‘Your toil won’t be easy’

“Whatever meaningful goal you ultimately chose to pursue, it [will] always [be] a challenging journey. Prepare your mind for the difficulty and, more importantly, find joy in the little things every day.”

That was guest speaker Nkazi Sokhulu’s message to Commerce graduands during the morning graduation ceremony on Saturday, 13 April. The University of Cape Town’s (UCT) bumper autumn graduation kicked off in the Sarah Baartman Hall last Wednesday. Around 5 124 students are expected to be capped before Thursday, 18 April, including 70 doctoral degrees and 383 master’s degrees.

Sokhulu, a UCT alumnus and the co-founder of FNB Life and founder of digital insurer Yalu, shared three important lessons “not highlighted in tax textbooks or double integrals tutorials” with graduands.

“These are lessons I wish someone had shared with me before I ventured into the world of work.” 

Support structure

Success doesn’t start and end with a degree, he warned.

“Your personal mission and your desire to win are not going to be enough to sustain you. You need something more than that.”

“Your personal mission and your desire to win are not going to be enough to sustain you. You need something more than that.”

He told the graduands that even though it’s easy to believe that the knowledge gained at university will take them “to lofty heights”, much more than this is required. The support of a loving family – parents, a partner and children – are fundamental, especially when things don’t go according to plan.  

“In my experience, it’s often the intangibles like a great support structure that propel you forward,” he said.

Find joy in the mundane

Life’s journey is not plain sailing and there will be many obstacles along the way. But how you choose to navigate these challenges is what counts, Sokhulu added.

Find joy in the “simple, mundane things”. And these can be anything: colleagues who obsess over Beyonce’s hive, a child who chooses to negotiate a trade-off to get sweets, or even debates with a few friends on the merits of the latest superhero movie. 

“Find those small moments of joy. They will carry you through the difficult times that lie ahead.”

Your friendship circle matters

Next up was to surround yourself with people who are smarter than you.

“I don’t mean the typical book smart versus street smart definitions. I mean people who have gone ahead in walking this thing called life.”

“I don’t mean the typical book smart versus street smart definitions. I mean people who have gone ahead in walking this thing called life.”

Sokhulu also urged graduands to connect with people who have made big mistakes along the way, as well as those who have succeeded in their field. It is this calibre of people who will be able to identify the journey new graduates are on, and who will provide the support and guidance they need.

But growing these relationships via social media, telephone conversations and emails is not nearly enough. The power lies in regular face-to-face interaction, which enables story-telling and the ability to share tips and ideas and, where necessary, to provide advice.

“You need these people in your life. Your toil won’t be easy, so it helps to have people wiser than you as they will help you make fewer mistakes along the way.

“These relationships are not transactional, but mutually beneficial,” he said.