Chrissy Sykes Chrissy Sykes and The Power Of Music

Rather than being a victim of circumstance or acting from a reactionary state, I was intentional about making one good choice; to be a positive influence on my world and ensure that many do not face the same struggles that I faced.

Despite originally practicing as a Human Resources Professional, that intentionality led me to found a nonprofit called Talk love Africa Foundation (TAF) which works to support the total well-being of underprivileged children, vulnerable women, and the disadvantaged.

TAF is charged with the commitment to consistently touch the lives of people and communities around us in ways that spread love and make the world a better place.

In 2019, Talk Love Africa Foundation initiated and led a recognized global online advocacy campaign for quality education tagged #ProgressForQualityEducation.

This initiative which was aimed at reducing the global number of out-ofschool children by mobilizing people across the globe to take decisive actions to promote quality education (SDG4) in their countries recorded hundreds of participants across 42 countries who supported the campaign by funding the educational needs of thousands of underprivileged children in their home countries. Like every other organization, we have encountered unique challenges ranging from funding, staffing, procedures, visibility, and others.

There were times we felt like our organization was not making enough impact seeing that the same issues were being addressed by other NGOs and other times when we felt our volunteers seemed less enthusiastic about their work compared to those involved in other groups but we stayed through it all ready to take on our world because we strongly believe the saying “Where there is a will there's a way” .

Today, some of those challenges seem like a walkover because we have learned the act of staying resilient in a fastgrowing environment.

Over the years, we have been inspired to keep going because our interventions have saved lives, brought joy to the lives of our beneficiaries, improved their living conditions, and above all made and are still making our world a better place. ThereThere areare nono secretsecret codescodes toto makingmaking anan impactimpact inin life,life, however,however, ourour actionsactions oror inactionsinactions cancan rubrub offoff negativelynegatively oror positivelypositively onon thethe peoplepeople aroundaround us.us.

ToTo self-evaluateself-evaluate yourselfyourself herehere areare a a fewfew questionsquestions toto consider:consider:

WhatWhat isis negativelynegatively impactingimpacting thethe liveslives ofof peoplepeople aroundaround me?me?

WhatWhat rolerole amam II playingplaying inin thisthis situation?situation?

AmAm II contributingcontributing toto worseningworsening oror improvingimproving theirtheir condition?condition?

WhatWhat cancan II dodo better?better?

To get involved in making a global impact you can consider any of the following:

DonateDonate toto humanitarianhumanitarian causescauses throughthrough verifiableverifiable andand crediblecredible organizations.organizations.

VolunteerVolunteer youryour timetime andand talenttalent forfor causescauses youyou carecare about.about. ThisThis mightmight bebe inin thethe formform ofof in-personin-person participationparticipation oror onlineonline participationparticipation wherewhere youyou areare assignedassigned taskstasks toto perform.perform.

RaiseRaise awarenessawareness andand advocateadvocate forfor causescauses thatthat needneed attention.attention.

PerformPerform randomrandom actsacts ofof kindness.kindness.

II believebelieve thatthat whenwhen wewe allall lendlend dropsdrops ofof kindnesskindness inin ourour littlelittle way,way, soonersooner ratherrather thanthan later,later, wewe willwill havehave a a seasea filledfilled withwith peoplepeople swimmingswimming inin anan oceanocean ofof love,love, joyjoy andand kindness.kindness. That’sThat’s howhow wewe changechange thethe world,world, oneone actact ofof kindnesskindness afterafter thethe other.other. That’sThat’s howhow wewe cancan allall makemake a a globalglobal impact.impact.

Thinking Limitlessly

EN ROUTE TO GLOBAL IMPACT

by Tiffany Markman

Whether global impact is your end goal, or you have something more contained at the end of your strategic rainbow, the truth is that thinking limitlessly requires confidence – or, at least, the absence of chronic selfdoubt.

But so many of us (and by “us” I mean women in general, women in business, self-employed or self-made women, women from the Global South, and/or women from South Africa) battle with internal “Impostor Syndrome” .

According to psychologist Dr Emily Anhalt, Impostor Syndrome is

believing that you are not capable,

even when there’s evidence you can achieve highly. There's a feeling of fakeness and, rooted in insecurity, a fear of being exposed as a fraud.

Note: Impostor Syndrome is the corollary of the Dunning-Kruger Effect,, which is when less competent people overestimate their skills, knowledge and achievement and ignore warnings – or brush off criticism because they ‘know better’ .

