Mbewu Movement

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EXISTING IN WHITE MALE DOMINATED SPACES…IMPOSTER SYNDROME MUCH…EEK!

Over the past few years, I have had a few friends ask me how it feels to be a double minority in a majority white male dominated industry …and only now that I’ve taken time off to do my masters can I truly reflect on it. Not because I’ve never felt like the other or thought about it…Not because I’ve never sat in a boardroom and seen 14 white male faces stare back at me while I go on about some nuanced selling point of their company… but rather because I have felt like the other for a very long time and I’ve learnt that, perhaps, that is my superpower and not Achilles heel.

Being lucky enough to win a scholarship to a prestigious high school in Canada at a very young age and then going to a University that was perhaps 90% white, being a minority has been part and parcel of my growing up. Then being assimilated to a culture that is so far removed, firstly went to ensure I appreciated my own but also made me aware at a young age of how there are so many divides that we must bridge when we show up at 8am at the office (or rather 9am in my situation because I probably left the office at 4am). So how does it feel to live most of your life in a world far different from your parents and how does it feel to navigate a career in investment banking as a black woman when you have no people to emulate? The below describes some of the most influential and poignant points that helped me navigate the industry as a young adult coming out of University…

I believe I was very lucky that when I first started working I was surrounded by confident and able professionals who were generally well respected within the industry. Investment Banking, and specifically Mergers and Acquisitions, is not and has never been for the faint hearted. I think it is painted in the light of wall street backstabbers, non-stop travelling and 20-hour days. 2 out of 3 of those were true for me when I first started. Post the initial teething of joining a new team, I was surrounded with some of the most competent and intelligent people I have ever had the pleasure of working with. They were concerned about my growth, both professionally and personally. That gave me the confidence to attack most things head on.

If something went wrong my first answer was not, “it’s because I’m a woman or it’s because I’m black, right?” (You would be surprised how many times I’ve heard this in Boardrooms). And I’m not saying that often not being promoted or not being first choice for a project has anything to do with this but being able to articulate that you think this is why something has happened despite your contributions is very important.

The first specific thing that I could somewhat control which helped me when I was starting out was having an ally who was concerned about my growth within the business. In general, this is always important regardless of who you are, having mentors is crucial in most corporates, having someone who will always have your professional growth in mind heavily influences your career progression. I think as women, especially minority women, we always think that person will be a minority woman if they exist in the business, but it often is not. It certainly was not for me. My biggest ally was my European boss who more than once, gave a client a dressing down because he referred to my age at a meeting or when someone else referred to me being the only woman at a Board meeting. I have unfortunately found that minority women have a hard time supporting each other. Our generation is a lot better at it, but I found that more senior minority women tend to believe that they made it the difficult way when they were the only ones without any support and you should do it that way. Whilst I appreciate the sentiment, I truly believe that in 2018 it is important to pay it forward as much as you can. That said, I have received some of the best career advice from other strong black women in the industry, namely Phuthi Mahanyele, who I never worked with but met at various events.

Secondly, there is nothing more important than ensuring you are extremely competent in your work, I think that is how I got over the infamous impostor syndrome. I constantly went above and beyond what was required of me. I did more research than was required, I ran more scenarios than were necessary because I always wanted to be prepared. Because I always felt confident about the work, I never second guessed myself.

If you have a fair boss, that is all they require, that you think of the questions they have not thought of and that both of you are never caught off-guard by a client. I think in general as a minority in any industry, the impostor syndrome rings too true because you do not have anyone to speak to who has a similar background to you; till this day I am pretty sure neither of my parents really know what I do! But I can’t emphasise enough how important it is to be super confident in your work, it often alleviates a lot of unnecessary pressure.

Thirdly, always ask for what you think you deserve. I’m not even sure if it’s black culture or being a female that initially made me not forthcoming in what I wanted, be it a promotion or a salary increase. One of the first things companies will always do when you quit is offer you more money, which is telling of the fact that they probably thought they were underpaying you. In my second year, an analyst on my level nonchalantly commented that he had a conversation with one of our managers about a salary increase. I was so flabbergasted. “Did I not deserve this salary increase? I worked the same ridiculous hours as the guy sitting next to me? I probably needed this money more because of black tax. Was my work product not as good as his?”. I kept wracking my brain for something this Jewish white male had done exceptionally well lately, that I had not. I was working on a project with said manager at the time and post one of our meetings I broached the subject. Turns out my fellow analyst brought up the conversation because a friend of his doing something similar in another bank was making slightly more than him and he wanted this rectified. Honestly, I would not have known where to start comparing salaries with someone, but this was a good lesson for me in knowing my worth and asking for my just deserves.

Do not get me wrong, I do think there will always be unconscious bias till we get corporates to look like the rest of what South Africa is. But ensuring that we hire the most able young professionals regardless of the colour of their skin and sex is growing in corporates and it is our duty as minorities to advocate for this as it makes business sense.

Representation = Business Sense. Till this becomes a norm unfortunately most females or other minorities will have feelings of feeling like the other. The only way I know to deal with this is being as much of an ally as I possibly can and attempting to provide the support I wish I had when I was starting out.

So in earnest, paying the double tax will never be favourable and I tip my hat to the people who have done it before me, but it gets easier with time as more people realise how important it is to grow the circle and be supportive.

Buhle Ndlovu

MBA Candidate 2017- 2018

Co-Chair Oxford Business Network Africa

Saïd Business School

University of Oxford

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An interview with Sunni Faba, SA’s TV and Film trailblazer

If you have had any encounter with Sunni Faba, you’ll agree that her energy is so warm and friendly, one might feel like they’ve been friends with her forever. She’s poised and has a killer smile that is so infectious that you’ll stop and smile yourself. Sunni has been rising through the ranks (at warp speed) in the Film and TV industry and at just 28 years old, already has the accolades and experience that many would kill for. Her breakthrough moment was being a part of the writing team of Ayeye, a hit show following the lives of three young creatives in Jozi (one of my all-time favourites!) and now she is about to take on her biggest role yet – Head Writer for a new drama series.

This trailblazer has gone on to be a part of South Africa’s favourite productions such as Isibaya – where she was nominated for a SAFTA as part of the writing team for Best Achievement in Scriptwriting and Broken Vows which has been nominated this year for three SAFTA’s as a producer and a writer. She was even a scriptwriter for the 22^nd South African Music Awards (SAMA’s). She’s unstoppable and has some exciting news to share with Mbewu Movement about her upcoming projects. I sat down with this cool lady over a coffee at her favourite caffeine spot in a Linden, Johannesburg to find out more.

LM: Tell us about yourself and your journey to success.

SF: My name is Sanelisiwe Faba, but they call me Sunni because I went to a model C school *Laughs*. It’s too late to change it now. I grew up in East London and then later moved to Johannesburg with my family, which was quite a culture shock, so I found it difficult to make the transition. I eventually settled in of course and it’s where I currently live.

For my tertiary education I initially studied at the University of Cape Town (UCT) to become a corporate lawyer. I became clinically depressed whilst there, which was attributed to many things, one of them being away from home and not following a purposeful path of my own. So, I moved back home to Johannesburg to regroup and try to find myself and what my purpose is (I know it sounds cliché). Whilst home, it was my mother who said to me, “You’ve always liked this film and drama stuff, so what can you do with that?”. From that I decided to enrol at Wits School of Arts and basically had to start from scratch.

“I always say that if the arts are your pull, you can never shut that up. It’s what you’re supposed to be and do and it will catch up with you if you oppress it.” – Sunni Faba

I studied Theatre at Wits, but knew I had to start working in TV and not just be a theatre purist because I thought to myself that the narrative of the ‘poor and struggling artist’ was old and done, so I got a job as an intern director for Lokshin Bioskop. That was a difficult two years because I was studying and working at the same time. I remember being interviewed and told, “You don’t have TV experience, why should we hire you?”. To which I would reply, “I know how to tell stories, I know how to direct and I know how to write. I can pick up the technical work as we go along. Give me the job, let me prove it to you.”

From there I took on more opportunities at eKasi Stories and Lokshin Bioskop as a freelancer and then I got the chance to be a part of the development team for Ayeye. That is the point where I felt my career had started, and that’s when accolades such as being one of Mail and Guardian’s Top 200 Young South Africans came about. This was validation that I was on the right path, for everyone – me and my family. All of this led to more opportunities such as writing and storylining for Isibaya and thereafter Broken Vows working as an Assistant Creative Producer and Writer.

LM: Tell us about the things that remain largest influences of your work.

SF: Black people. Black people’s stories told by black people are so underrepresented in everything! What’s great about television is that it really one of the key mediums for education in South Africa, so it has great responsibility and I feel privileged to be a part of that. I need to be one of those black people telling our story!

I also just want to make dope work. Work that I’m super proud of and that people love. I was getting a wax this one day and the lady was telling me about a film she had watched that I happened to have directed. I wanted to tell her but I didn’t, thinking she wouldn’t believe me anyway. So it lives beyond me, it’s bigger than me!

And my parents influence me a lot – they are super proud of me.

LM: What are the experiences of being a black woman in your industry?

SF: The industry is still very white and very male. As a black woman, like in many other industries you always have to prove yourself and people are always waiting for you to under-deliver. Generally black women are there to provide great stories but we don’t ‘own’ anything, we don’t run the shows and we’re not the executive producers on the shows. So we’re harvested for the goods, but just for a salary.

If you look at the credits after a South African show or film, in the key roles you’ll find:

First place is white male.

Second place is white women.

Black people later… for the grunt work and providing the ‘black

experience’

Also, many writing rooms are still so white. They say we don’t have enough good black experienced writers, but television has only been made by white people for decades – so where is this experience supposed to come from? We need to correct the practise that stories are taken from black people, but white people write them and get the accolades. How am I supposed to be a ‘good, experienced writer’ when you’ve taken my stories and not given me the chance to write and produce them myself? Currently, the way shows are created in this country is through affiliation with a big typically white owned production company. So the whole model needs to change. We need to start to take chances on the little guys – stop having me around to just be the black voice in the room. My value extends past that. There is a lot happening, but very slowly. It’s frustrating because what we as young black creatives are doing is amazing and important.

LM: Why do you like storytelling?

SF: When I write I get to understand my own thoughts clearer. I get to tell stories and live all these amazing different lives. I get to understand other people and it kind of makes you an expert on many things. If I wasn’t able to write, I would go crazy!

I love going home to the Eastern Cape because my life in Joburg is different to a young woman my age who lives there. So her story needs to be told as well.

Stories are universal.

LM: Who is your role model?

SF: My Mom *smiles*. I genuinely believe that if she was born in this time, she would be doing what I’m doing now – even better. She always told us ‘iintsomi’ growing up. She has a knack for it. She is a teacher, my teacher. She’s an amazing storyteller and where I get my story brain from.

LM: What’s next for Sunni Faba and how do we keep up with you?

SF: I’m excited to share with you that I will be Head Writer for a 13-part medical drama for SABC this year! I have put together a kickass team consisting mainly of young, smart and talented black female writers. I believe in the team so much and can’t wait to share our work with the world. Stay tuned *smiles*.

Other than that I appreciate the support even just by retweeting something or watching something – I need the ratings! I just want to create, produce and own. From the ‘land’ to the TV, we need to own this stuff.

I also just want to make work that I see myself in, that I see my friends in. No one has ever done it the way we are doing it now. We are so interesting. We should never forget that.

All social media is @sunnifaba

Interview conducted by Lilitha Mahlati, an investment banker and founding member of Mbewu Movement. She describes herself as a gender and transformation activist who enjoys learning new languages and travelling the globe.

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Have you Rsvped for 2 December?…

Would you like to spend the day with Mbewu Movement and the women of Frida Hartley Shelter?

When: 2 December

Where: Frida Hartley Shelter, Yeoville

How: rsvp on grow@mbewumovement.com

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Gender Based Violence. #throwback Kenya news interview

Gladys Gachanja speaks with the Youth and Gender affairs Cabinet Secretary, Sicily Kariuki

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8h2WSGCo21M

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Join Mbewu Movement and the Frida Hartley Shelter Women

IMG-20171114-WA0016

Would you like to spend the day with Mbewu Movement and the women of Frida Hartley Shelter?

