Nkosi Hlankeza

Nkosi Hlankeza

1.GETTING INTO SHAPE
I have always wanted to be successful, my biggest inspiration being my father. He left his career of being a teacher and took a risk to start up his own business. I just did not know how to do it – to be successful that is, I always thought that I first had to finish my studies and obtain my degree get a job, gain experience than think about starting up my own business. I have always seen myself as a driven person, a go getter, knowing my goals and having an idea on what I wanted to achieve and where I wanted to end up. Having my own business was definitely on the top of my list of goals but I just didn’t know how to get there, who were the right people I had to talk to and how to go about getting everything that I needed.

I have always been reading up on successful entrepreneurs such as Steve Jobs, Donald Trump and Jim Rohn just to name a few trying to read up on what it took for them to get where they are now So there is this one specific day that I will never forget and still think about to this very day. It’s the day that I was introduced to “SHAPE”. I was sitting in class waiting for it to commence and this lady called Thea Van der westhuizen showed us two videos – one of people who are demotivated easily, who have great ideas but don’t go out there and implement them mainly because of the negative talk they have heard And the second video it showed people that were completely the opposite of the first video- it showed go getters, individuals who strived to do better, be better , to make something of themselves and to develop their ideas into something huge because they believed and I knew that I was one of them .Thea enlightened us about the SHAPE scholarship and I was blown out of the water and immediately wanted to be the “new dork” the talk of the town. I left that day feeling totally inspired. I saw Thea again but talking to a different group that I was in and I just remember thinking in my mind that God is giving me a sign that this scholarship is for me.

I applied for the scholarship feeling very hopeful that I was going to get accepted. I saw my name on the list of the people that were shortlisted for the scholarship and I was smiles for days, was so excited. A part of me did not believe it but also expected it. After that I went through the processes and then got accepted in to the scholarship again feeling excited, over the moon and feeling like it was where I belonged.
I am a growing budding seed looking to develop into a beautiful, strong flower and with the help of SHAPE and my ambition only the best is yet to come.

2.HOPES AS YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS
The definition of Hope is the state which promotes the desire of positive outcomes related to events and circumstances in one’s life or in the world at large.
I want to be successful as a young entrepreneur I want to achieve things that are beyond my wildest dreams and thoughts, I want to make anything possible even if I have been told that it is impossible. I live by the words of the late Nelson Mandela that say “It always seems impossible until it’s done”.
I know that this path that I have chosen will not be easy, there will be setbacks and hiccups along the way that will put me down but I will rise above them. I believe that I am a strong-willed person, innovative, driven, a go getter , I am not afraid to pick myself up when I have fallen and carry on with my path, these are a few things that set me apart from the people who just wait for things to happen to them.

I see a gap in the market that I as a young entrepreneur can penetrate, set ground and grow in. the sky is the limit and the only thing that can stop me is myself. With the help of the SHAPE scholarship a lot can be achieved, not only for me as an entrepreneur but for the people around me and my country.
The hope that I have is not only to improve my life but also the lives of the people in my community. I am constantly growing and evolving myself and want to be the promising change in my country.