Segment: We Don't Like Systems Thinking - Ego and Fear of Change Held Back My Business

Summary

Konnected Minds Podcast – Episode Segment Summary

Episode Segment: "We Don't Like Systems Thinking – Ego and Fear of Change Held Back My Business"
Host: Derrick Abaitey
Date: April 7, 2026

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Overview

In this engaging segment, Derrick Abaitey and guests reflect on the challenges faced by Ghanaian event organizers in the UK, centering around the struggle with "systems thinking," the impact of ego and fear of change, and lessons learned from key business decisions. The conversation moves fluidly between personal anecdotes, industry-wide observations, and actionable insights, with particular focus on collaboration, risk, and growth within the Ghanaian diaspora events scene.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Sponsorship and Community Support

• Difficulties Accessing Corporate Sponsorships in the UK
  • The event organizer shares frustration over failed attempts to secure support from major UK banks and corporations, despite their public commitments to community responsibility. ([00:00])
• Openness to Partnership
  • The organizer clarifies he was "100% open to the idea" of partnerships, having secured some sponsorships from companies like Western Union and MoneyGram in the past, but laments lack of broader, sustained support. ([00:22])
  • Memorable Quote:

    "I wish they even did more. They did well for us, don't get me wrong. But I wish they did more." – Event Organizer ([00:30])

  • Regret that more robust mechanisms for partnership and sponsorship weren't in place "10, 15 years ago," admitting that having those structures would have led to greater success and impact. ([00:36])

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Systems Thinking, Ego, and Resistance to Change

• Cultural Aversion to Systems
  • The host recounts a friend's remark that "a lot of us Ghanaians don't like systems thinking," reflecting a tendency to improvise rather than work within structured processes. ([00:46])
  • Illustrative Anecdote: The example of resistance to being seated according to the church usher's directions highlights the discomfort with following systems. ([01:07])
• Personal Admission and Fear of Change
  • The organizer admits his own reluctance to embrace change, acknowledging that fear and habit impaired his decision-making:

    "I think we didn't. We don't like system thinking. And also some of us, including myself, we were scared for change. Change is good. Honestly. Change is good..." ([01:29])

  • Insight: There's consensus that overcoming this fear is crucial for both personal and business growth.

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Event Management Lessons: The Bisake Show

• Venue Limitations and Risk Assessment
  • The intense demand for Bisake’s show is highlighted: ticket sales exceeded expectations, but choice of a smaller venue limited potential. ([01:50])
  • External barriers: At the time, black event promoters faced discriminatory venue policies, with some venues refusing "black events" due to concerns over violence and mandatory risk assessment protocols (e.g., the A696 risk assessment form for all participants, especially DJs). ([02:00])
  • Regret and Reflection:

    "We could have sold that event twice, I'm telling you." – Event Organizer ([03:12])

  • Learning: Importance of adaptability—recognition that decisions made under constraints were sometimes errors, but also learning opportunities. ([03:33])
• Mistake Ownership and Life Perspective
  • The organizer takes responsibility for his decisions, reflecting that mistakes are part of growth:

    "You've got to be able to make mistakes to be able to correct them as well." ([03:23])

  • Emphasis on not being excessively harsh on oneself: "Would I have done better? Yes. Can I do better? Yes. In life you can always do better." ([03:34])

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Missed Opportunities for Collaboration

• Regret Over Not Including More People
  • Admits to often handling projects solo or within a close circle, neglecting broader collaboration that could have improved outcomes. ([04:26])
  • Observes that previous relationships with artists and promoters suffered due to a lack of understanding and smart alliance. ([04:36])
  • Notable Quote:

    "We wasted money, money that we didn't have, by competing against each other where we could have actually worked smarter." – Event Organizer ([05:04])

• Ego, Pride, and Competition
  • Discusses how ego and pride led to unnecessary competition among Ghanaian promoters, resulting in fragmented efforts and lost potential (e.g., multiple separate Independence events instead of one large celebration). ([05:11])
  • Acknowledges that now, wiser collaboration is being pursued.

