What went down at the #IAMORIGINAL Boss Brunch & Panel – Johannesburg
Curated within the beautiful landscape of Jozi on a peaceful Sunday, She Leads Africa in partnership with The Cut Life and Originals by Africa’s Best held a Boss Brunch and panel with the finest Motherland Mogul influencers of Africa. The location was a hidden oasis of tranquility, The Gabriela’s Tea Room, perfect for some girl chat, champagne was flowing, the crowd was buzzing. What a beautiful Sunday. In the era of feminism and self-love, you do find some false prophets that don’t live up to their campaign inside as loudly as they may be online. What was important about the #IAMORIGINAL panel and brunch was that it focused on the challenges black women struggle through. The theme that stood out from the event was the need for women to back each other up and actually mean it. For the older and younger generation to join minds and create solutions for the Motherland Moguls that follow. The event kicked off with a warm welcome from the bubbly Shanon Stanislaus of Originals by Africa’s Best. She spoke about the benefits of their new Coconut Creme range that has nutrition rich formulas, helping your natural hair with the foundation its needs for hair goals. I tried some of the samples from the gift bag and I am sold on the products, which are available from Clicks nationwide or through The Originals by Africa’s best website. We then proceeded into an hour-long networking bingo session, that had our Influencers and Motherland Moguls buzzing through the room, the energy was so lively- It felt like the best girl chat session I’ve been to in ages. We held bingo cards that had questions such as “Who in the room has three pets, Who is an only child”. These were great ice breakers, especially for an introvert like myself. Back to our tables, we were served incredible dishes by The Gabriela’s Tea Room patrons, everything delicious and mouthwatering. This amazing panel was moderated by Tahira Joy of The Cut Life joined by Shanon Stanislaus (Originals by Africa’s Best), Enhle Mbali (Actress), Azania Mosaka (Broadcaster) and Jamelia Donaldson (Founder of Treasure Tress). They spoke on self-care and beauty, ways to effectively run your business and respect yourself and values in the process. We all got a few tips on how to reach your next Boss level in entrepreneurship through their stories, lessons and best practices. Azania Mosaka dropped so many nuggets that had all the women in agreement throughout. In the entertainment industry women are made to choose to get ahead either giving their bodies or having to dumb down their intellect so at to seem less of a threat to colleagues. As shocking as it may sound, these are challenges most women are still overcoming. A recurring theme throughout the Boss brunch and panel was how women need to remain educated and curious in our endeavors and not forgetting the people we build our dreams with. “If you’re starting your race, be invaluable to your team.” – Shanon Stanislaus.. There’s only so much you can do as an individual, once you realize your expertise is invaluable, the impossible is just as attainable as anything. We truly are better together. On the theme of staying curious in what your interests are, Jamelia Donaldson of Treasure Tress stated… “ You don’t know what you want to do until you’ve tried it all”. This tied in so well with the events hashtag of the day #IAMORIGINAL, when you apply yourself and work on what your secret sauce is, what do you really have to lose ? All in all, this was an event, unlike any other networking event I have been to, which is saying a lot as I have been to a ton of networking sessions and gone home feeling as though I barely received much value from the speakers. It could be just how intimate the brunch was or the fact that everyone left their egos at the door and simply wanted to celebrate each other. I have nothing but praise for what these women aimed to share through the event and I believe that we can all learn from them. As Motherland Moguls we are constantly inspiring those around us, we may not realize it a lot of the times, the best thing we can do is live an intention-driven life in our goals, decisions, and actions. Work within the passion and not ego, power or status. I’m definitely looking forward to more events from these powerhouses. Sponsored Post.