When: 02 December 2017

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16 days of activism….men making a difference…

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A visit to the Frida Hartley Shelter

IMG-20171114-WA0016 MM POSTER — Spend some time with the Women of Frida Hartley Shelter, in Yeoville. Date: 02 December 2017. Donations: Any items you would like to share with another woman/If you would like to teach us how to knit, share some poetry or music or dance moves, all super woman talents are welcome!

We look forward to sharing the day with you and the women of the Frida Hartley Shelter!

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16 days of Activism of NO violence against Women and Children

25 November-10 December…violence against women and children and all human life is abhorrent anytime of the year.

#STOPVIOLENCEAGAINSTWOMEN&CHILDREN

gender_violence_

Background

The 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children is an international awareness-raising campaign. It takes place every year from 25 November (International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women) to 10 December (International Human Rights Day). The period includes Universal Children’s Day and World AIDS Day.

This year’s 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children Campaign (16 Days campaign) is important because we commemorate many milestones. The year 2014 marks 60 years since the signing of the Women’s Charter on 17 April 1954 in Johannesburg; 20 years of freedom and democracy in South Africa and 16 years of the 16 Days of Activism Campaign.

South Africa adopted the campaign in 1998 as one of the intervention strategies towards creating a society free of violence. The campaign continues to raise awareness amongst South Africans about the negative impact of violence against women and children (VAW&C) on all members of the community.

Objectives of the campaign

The objectives of the 16 Days Campaign are to:

Attract all South Africans to be active participants in the fight to eradicate VAW&C; hence the theme: “Count me in: Together moving a non-violent South Africa forward.”
Expand accountability beyond the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) cluster to include all government clusters and provinces.
Combine technology, social media, the arts, journalism, religion, culture and customs, business and activism to draw attention to the many ways VAW&C affects the lives of all people in all communities around the world.
Ensure mass mobilisation of all communities to promote collective responsibility in the fight to eradicate violence against women and children.
Encourage society to acknowledge that violence against women and children is NOT a government or criminal justice system problem, but a societal problem, and that failure to view it as such results in all efforts failing to eradicate this scourge in our communities.
Emphasise the fact that the solution lies with all of us.

What is violence against women and children?

Violence takes many forms, for example:

Physical violence in the form of domestic violence, terrible violent crime such as murder, robbery, rape and assault.
Emotional violence and trauma at many levels caused by many factors. Women and children in their homes, at work, at schools, on our streets, in our communities suffer this form of violence for various reasons.
Another terrible blight of our democracy is the violence of poverty, starvation, humiliation and degradation, especially against women and children. Poverty, inequality and unemployment are conditions under which violence thrives.

What can you do?

Together, let us take actions to support the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign.

Support the campaign by wearing the white ribbon during the 16-day period: A white ribbon is a symbol of peace and symbolises the commitment of the wearer to never commit or condone violence against women and children.
Participate in the various 16 Days of Activism events and activities: See thecalendar outlining events taking place around the country over the period of the 16 days.
Volunteer in support of NGOs and community groups who support abused women and children: Many organisations need assistance from the public. You can volunteer your time and make a contribution to the work of institutions. Help plant a garden at a shelter, sponsor plastic tables and chairs for kids at a clinic or join an organisation as a counsellor. Use your skills and knowledge to help the victims of abuse.
Speak out against woman and child abuse.
- Encourage silent female victims to talk about abuse and ensure that they get help.
- Report child abuse to the police.
- Encourage children to report bully behaviour to school authorities.
- Men and boys are encouraged to talk about abuse and actively discourage abusive behaviour.
- Seek help if you are emotionally, physically or sexually abusive to your partner and/or children. Call the Stop Gender Based Violence helpline (0800 150 150).
- Talk to friends, relatives and colleagues to take a stand against abuse of women and children.
- Try and understand how your own attitudes and actions might perpetuate sexism and violence.
- Spread the message on social media using #16Days2014
Join community policing forums (CPFs): The community and the local police stations are active partners in ensuring local safety and security. The goal is to bring about effective crime prevention by launching intelligence-driven crime-prevention projects in partnership with the local community.You may want to also become a reservist, a member of the community who volunteers his/her services and time to support local policing efforts to fight crime. For more information on how to join, contact your local police station.

What is government doing?

The Women Empowerment and Gender Equality Bill provides government with the legislative authority to fast-track the empowerment of women and address issues of enforcement and compliance towards the attainment of our target of 50/50 gender parity.

On 6 June 2011, Government launched the Strategy and Guidelines on Children Working and Living in the Streets [PDF]. This Strategy provides guidance on the services and programmes to be rendered to children living and working in the streets.
The Green Paper on Families [PDF] seeks to strengthen and support families as the cornerstone of a well-functioning society.
Since 1994, Government has developed several pieces of legislation to redress the wrongs affecting women and children.
The Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act (Act No 7 of 2013)fights trafficking of young girls and women, and also the practice of ukuthwala, a form of abduction that involves kidnapping a girl or a young woman by a man and his friends or peers with the intention of compelling the girl or young woman’s family to agree into marriage.

Source: https://www.gov.za/16-days-activism-no-violence-against-women-and-children-2014

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A BRUTAL SOCIETY

As the title of this article suggests, I have in recent days, following the overwhelming non-ending events that relate to the inhumane treatment of children and female adults alike, resorted to referring to this society in which we exist as a brutal one. Much as many of us would like to conceive and start our own families, it is such a scary thought to have your children exist in such a cruel world with monster-like humans.

As many of you would know about the recent #MeToo trend on social media where essentially victims of abuse and particularly rape, were coming out and speaking out about their personal incidents of abuse. I came across a particular thread on Facebook relating to this hashtag and what I found extremely appalling in that thread is that not even a single victim that came out mentioned a stranger as their perpetrator, it was people they knew, people whom they would expect protection and love from. Many men want to argue that women and girls make themselves vulnerable to rape by the way they dress and I hold a view that this narrative is absolute nonsense, men need to take NO! for what it is and know that they are not entitled to female bodies. These bodies are personal and not commodities and the sooner everyone acknowledges and appreciates that, the better for our society.

Rape is but one of the ways in which women and children are oppressed on a daily basis but there are other ways. Many women live in fear each and every day because of the conduct of their partners who are advocates of patriarchy and do not want to be called out on their behaviour. These men feel so superior that the women they are with are not entitled to any views but rather are subjected to whatever the men say, which is wrong. These women often don’t speak out because they have been oppressed for so long that it’s almost become a norm to them, it also gets difficult for the women to speak out if they financially depend on these men, which is often a situation these men create deliberately so that the women can be vulnerable, for the satisfaction of their egos.

A reasonable amount of work is being done to empower women and young girls, but my cry with this approach is that despite the fact that it is very necessary, it will not be as effective if we choose to only focus on one gender group and ignore the other, and then hope to transform society for we would be delusional if we do so. I genuinely believe it is time for all of us to come together and have these dialogues because what I find is that everyone – black, white, young, old, male and female needs this empowerment that is so often talked about, we all need it to be better and to ultimately and ideally reach common ground where these pressing societal issues are concerned.

Finally, we need to stop hurting each other, we need to stop causing each other pain, and we need to be kind to one another. Cruelty has no place in this society, patriarchy cannot prosper where we intentionally seek to make peace. All of this needs to stop, it must just stop!

AUTHOR’S BIO

Noko Prudence Rakoma is a 20 year old passionate speaker and blogger who is also a student, she is the founder of an organisation called Kgoshigadi Reign which essentially seeks to empower society through having having conversations. Noko is also a young entrepreneur who co-owns a hair business called Queendom’s Castle Hair.

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Lily Banda on talking about violence against women…

Born in Malawi on 16 August 1990, Lily Banda made an impact under the stage name Alex as a singer and poet. Since the release of her debut album in January 2014 the artist has headlined many events where she has dazzled audiences with her charisma and energy as well as the boldness of her poetry.
Watch as she talks about violence against women #StopViolenceAgainstWomen&Children

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Ending Violence against women and girls, if not you, then who?….

This November, 2017, Mbewu Movement would like to encourage the Mbewu community to participate in the discussion and conversation around violence against women and girls.

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Ndumiso: LUV ”love” story Part 3

A talented photographer and director, Ndumiso Sibanda compiles a 3-part love short story. Watch the final part that this talented artist pulled off.

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Ndumiso: Luv Story Part 2

A talented director and professional photographer, Ndumiso Sibanda, pulls of an amazing LUV ”love” short story, take a look at this talented artist’s love story compilation.

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Vongani – Groceries Series

Is It Possible To Buy Groceries At No Cost?

A buyer’s journal to secure additional wealth.

Author: Vongani Nkuna

Several years ago, I opened a stock brokerage account at a reputable firm. I deposited a few thousand and then, as a natural result of exploring other interests, I let it roost.

Month after month a statement from the broker would show up in my inbox. In it, the only activity would be the broker’s collection of monthly administration fees and the interest earned on the account balance.

The interest earned would offset the fees by a modest margin, fostering steady growth on the original deposit. This is normal of interest earning accounts that carry a decent positive balance; after all, the interest would compound monthly whilst the fees were generally fixed over long intervals.

With increased curiosity, I closely watched this mundane trend of income from a financial asset (when held in generous sums) running, almost in leaps and bounds, further ahead of its fixed costs.

Mundane as the trend was, it lead to my belief that its likely, in the long-term, my spending costs will be surpassed by income earned from the corporations wherefrom those costs originate, provided I own sufficient dividend earning shares and the corporations have some measure of financial soundness.

In other words, if chunks of my monthly budget is used to buy from a chosen corporation, shouldn’t I (where viable) try to own as many shares of that corporation as possible so that at some point the income renders my buying cost-free, so to speak?

Approaching it more broadly, if I generally spend in a particular industry, shouldn’t I have exposure to some of the corporations in that industry, for the cited outcome?

Convinced I was on to something, I got carried away…If I considered myself poor, wouldn’t this, in the long-term, bring an end to my poverty, or at least break the cycle for my family and the generations to come?

The latter notion may be somewhat far-fetched but I fantasised about the possibility and tranquillity of absolute financial freedom and its quietening effect.

After buying shares and earning dividends from the corporations of our patronage, the Nkuna Groceries Project http://www.nkunagroceries.co.za seeks to discover the point at which we’ll deem our historic grocery purchases, cost-free. It’s a public experiment and a practical response to the questions I’ve been asking myself.

The project is virtually a journey of a thousand miles and, to accommodate our shoestring budget and any interested persons, we started at the laughable first step.

There are two project-owners, the principal and the assistant. Each invests up to 20% (total 40%) of our past grocery spend in the shares of grocery corporations at which we buy from.

Shares are purchased from time to time as grocery bills accumulate: We pick dividend payers that demonstrate some level of good health.

The nature of the project drives the grocer into an unofficial, but unavoidable ‘cash-back’ policy with the customer as a result of the cash dividend.

For interest’s sake, if I wanted an immediate 100% ‘cash-back’ on the latest dividend from Pick n Pay Stores Ltd (a corporation we own) the point of cost-free purchases would roughly be at the convergence of these figures…

Our Groceries Costs: R26 419.85, from May 2016 to May 2017

Latest Dividend per Share: R1.464, final dividend with a record date of 9 June 2017

Estimated After-Tax Dividend per Share: R1.171

Minimum Number of Shares Required: 22 562

Share Price (close): R60.75, day before last day of trade in order to earn dividend

Minimum Cost of Shares excl. Fees and Charges: R1 370 641.50

Estimated Dividend: R26 420.10

We, unfortunately, didn’t have R1.37 million disposable to buy the requisite number of shares to achieve instant gratification as far as cost-free groceries (using this method) are concerned; we must, therefore, endure the long haul.

Since dividends come after a period of inflationary corrosion, it would make sense to buy more shares to achieve inflation-adjusted cost-free purchases.

The chart below shows the project’s gross totals since inception in May 2016 to June 2017.

Things are still embryonic and although it seems an impossible feat looking at current figures, I expect a single financial period’s inflation-adjusted Dividends Earned (bar) to wipe-out total Groceries Costs (bar) at some point in a generation or two, if not sooner.