    "Now I work very closely with Valodia, I work very closely with West Coast. You know, I get them well with our brand." ([05:47])

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Branding and Business Decisions: Scaling Beyond "Ghana"

• Potential to Globalize
  • There was serious discussion about removing “Ghana” from the “Ghana Party in the Park” branding, to attract a more diverse audience and elevate the event’s status (like London’s Wireless Festival). ([06:01])
  • Business Dilemma:

    "If you take Ghana away from it, what happens next?" ([06:17])

  • COVID-19 disrupted plans, but the intention was to potentially rebrand for broader appeal. ([06:33])
• Sense of Ownership and Innovation
  • Admits a pattern: “Ghana starts it and our neighbors take it”—implying innovation is there, but not always the follow-through to own or scale initiatives.

    "We tend to start a lot of things. We don't own it and somebody else will take it better and I'm part of the system that got it wrong. I have to say." ([06:55])

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Challenges With Artists

• Stories of Difficult Partnerships
  • The organizer shares frank recollections of working with Ghanaian music legends, particularly Daddy Lumba. Miscommunications and abrupt cancellations led to financial losses and stress. ([07:14])
  • Memorable Moment:

    "The fourth show I was just about to do with him again with...with a day or two to go, he called me to say he's not coming. Just like that, your money is ready. Come and pick up your money. Refund. Yeah. At that time I've already made a heavy loss." ([07:46])

  • Even sought intervention from high-profile community leaders to try to resolve last-minute show cancellations. ([08:00])

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Notable Quotes

| Speaker | Quote | Timestamp | |------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------| | Event Organizer | "I wish they even did more. They did well for us, don't get me wrong. But I wish they did more." | 00:30 | | Interviewer | "A lot of us Ghanaians don't like systems thinking. We just like to do things." | 00:46 | | Event Organizer | "We could have sold that event twice, I'm telling you." | 03:12 | | Event Organizer | "We wasted money, money that we didn't have, by competing against each other where we could have worked smarter."| 05:04 | | Event Organizer | "We tend to start a lot of things. We don't own it and somebody else will take it better and I'm part of the system that got it wrong. I have to say." | 06:55 | | Event Organizer | "Just like that, your money is ready. Come and pick up your money. Refund. Yeah. At that time I've already made a heavy loss." | 07:46 |

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Important Timestamps

• 00:00–00:36: Sponsorship struggles and looking back on missed partnership opportunities
• 00:46–01:29: Ghanaians’ aversion to systems thinking and fear of change
• 01:50–03:33: The Bisake show, venue limitations, and mistakes made under pressure
• 04:26–05:11: Regrets about not collaborating, wasted resources due to competition
• 05:21–05:47: Discussing ego/pride vs. healthy competition; movement towards smarter, collaborative work
• 06:01–06:39: The debate about “Ghana Party in the Park” branding and scaling beyond niche identity
• 06:55–07:06: Self-critique about Ghanaian innovation being capitalized by others
• 07:14–08:00: Difficulties working with Daddy Lumba and the fallout of last-minute cancellations

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Summary

This episode segment is a candid, introspective look into the business and cultural hurdles that have shaped the Ghanaian events scene in the UK. Derrick Abaitey and his guests dissect how fear of change, resistance to systems, and personal egos have held back collaborative growth, and share timely lessons on partnership, adaptability, and visionary branding. Through honest storytelling and incisive commentary, listeners gain a blueprint for facing adversity, learning from errors, and ultimately building smarter, more unified ventures in diasporic communities.

Transcript

[Event Organizer]

In the uk, we don't get that. Obviously in the uk, the Ghanaian community plays a very small percentage. So I can't go to Barclays Bank, I can't go to Northwest bank account. I can't go to. Although they all have. All of them have corporate community responsibilities. All of these people, you go to them, you don't get. You don't get a fire.

[Interviewer]

But were you actually willing to partner initially?

[Event Organizer]

Oh, yeah, I was.

[Interviewer]

You were open to that?