Liz Grossman: Lessons learned from the 2018 Impact!Africa Summit Johannesburg
[bctt tweet=”In order to change things, I had to show people visible role models – Regina Honu @ragyare” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] In June 2018, Johannesburg was brimming with over 400 social entrepreneurs who traveled from all over the continent for the Impact! Africa Summit. This inaugural gathering was hosted by Ashoka Africa and the British Council. It was an event with an aim to drive solutions to empower African women and reduce barriers. These two organizations are the renowned powerhouses when it comes to social entrepreneurship. Joining forces, they truly made waves in promoting collaboration across contexts to solve Africa’s most pressing challenges. Tibagu Bruktawit of Whiz Kids Workshop in Ethiopia said, “If we want to bring change, involve more young women, make it easier for them to be here.” And Ashoka Africa and British Council did just that. According to Pape Samb, Executive Director of Ashoka Africa, “[their] mandate is to make sure everyone is a changemaker around the world,” and that cannot be done without empowering women. Impact! Africa drew some of Africa’s most successful female changemakers. This gave them several platforms to share their stories and inspire the next generation of leaders. Furthermore, Ashoka and the Open Societies Foundation launched the Women’s Challenge by the Challenging Norms, Powering Economics Initiative by Ashoka, Open Societies Foundation, and UN Women. At the Summit, twelve finalists gathered to discuss empowering individual women and removing systemic barriers they face. Solutions included taking an intergenerational approach to ending harmful practices, increasing retention rates for girls in school, and increasing gender inclusivity in economic opportunities. Here are some of the lessons I learned from some of Africa’s brightest female champions: “In order to change things, I had to show them visible role models – Regina Honu, Founder of Soronko Solutions, Ghana. Having someone to look up to and model your path after is critical to developing as a leader. Surround yourself with those who inspire you, study their successes and failures, and strive for greatness. “Sit with someone you don’t know from somewhere else so that you learn something new.” Sylvia Banda, a serial entrepreneur from Zambia. It is easy to remain with people you are comfortable with, those who know you, your community, and your solution. Take opportunities to learn from different perspectives to broaden your mindset about your projects. “There is no end to the supply of people driven by social innovation.” Amma Sefa Dedeh Lartey, Founder of Reach for Change, Ghana. As social entrepreneurs, we must remember that you are not alone. While sometimes it may feel like an uphill battle trying to change mindsets and think creatively to transform our communities, we have a whole community at our fingertips to lean on. [bctt tweet=”Sit with someone you don’t know from somewhere else so that you learn something new – Sylvia Banda ” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] “Don’t underestimate the power of an individual!” Parminder Vir, CEO of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, Nigeria. Sometimes the challenges we are facing may seem insurmountable. They are too massive to tackle and we may feel that our own contributions can only do so much. But all it takes is one voice to stand out and break the mold. And remember, one mosquito in your bedroom can ruin your entire next day’s productivity. “Imagine if we work together, the impact we will have on the continent.” Vivian Onano, Global Youth Advocate from Kenya Collaboration is key, and female changemakers must learn to leave their silos, build a strong network and support fellow women. But we must also consider our male partners, and work alongside men to ensure they are also part of the solution. Watch out for the next edition of Impact!Africa, which will take place in June 2019 in Nairobi, Kenya. If you’d like to get featured on our Facebook page, click here to share your story with us.
Jobs – SLAY Festival Business Development Intern
She Leads Africa believes in the power of young African women to build amazing careers and businesses, serve as community leaders and influencers, and eventually take over the world. Our MotherlandMoguls, as we affectionately call them, are the reason we exist – to provide them with more inspiring and educational content to help them live their best lives. We’re looking for a Business Development Intern to assist in the planning and liaising with clients and vendors for SLAY Festival Johannesburg. About the Business Development Intern Role: The Business Development intern will help build the business development pipeline for SLAY Festival Johannesburg. Responsibilities Researching brands to host activations Developing pitch documents Identifying small businesses to serve as vendors Manage the vendor application and selection process Requirements: Ability to be based in Johannesburg for the duration of the Internship Minimum four-month commitment 1-2 years experience in a relevant field is preferred Skills including, but not limited to: + Research + Graphic design and presentation skills + Written communication skills Reporting Structure The Digital Marketing Growth Intern will report directly to their manager through a check-in and check-out process. Submit your application here: [typeform_embed type=”embed” url=”https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScbTszvEZmkMtx0EPzFQf-rviV-rsS4WflgQME7mk19Uu-2fw/viewform”] Submit the application by Thursday, May 31st 2018. Please note only those successful will be contacted for interviews.
SheHiveCapeTown: February 18-19 2017
[vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1448373453827{margin-top: -30px !important;}”][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”20179″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]The SheHive train came Cape Town and it was litttttt. Check out the fun we had below and join our community to stay up to date on our next SheHive destinations.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1448373453827{margin-top: -30px !important;}”][vc_column][vc_column_text][timetable id=”3″][/vc_column_text][vc_column_text][instagram-feed type=hashtag hashtag=shehivecapetown num=30 cols=5 height=1000][/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”28596″ alignment=”center”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row]