Episode 1: Take Responsibility_Free Yourself

Hi everybody. Welcome to our podcast, Black Woman Business. I'm your host, Tulim Kwebile and we're gonna be having lots of fun delving into the different topics, surrounded by being black, being a woman and being in business. Let's go. Since today is a plus fall. This was all a joke. Sorry about it. Bye. Oh, hi guys. Sorry. No, I just couldn't resist letting go of an April's full moment like that. Again, my name is Tulum Kwebele. I'm your host for this podcast, Black Woman Business. Of course we're going forward with it. We're been waiting forever and we've been circulating this day. So definitely we're going ahead with it. Fine. Let's hit the ground running. I'm very honored to have you at our very first insert. What's going to happen is I'm going to give a deep intro of myself and then we're going to do talk about the nitty gritties of starting your own business, the thought process involved in starting your own business and then further field. The upcoming topics will talk about what to to do when you want to sell, how you start selling, what do you sell, the paperwork that is involved in selling. We're also going to displace a few a few myths. And one that really comes to mind is the one about pull her down syndrome PhD. I mean, things like that don't exist, guys. Obviously we know that, but it's fine. We'll take some time and just draw through things like that. And also this wonderful fantasy story of do what you love and the money will follow you. I mean, we'll have a thorough look at those two. I'm gonna welcome questions that you guys bring or any suggestions that you guys bring. And then at a certain point we're also going be inviting some guests and we'll just have a wonderful time. Anyways, those are the things that we're going to be doing in the future. But for now, I'm looking forward to us hitting the ground running and starting the podcast. Here we go. So my name is Noctula. I'm a businesswoman. I'm a mother of three children. I'm a wife, I'm a grandchild and I'm a daughter, I'm a sister. So basically, yeah, that's me. So I started the business Sign a group in 2013. That time the business wasn't registered. I was advised not to register it because it, it becomes very expensive to start off registering the business. You can always register it at a later stage. So I did register in 2016 and I've come a long way since then. I've moved from Cape Town. I'm originally born in Guguleto. I've stayed in the Western Cape for quite a bit in the different regions. I stayed in Malmesbury, we bought a house in BSer. So yeah, I've been in Cape Town and I've only recently moved up to Joburg last year, right before COVID in 2020, I moved up here with my three kids and husband. We go frequently to Cape Town to visit my family. His family is mostly in the Eastern Cape. Yeah, I do have some content about that also because I'm a typical chick and he's from Eastern Cape in the rural areas. So yeah, like I said, three kids. I think for me, yeah, that's my personal life. I've got one two brothers. I'm the firstborn. I was born during that blizzard of teenage pregnancies in 1984. So my mom had me quite young. She was 18, my dad was 20. But yeah, fortunately they found their way back together again. Oh, should I say they never left each other's side because they had my brother. And I also have an adopted brother, Sia, who's in the middle between Thando and I. And it's the three of us. My dad has since passed away and I've had quite a strong influence from my grandmother's side. You'll hear me mention her every now and again. She's been quite successful in her own endeavors, so I learned quite a bit from her when it comes to academics. Okay. I've spent some time studying at cput. I studied chemical engineering, national diploma. Then I went on to do a higher certificate at UNISA in Industrial Engineering. I became very fortunate so I got employed by Petrosa, the refinery. I did some in service training there and then off to Chevron, the refinery in Milneton. And then afterwards worked at Kubik, the nuclear power station. So. Yeah. But in any case, none of those academic or, you know, work experiences have landed me any of the contracts that I have currently in business. In actual fact, I'd say if you can count your money, you're good to go. So let's hit it off then. I think we're done with my personal side. If you guys want to post some questions, wanting to know more, a bit more, I'm welcome into that. I'm an open book. I love. I love talking about myself. Oh my word. Is it good to admit that? But yeah, anyway, that's just how it is. Okay. Basically What I want to really, really look into this week is the thought process that comes into stepping out and launching yourself into any space, really, not only just business, launching yourself as a woman, launch yourself as a mother, launching yourself as a partner, giving yourself and giving, you know, just being vulnerable to the situation. The business also requires to you to be that way. I mean, now you're opening yourself up to a world that is unknown. We're very fearful. There's a lot of stories, people that know better, that have done better. Some have done well, some haven't. You