which GhanaThink member here did you first meet in life?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Erm, the first GhanaThink member here that I met in life that would be Nii Nai-Kwade, from when I was in Presec.
Mildred Adeaba: Which GhanaThink member here did you most recently meet in person?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Most recently, the GhanaThink members I met were Herbert Acheampong & Sekyibea Ofosu on Tuesday for a Barcamp Takoradi meeting.
Mildred Adeaba: How has being a GhanaThink member benefitted you?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I can 100% say that being a GhanaThink member helped me start my first startup Museke and helped me land my dream job at Google.
Mildred Adeaba: Take note ooooo! Utilise your GhanaThink network. What are your hobbies? Tell us more about those.
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I like sports, Scrabble, Sudoku, etc. I really love watching football and basketball especially, I use it to relax. I haven't played Words With Friends since my mum passed, but I should start playing again this year.
Mildred Adeaba: What is your favorite restaurant in this town?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: In Accra, it is Yenkodi. My wife and I love their food. I like going there for meetings, because I also like spending time in East Legon. Yenkodi is owned by a couple (both my friends) who also both mentored at Barcamp Accra 2017.
Mildred Adeaba: The floor is open. Ask @Ato Ulzen-Appiah questions. We're on the Konnect Kouch. 
Naomi Kokuro: Can you throw more light on this advice?
Mildred Adeaba: Chairman papapaa!!
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: 
hehehe. I can be a marriage counselor. Ask @Herbert Acheampong
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Marriage is a life-long journey. It's full of ups and downs, and lots of disagreements and arguments. If you don't find a way to resolve those before you get married, your marriage would lack a lot of happiness and joy for yourself and you both.
Emmanuel Billa: Why did you stop playing words?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: It was a guilty pleasure for me. I played it so much.
When my mum transitioned on, I couldn't bring myself to play it. I felt #somewaybi. I couldn't use that free time to be playing games.
Naomi Kokuro: So more like. Find someone, willing for you both to find solution to every issue and in an amicable way right?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: When you're dating someone, intentionally do something to make them angry and see how the situation is handled and how it goes. If it doesn't go very well, you probably don't want to marry that person
[7/7, 3:52 PM] Emmanuel Billa: What if the person doesn't get angry no matter what you do
[7/7, 3:52 PM] Naomi Kokuro: Then you didn't set the trap well .
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Then that person would be a really great partner for marriage
[7/7, 3:54 PM] Naomi Kokuro: People can fake ohhh
[7/7, 3:55 PM] Ato Ulzen-Appiah: That's also true. Disagreements would also happen even if your personalities are the same.
My first girlfriend - Phelele - was from Swaziland aka Eswatini. We very very very much alike. But we still had major disagreements
Naomi Kokuro: Why did it take you over 5 years to Marry Tracy and when did you know she's the one?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I don't think it's advisable to decide to marry someone you've not dated for more than a year. You need enough time to study someone, get to know their family and friends, and go through some good times together, bad times as I also described.
Naomi Kokuro: Come pay money so I connect you to my BFF Ato the marriage counsellor
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I knew she was the one when she came to Ghana once and wanted to spend a lot of time with me. This was in 2012.
Emmanuel Billa: It's inevitable, you learn from others mistakes so you don't make those same ones Anaa @Ato Ulzen-Appiah 
[7/7, 4:05 PM] Francis Kumadoh: Marry someone you can joke and play with. It will never be a dull moment for both of you.
Naomi Kokuro: @Ato Ulzen-Appiah what's your plans for GhanaThink I the next one year?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: As the director of GhanaThink, here are my plans from July 2024-June 2025
* GhanaThink should make more than ¢15 million in revenue.
* GhanaThink should hire a Head Of Business and have strong partnership leads
* We should have the biggest #NVDay ever
* We should get at least one client to pay for us to do a Barcamp for them
* We should have a bigger retreat than the 2024 one.
* We should be able to document impact stories for at least 233 people.
Naomi Kokuro: These are amazing. With collaborations, team work, etc. This is possible
Naomi Kokuro: Do you think GhanaThink or Barcamp has enough publicity or awareness in Ghana?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Short answer is no.
Naomi Kokuro: Thank you for your truthfulness
Mildred Adeaba: @Ato why the fascination with 233 and why is 2 truth and a lie your go to travel game?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I blogged about 233 here. Basically, it is Ghana's number because +233 is Ghana's country code.
Mildred Adeaba: @Stephen Harmony Asampana @Patrick Keli Atitsogbui @BeneDict Isaac Amewu @Benjamin Adadevoh @Herbert Acheampong @Sekyibea Ofosu and everyone here please ask @Ato Ulzen-Appiah your questions.
Michael Sedinam Tenu: I have come to enjoy 2 truths and a lie...
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: 2 truths and a lie is a great networking game. When traveling, people spend a lot of time together, and it's a game for people to learn more about each other and to while away the time.