Until then, any Dividends Earned (bar) are referred to as unofficial partial cash-backs, as seen with the latest scanty pre-tax dividend of R51.63; an insignificant cash-back against the total Groceries Costs (bar) of R26 990.87.

The recorded dividend is not adjusted for inflation and, at the moment, it’s completely consumed by brokerage costs.

I make no mention of capital growth from rising share prices; this, together with adequate Dividends Earned (bar), would raise the Portfolio Value (bar) above our capital Contributions (bar) at the broker. After transaction fees and charges, a liquidation of all our 32 shares now, would result in a loss based on the difference between Contributions (bar) and Portfolio Value (bar).

It’s all good and well if share prices rise, but our generational outlook silences the noise of price fluctuations. Plummeting or “bargain basement prices” are more favourable for our downward cost averaging. Besides, this is largely a contest between costs and dividends.

We do, however, only intend to sell shares for a princely profit.

I admit, I wouldn’t off load my other holdings to make way for this operation. This is nothing more than a calculated manoeuvre in my investing playbook.

As a value investor at heart, this assignment forces me to buy shares outside my criteria of comfort. In times of adversity, these shares may fold, therefore, this operation will always be the bridesmaid never the bride.

There is, however, and you may have sensed, this stern capitalist thought hidden between the lines: Why should I contribute to the other’s wealth by circulating my money – of my potential future wealth – for the other’s short-term wares that carry limited long-term benefit for me?

I want to deal with this thought in more detail later.

Author’s biography

Vongani Nkuna

Vongani is a passionate self-taught value investor at large who owns a proprietary investing company, Nkuna Equity (Pty) Ltd. He graduated from advertising school with a diploma in copywriting, but never used his qualification in industry. Instead, his fascination with the stock market lead him to join commodities trading companies such as Trafigura where he learned more about the commodities and financial markets over and above his own informal learning initiatives. He created the Nkuna Groceries Project that seeks to promote one’s investing habits by taking advantage of one’s spending habits.

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Ndumiso: Luv Story Part 1

Mbewu MCM – a talented director and professional photographer, Ndumiso Sibanda, take a look at the LUV ”love” short story series that this talented Afrcan artist has pulled off.

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An interview with Bongekile Radebe: On Being Her Own Cup of Tea

In 2015 I was asked to participate in a panel discussion at the Youth Economic Indaba hosted by the Association of Black Securities & Investment Professionals (ABSIP). My particular panel was themed around women empowerment, and I was so honoured at the opportunity to share my thoughts amongst an accomplished group of young women. One of the things I remember fondly about this experience was the connection I had with the panel moderator- Bongekile Radebe. She was sharp, accomplished (from a very young age) and, immediately after our engaging panel debate was over, our common surname compelled me to call her Ma Bhungane (isithakazelo saka Radebe) which led to an exchange of kind, knowing smiles. Since then Bongekile has been on the path to world domination! When we first met, she was the founder of an organization called Her Destiny, a social business that created a platform for empowering conversations amongst women, related to connecting generations, personal development and financial literacy. But at the heart of all these conversations was tea, which was the consistent beverage served at each of her meetups. It was only a matter of time until Bongekile began to connect the dots to a more sustainable, impactful business model and an audacious aspiration. Her big idea- starting her own premium tea product called, “Taste of Legends”. This pivoted her passion project from being a social initiative into a health, wellness, lifestyle and agricultural enterprise.

Photo Source: @tasteoflegends

MG: So, you have a finance and banking background, and pivoted into starting a tea business. How did you approach the learning process in starting your business, especially since you had no experience and many of your large competitors have been in this game for ages?

BR: It took a good two years to develop my tea product, but I took my time because I didn’t want my tea to be just another tea product. I really wanted my tea to carry the vision of women and communities coming together to connect and learn. Hence the brand name “Taste of Legends”, which represents the various parts of the vision I was aiming to create. The brand name, the package design everything in between was all intentional and I didn’t want to rush this process. Fortunately, had a very good understanding of the things I didn’t know, and I always want to give my best in what I do, so I knew the most effective way for me to learn more about tea production was to surround myself with people who were masters in it already. This has especially helped to get the product side of the business working very well. Also, not a day goes by without me reading something related to tea and I had a natural curiosity to find out what the best tea in the world is and why. This has also focused my attention on building a brand that is globally strong and has potential to do exceptionally well somewhere else outside of South Africa. But a key business lesson for me has been being able to think big, and being okay with starting small.

MG: When did you launch your tea product and how has your business grown since?

BR: I launched “Taste of Legends” in August 2017, during SA women’s month, which was great timing considering the significance of the month and the background of my business. It’s now available for purchase on social media, and the website is due to launch soon. However, all the relationships I forged from before launching my own tea product have really pulled through and helped me penetrate the market. I also think the main reason these relationships helped was that they had seen the previous work I’d done and trusted that I could make my business a success. Relationships and the networks one builds over time are so important and should never be underestimated. My biggest client so far has been Brand South Africa.

Photo Source: The Young Independents (2016)

MG: With your global achievements, including being a Mandela Washington Fellow and a One Young World Ambassador, have you always been intentional about wanting to stand up as a businesswoman on a global stage?

BR: I think I’ve always had my intentions in the right place, as opposed to just chasing an accolade. I remember when I was a teenager I used to read magazines and look up to these women who were my definition of success. At the tender age of 20, I was on the cover of Destiny magazine’s Power of 40 issue next to Khanyi Dhlomo, which was a small affirmation that started to shape a bigger picture for me and led me to where I am today. I continue to be spiritually aware of this favour and grateful for these building blocks. I consciously believe that I was not called to live an ordinary life, and I know that, in some way or another, my life will be great. I also realise that this comes with added responsibility, which can be very rewarding and also at times very painful. But this all builds deep wisdom and I welcome this as a spiritual experience.

Image Source: Destiny Magazine (2011)

MG: So, what’s next for “Taste of Legends”?

BR: I’m passionate about turning my tea business into a community of legends and people aspiring to achieve legendary work and/or legendary moments. We, as people, have the tendency to be so intensely goal orientated, but tea allows us the opportunity to just take it all in, either in solitude or with the company of others. “Taste of Legends” wants to help its consumers achieve wellness, self-care and we know that this, in turn, helps our consumers be their best and ultimately achieve their goals. I have my own aspirations for the business but I’m also looking forward to the business blowing me away. I’m especially keen to see the business grow in time to uplift the livelihoods of families that we work with. I think it’s excited to live in an age where we can document our journeys, and I dream of the day where I get to say that I am a black, township raised girl, who went on to make the best tea in the world.

Article by: Magcino Gule | Mbewu Movement Founding Member

Magcino Gule holds a Master of Philosophy in Politics, Philosophy and Economics (University of Cape Town). She is an Executive Assistant in Financial Services

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What the richest man in Japan and his employees are reading

“You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read. It was books that taught me that the things that tormented me most were the very things that connected me with all the people who were alive, who had ever been alive.” – James Baldwin

Back in 2016 I was fortunate enough to spend about a week in Tokyo attending a Hitotsubashi Graduate School of International Corporate Strategy exchange program. As part of that experience, we were hosted at Uniqlo’s 10-storey signature store in Ginza, and even more interestingly — spent time at Fast Retailing’s headquarters in Roppongi, chatting for about an hour with Tadashi Yenai — Japan’s richest man.

Outside of the lessons he was gracious enough to endow us with, a distinct impression I left with was how widely read he is — and how he tries to inculcate this culture of autodidacticism within his organisation. We spent our lunchtime munching on Bento boxes in one of their common areas where they keep many of their books. Given how secretive this company is in nature (they’ve still not allowed the snaps taken during the trip to their offices to be released except those taken outside their Uniqlo store in Ginza) — I thought I’d try to snap some picture of a few shelves to get a sense of what passes for interesting/useful in the halls of Fast Retailing.

To be sure this is a fantastically successful company whose ambition is to drive Uniqlo to become the world’s number apparel brand by 2020. They’re in a fierce tussle mainly with H&M & Zara and use similar strategies of very fast turnaround on designs/styles, low cost and a limited (but fast changing) range which is current.

The time spent at Uniqlo before they opened for the day was fascinating in seeing how much staff at all levels are expected to know about the company’s operations and strategy as well the intricacies of their particular store and floor. The kinds of questions we heard being asked were clearly those of a company that expects all to think and behave like a mini-general manager or mini-executive. Evidently this rolls up to holding company Fast Retailing itself and brings us back to those bookshelves. As stated, while getting fed I took a few pics (below) of about 250–300 titles of the titles on display and have collated these for your convenience dear reader.

“In my whole life, I have known no wise people (over a broad subject matter area) who didn’t read all the time — none, zero. You’d be amazed at how much Warren reads — and at how much I read. My children laugh at me. They think I’m a book with a couple of legs sticking out.” ― Charlie T. Munger

“I insist on a lot of time being spent, almost every day, to just sit and think. That is very uncommon in American business. I read and think. So I do more reading and thinking, and make less impulse decisions than most people in business. I do it because I like this kind of life.” ― Warren Buffett

Now the first thing which struck me when going through these tomes is the sheer breadth of the subjects at hand. Not just books on management and supply chain but the deep fascination with psychology, philosophy, history and sociology is hard to miss. Steve Jobs once said “Technology alone is not enough. It’s technology married with the liberal arts, married with the humanities, that yields us the results that make our hearts sing.”

Well this ethos is in full swing at Fast Retailing but of course all from economics to organisational theory were well represented.

View from Midtown Towers, Fast retailing Tokyo HQ

Equally fascinating were where some of the largest clustering was occurring in terms of genre:

A clear focus on philosophy
Understanding and managing the human animal
Efficiency & organisation
Technology & Science
History

Tadashi mentioned very specifically how important people are to him, his organisation and his history. No doubt he’s an extraordinary human being whose work ethic is decidedly Japanese but even he realised he couldn’t do it alone. Understanding his employees, business partners and enablers as well the potential clients and societies/cultures at large.

Also of interest are the fact that much of the material here is old…some of it VERY old. No doubt part of this is down to the fact that books are being donated to this pool and as such are slightly older, yet real wisdom is essentially ageless. In fact there are many successful people — Tim Ferris is an example — who essentially eschew keeping up with modern books, articles and newspapers in favour of older tomes which have stood the test of time. This “test of time” concept is explored by the inimitable Nassim taleb (of Black Swan & Anti-Fragile fame) through a concept he refers to as the Lindy Effect — the idea that the future life expectancy of some non-perishable thing like a technology or a book is proportional to it’s current age, so that every additional period of survival implies a longer remaining life expectancy.

Alas below is a list I’ve compiled with the books I could decipher from the images taken— enjoy and make your library great again.