It’s worse for self-starters

Up to 70% of people have felt like an impostor at some point in their career, and it’s worse when you’re an entrepreneur, says Dr Valerie Young, educator, author and TED speaker. She explains that the self-starter is especially prone to Impostor Syndrome because “the nature of entrepreneurship makes everyone more vulnerable to feeling inadequate, and even more so if you are not classically trained. ”

Sheryl Sandberg, Natalie Portman and Charlize Theron have all laid public claim to paralyzing feelings of inadequacy. Even John Steinbeck, one of the greatest authors of the 20th century and winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962, wrote in his diary: “I’m not a writer, I’ve been fooling myself and other people. ”

Recent research by UK business

coach and author Clare Josa shows that:

“I'm“I'm notnot asas goodgood asas othersothers inin mymy field”field” isis thethe mostmost prolificprolific (75%)(75%) self-selftalktalk statementstatement amongamong entrepreneurs;entrepreneurs; AnxietyAnxiety (72%)(72%) andand negativenegative thinkingthinking (62%)(62%) areare thethe toptop warningwarning signsign behavioursbehaviours ofof ImpostorImpostor SyndromeSyndrome amongamong entrepreneurs;entrepreneurs;

PeoplePeople pleasingpleasing (65%),(65%), procrastinationprocrastination (62%),(62%), paralysisparalysis (54%)(54%) andand perfectionismperfectionism (52%)(52%) areare thethe telltaletelltale signssigns ofof ImpostorImpostor SyndromeSyndrome thatthat entrepreneursentrepreneurs seesee inin others;others; andand

MovingMoving fromfrom entrepreneursentrepreneurs inin generalgeneral toto womenwomen entrepreneursentrepreneurs inin particular,particular, 68%68% ofof malemale entrepreneursentrepreneurs whowho lacklack experienceexperience areare struckstruck regularlyregularly byby ImpostorImpostor Syndrome,Syndrome, comparedcompared toto 55%55% ofof femalefemale entrepreneursentrepreneurs whowho havehave lotslots ofof experience.experience.

Plus,Plus, ImpostorImpostor SyndromeSyndrome isis self-selffulfilling.fulfilling. You’reYou’re afraidafraid ofof beingbeing caughtcaught outout asas anan impostor,impostor, soso youyou don’tdon’t askask questions,questions, soso youyou fail.fail. OrOr youyou over-prepare.over-prepare.

WhenWhen somethingsomething goesgoes well,well, you’reyou’re convincedconvinced thatthat allall youryour preparationpreparation waswas necessary;necessary; whenwhen itit doesn’t,doesn’t, youryour ImpostorImpostor SyndromeSyndrome getsgets worseworse –– andand soso on.on.

Women in South Africa

In my home country, South Africa, you may or may not be surprised to know that, even in 2022, women command only 33.1% of managerial positions, but 42.1% of households. Further, 56.2% of women are “discouraged” from participating in the South African labour market, where the gender pay gap for doing the same work is 23% to 35%, depending on which statistics you consider.

On a macro level, South African women would appear to be sub-par. But what’s worse is that, on a micro level, we often feel sub-par in our own minds. My opinion is that this is widespread, right across the continent.

A sense of being lesser

During a recent business trip to speak at a conference in the United States, which I thought was the land of milky, honeyed, significantly-above-par professional excellence in all things, I realised something unexpected:

We, the citizens of Africa, suffer from a shared sense of being lesser. Of being smaller. Of being less worthy of global stages, both real and metaphorical. ContentContent selectionselection forfor newness,newness, freshnessfreshness andand originaloriginal perspectivesperspectives

RelevanceRelevance andand sensitivity,sensitivity, featuringfeaturing diversediverse real-worldreal-world examplesexamples

HonestyHonesty andand authenticityauthenticity –– even,even, daredare II saysay it,it, vulnerabilityvulnerability

Why are we so good? I think it’s because, as representatives of the Global South, we start on the back foot and we work that much harder to add value. This

reminds me of the iconic Avis campaign,

“We try harder" . In 1962, ad agency Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB) was able to turn being the Number Two car rental brand in the market into a true marketing advantage. For 50 epic years!

I spent a week in the company of 824 other communicators, of which 40 (including me) were conference speakers. Of the 40, 15 of us hailed from Africa: North, East, South and West, so I’m confident putting in writing the three things that I think we do better in Africa, right now, when it comes to my field, communication

Marginalised backgrounds

However, it isn’t fair – or accurate – to make the previous point without acknowledging how individuals from historically disadvantaged sectors of society often experience Impostor Syndrome in the workplace: they’re “diagnosed” with it.

TThe fact that Impostor Syndrome is treated as a diagnosis at all is problematic. This excludes the effects of systemic racism, classism, xenophobia and other biases on a fairly universal feeling of discomfort, second-guessing, and anxiety in the workplace.

When employees from marginalised backgrounds try to hold themselves up to a standard that no one like them has met (and that they’re not expected to be able to meet), the pressure to excel can be unbearable. Further, when these individuals question whether they’re deserving of accolades, or express any self-doubt, a prompt diagnosis of Impostor Syndrome pathologises it. Believe it or not, Lupita Nyong’o, Maya Angelou and even Michelle Obama have admitted to experiencing this phenomenon in their own professional lives. Is there an answer? Perhaps – but it’s not an easy one, nor is the solution a quick fix. The answer to overcoming Impostor Syndrome is not to ‘fix’ individuals, but to create an environment that fosters a number of different leadership styles and where the diversity of racial, ethnic, and gender identities is viewed as optimally professional.