Mildred Adeaba: @Ato Ulzen-Appiah tell us a bit more about your love for music. #Musicwedeyfeel
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: #MusicWeDeyFeel was started by my friend who has become a Museke co-founder. Tumi Diseko used to work for MTV in South Africa. She started this through Museke as a playlist of African songs.
Emmanuel Billa: @Ato Ulzen-Appiah tell us about your educational journey and your transition into your current profession and career
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I have some blog posts for this. I'd share them. Summarizing here.
* Nursery & basic school: KNUST Nursery & Primary Schools.
* JSS: UST JSS
* SSS: Presec-Legon
* Bachelor's: MIT
* Master's: Stanford
KNUST Campus times for me | Leading into leadership – the early years (Tech)
Presec times for me | Leading into leadership – the Presec years |
MIT times for me | Leading into leadership - The MIT Years
Stanford times for me | Tertiary Education at Stanford
I studied civil engineering at MIT. But while there, I took a lot of management courses because I wanted to learn how to be useful in many sectors and spaces. I settled in engineering because I wanted the engineering base, and I had studied Science in Presec.
I decided to do Construction, Engineering Management at Stanford because of the management bit. I had also started Museke, my first startup (African music online business). A year into the program, I knew I didn't really want to do engineering for my life, but I liked management, digital & tech, etc. I did lots of work - side jobs- in consulting, tech, analysis, etc. That eventually landed me at Google after I left Stanford.
Mildred Adeaba: Another key lesson from Ato: Be blogging about your life so you share links when people ask you questions.
Emmanuel Billa: What would be the first work you did
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I did lots of jobs while at MIT and Stanford. But the very first job I did was while in Syracuse in 2001. I was a teller at a supermarket, ringing what people are buying and making them pay. Like what they do at Melcom.
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Finance advice to a 23 year old: I'd definitely tell my younger self to start saving and investing and not spend as much money partying lol.
Love advice to a 23 year old: Date multiple people. You do not need to marry the first person you date.
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Business advice to a 23 year old: Learn under people, get mentored, find what you're good at and see how you can make money from it.
Naomi Kokuro: Ah. And to your 35 years you?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: That's too old lol. You're past youth at that point. I remember when Estelle Akofio-Sowah told me in 2011 when I was 27. She said: "You're doing all these youth youth things. One day, you would be 35 and then you wouldn't be youth anymore. And the you'd see"
Emmanuel Billa: What do you see as your biggest mistake in life and why?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Erm. Definitely not saving and investing more at earlier ages, like 23.
Naomi Kokuro: My final question to you; BFF what advice would you give me and Women like me In our ecosystem, Ghana etc
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Don't deal with corrupt politicians and people with no integrity. Build your credibility and reputation, and build your network to gain from better funders, employers, clients, etc.
Bright Atsu: What's the plan for GhanaThink for the next 5 years?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: GhanaThink plans by 2029:
* Make more than ¢15M yearly
* Be able to identify 150000 direct beneficiaries
* Turn our 4 programs into products
* Organize some of our initiatives in 3 other African countries
* Organize regular Konnect meetups in 5 different countries.
* Have stronger program and local teams that are more autonomous
Kwabena Osei-Owusu: Will you be interested in supporting a tech start-up yourself?? @
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: If I have plenty plenty money yes. I'm not a millionaire yet.
Naomi Kokuro: These are great plus the 1 year own I asked. Have they been documented? Is there a plan to that?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: No plan yet. But documented, yes.
Emmanuel Billa: How do you deal with mean superiors and supervisors? Emmanuel Billa: People who disliked you or showed some kind of malice towards you and things you did
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: I don't have time for such things. If it becomes a bigger issue, I'd resign. I had a bad boss at Google for instance. I resigned eventually to focus on my own things.
Emmanuel Billa: No stress 
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Yeap. I always say no one can stress me. Not my wife, my manager, my parents, etc.
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: You are the one who wants to see it as stress or make it stress you. Hope you figure it out.
Naomi Kokuro: I knew this was going to be the answer. Now I know paaa, I have been coached well well. Ato Ulzen-Appiah: You're in the spirit and learning and getting there
Naomi Kokuro: Great. A suggestion. With such Great Vision, a plan should be put in place to start working towards the 1 year and 5 years Vision. Kudos BFF
My Key Take Aways
- Document your life, so you can have evidence to show
- Be clear and know what to achieve, make sure to document them as well
- Your life should be a mixture of it all; Business, life , love, money etc
- If its taking away your peace of mind, move away and focus on your own things
Sandra Tom-Dery: @Ato Ulzen-Appiah if you were not working with google or Ghthink, what other job opportunities would you have explored?
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Good question. I'd have been working in consulting or a tech startup.
Mildred Adeaba: Thanks for sharing and letting us know more about you @Ato Ulzen-Appiah. Let's thank @Ato for being on the #KonnectKouch today.
Ato Ulzen-Appiah: Honoured. #GhanaThink #KonnectKouch
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