[Event Organizer]

I was 100 open to the idea because when I seek sponsorship from the likes of Western Union, MoneyGram at the time.

[Co-host]

You're smiling. Yes.

[Event Organizer]

It. It takes you back to me. I wish they even did more. They did well for us, don't get me wrong.

[Co-host]

But I wish they did more.

[Event Organizer]

And I like what a lot of the company and some of the business people are doing right now. It's something I wish 10, 15 years ago I had it. I would have done more and I done more and I've done better.

[Interviewer]

So I was speaking to one of my friends yesterday, David, and he says something that really, it really hit me. He says, a lot of us Ghanaians don't like systems thinking. We just like to do things. Mostly. Sometimes it looks like his ego, our

[Event Organizer]

default settings is something we, we picked up with, you know.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. So you come, for example, you go to a church. Right. Now his example was really sweet because you walk into a church and the Asha says, please sit here. And you, you start looking funny.

[Event Organizer]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

Because you've spotted somewhere you want to sit. But for the church and for her, she's thinking, this is going to align with camera position because we don't like systems thinking.

[Event Organizer]

I think we didn't. We don't like system thinking. And also some of us, including myself, we were scared for change. Change is good. Honestly. Change is good. Yeah. Change is very good. So at the end of the day, I think we should have allowed change. But look, it is what it is.

[Interviewer]

At some point you did a show for an artist Bisake.

[Event Organizer]

Correct.

[Interviewer]

It was Inc

[Event Organizer]

Town or one of the greatest show I've done. I. I put it as one of the greatest show I've done. I put it. It's. It's not only because I remember it just like that, the ticket sales, the speed in which the ticket moved. And I should have thought better about the venue. The choice of venue, Bisaked was on the high, extremely high. The location was good. But also, I must say, to our defense at the time of doing Bisaked, the black community in the UK Especially the nightlife. We also experiencing a challenge whereby to go to certain venues or to book certain venues, we're not being allowed because we was. There's various incidents happening at most of the the venues. So there's a new system that came in. You had to do what you call a696, meaning a risk assessment of everybody who's going to come to the event, especially the DJs. You're going to put their name down because let's be honest, there was a knife culture. You know, people go to clubs, they were fighting bottles, you know, it was becoming nasty. So we all put in one bracket. So sometimes when you go to some of these venues you want to use, in fact Bisake there I wanted to use a venue called Scala, which is not far from Scala and Kings Cross, which is not far from the Camden Hall. But when I went there, they said, no, they don't want to do a black event. What do I do? So I had to look for the next alternative and that was the hall before the event.

[Interviewer]

We had a chat and then I told him that, look, this venue, we really should have pushed for a bigger venue. And we got to the venue and There were over 200 people outside, inside were jam packed.

[Event Organizer]

We could have sold that event twice, I'm telling you, we could have sold that event.

[Interviewer]

But are these part of sometimes. Are these part of the. Your challenges change when you are maybe approaching artists. Are these sometimes?

[Event Organizer]

Yeah, sometimes I'm very. Yeah, that one is always, is always in the back of mine. But again, I will say that that's a mistake I've done. You've got to be able to make mistakes to be able to correct them as well.

[Interviewer]

Absolutely.

[Event Organizer]

Yeah. But I'm not going to be too hard on myself and I think of the challenge I faced at the time. Would I have done better? Yes. Can I do better? Yes. In life you can always do better. But what was facing me at the time. You have to put on Bisake Day. Everybody wanted to see B Day both in Europe and, and, and various parts of the world. Mansa, brother, brother, come on, hit. I had to do something, you know, or if not, let the time go. You cannot recall time.

[Interviewer]

Right.

[Event Organizer]

You cannot record time. You've got to deal with it now. So everything I've done at the time might be for whatever decision I took. Some of them have been mistakes and I've learned from them.

[Interviewer]

If you are recounting, let's say you are 90 years old and you are recollecting memories. Yeah. And you are like, I could have done that better. I could have done better. I could have done better. Give me one example.

[Event Organizer]

I think one major example. I could. I would have. I should have been able to get

[Co-host]

more people involved in most of the stuff I've done.