Picture 5.PNG — Fast Retailing’s Public Bookshelves

I’ve categorised these into loose genres and attributed scores where I could source these from public sources like Goodreads or Amazon. You’ll note I’ve not transcribed any of the Japanese books…feel free to reach out and let me know what these are if you read Kanji 🙂

Key — [Book Title] \\ [Author] \\ [Score]

Anthropology

The Symbolic Species: The Co-Evolution of Language and the Brain \\ Terence W. Deacon \\ 4.2
Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed \\ Jared Diamond \\ Anthropology \\ 3.9

Biography

Chomsky: Language, Mind and Politics \\ James McGilvray \\ 4.2

Business

The Failure of Antitrust & Regulation to Establish Competion in Long Distance Telephone Service \\ Paul W. MacAvoy
Supermarkets: 50 Years of Progress \\ Randolph McAusland
Decline of Service in Retail Trade \\ David Schwartzman
Catching Up With The Computer Revolution \\ HBR, Lynn M. Salerno (Editor)
Knowledge and Competitive Advantage \\ Johann Peter Murmann \\ 4
Economic Performance & The Theory of the Firm \\ David J Teece \\ 3.9
Extreme Toyota: Radical Contradictions That Drive Success at the World’s Best Manufacturer \\ Emi Osono, Norihiko Shimizu, Hirotaka Takeuchi \\ 3.3
B2B Exchanges \\ W. William A. Woods & Arthur B. Sculley \\ 3

Business History

The Wheels of Commerce \\ Fernand Braudel \\ 4.4
The Control Revolution \\ James R. Beniger \\ 4

Business Strategy

Creating Value: Winners in the New Business Environment \\ Michael Hitt, Robert D. Nixon & Raphael Amit \\
Scenarios: The Art of Strategic Conversation \\ Kees van der Heijden \\ 4.5
MetaCapitalism: The E Business Revolution and the Design of 21st Century Companies and Markets \\ Grady E. Means & David Schneider \\ 3.8
Spanning Silos \\ David Aaker \\ 3.7
Confronting Reality \\ Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan \\ 3.7
Attention Economy: Understanding the New Currency of Business \\ John C. Beck & Thomas H. Davenport \\ 3.6

Calculus

Introductory Calculus for Business & Economics \\ Dennis G. Zill

Career Advice

The Breakthrough Team Player \\ Andrew J Dubrin \\ 2

Change Management

The Heart of Change \\ John P. Kotter \\ 4

Cognition

Visual Cognition & Action: An Invitation To Cognitive Science \\ Daniel N. Osherson \\ 4.5
Creative Cognition: Theory, Research, and Applications \\ Ronald A Finke, S. Smith & Thomas B. Ward \\ 5
The Dynamics of Time & Space: Transcending Limits of Knowledge \\ Tarthang Tulku \\ 4.4
A User’s Guide to the Brain \\ John J. Ratey. MD \\ 4

Communication

On The Pragmatics of Communication \\ Jürgen Habermas \\ 3.8

Company Biography

Making the CISCO Connection \\ David Bunnell \\ 3.1

Computer Science

Parallel Distriuted Processing VI & VII \\ David E. Rumelhart, James L. McClelland & PDP Research Group \\ 5

Conference Notes

International Cartels in Business History \\ Akira Kudō, Terushi Hara

Corporate Culture

Corporate Instinct \\ Thomas M. Koulopoulos \\ 4
Corporate Culture & Organisational Effectiveness \\ Daniel R. Denison

Decision Theory

Think \\ Michel Legault \\ 3.1

Design

A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction \\ Christopher W. Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, Murray Silverstein, Max Jacobson, Ingrid Fiksdahl-King, Shlomo Angel \\ 4.4

Ecology

Political Ecology \\ Payl Robbins \\ 3.8

Economics

US Competitiveness in the World Economy \\ Bruce Scott & George C. Lodge
The Tyranny of The Market: A Critique of Theoretical Foundations \\ Douglas Vickers
The Japanese Economy: Trade, Industry & Government \\ Ryūtarō Komiya
The Essence of Capitalism \\ Humphrey McQueen \\ Economics
Readings in Applied Microeconomic Theory: Market Forces and Solutions \\ Robert E. Kuenne
Japan’s Network Economy: Structure, Persistence, and Change (Structural Analysis in the Social Sciences) \\ James Lincoln & Michael L Gerlach
Japanese Exports & Foreign Direct Investment \\ Hideki Yamawaki
Firms, Markets and Hierarchies: The Transaction Cost Economics Perspective \\ Glenn R. Carroll
Economic Evolution & Structure \\ Frederic Pryor
Small is Beautiful \\ E. F. Schumacher \\ 4.1
Institutions, Institutional Change & Economic Performance \\ Douglass North \\ 4.1
The Architecture of Markets \\ Neil Fligstein \\ 4
Naked Economics: Undressing the Dismal Science \\ Charles Wheelan \\ 4
Looking At The Sun \\ James Fallows \\ 4
Knowledge & Persuasion in Economics \\ Deirdre McCloskey \\ 4
Information Rules \\ Carl Shapiro and Hal Varian \\ 4
The Art of Profitability \\ Adrian Slywotzky \\ 3.9
A Nation In Waiting: Indonesia’s Search for Stability \\ Adam Schwarz \\ 3.9
The Nature of Economies \\ Jane Jacobs \\ 3.8
Japan Remodeled \\ Steven K. Vogel \\ 3.6
Why Globalisation Works \\ Martin Wolf \\ 3.5
The Zero-Sum Society \\ Lester C Thurow \\ 3.5
New Directions in Economic Methodology \\ Roger Backhouse \\ 3

Education

The Dialectic of Freedom \\ Maxine Greene \\ 4.2

Energy

Energy Future \\ Robert Stobaugh & Daniel Yergin (Editors)

Environmental

The Ages of Gaia \\ James Loverlock \\ 3.8

Essays

Untruth: Why the Conventional Wisdom Is (Almost Always) Wrong \\ Robert J Samuelson \\ 3.1

Fiction

The Short Stories \\ Ernest Hemingway \\ 4.2
The Sorrow of War \\ Bảo Ninh \\ 4

Finance

Return on Investment (ROI) \\ Robert A. Peters
Corporate Financial reporting \\ Andrew Higson
When Genius Failed: The Rise & Fall of Long Term Capital Management \\ Roger Lowenstein \\ 4.2
Essentials of Managerial Finance \\ Eugene F. Brigham & Scott Besley \\ 3.8
Financial Management & Policy \\ James C. Van Horne \\ 3.6

Globalisation

A Future Perfect \\ John Micklethwait & Adrian Wooldridge \\ 3.4

History

Mao Zedong & China’s Revolution \\ Timothy Cheek
Mao Zedong As Poet & Revolutionary Leader \\ C. Vaughan \\ 5
The World War Two Reader (Routledge Readers in History) \\ Gordon Martel \\ 4.3
The Shield of Achilles \\ Philip Bobbitt \\ 4.1
Genghis Khan \\ Jack Weatherford \\ 4
Origins of the Chinese Revolution, 1915–1949 \\ Lucien Bianco \\ 3.7
Constant Battles: Why We Fight \\ Steven A. LeBlanc, Katherine E. Register \\ History \\ 3.7
A Concise History of Finland \\ D. G. Kirby & David Kirby \\ 3.6
People Who Made History: Mao Zedong \\ C.J. Shane \\ 3
The Chinese Revolution & Mao Zedong in World History \\ Ann Malaspina \\ 2.5

Human Capital

Virtual Learning: A Revolutionary Approach to Building a Highly Skilled
Workforce \\ Roger C. Schank \\ 4.5
Workforce Crisis: How to Beat the Coming Shortage of Skills And Talent \\ Ken Dychtwald & Tamara J Erickson \\ 4.2
Hiring Smart: How to Predict Winners & Losers In The People-Reading Game \\ Pierre Mornell \\ 3.9
Work-Based Learning: Bridging Knowledge and Action in the Workplace \\ Joseph A. Raelin \\ 3

Information Theory

Information Theory: An introduction for scientists & engineers \\ Gordon Raisbeck \\ 4
Information, Systems and Information System: Making Sense of the Field \\ Peter Checkland & Sue Holwell \\ 3.6

Innovation

The Art of Innovation: Lessons in Creativity from Ideo, America’s Leading Design Firm \\ Tom Kelley, Jonathan Littman, Tom Peters \\ 4

Intellectual Capital

Profiting from Intellectual Capital: Extracting Value from Innovation \\ Patrick H. Sullivan \\ 4

Japanese History

Japanese Culture \\ H. Paul Varley \\ 3.8
Tokugawa Religion \\ Robert Neelly Bellah \\ 3.7

Leadership

21st Century Leaders for the 21st Century \\ Fons Trompenaars & Charles Hampden-Turner \\ 3.8

Linguistics

Abduction, Belief and Context in Dialogue: Studies in Computational Pragmatics \\ Harry Bunt & William Black
Grammar & Conceptualisation \\ Ronald Langacker \\ 4.8
Toward a Cognitive Semantics \\ Leonard Talmy \\ 3.9
From Molecule to Metaphor: A Neural Theory of Language \\ Jerome A. Feldman \\ 3.7
Narratology: Introduction to the Theory of Narrative \\ Mieke Bal \\ 3.6
Mappings in Thought & Language \\ Gilles Fauconnier \\ 4.2

Literary Theory

Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction \\ Jonathan Culler \\ 3.7

Management Theory

The Great Organisers \\ Ernest Dale
The Executive Role Constellation: An Analysis of Personality and Role Relations in Management Hardcover \\ Daniel J. Levinson, Abraham Zaleznik & Richard C Hodgson
Management: Inventing and Delivering Its Future \\ Richard L. Schmalensee & Thomas Anton Kochan
The Art Firm: Aesthetic Management and Metaphysical Marketing \\ Pierre Guillet De Monthoux \\ 5
Business Anthropology: ‘Glocal’ Management \\ Motofusa Murayama \\
Basho Management \\ Masao Maekawa \\ 4
Team Players & Teamwork \\ Glenn Parker \\ 3.8
American Anti-Management Theories of Organization: A Critique of Paradigm Proliferation \\ Lex Donaldson \\ 3
Euromanagement: A New Style for the Global Market \\ Helen Bloom \\ 2
Productivity Analysis as a Resource Management Tool in the Retail Trade \\ Hirotaka Takeuchi

Marketing

Marketing Performance Assessment \\ Thomas V. Bonoma & Bruce H. Clark
Marketing Models & Econometric Research \\ Leonard J. Parsons & Randall L. Schultz \\ 4
The Design Dimension: The New Competitive Weapon for Product Strategy and Global Marketing \\ Christopher Lorenz \\ 3.5

Mathematics

Mathematics: A Foundation for Decisions \\ Dennis E. Grawoig
Elemetary Calculus for Business, Economics & Social Sciencies \\ Chaney Anderson and R. C. Pierce
Descartes’ Dream \\ Philip J. Davis \\ 3.8

Memoir

A Life In Our Times \\ John Kenneth Galbraith \\ 4

Military History

Friendly Fire: The Accidental Shootdown of U.S. Black Hawks Over Northern Iraq \\ Scott A. Snook \\ 4.2
Military Innovation In the Interwar Period \\ Allan Reed Millett & Williamson Murray \\ 3.8
The Dynamics of Military Revolution \\ MacGregor Knox & Williamson Murray \\ 3.5

Modern History

The Future & It’s Enemies \\ Virginia Postrel \\ 4.1
Crimes Against Nature \\ Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. \\ 4.1
The Information Society & The Welfare State: The Finnish Model \\ Manuel Castells & Pekka Himanen \\ 3.9
America Unbound \\ Ivo Daalder & James M. Lindsay \\ 3.4
Innovation in American Government \\ Alan A. Altshuler & Robert D. Behn \\ 3

Motivation & Reward

Intrinsic Motivation At Work \\ Edward L. Deci & Richard M. Ryan \\ 3.8

Negotiation

Getting to Yes \\ Bruce Patton, Roger Fisher & William Ury \\ 3.7

Organisational Theory

Readings on Modern Organisations \\ Amitai Etzioni
Organisations: Structure & Process \\ Hall, R.H.
Organisation Theory and the Multinational Corporation \\ Sumantra Ghoshal & D. Eleanor Westney
The Demography of Corporations & Industries \\ Glenn R. Carroll & Michael T. Hannan \\ 4.5
Recreating The Corporation \\ Russell L. Ackoff \\ 4.5
Excellence By Design: Transforming Workplace and Work Practice \\ Turid Horgen, Michael L. Joroff, William L. Porter & Donald A. Schon \\ 4.5
The Twenty-First-Century Firm: Changing Economic Organization in International Perspective \\ Paul DiMaggio \\ 4.3
The Dynamics of Rules: Change in Written Organizational Codes \\ James G. March, Martin Schulz & Xueguang Zhou \\ 4
Adaptive Enterprise: Creating and Leading Sense-And-Respond Organizations \\ Stephan H. Haeckel \\ 4
Imaginization: New Mindsets For Seeing, Organizing And Managing \\ Gareth Morgan \\ 3.7
Quantum Organisations \\ Ralph H. Kilmann \\ 3.5

