Name: Ms Alice Nkulikiyinka
Role: Country Director BPN Rwanda
QN: What does wellness mean to you as an African woman?
I am a proud African woman and it partially defines what are my needs and my goals; but I have a universal view on how I think about wellness. We tend to believe that wellness is all about relaxation, about feeling good and recharging our batteries. For me however, wellness is about being in control of your life and creating the circumstances to be in control. I believe more in having a wellness mindset, rather than searching for wellness moments. Wellness is about the freedom to do what I feel is right in a specific moment. It is taking responsibility for my mind, body and spirit for myself and for those around me.
Do you prioritize it?
Yes, it is an integral part of how I function. It’s not as if you live your life, then you break and do wellness and then you live your life again. Sometimes you truly stretch yourself and you need to take a break, but the essence is really about being in peace with yourself and living the life you want to live.
If yes, how?
I don’t compromise on what I believe is right. I only engage in what gives me peace of mind. I mentor others and encourage them to be in the driving seat of their own lives.
QN: Any wellness practices passed down to you that you are keen on passing on yourself?
On an extremely demanding project in Singapore, my CEO told me: “A leader has no working hours. Still, make sure to have one day per week that you don’t work at all.” It can sometimes seem that there is no time to take a rest or spend time with friends and family. But that is never true. There should always be time for that. Even more, you become a better leader if you learn to organize yourself to make time where you are mentally fully committed to family and friends.
QN: What has been your biggest lesson/ realization about wellness??
No matter what measures you take and what mindset you have for yourself, in a toxic environment you will lose your identity bit by bit. Gandhi put it beautifully: “I will not allow anyone to walk in my mind with dirty feet”.
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Biography:
Mrs. Alice Nkulikiyinka is the Country Director of BPN Rwanda (Business Professionals Network), a leading Business Development Service provider, in Rwanda since 2011. Prior to returning to her home country, she worked close to fifteen years in the banking sector in the renown Swiss firms Telekurs (Six Group) and Avaloq.
As Project Manager, Product Manager and Department Head, she managed international teams in Zurich, London and New York City, among other places. On expatriate contract, she also managed Banking projects in Hong Kong and Singapore.
Mrs. Alice Nkulikiyinka holds a Master of Science in Economics and Computer Science, University of Applied Sciences at Worms, Germany and a Master of Science and Information Management, University of Constance, Germany.
Countries worked in: Germany (Frankfurt), UK (London) Switzerland (Zurich), USA (New York), Singapore (Singapore), China (Hong Kong), Rwanda (Kigali)
Alice Nkulikiyinka is a Board member of
RDB (a government institution whose mandate is to accelerate Rwanda’s economic development by enabling private sector growth that reports to the President’s office) and a Board member of
I&M Bank (A leading commercial Bank).