[Event Organizer]

I should have. Some of the artists I've worked with as well, I think I should have

[Co-host]

had a better understanding with them. I've worked with a lot of artists, some of them personal friends, some of them, they don't even speak to you because things didn't go their way, things didn't go away.

[Event Organizer]

And definitely one of the things I think the most important thing, I think I should have worked smarter alongside some

[Co-host]

of my promotional partners like Alodia, West coast, even DJ Abrante when he became a promoter stroke DJs.

[Event Organizer]

If I looked at some of the

[Co-host]

mistakes we did, we.

[Event Organizer]

We wasted money, money that we didn't have. We wasted money by competing against each

[Co-host]

other where we could have actually worked smarter.

[Interviewer]

There were times when we had about three done it. Independence, when we could have done it,

[Event Organizer]

could have done it big.

[Interviewer]

Yeah, yeah. But what were some of the things stopping you from doing that?

[Event Organizer]

Some is our ego, our pride. But then again, I always say to myself, we don't know. I want to have the same mobile phone. You might have a Samsung, I'm having Nokia. You may shop in Sainsbury's, I may shop in Tesco's. It's the same thing. Competition is healthy. Don't get me wrong, that's what it was time we were competing against. There's a community, it's a pool there. We'll market to them and get what you are to get. But if I think about it now, you see some of the things I

[Co-host]

think we could have done better, which

[Event Organizer]

in a way we are correcting some of them. I work very closely with Valodia, I work very closely with West Coast. You know, I get them well with our brand.

[Interviewer]

Here I was having a discussion with someone who said that Ghana party in the pack should have been like wireless today.

[Event Organizer]

100 agree? 100 agree. I think I got to be careful here. There was a time we wanted to

[Co-host]

take away the Ghana elements.

[Interviewer]

I just thought about it.

[Event Organizer]

There was a time we wanted to cross the Ghana out of it and make it because, yeah, it's not only just Ghanaians that come to Ghana partner, but then there's another situation whereby the

[Co-host]

Ghanaian community, 80 of them, which is the niche market, are the ones that come into the event. So if you take Ghana away from it what happens next.

[Event Organizer]

That's a business decision I had to take. But when, when the offer came in the year 2020, I was happy to

[Co-host]

take away the Ghana.

[Event Organizer]

I'm sure had Covid not coming when it was still a bigger part in

[Co-host]

the park would have been have a different title to it.

[Event Organizer]

Yeah, that discussion did happen. But then again that's wrong of me maybe thinking Ghana. Everything I do Ghana a Ghana. The titles of most of my events is all Ghana. Everything is Ghana related. Majority of the stuff people usually say

[Interviewer]

Ghana starts it and our neighbors take it.

[Event Organizer]

Yeah, I mean Ghana, we tend to start a lot of things. We don't own it and somebody else will take it better and I'm. I'm part of the system that got it wrong. I have to say.

[Interviewer]

You've worked with the likes of legend Daddy Lomba. What has been your. What was your experience working with them?

[Event Organizer]

Oh, difficult. Charles was very difficult to work with.

[Interviewer]

Let me stop you here for a minute. So if it's your first time watching Connected Minds or you have been here before but still have not subscribed, do us a favor because majority of the people that watch our videos have not subscribed. This doesn't help us grow beyond what we expect. So help us by hitting the subscribe button. Thank you. Now let's get back to the conversation.

[Co-host]

I've done three shows with that number, all in the uk.

[Event Organizer]

The fourth show I was just about to do with him again with. With a day or two to go, he called me to say he's not coming. Just like that, your money is ready. Come and pick up your money. Refund. Yeah. At that time I've already made a heavy loss. I remember. I remember it very well. And it was no fault of mine. There was no. No fault of mine. I tried. Look, I went that far. I, I remember even we went as far as cutting calling him Santini to intervene. That's because people have bought tickets to come to the show. We called to intervene. I think we even had some. We're ready to reach to the president's office just to ask dad to come.

[Interviewer]

Connected Minds podcast.