Imagine a scenario

More light-heartedly, it also helps to have a Jewish mother, as I do (and as my daughter does). When you have a Jewish mother:

1. You are the most brilliant creature the world has ever seen. 2. Anyone who doesn’t think so is stupid. 3. You deserve to rule the entire universe.

I want you to imagine the scenario in which the only child of my Jewish mother is not chosen by HRH Prince William to be his wife and become the Queen of England. It’s devastation… despite my having been happily married for four years by then.But you can probably also imagine that the sheer strength of my mother’s belief in me is a solid foundation on which to build confidence and self-esteem. One of the things my mother has taught me is this: You must hold onto the good stuff. The compliments. The enthusiastic feedback. The happy testimonials and kind words.

We tend to dwell on negative input and quickly forget positive input. If one person dislikes something we’ve done, worn or said, but 20 people love it, most of us will obsess with the criticism of that one miserable hater. As we work on thinking limitlessly en route to impact, global or otherwise, let’s try to retain the nice things people say about us and let’s say nice things about ourselves.

About the author

Tiffany Markman is a copywriter, trainer and speaker known for creating and delivering copy and content, thought leadership, TV and radio scripts, training programmes and stage talks for large and small audiences worldwide.

In 2022, Tiffany was ‘The Most Effective Copywriter in Southern Africa’ (MEA Markets), in 2021 she was one of the ‘World’s Top Female Content Marketers’ (Contentbot) and in 2020 she was South Africa’s ‘Freelance Copywriter of the Year’ .

Over the last 17 years, Tiffany has worked on copy and content for 450+ brands and taught her methodologies to 10,000+ individuals live and 20,000+ online. She regularly delivers keynote addresses, masterclasses and other presentations at conferences, companies, tertiary institutions, and organisations worldwide.

Creating Global Impact

AND THINKING LIMITLESSLY

by Jude Ediae

Jude Ediae is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Global Youth Mental Health Awareness (GYMHA) Incorporated (https://gymha.org/), an Australian registered charity. I am passionate about supporting the mental health and wellbeing of youth globally.

As a humanitarian and global ambassador for youth mental health awareness, I choose to emphasize the positive mindset of venturing above your fears and taking a step forward even when it seems all your confidence is gone.

I am passionate about how this selfdriven belief and self-assurance can connect, heal, inspire, educate, inculcate knowledge and hope in a world that desires a bond and selfbelief. We leave a legacy for impending generations to learn from us and ignite conversations that may not have taken place but rather were perceived and duly addressed with the proper solution to avoid a recurrence in the future, which inspires me I am thinking limitlessly of how to approach the impossibility related challenges, building a mindset of "I can achieve it" prior to endless opportunities globally.

Thinking limitlessly

The motivation for this has arisen from my own experiences of charitable field work in Africa, Asia and the Middle East, first as a member of the Global Goodwill Ambassadors Foundation (https://www.globalgoodwillambassadors.or g/) and the Ethnic Community Council of Victoria. In both roles, I've seen that it's common to struggle to keep social support systems that work, which takes a lot of time and emotional energy.

Definition

A limiting belief is a state of mind, confidence, or belief that you think to be true that limits you in some way. This restrictive belief could be about your personality, your interactions with other individuals, or with the world and how it works.

I've taken a risk in thinking about how my role in a local society, community, or global phase can influence people to make the right decision based on confidence and seeing beyond impossibilities, as well as act as a catalyst for change in our world, community, and even within ourselves.

This modification happens when we start with ourselves and understand how powerful we are. It is a simple change in perception and belief. When we show up as equals alongside anyone, regardless of how they respond to it, we are steadfast in our endeavors as an inspired leader focused on what really matters and his/her accomplishments on the job!

In different ways, individuals were almost unanimously describing a wish for organized spaces offering control of their anxieties, where difficult and potentially contradictory thoughts and feelings about their relational worlds could be named and addressed.

They did not specify whether they felt this would make them more resilient or more productive. This would support the idea that anything that might help strengthen the positive mindset of an individual would implicitly raise levels of resilience and expose them to the awareness of limitless approaches to these challenges and how to weather the storm through the ugly phase of life.

On an organizational level, teams where people can be open and honest at work without worrying about getting in trouble have been shown to be psychologically safe places.

Once this sense of protection has been established, it then becomes a catalyst for new learning, creativity, adaptability, and high performance in an individual’s life and his environment.

Uncontained anxieties on an individual level have also been shown to set up a range of unproductive and defensive group behaviors in workplace settings, such as fictionalization, meaningless busy-ness, avoidance of responsibility, and a rigid focus on procedures at the expense of creative goals.

Actively suppressing those anxieties will not encourage individuals or groups to engage in coherent limitless thinking and creative problem-solving approaches in order to build capacity to identify diverse opportunities within and beyond their immediate environments.

I would love to see more individuals, especially youths of all genders, free of discriminating mindsets, claim their place in their industry of choice because when we do, we make a difference and set a model for those who follow.

I am extremely proud to be a part of the generation who have made a real impact on fairness, love, peace, and equality.