know, it's a scary place to be. It's a dicey place to be. But I just want to put in some reassurance to you today and say, you know, this is a passage that I read in Rick Warren's book A Purpose Driven Life, and it really, really shook my ground, and it made me look at things in a different perspective. This passage talks about, there's a reason why you were born at this time. There's a reason why you were born, the gender that you are. There is a reason why you were born, the race that you are thinking the way you are. There's a fulfillment that can only be done by you, not any other person. So the reason why you are used to today at this time of a pandemic, there is a woman like you walking on ground, you know, at this time, thinking the thoughts that you have, having the dreams that you have, there's a purpose for that. And nobody else can fulfill the things that you can do on earth except for you. They labeled for you guys. This really touched me. It shook me. I read it some years ago. I think it was 2015. It got me really thinking because we always walk into a place thinking, you know, somebody will put up their hand in class. Even though you might know the answer, you kind of think you know the answer. You're not sure. I mean, it's not something you're really serious about, but you're like, there's somebody out there who's going to put up their hand and answer this lecture. But you what guys, in this instance, this guy is talking about, it's only you that can give the answer. It's only you that can unlock the door. And when you unlock the door, imagine you're also unlocking the door for other people as well. So I think that is something that we need to take very, very seriously and be cognizant of, you know. But in my case, I started reading up quite a few books that really touched me. One of the Books was by Jack Canfield. How to get from where you are to where you want to be. It's got very thorough steps on how you, you should be navigating. And I remember the very first chapter speaks about you need to take responsibility of your life. The reason why you are at the place that you are at at the moment is because of the choices that you have made. And circumstances have put you where you are. But the way that you've chosen to respond to them is the reason why you are where you are. So I mean also that book really got me going and after a while I started noticing a few things. So this is what I'm going to cover during this time. Catapulting yourself out of your current situation, your current mindset. Overworked, underpaid, launching yourself, stepping out. Survival risks and doubts. Don't need a degree. Mba. You want to help the nation, you want to feed the poor with water, you're going to do that. Basically those are headings that I'm about to cover now at the moment without wasting any time. I'm just going to go into it, straight into it. Catapulting yourself. So what I noticed is when I started reading these books there was a whole feeling of I'm starting to think differently about myself. I'm starting to feel different, enlightened, open minded, you know. And there was a sudden shift between the relationships I had around me, especially at work. I started thinking and my mind started getting so creative over that were just not, not enough. You know, working so hard, coming home with what people would say, okay, it's a good salary. I would have thought I've done all the right things. You know, I, we were told in high school, study maths and physics. I did that. Get good grades for that. I did that. Study the most difficult course you can think of or you can be good at. I studied cam ang. I think that was pretty difficult. In fact that was hard for me to, to, to actually pass. Like I failed quite a few times before I could actually grab my, my certificate and my qualification. Nonetheless, I went on to work at very prestigious plants. So I think maybe I should be really happy when it comes to job fulfillment and you know, salary, living a nice life, comfortable life. But that, that was definitely not the case. Even though I'd done all these things, there was always more that you have to do. You must study further, you must take extra shifts, you must work on the awkward days, work on Christmas, work on New Year's Eve. I mean who wants to work on new Year's Eve. And when I say work, you literally up there on the platformer, busy swinging valves, you know, holding onto your helmet, doing whatever. And it's 5 to 12, right before the new year. I mean, you know, you're gonna be paid really well for it. But I can tell you, after some time, it runs its course, and even that is just not enough. So for me, it just got to a point where I just felt like, now this is very exhausting. I mean, if I can carry on like this, because the next step, literally, was to study more. And another thing that my colleagues are really doing and have been doing over the years is to go overseas, work overseas. Most of them leave their families behind because of the working conditions where they're going are not, you know, conducive for the. For people staying at home and stuff. But what I'm trying to say is it just was never enough for me. I just had to paddle and keep on paddling to the next