Philosophy

The Theory & Practice of Actuality \\ Uchiyama
Redirecting Philosophy: Reflections on the Nature of Knowledge from Plato to Lonerga \\ Hugo Anthony Meynell
Philosophy of Science Journal \\
Philosophy & The Emotions: A Reader \\ Stephen Leighton
Kant’s Theory of Knowledge \\ Georges Dicker
Hegel’s History of Philosophy: New Interpretations \\ David A. Duquette
Explaining Beliefs \\ Anthonie W. M. Meijers
Dialetics of The Will: Freedom, Power, and Understanding in Modern
French and German Thought \\ John H. Smith
Belief and its Neutralisation \\ Marcus Brainard
Being & Worth \\ Andrew Collier
Hegel & Aesthetics \\ William Maker \\ 5
From East to West \\ Roy Bhaskar \\ 5
A Search for Unity in Diversity: The ‘Permanent Hegelian Deposit’ in the Philosophy of John Dewey \\ James A. Good \\ 5
Reconceptions in Philosphy and Other Arts and Sciences \\ Catherine Elgin & Nelson Goodman \\ 4.5
Michel Foucault: Beyond Structuralism and Hermeneutics \\ Hubert Dreyfus and Paul Rabinow \\ 4.5
Philosophy As A Way of Life \\ Pierre Hadot \\ 4.3
The Production of Space \\ Henri Lefebvre \\ 4.2
Experience & Judgement \\ Edmund Husseri \\ 4.2
Popper Selections \\ Karl Popper \\ 4.1
Wittgenstein (One World Philosophers) \\ Avrum Stroll \\ 4
The Thinking of The Sensible \\ Mauro Carbone \\ 4
The Power of Dialogue \\ Hans-Herbert Kögler \\ 4
Pragmatism: A Reader \\ Louis Menand \\ 4
Pragmatism: A new name for some old ways of thinking \\ William James \\ 4
Dialectic and Dialogue: Plato’s Practice of Philosophical Inquiry \\ Francisco J. Gonzalez \\ 4
Ulysses Unbound \\ Jon Elster \\ 3.9
The Transcendence of the Ego \\ Essay by Jean-Paul Sartre \\ 3.9
Structuralism & Poststructuralism for Beginners \\ Donald Palmer \\ 3.9
Serendipities \\ Umberto Eco \\ 3.8
Points of View \\ A. W. Moore \\ 3.8
Critique of Dialectical Reason \\ Jean-Paul Satre\\ 3.8
Ten Problems of Consciousness: A Representational Theory of the Phenomenal Mind \\ Michael Tye \\ 3.6
Philosophy of Art: A Contemporary Introduction \\ Noel Carroll \\ 3.6
An Intelligent Person’s Guide to Philosophy \\ Roger Scruton \\ 3.6
Toward A Logic of Meaning \\ Philip Davidson \\ 3.5
The Geometry of Meaning \\ Peter Gärdenfors \\ 3.5
Seinfeld and Philosophy \\ William Irwin \\ 3.5
Epistemology: A Contemporary Introduction to the theory of knowledge \\ Robert Audi \\ 3.5
Knowledge and Mind: A Philosophical Introduction \\ Andrew Brook & Robert J. Stainton \\ 3.4
Hegel’s Epistemology \\ Kenneth R. Westphal \\ 2.8
Phenomenology & Deconstruction \\ Robert Denoon Cumming \\ 2.5
The Other Husserl: Horizons of Transcendental Phenomonology \\ Donn Welton \\ 3.8

Political Theory

Marx for Beginners \\ Rius \\ 3.8
Agendas, Alternatives & Public Policies \\ John W. Kingdon \\ 3.6
Inclusion & Democracy \\ Iris Marion Young \\ 3.5
The Political Ontology of Martin Heidegger \\ Pierre Bourdieu \\ 3.3

Politics

A Theory of Public Bureaucracy \\ Donald P Warwick, Marvin Meade & Theodore Libby Reed \\ 5
A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power \\ Jimmy Carter \\ 4

Politics & Philosophy

Freedom and its Betrayal: Six Enemies of Human Liberty \\ Isiah Berlin \\ 4.3

Productivity

Getting Results from Electronic Meetings \\ Alan Weatherall \\ 5

Project Management

The Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge \\ Project Management Institute \\ Project Management \\ 3.6

Psychology

The Evolution of Human Nature \\ Charles Judson Herrick
The Act of Thinking \\ Derek Melser \\ 4.5
Minding Minds \\ Radu J. Bogdan \\ 4.5
Practical Intelligence in Everyday Life \\ Robert Sternberg \\ 4.4
Who Really Matters: The Core Group Theory of Power \\ Art Kleiner \\ 4.2
Presence \\ Amy Cuddy \\ 4
Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences \\ Howard Gardner \\ 4
Intelligence Reframed \\ Howard Gardner \\ 3.7
Intuition \\ David Myers \\ 3.6
Changing Minds: The Art And Science of Changing Our Own And Other
People’s Minds \\ Howard Gardner \\ 3.6

Research Design

Designing Social Research \\ Norman Blaikie \\ 4.8

Science

The Evolution of Cooperation \\ Robert Axelrod \\ 4.2
Quantum Theory & The Flight from Realism: Philosophical Responses to
Quantum Mechanics \\ Christopher Norris \\ 4
The Third Culture \\ John Brockman \\ 3.8
Radical Evolution \\ Joel Garreau \\ 3.8
Introducing Chaos \\ Ziauddin Sardar \\ 3.5
Time, Space & Things \\ B. K. Ridley \\ 3.9

Service

Living Service: How to Deliver the Service of the Future Today \\ Marc Silvester & Mohi Ahmed

Sociology

The Virtual Community: Homesteading on the Electronic Frontier \\ Howard Rheingold \\ 3.8
Plenitude 2,0 \\ Grant McCracken
Continuities in the Study of Social Conflict \\ Lewis A. Coser
All Rise: Somebodies, Nobodies, and the Politics of Dignity \\ Robert W. Fuller \\ 4.3
48 Laws of Power \\ Robert Greene \\ 4.2
The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature \\ Steven Pinker \\ 4.1
Organizing America: Wealth, Power, and the Origins of Corporate Capitalism \\ Charles Perrow \\ 4.1
On Civilisation, Power & Knowledge \\ Norbet Elias \\ 4.1
Against Race: Imagining Political Culture Beyond the Colour Line \\ Paul Gilroy \\ 3.6
The Myth of Social Action \\ Colin Campbell \\ 3.5
Digital Nation \\ Anthony G. Wilhelm \\ 3.1
Social Behaviour: It’s Elemetary Forms \\ George C. Homans \\ 3
Max Weber’s Methodology: The Unification of the Cultural and Social Sciences \\ Fritz K. Ringer \\ 2.8
The Closing of the American Mind \\ Allan Bloom \\ 3.7

Statistics

Statistics: An Introductory Analysis \\ Taro Yamane
Statistical Analysus for Business Decisions \\ Charles Pius Bonini & William Alfred Spurr
Complete Business Statistics \\ Amir Aczel \\ 3.6

Surveys

Mail and Telephone Surveys: The Total Design Method \\ Don A. Dillman

Systems Theory

The Conceptual Structures(s) of Modality: Essences & Ideologies \\ Gunther & Martina Lampert
Systems Thinking: Creative Holism for Managers \\ Michael Jackson \\ 3.9

Technology

Information Management: The Strategic Dimension \\ Michael Earl \\
The Age of Spiritual Machines \\ Ray Kurzweil \\ 4
Emergence: The Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, and Software \\ Steven Johnson \\ 4
The Success of Open Source \\ Steven Weber \\ 3.9
The Future of Work \\ Thomas W. Malone \\ 3.9
When Things Start To Think \\ Neil Gershenfeld \\ 3.7
Telecosm \\ George Gilder \\ 3.6
Why Things Bite Back \\ Edrward Tenner \\ 3.5
The Society of Text \\ Edward Barrett \\ 3.5

Technology History

Where Wizards Stay Up Late; The Origins of the Internet \\ Katie Hafner & Matthew Lyon \\ 3.9
What The Dormouse Said: How 60s Counterculture Shaped the PC Industry \\ John Markoff \\ 3.8
In The Beginning..Was The Command Line \\ Neal Stephenson \\ 3.8

Writing

Elements of Style \\ E. B. White & William Strunk Jr. \\ 4.2

Siya Gule (@siyagule on Twitter)

Tech. Literature. Culture. Business. Thinking about Thinking

“Today a reader, tomorrow a leader.” ― Margaret Fuller

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Interview with Siviwe Gwarube, Executive Director of Communications at the Democratic Alliance

It’s not often that we have the opportunity to celebrate young black women in politics, as the political environment in South Africa is dominated by older men and women. Siviwe Gwarube, who earlier this year was announced as Executive Director of Communication at the Democratic Alliance at just 28 years old, is one such person to be celebrated.

Siphesihle Dube, Provincial Transport MEC’s spokesperson and Siviwe’s dear friend describes her as “…a phenomenal woman who is driven by a soft and unassuming ambition that has seen her carve her own unique path, both professionally and personally. She is a friend and mentor to many, and is always on hand to deliver the best advice that denotes a wisdom beyond her young age. What an honour to get to call her my friend.” Mihlali Peter, accountant at Buffalo City Metropolitan and Siviwe’s sister in law describes her as “…a grounded woman, who is respectful with a gentle loving soul. I admire her drive and ability stay true to herself and where she comes from”.

From my interaction with Siviwe, I echo all these sentiments. She is a force to be reckoned with, and South Africa should definitely look out for things to come from her. I sat down with Siviwe to find out more about her journey:

LM: Tell us about yourself. Where did you grow up? How did you grow up? What have your greatest influences been in life?

SG: My upbringing is a very simple one. I was born KwaMgingi, a small village outside of King Williams Town in the Eastern Cape. I lived there until I was 18 with my maternal grandmother who raised me and is still alive today.

I come from a household situation that is quite common in South Africa, where the parents have a child at a young age and they leave you to be raised by grandparents. I also had the experience that many young black South Africans have, where I resided in the village, and went to school away from where they lived. School was a whole different reality from where I was coming from and I would commute every day to school. Therefore, there was a duality in the way I lived. Which is not unique as it’s product of where we come from as a country, where people want to send their children away to have a better life and a future. But I had a very simple, very typical village life in hindsight.

My greatest influence is my grandmother, a woman who was born before her time as she decided not to get married, she wanted to self-actualise and have a life of her own. She didn’t feel as though she needed a husband to get the most out of life, which was atypical at the time. This didn’t put her in good standing with her family, her father didn’t understand. When she fell pregnant, she went against the grain and she didn’t feel compelled to marry the baby’s father. She also owned a few businesses and was a teacher for a few years and in her late 50s she went back to school to obtain a BA in Linguistics.

2017-09-28-PHOTO-00000025 — Siviwe with her Grandmother

LM: What inspired you to take the challenging path of Politics? What have been your greatest learnings? Who have your role models been?

SG: Choosing the Politics path was a complete accident for me. When I was in my final year at Rhodes University (studying BA in Law, Politics and Philosophy), I ran out of funds to further my studies towards obtaining an LLB. This was devastating for me because I had goals of becoming a family lawyer. At the time, I was involved in the Democratic Alliance Young Leaders Programme at Rhodes, which for me was an extra activity. Through this platform I met Lindiwe Mazibuko, who was a parliamentary leader at the time and was hiring a spokesperson. I saw the job post for the position, felt it would be an inspiring opportunity and not thinking that I would get the job, I applied. I subsequently went through a long interview process, which was an incredible experience. I didn’t have money to go to Cape Town for the interview so we set up a call for me.

Then I got the job, and soon after I went through what I imagine Donald Trump would’ve thought as soon as he arrived at the Oval Office. Thoughts such as ‘What have I done?! Now I’m going to Cape Town and I will be in Parliament! What am I going to do there?’ raced through my mind. The first three years was such a great working experience, and a lot happened in South Africa’s political universe including the Vote of No Confidence, Nkandla saga and the 2014 National Elections, which I formed a great part of. I just fell in love with Political Communication (although didn’t set out to), so decided to study in this field and set out to do my Honours degree on it which involves topics such as how to reach out to voters etc. Finally, I am coming to the end of this particular journey and have completed my thesis which I’m handing in next week! It’s taken me 3 years because of balancing all the pressures of work, but has really been worth it.

I look up to various people for different things, so I feel it would be exclusionary for me to name people. However, I must mention that Lindiwe Mazibuko is definitely one of them because throughout my time working with her, she was very willing to teach and like a sponge and took in a lot.

