Top 35-under-35 2020: Cyril Madiba

Lift others as you rise

No one man is an island. We all have a key role to play in society − a society plagued by challenges such as high unemployment, inequality, a high crime rate, and education standards that need improvement, to name a few.

A lot of us have experienced one or a combination of these and have been helped to overcome them. Consider the following:

• The mentor or experienced person who shares his or her knowledge or wisdom with you
• Organisations or individuals that fund your studies, enabling you to obtain a quality education
• Feeding schemes that ensure that families who would ordinarily go hungry have a meal
• Organisations or individuals that create programmes to transfer much-needed skills to enable employment or entrepreneurship

These are examples of organisations and individuals that lifting others as they rise. Simply put, by contributing to the growth of others, we grow too.

Some people have a lot of material belongings but are not fulfilled. It is only when we make a meaningful contribution to the lives of others that we find fulfilment in our own lives.

Ask yourself how you are you contributing to lifting others and having a positive impact on people’s lives. People often think that one needs to have an initiative that impacts thousands of lives to make a meaningful contribution. That would be great, but you can start where you are and with what you have. Your impact on one or two people may make a huge difference in their lives, families and communities.

The act of lifting others as we rise requires us to be leaders in our own right. True leadership is not about how great you are, it is about how you can help others to be great.

Identify societal issues and how you can contribute to lifting others in that space. Join an existing cause or create one and partner with other stakeholders.

I have a keen interest in youth development from an academic, career and personal development perspective. Therefore, I am involved in a number of initiatives in this field in the spirit of practically lifting others as I rise:

• I am a mentor to aspiring CAs(SA) through the Endunamoo School of Accounting and Cyril Ramaphosa Education Trust (CRET).
• At CRET, I chair the advisory board which is tasked with providing advisory proposals on strategy and operations. CRET provides bursary funding and holistic support to university students.
• I founded The Growth Switch which assists students and young professionals with academic, career and personal development through online videos and one-on-one coaching.
• I speak at career day events and webinars to provide guidance to others.
• I continuously share my story, including my trials and tribulations, to inspire others.

So, I ask again: How are you contributing to lifting others and having a positive impact on people’s lives? Reflect on it and if you have not already done so, take practical steps to help alleviate the challenges faced by society and thus lifting others as you rise.