step. And it just felt like I could just foresee that this is gonna be an endless road of trying to overachieve my previous overachievement. And I just felt now there has to be another way. There has to be another way. I mean, also, remember by the. We used to get paid on the 25th. By the time the 20th hits, I mean, I'm just like, why am I broke? You know, And I've been listening to all these motivational financial, you know, and practicing some of it, but still, it just never got to that point. And even in my thought process, it never got to the point whereby I. I actually will break through this. So for me, it just got to the point whereby it's either I'm gonna carry on like this and continue being frustrated when it comes to financials, when it's time to get PA after that time, or I just launch myself into the unknown, worst case, fail and still be broke. You know, for me, it just looked like the end result is the same both ways. So how about I spend more time with my family and still end up, you know, broke, basically, if I look at it like that, and I used to look at it like that, for me to be hardworking, doing all these things and still be broke, or stay home, spend time with my family, fail at my business, and then be broke. I went for option two. I went for option two. But now the difference is I just needed to. What you call. I needed to prove to myself that I can do it. Because now I'm coming to the catapulting point. When I got to work, I couldn't even talk about my ideas. The stuff that I was reading. I mean, yeah, I had one very good friend that I would speak to. She really had to. She really had to. Had to listen hard and really understand me because, I mean, it felt like we were in different worlds. But, you know, this story of most of your colleagues, they don't understand where you are. You hate going to work. You hate the work you do. You hate the people. Okay, not that people at work, but I mean, what we all stand for, the mindset of rushing for a bonus, rushing for, you know, rushing for the next salary hike or allowance, you know, it just became so shallow, you know, and then you look around and, you know, it's kind of like these bunch of people are kind of like a little bit annoying because, I mean, I don't think they see beyond this, like, rat race that we are in. And then I just thought to myself, when I read one of the other books, it explained that when you're busy catapulting out of a situation, it's not too important to undermine your current situation, your current company, or the people around you. You must remember that at some point, that job was an excitement for you. That day at the interview when you were promising your boss the moon and the stars, you were really glad to be there. And when you started work, all those friends at work and the colleagues, you guys were all on the same page. And since now, you've started to empower yourself with a different network of people, with Tuli's podcast, her Black woman business. All of a sudden, you feel like your thinking is changing a bit. But youth feeling like, no, these people, they are the ones. No, they're not the ones. It's you. You are the one. You supposed to be exercising your brain a little further. You're supposed to be stepping out a little further. Use that energy. Use that energy of, huh? Why does my boss have to be like this? Why does this place have to be like this? Why am I even here? You use that energy to start your side hustle, and you silence yourself with all the effort that you're gonna put in. And every time things go wrong or people say things that are just off, you know, and you're feeling like, no, man, I don't. I really. I'm really not supposed to be here. You take that and you make. You suffered by starting your side hustle. That always helps. That always perseveres quickly. Another one. This overworked and underpaid story also, same scenario Is at work. You're feeling like, why? For me, I felt like, why am I spending an entire eight hours here doing this? Why? You know, there's emails coming in. I need to give attention to other stuff when it comes to, like, a business or whatever. And I'm dedicating an entire eight hours here. That energy, put it on the side hustle. You need to put it on some way. It needs to go somewhere. You can't walk around being grumpy about your current situation and think that it's going to be an endless cycle. You need to make a change. It's going to be up to you to make a change. Launch yourself. Launch yourself. Because what. What else is there to do? Are you gonna die in this cycle? Are you gonna keep on whining about how things are so terrible? Like, I hate this. I hate this job. I hate waking up, I hate traveling. I for these people, leaving my family, lady, when are you going to make a decision? Because it's never gonna end until you decide to launch yourself in some way and another point and start now. You know, success is married to an urgency of doing things to an urgent. Like, you must always. You must move, move. You must move, even in a small way, even in a small way, selling whatever that you can get your hands onto. And guys, let me, before I even get there, let, you know, Uber. This thing of I'm waiting to start a business