LM: Tell us about your experience as a black woman in Politics? What’s the outlook for others like you, with similar backgrounds, who would like to come into the industry?

SG: South Africa is still very much a patriarchal society and some of the interventions we have through governments and government policies are great as benchmarks, but not substantial enough to make real changes. We operate in a context where men don’t view themselves as equal to women.

Then there’s the matter of intersectionality, being a woman and being a black person. It’s quite complex and there’s a huge amount of pressure in dealing with it, but just highlighting it is useless, instead it should be tackled head on. In my case in particular, I am aware that it’s the way others view me, but I also don’t view myself as just that. I don’t go around with the albatross around my neck in the way I carry out my work.

Young black South Africans have occupied spaces everywhere: Sciences, Arts, Politics, Business and many more. So perhaps 10 years ago, things would be a lot different, but in today’s world young black women people are doing great things in their fields and therefore, spaces are more open and welcoming for them to excel. Having said this, there’s room for improvement and I wish that 10 years from now, (young) black women will be able walk into such spaces and to not feel like they are the only person who looks and sounds the way that they do. Until then, industries are not transformed. It’s incumbent on us to stay, so that other people can look up to us when they enter these spaces.

LM: What has your experience been, Being a young woman, with such a senior position, in a major political party in South Africa?

SG: There is such strength in being a young black women in my industry in this day and age because it allows me to have a different perspective and to be diverse in my contribution. I am managing people who are twice my age, and who have done certain things in set ways for longer periods of time, so it can be really difficult. Sometimes I do go home feeling hurt about one thing or another. But we have to fight some of these demons so that the people after us don’t have to.

LM: What do you do for fun? To relax?

SG: I hang out with my friends a lot! I love to travel, take long drives around South Africa – I have fallen in love with nature. I love being around my friends especially because they don’t necessarily ask me about work. So we can just be in our late 20s and chill!

My kitchen is my happy place, I love to entertain and to cook. And of course couch, Netflix and chill.

An oh! I love to work out. It helps keep me sane and keeps me balanced.

LM: What is the next step for you? What are dreams for yourself and for other young people in SA?

SG: Wooh! You never think about what your dream is, you’re always so focused on the next steps/goals *laughs*

I am trying to change the way we communicate as the DA for the 2019 elections. They are going be exciting and I look forward to being at the forefront. I also dream about being integral in terms of coming up with political strategies. So being in the political background and finding ways to positively influencing strategy. E.g. Strategic governance issues etc. There’s quite an opportunity in this realm, and I’m looking forward to being a part of it.

South Africa is at a crossroads where we have been dragging around an injury for past 2 decades and it’s coming to a point where the injury is festering, people are tired and people want better. So we are at a point where we have a chance to create change, that with the ballot box. Creating more accountability for a maturing political environment, in which people will vote you in an out based on what you can and cannot do.

This means that more civic understanding should continue to be developed, which is incumbent on the political parties. This will also be a product of where our country is at the moment, where South Africans want change and can see that it is possible to achieve this in a peaceful manner.

LM: How do we follow you?

SG: You can follow me on Twitter – @Siviwe_G

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The Black Industrialist

The buzz word coming from South Africa’s development finance institutions seems to be, the black industrialists. With the growing movement of African consumers wanting to buy black, as well as platforms such as Brownsense who are pooling a network of black entrepreneurs, the timing of Mbewu Movement’s “Black Industrialist” Masterclass could not have been more pertinent. Furthermore, we successfully curated a conversation where a development financier and two young black industrialists shared insights on what it takes to cut it as a black industrialist. Our guest speakers included: Lerato Mangope (Head of Corporate Funding at the Industrial Development Corporation), Thabiso Molekwa (Black Industrialist and Founder of Embombi Lager) and Palesa Lephallo (Black Industrialist and Founder of AfricanLily Haircare).

According to the Department of Trade & Industry, “the concept of black industrialists refers to black people directly involved in the origination, creation, significant ownership, management and operation of industrial enterprises that derive value from the manufacturing of goods and services at a large scale; acting to unlock the productive potential of our country’s capital assets for massive employment locally.” In support of this, billions of financial resources have been allocated to supporting black entrepreneurs across targeted sectors (see below infographic).

Source: Business Day

Whilst many might see these large sums of money and already start dreaming of rands and nairas, a key insight from the Lerato’s talk was the importance of being able to demonstrate that one is capable of owning and managing an enterprise when applying for funding. Having one’s own skin in the game is an indicator of this.

On the topic of being able to manage one’s business operations and finances, Thabiso shared his personal journey of entrepreneurship. This included insights he remembered from being a young boy selling snacks at school for pocket money, from owning pubs around Johannesburg to losing them all due to mismanagement, then recovering from debt and failure to eventually chasing his dream of founding his own brewery. The pride that Thabiso has in his product today, is a reflection of the authenticity, ambition and resilience that makes the Embombi a craft beer that has a uniquely South African story to tell.

Palesa’s insights as an emerging black industrialist had more to do with understanding customer needs at a granular level and developing a solution that addresses these needs. Although reports show that black hair care is big business Palesa explained that black hair is not homogenous and consumers trust products that are known to deliver results. This is why she invests time with her clients to intimately understand their hair care needs and educate them on the benefits of her products.

What was encouraging about this particular Masterclass was the diversity of the audience, not just from a gender and age perspective, but from an industry perspective as well. So regardless of whether you are interested in filmmaking or pharmaceuticals, beer or beauty the era of the black industrialists has arrived and is likely to last into the long-term.

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An Interview with Phumzile Sitole, a South African actor taking the US by storm

The first time I met Phumzile was on an impromptu trip to New Jersey, USA, to see South African jazz musician Vuyo Sotashe’s graduation performance, along with my childhood friend, Kenyan/Ethiopian South African raised theatre maker, Shariffa Ali. After that amazing day, I was so proud of these young South Africans who were, in their respective fields, blazing trails in the US and just couldn’t wait to report back when I returned home. Phumzile, small in stature with an outspoken and funny personality, did not surprise me when she told me studying at the Arts at Columbia University. Her passion for what she was doing was so evident and I left her knowing I should be looking out for her and that she was about to make waves.

Since then, in addition to completing her Master of Arts degree, Phumzile has made great leaps in making a name for herself in the industry, both on screen and on the stage. Recently, you would probably have seen her on The Good Fight, currently airing on MNet, and on LostFound, a Sundance short film. She will be playing Charmian in the Folger Theatre’s upcoming fall production of Antony and Cleopatra.

On my recent trip to the Big Apple, I caught up with this rising star.

LM: For those who don’t know Phumzile, tell us about yourself.

PS: I struggle with this question, it feels like any one thing I say needs 5 things to explain it further and so it becomes a maze and rabbit hole all at once. But simply, I’m a daughter, a sister an aunt
and a friend.

LM: What made you pursue an acting career, and who/what are you biggest influencers/inspirations in this regard?

PS: I’ve always been drawn to the stage. I started hip hop dancing when I was 4 years old and since then had always looked forward to our end-of-year dance concerts. Being on a stage with lights, costume, hair and makeup and people in the audience waiting in anticipation, has always felt familiar and thrilling for me.

With time, I started performing in school plays and that’s when scripts and stories started to take the place of choreography in my heart. I left the primary school I was in to go to St. Mary’s School for Girls, where they offered Drama and Zulu as matric subjects which was a priority of mine. My mother made that possible. Lots of tears and prayers got me to St. Mary’s and kept me there despite the financial difficulties my desires came with.

LM: Tell us about your journey in the US, what you have been up to and what your triumphs and challenges have been.

PS: I came to the US in pursuit of a Master’s degree in Acting. I got accepted to Columbia University in the City of New York and spent the three months before school started, trying to find money to finance the opportunity. The main challenge was staying in school and after my first year, money ran out and I went home during that holiday and it didn’t seem like I was going to make it back. But a friend of mine at Columbia offered me a place to live and her mom offered to pay the outstanding balance I had so that I could come back.

I lost my dad in a car accident during my first year. The time it took from getting off Face Time with my brother and walking into my house in Johannesburg felt like an eternity. That’s been the hardest part of my journey here. Life continues wherever in the world you choose to be. We are constantly sacrificing what could be with some for what you chose to be with others.

The friend whose mom offered to pay my balance had also lost her father a month before mine. Her mom said to me “I watched my daughter go through the pain of losing her dad, I could bear the thought of you losing him and your dream as well”
LM: As a black South African woman, what has your experience been navigating the acting scene in New York? How have you been received and what perspectives do you come with?

PS: So many. I am first on a visual level, I am first a black person in America. Which is currently and has never really been an easy thing. I think in some ways it has been great being able to break people’s assumptions as soon as I speak or I am asked where I’m from. It’s been a struggle for me to take on the American identity as my own, because a lot of the work I’m auditioning for requires me to do so.

I’m finding a balance and am clinging onto everything South African about me with all my might – It’s my blessing, my individuality, my strength. I would not forfeit it for the world.

LM: What do you suggest for someone coming after you, inspired by you, who would like to pursue a(n) (acting) career in a foreign country?

PS: Come with a large dose of perseverance! Some days feel like pushing a boulder up a mountain, some feel like you’re literally flying. But if you know that there’s nothing else you want to do in life, then do your research, come prepared and stay.

LM: Where will we see you next? Tell us how to keep up with your progress.

PS: I’m doing mostly theatre at the moment, so right now I’m looking forward to being at the Folger Theatre in DC, starring in Antony and Cleopatra. Other than that, I’m auditioning a bunch and looking forward to whatever comes my way.

To follow Phumzile’s whereabouts, visit her official website – http://www.phumzilesitole.com

Interview conducted by Lilitha Mahlati, an investment banker and founding member of Mbewu Movement. She describes herself as a gender and transformation activist who enjoys learning new languages and travelling the globe.

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An Interview with Boipelo Mabe on Being an Unapologetic Youth

As a young girl, I used to adore beauty pageants and watching Miss South Africa was an annual delight for my family and me. Fast forward to March 2012, at my first ever international women’s day event at work, and Miss South Africa 1992 Amy Kleinhans was the keynote speaker. I remembered her from my years of following Miss SA pageants, but beyond her face and her name, I didn’t know much more about her. While listening to her speech I was entranced by her story, and I developed a new perspective on what Miss SA meant during her era. At age 24, Amy was the first Miss SA of colour, and this was during a year when South Africa’s international sanctions were being lifted, white South Africans had voted in favour of ending apartheid in a referendum, and negotiations about the future of the country were being held against the backdrop of significant politically motivated massacres in our country’s history. It was a tense and uncertain time to be an ambassador for the country. But simultaneously, as the first Miss SA of colour, Amy was bound to have a strong stance on the state of the country. One of the defining moments in her reign was her refusal to wave the old South African flag during the international procession at Miss World- which sparked an array of positive and negative reactions from the public and the press. Nonetheless, there was no questioning her politics and she was unapologetic.

This year, I had the opportunity to speak at the Cell C Take a Girl Child to Work Day event. Since I have not followed Miss SA in many years, I was unaware that I would be sharing the stage with the Miss SA 2^nd Princess- Boipelo Mabe. When I met Boipelo I thought she was strikingly beautiful and, I was intrigued by her passion for current affairs and her career as a political analyst in broadcasting and media. But, when I listened to her share her personal journey with such authenticity, my appreciation for her grew much deeper. Boipelo is from very humble beginnings- she is the daughter of a taxi driver and as a child lived in a small shack built by her father in Ivory Park. Growing up under these circumstances would inevitably lead to feelings of shame and inadequacy, especially compounded by teasing and social pressure from others. But despite this, she performed exceptionally well academically and pursued a modelling career which led her to the Sun City Super Bowl. One of the defining moments in the 2017 pageant was when Boipelo spoke frankly about her personal experience of generational poverty and how she had to overcome the fear of not being able to achieve her dreams because of her family’s social status. Boipelo was not only speaking her own truth but the truth of the poor black youth who still dares to dream, 41 years on from Hector Pieterson’s murder. At that moment, there was no questioning her politics and she was unapologetic. In celebration of Youth month, we celebrate Boipelo Mabe.