and this thing off, I must wait until I register. No, guys, guys, no. Registration is not a business. A business is buying something and selling it, making a profit. That is business. This story of trying to create excuses for you to not start a business. No, stop. If I can think back, my side hustle, my very first side hustle was to move out of my mom's, move out of our house in Potassac and rent it out. So that was a side hustle because we've got income coming in from there. And also, fortunately for us, it was a little bit more than what the bond required. Even more fortunate for us, from a Manus manifestation, we got a tenant that would pay us annually. You can imagine this first money of my side hustle came in. I was still in training at Kubrick for my next plant. Came on random random Wednesday, 7th of the month, 150, 000 into my bank account. Guys, I'm just like, hey, there's another life out there if things like this can happen. For me, that was the beginning. It really switched on a light bulb. I mean, this thing of waiting until the 25th, by the time that you get to the 25th, listen, you try to grab onto anything that moves, moves, it should be enough confirmation that, nah, this is, this is not the life. There's more to life than this. And then there's that element of survival. Survival. Especially at this times, guys, especially at these times where employees are being ill treating, ill treating stuff, where your money is being cut, where you're sitting on uncertainty. You are uncertain about whether this time next month you'll still be having a job. Don't you think it's about time to start something, anything? You are sitting on relying on how that meeting's gonna go with the bosses. How are those people looking in the boardroom? How are things looking for me? You're putting yourself in another person's hands. You're putting your family's life, that bread that you bring to your family, you're putting it on somebody's. Why can't you do the same over something that you can try out your own self? Start this thing. Start this thing. If you are thinking you are not at risk, if you are thinking you're not risking already by sitting in this position that you are in, you've got another thing coming. You have another thing coming. So my main message here, and I will repeat, start now. There's no other time. There's no other time. You know, I didn't know last week this time that I'd be doing this podcast. I, I was just hit with a plethora of questions for my Facebook friends, for my WhatsApp friends, from my close friends, people asking me all sorts of things about business. And I thought, you know what? No, it just got to its climax and then I, I just thought, no, I need to do something that is going to be more like, I can spread it easier, you know, so. So that is why I'm also finding myself here. So the magic about this thing is that you don't need a degree, you don't need an mba, you don't need to be a certain way. The woman that you are being born at this time, right at this moment, thinking the thoughts that you have, being surrounded by the people that you are is enough. It's enough to execute a start. And a start is what you need right now. So, guys, I think I'm gonna wrap it up nicely. For me, the main factor also was that I really wanted to donate. I grew up a very generous person. I don't know about now, but I used to donate a lot of my time at an old age home in Gokuletu. And so wanted to donate so much money and there was always this element of, oh, if I'm giving this, how much am I going to be left with? It drove me nuts and I thought, if there's any chance that I can make enough that I don't have to worry about that, listen, I'll do it for me. That was also the main, main driving thing. And I remember saying that to many of my friends. So the mindset shift. Choosing, choosing what you want to be surrounded by, choosing the people around you and the advices that you want to take. Be disciplined. Disciplined in choosing to the point that, you know, for me, my brother taught me this, like, you don't have to view all the statuses that pop up in your eye on your WhatsApp, you know. And I spend quite a bit of time on my phone and also reading. We chose not to have a TV since we moved out here, so even the kids don't have a TV to watch. So. So I mute all my WhatsApp status is a muted. And then if I feel like Tamara Namshange, I'll go into her. If I feel like I'll go into her. If I feel like my husband, even I'll go into him. But not always. But yeah, since you choking, just being selective, selective in the network that you bring around you, you'll find that once you start exercising that 1, 2, 3, 4, the universe will do for you. You'll just find relevant person, attract people attracting to you and you know, just drawn into your energy and feeding into the ideas and the thoughts that you've been having about really, really creating something worthwhile. You know, something maybe it's too early to say right now, but possibly something that you can even leave for your kids and your kids can live for your grandkids. It's a possibility. So, ladies, I'll see you on the next podcast. I hope you enjoyed this. I did. Thank you very much. See you next time. Ciao, ciao.