MG: Let’s flash back to before the Miss SA pageant- seemingly you were already a mover and shaker at a tender age- you had a profile in the media as a current affairs reporter, you had a modelling career, you were enrolled for a Masters in International Relations, you were active in the Alex community. Why did you decide to enter the Miss SA pageant?

BM: A lot of the major decisions I make are calculated and my entering of Miss South Africa at that stage of my career was nothing short of that. I really was enjoying my work but knew that I needed a little something ‘extra’ to really tap into the full potential of my skills and what I was exposed to. I believed that Miss South Africa provided that platform to firstly challenge myself on a personal level and to share my work on a broader platform, with a wider audience. It was an opportunity for me to effectively expand my network, knowledge and personal brand. Looking back, I am so happy and proud that I did it, I gained more from it than I had thought.

MG: What do you think ultimately made you stand out throughout the pageant? I imagine other contestants were also very talented and wanted the crown just as badly as you.

BM: My fellow contestants were such incredible women and I still draw a lot of inspiration from my engagements with each of them. They brought so much more to the pageant than just beauty. We all came with different motivations and strategies to the pageant and I believe what made me stand out was my openness about my personal story, background and journey that I unpacked right from the beginning. It was a continuation of what I had started even before the pageant when I began my media career and I simply used the pageant platform to refine and share it with more people. Little did I know that it would not only reach many people but that it would impact many more on a very personal level. My story of being raised by taxi driver, growing up in a township and rising above ‘inherited’ hardships along the way to achieve my dreams seemed to have resonated with South Africans in a way I did not expect.

MG: What’s next for you? You’ve mentioned wanting to focus on moving on from the pageant and trying new things in your career. Does this mean we should expect to see you on CNN quite soon?

BM: Haha, I think at this point one is inclined to say that “big things popping” and without a doubt ‘BIG’ is where I want to go with my career. However, I am very careful not to rush it as I want to build a very solid foundation for myself where the big stuff will be planted. With that I mean that I am allowing myself to go through the process; learn as much as I can, go under the radar when I need to, explore and grow ‘organically’.

So next for me right now is firstly continuing with my studies, I’ve suspended my Masters in International Relations and I have registered for a Management Development Programme at a Business School. I want to be able to manage my brand as a business and understand the technicalities behind a successful organisation. I’ve also joined the corporate space, something very new and exciting for me. I am really just allowing myself to experience as much as I can and investing in myself along the way.

MG: I really respect how you are young and very engaged in current affairs and international relations. It reminds me of Eusebius McKaiser, who has said that he knew he wanted to change the face of political and social analysis and prove that it didn’t only have to be an older, white, male professor who had the most prominent voice in these debates, and that a younger, black person with an equally prominent voice could provide a nuanced perspective. Considering your background and humble upbringing, do you see yourself being as conscious about your public voice?

BM: Absolutely! And I believe my journey in Miss South Africa proved that. Sharing my story in the way that I did and being unapologetic about it was an intentional exercise of my public voice. On the crowning night of the pageant, I mentioned the experience of generational poverty– an issue that has never been raised in that manner on that kind of platform before. As a young black woman, I believe I have a responsibility to exercise my public voice, not only for me but for other black women especially those younger than me because there are still many ceilings in society that need to be broken.

Furthermore, I want to be a relevant voice in my generation thus education and keeping up with what is happening around the world from various perspectives is important to me. This is why I truly value learning, whether it be reading, a conversation with someone who has more experience than I do etcetera. Knowledge is power!

MG: I imagine the last 12 months have been a whirlwind and also tested your character in new ways. What have been some of the challenges and lessons you’ve learnt from them? And, what’s the best advice you’ve received that’s helped you cope with your success?

BM: The biggest challenge was living with expectations of a title I had never had to deal with before; the expectations from loved ones, the community and the public at large; the assumption of instant success. I first had to acknowledge that the race was still mine and no one else’s and just had to trust the process and trust myself. At the same time, I had to acknowledge that that’s what the titles come with and to a certain extent, I had to be understanding of people’s reaction to my success to. That’s where I saw the power of humility.

The best advice that I’ve received is that given any circumstance in life, I always have a choice and that it’s up to me to make life better or worse for myself by what I choose. I always keep that in mind.

Boipelo’s story reminds me of the quote “we are we are the ones we have been waiting for.” It’s often an easy choice to look outwards for validation, direction, hope, identity, blame or pity, but looking inwards and being truly comfortable with yourself is a big step on the path to self-mastery. Challenge yourself to be unapologetic.

Article by: Magcino Gule | Mbewu Movement Founding Member

Magcino Gule holds a Master of Philosophy in Politics, Philosophy and Economics (University of Cape Town). She is an Executive Assistant in Financial Services

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Navigating Corporate Bullshit- as a (black) female

You know you are borderline old when things you learnt in PSYCH101 in first year of university eleven years ago start making sense? (Lol). One of many Sigmund Freud theories is that; your conditioning as a human being, your experiences between the ages of 1-5 years old are the most important in shaping the human being you become at a later stage in life.

When I think back to what I (can possibly) remember for most of my life, being raised by a single parent- my mother, brother, aunts and uncles in my immediate space adored me. I had (have) a number of nicknames, I was incredibly shy growing up and I found joy in doing things for others. Now- what kind of an adult do I believe this has turned me into?… A love-full, conscientious, serving human being where this is required of me.

Let us talk a bit about work spaces- you agree to signing an employment contract; which pretty much dictates how you will live your life over an agreed amount of hours over a certain time period of your life. We all know theory does not translate flawlessly into reality…not where human beings who are informed and conditioned by circumstances worlds apart from each other converge. BUT- this is where things like being “professional”, having a “corporate/organizational” culture, having “values” etc. comes into play. There are number of (BULLSHIT) issues that come with shared spaces where people who do not have shared values converge. This is why wars exist, this is why people form empires/cliques, this why “hierarchies” are (BULLSHIT) important.

Give someone who did not experience love growing up some authority over a combination of human beings and watch the movie unfold…just watch. You know, I attended a gathering an evening not too long ago, and a lady said: “the way we are raised and conditioned as black (females) folk, does not prepare us for (white) corporate spaces…we do not speak up, we use respectful prefixes to the names of elders like we do at home (uncle this, aunt this, sis that, ma that)…”…my interpretation of this anecdote is- whilst trying to climb this monstrously steep mountain thing (called corporate), as black folk (regardless of background), your starting point is equivalent to carrying say six- to- ten of those large travel suitcases; what we call “umthwalo” in the Nguni dialect. Now- every single person has a perception about you, every single person shares these perceptions with people they trust who share it with people they trust and in no time…a stew of perceptions has brewed about any and everybody in this organisational/corporate space you all have to share.

How does one genuinely lead or be genuinely led when we are operating off:

1. Childhood construction (playing out)
2. Different loads “imithwalo” (we are each carrying)
3. Perceptions (right or wrong)

What has completely thrown me off in my seven years of working (five in two different corporates and two in a small enterprise) is that this type of behaviour is projected by the majority of individuals you meet in organisation/corporate spaces; by individuals at all levels. Now remember- there is a perception that individuals at different levels of the corporate food chain behave differently. This is where I always go wrong in life- it does not mean the higher you go the better the behaviour up the corporate food chain (oooh child!)…HUMANS!

FUN FACTS:
– I am a sensitive person; this does not make me a weak person
– I do take the other persons mental and emotional space into account before I open my mouth
– I am aware of some of the perceptions people (in corporate) have about me
– I am exhausted of the insensitive BULLSHIT that comes with organisational spaces

Give a loving, intelligent (not necessarily intellectual), ambitious, self-actualised person power and give a non-loving, intelligent, ambitious, non self-actualised person the same power and observe how the scenarios play out. You know how people can “tell” at first engagement whether a couple is genuinely happy or whether a home is a loving versus a cold home-in the same vein, environments that these two different type of humans “lead”/”steer” is distinct.

A peer who works in a different company in the same industry (financial services) was sharing her experiences with her boss; she said: “before each meeting, he asks me and encourage me to have 3-5 key speaking points in the meeting, he will then expand on my points by saying as *To add to what *Lizeka said, I think…, he refers to me as *his colleague in meetings, not as *this is the girl that works for me…”…the rest of us who were listening to her speak- eyes popped out and jaws almost on the floor had never experienced such…well I had experienced a similar leadership style twice before in my seven years of working.

Tell me; why do tertiary institutions and society mainly gear us up to enter into a workforce where we will encounter mental and spiritual abuse on a daily basis?…*White people do not view you as equals, senior people do not take you seriously because you are “young and inexperienced”, other black women see you as “useless” because you happen to know less than them in certain instances…why do we put ourselves through this?…why?…

The only things in my survival kit in seven years are:
– I come from love and nothing, no one, no experience will change my true nature,
– Find a mentor who is: present for your growth, for guiding you and supporting you in dealing with challenges that are a part of navigating life, who will connect you to opportunities he/she may feel you are ready for,
– Have a friend/colleagues that lighten the load and remind you of: who you are, your dreams and goals and that everything is a temporary state.

Honour your truth dear friends, be cautious how you make others feel with your words and actions; especially when roles of a higher order are bestowed upon you.💫

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The Journey (Part I)

This is a two-part story about my journey from Med student to Marketing professional to where I am today (banking): the obstacles I’ve faced and the sacrifices I’ve had to make.

It’s 19h00 on a Sunday and the Carte Blanche theme song goes on. How are you feeling? Do you slowly start drafting your suicide letter as the thought of spending yet another week at “that place” becomes a reality? Or are you jumping up to make some popcorn because the 8pm movie is only an hour away?

I call it “The Job Love Test”, as in “do you love your job?” Ok, maybe love is too strong a word because I mean, who of us stays up at night writing love letters to our jobs like “Dear Job, if this isn’t love, I don’t know what is…”?. I once had a chat about job satisfaction with an Executive from work and she said that job satisfaction is not necessarily about being in love with your job () but rather about fulfilment: Are you learning? Are you growing? Are you adding value? Are you surrounded by the right people? These are questions I now constantly ask myself and as long as the answer is “Yes” to all four, I’m happy. But this wasn’t always the case…

I came to Johannesburg with the aim of being a doctor because that’s what all the grown-ups in my life had envisaged for me.. Halfway through my first year of Medicine (MBBCh) I wrote a letter to my parents telling them that my relationship status with my degree had changed to “It’s complicated”. I wasn’t convinced that this was my path. I did not want to be there learning how to be a doctor. Three weeks later they received the letter which I had posted (snail mail) and my dad, convinced that the city of Gold had consumed his daughter, demanded I return home immediately. I was like “Naah fam” (translated: No way family). Ok, I didn’t really say that to him. I told them that I had already applied to the Commerce faculty and would know the outcome of my application in September of that year; so it would be in everyone’s (my) best interest to just let me finish my first year in MBBCh. In the interim I went to companies, seeking sponsorship for a degree I was not yet accepted into. I did not get a single yes. September came and I got accepted to study for a Bachelor of Commerc (B.Comm)degree but I still didn’t have funding and my parents didn’t have money to pay for my tuition. My last resort was the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS). My application was successful and I was granted a partial bursary. Half the battle was won. And that is how my first, first year (or should I say first-year-point-one) ended.

A month into the first year of my B.Comm degree (first-year-point-two) I got a call from a lady who worked for a FMCG company looking to sponsor students: full sponsorship plus pocket money and get this; no work back obligations! What? I took a deep breath in and waited for Ashton Kutcher to jump out the phone and tell me I’d been Punk’d. No Ashton. This was real! The deal was that the company would cover me for my undergraduate degree for as long as I passed. They however, didn’t cover post-graduate studies. Towards the end of my third year, I wrote them an email telling them that I wished to pursue an Honours degree and asked if they could cover me for one more year as I wanted to read my Honours in Corporate Finance. They agreed. Final results came and I fell shy of the required minimum mark to make it into the Finance Honours class. Since I didn’t want the sponsorship opportunity go to waste, I decided to pursue my honours in my other major, Marketing. During my Honours year, me being me, I still applied to every Investment Banking graduate programme and only two Marketing graduate programmes. At the time, all I wanted was to work for JP Morgan. Even though I was competing with top students from the Finance Honours class, I managed to be the only person from my university to make the final round. However, when it came down to final offer I lost it to someone else. It simply was not my time yet. A week later I received an offer from one of the FMCGs I had applied to. I accepted the offer and a month later I moved to Cape Town.

The Cape Town experience was a weird phase of my life. At first I couldn’t decide whether it was the job or the place that I didn’t like. Then I started to make friends with my colleagues and it became clearer that it was the job. So comes my second go-to test. Look around you. Look at the most senior person in your team? Do you aspire to be that person? Is it something you’re working towards and willing to put in the hours in for? Look, I worked with some really awesome people but come that Carte Blanche song on a Sunday, my eyes would start to well up – not with tears of joy by any measure. I decided to call up the company that had sponsored me in university and asked for a job. They flew me up to Johannesburg (Joburg) for an interview and a week later I had an offer as Assistant Brand Manager for Strategic Innovations for the biscuits category. I packed my bags and moved back to Joburg. Now that I knew that I didn’t like the first job, I needed to test if I liked the industry at all. The new gig was ok but still not at the “no-Carte-Blanche-theme-song-on-a-Sunday-formed-against-me-shall-prosper” level. Then one day in a strategy meeting I sat back and thought to myself “does the world need another biscuit?”.

Part two of the journey to follow next month!

About the author:

Ziyanda Khumalo is a Johannesburg based Zulu girl, who is the reigning lip syncing champion in her neighbourhood and is an Investment Banker on the side. After spending three years as a Marketing professional, she decided to take a leap of faith and pursue a career in the financial industry. She can survive on minimal sleep provided she is fed ice cream at regular intervals. She is passionate about education and enjoys reading, working out and writing about stuff that is on her mind.

Twitter: @zeezilz || Instagram: @ziyandak || Blog: http://themegazeen.blogspot.com/

Featured

Meet South Africa’s Rising Children’s Book Author – Refiloe Moahloli

On a lovely Saturday in Johannesburg I interviewed our April career woman and author, Refiloe Moahloli. The interview took place at Warm and Glad, a trendy restaurant in Craighall Park, which was fitting because that’s exactly how Refiloe made me feel. This bright and petite figure with a gorgeous smile and enthusiastic energy just effortlessly filled the space – It’s not hard to see why she was destined for this career path.

Refiloe is the author of children’s book, ‘How many ways can you say hello?’, which is currently climbing ranks of best book lists all over the country. ‘How many ways can you say hello?’ is described as “…a great way to introduce young kids to South African languages and cultures,” by YOU magazine. For the week of 19 – 25 March, the book was ranked 15^th out of 100 of the Best Selling Books in South Africa and ranked 2^nd out of 100 of the Best Selling Children’s books in South Africa as per the Nielsen Report.

LM: Tell me about Refiloe, where she grew up and how she became a writer?

RM: I grew up eMthatha, so although I have a Sotho name, I speak isiXhosa. I’ve always been a bookworm and I always knew that I wanted to write, however I decided to study a BCom in Information Systems and worked for a telecoms company for seven years, before taking steps to be a full-time author. During the time in my last ‘corporate’ job, I was on an assignment in India for almost two years and it was that experience that made me decide to take the leap into the writing space.

Soon after, I signed up for a writing course because writing is an art and much as I had ideas and concepts for a while, having someone guide me through the process was exactly what I needed to get to the next step… and this is where I am today!

LM: What brought about the concept for ‘How many ways can you say hello?’?

RM: The concept of the book had always been floating in the back of my head, but I was particularly inspired by a few people and experiences, including my seven year-old niece, whom I’ve watched grow from birth. In her formative years, she spoke isiZulu at home. When she started school, she spoke English more frequently, and at some point, she wouldn’t speak isiZulu anymore.

I later had a conversation with my aunt about this, when she told me that she speaks six of the eleven official languages! I only speak two languages Xhosa and English (and a little bit of Sotho, because when your name is Refiloe… [laughs]). From this it struck me that as South Africans, we should be looking beyond our own languages. That’s when I thought that we should at least be able to greet each other in any South African language, acknowledging each other’s cultures and backgrounds and it’s the best way to start a conversation.

LM: Do you define yourself as a children’s book writer, in particular?

RM: An aspect that I have been enjoying through this journey is reading my book to the
kids in schools and bookstores. Initially, I never set out to exclusively write children’s books, and had been writing books for both adults and children. I realised it’s what I wanted to focus on when I briefed a friend on the concept of ‘How many ways can you say hello?’ and her face lit up and she expressed great excitement, that I felt that this was something special and I wanted to focus on it. For now, I’ll be sticking to children’s books and I’m enjoying it as an adult too, because the books are awesome!

Ref3 — ‘How many ways can you say hello?’ book reading

LM: What has been the feedback and support like so far and how has your network responded to the book?

RM: The feedback has been great and there’s been a lot of excitement, especially because the book is very inclusive – everyone can find themselves in the story. I’ve found that parents are especially looking for local content for their children.

The pre-ordering campaign started two weeks before the official publication date and within the first month of publication the book has already going to reprint. What I appreciate is that people don’t just buy one copy, they buy many copies as gifts for family and friends. The book launch was overwhelming; friends and family came to show support and the sharing on social media has been priceless.

What more could an author want? The story must spread, that’s why I write stories.

LM: Are there other black women children’s writers in South Africa? Who are your peers?

RM: [Pauses and thinks for a while]

The one thing that comes to mind, is an organisation called Book Dash, where authors, illustrators and other contributors volunteer their time to create children’s books. I have seen a few black women contributing to that platform. I would say in general, black and woman children’s authors are not in abundance, therefore there’s opportunity for growth and a lot of space for others to enter the children’s book writing environment.

LM: Please share some insights from your journey in writing ‘How many ways can you say hello?’ for others who would be interested in becoming children’s book authors.

RM: You should recognise that there is a rigorous process involved, that requires heaps of patience and a very thick skin. I had so many versions and iterations of the book, which was time consuming and energy draining, but that’s just how publishing works. You must be in the right mind-space and when you decide to do it, make sure you do it properly.

LM: Where can we get the book?

RM: In all leading bookstores, the book has been doing well and more stock will be available at the end of April/beginning of May.

Featured

Spread Your Wings: Tips on How to Build a Global Career

In recent years, some of SA’s most talented and influential youth have made names for themselves on the world stage. From politician Lindiwe Mazibuko to comedian Trevor Noah, more and more young professionals are pursuing global aspirations and catapulting their careers to new heights. Interestingly, many workplace studies on millennials reveal that this generation is particularly keen to work abroad. A PricewaterhouseCoopers study titled The Female Millennial: A New Era of Talent claimed that 71% of female millennials would like to work outside their home countries during their careers. The study also revealed that the current global population of international assignees is 20% women and 80% men. These figures beg the following three questions:

WHY ARE MILLENNIAL WOMEN PARTICULARLY INTERESTED IN TAKING UP PROFESSIONAL GLOBAL OPPORTUNITIES?

In an era of increasing hyperconnectivity, it seems the world’s at our fingertips. In fact, research company Nielsen describes the millennial generation as “the first to come of age with cable TV, the Internet and cellphones”. Therefore, regular exposure to international media and information naturally inculcates a fascination for foreign cultures, growing an international network and gaining a different perspective. Lindelwa Skenjana, a digital marketer in her 20s who left her job in SA to further her studies abroad, agrees, but adds wanderlust and a thirst for adventure to the mix. “Because I was born in Durban, grew up in Pretoria, went to university in Cape Town and worked in Johannesburg, I felt I’d experienced all of SA’s major cities and I wanted to know what other cities and countries had to offer,” she explains. There’s also an awareness among young women that the right kind of international experience can fast-track their careers. Nswana Mwangu, an investment banker in her 20s, left the country to study for a Master’s in investment management because she knew it would be a “step-change” in her career when she returned to SA. Yaseen Schrueder, talent specialist in financial services, supports the notion that, in general, professional international experience and obtaining accredited qualifications abroad can both strengthen the profiles of job candidates and increase their chances of promotion, especially in multi-national companies. He says professional bodies such as the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants and the Law Society of SA recognise qualifications obtained abroad as being relevant in our country. Lungile Masuku, a financial analyst in her 20s, however, says her primary reason for accepting secondment abroad was for personal, rather than professional growth. “I felt my life was developing quicker than I’d anticipated and I needed time alone in a different environment to discover myself,” she recalls. And she’s far from alone in this: research indicates that even though highperforming millennial women have ambitions to reach the top of the ladder in their fields, finding opportunities along that journey for self-discovery can be just the breath of fresh air they need.

DO EMPLOYERS RECOGNISE THIS AMBITION IN THEIR YOUNG, FEMALE TALENT POOL?

Schrueder believes the international assignee ratio of men to women is a reflection of the current diversity disparities in the workforce. Nonetheless, his view is that “employers with hiring processes which require candidates to express their willingness to work on international assignments are likely to have a good understanding of how mobile their female talent pool is, and on what conditions they’re willing to be stationed abroad (for example, with a spouse or family relocation support)”. He adds that another reason young professionals in general may be missing out on global opportunities is that their career discussions with employers are often centred primarily on their personal desires for international experience, rather than aligning business needs with their own ambitions to gain international experience. He says organisations offer international assignments in order to give employees organisational experience that isn’t available in their home country, allow them to gain contextual experience of foreign operations and deliver skills transfer in a foreign country which lacks specific expertise. In general, though, high performers who are able to articulate how their organisation will benefit from their time abroad stand a better chance of being given international opportunities, says Schrueder.

HOW SHOULD WOMEN POSITION THEMSELVES IN THE WORKPLACE TO BUILD GLOBAL CAREERS?

Firstly, Schrueder advises women to conduct research on their organisation’s strategy, identify the key markets for it and, more specifically, pin-point the countries they want to target for global experience. For instance, some companies have aggressive ambitions in Africa or across emerging markets, while others have headquarters in major cities in developed markets. Once the ideal market has been identified, it’s easier to analyse the gap that could be filled either by working in that country or after returning to one’s home country. Schrueder also advises women considering joining a company with an international presence to conduct research on its maturity, track record and policy regarding employee mobility. This is because, in some cases, despite having an international footprint, companies might not have regular global rotation programmes or the resources to manage the administration and logistics needed to support international mobility. They might also lack experience in successfully moving employees from one office to another, or they could have strict criteria regarding which employees are eligible for global opportunities. Secondly, he advises women to be vocal about their global ambitions in discussions with managers and sponsors, and to take advantage of HR processes which enable platforms for international exposure. Again, he stresses the importance of explaining the return on investment for the employer. In addition, I personally believe it’s also worth investigating professional fellowship opportunities available through various organisations and government embassies. For instance, the Mandela-Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders is a USA-led initiative which provides exceptional young leaders from sub-Saharan Africa with the opportunity to hone their skills in business, entrepreneurship, civic leadership or public management. There are also several other programmes available through the American Embassy ranging from entrepreneurship to technology and sports. More than ever before, young career women in SA can pursue their global ambitions, enhancing both their careers and their own hunger for adventure.

Article by: Magcino Radebe | Mbewu Movement Founding Member

Magcino Radebe holds a Master of Philosophy in Politics, Philosophy and Economics (University of Cape Town). She is an Executive Assistant in Financial Services. She is also a freelance writer at Ndalo Media and writes Executive Intelligence articles for Destiny Magazine.

Note: This article was originally published in Destiny Magazine (November 2016)

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Background

What is violence against women and children?

What can you do?

What is government doing?

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Finally, we need to stop hurting each other, we need to stop causing each other pain, and we need to be kind to one another. Cruelty has no place in this society, patriarchy cannot prosper where we intentionally seek to make peace. All of this needs to stop, it must just stop!

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A talented photographer and director, Ndumiso Sibanda compiles a 3-part love short story. Watch the final part that this talented artist pulled off.

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A talented director and professional photographer, Ndumiso Sibanda, pulls of an amazing LUV ”love” short story, take a look at this talented artist’s love story compilation.

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Is It Possible To Buy Groceries At No Cost?

A buyer’s journal to secure additional wealth.

Author: Vongani Nkuna

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Mbewu MCM – a talented director and professional photographer, Ndumiso Sibanda, take a look at the LUV ”love” short story series that this talented Afrcan artist has pulled off.

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