Last year we had the pleasure of welcoming Ndibulele Sotondoshe to the FunDza team. He is a feature writer who is compiling a series of profiles on ambitious and interesting South Africans who are making a difference in the world. The series is called ‘Inspiring Tomorrow’. Thanks to the Harry Crossley Foundation, we have funding for another year in which to celebrate more young South Africans who’re doing interesting and inspiring things with their lives. Here follows a post by Ndibulele who writes about his experience of interviewing the ‘Inspiring Tomorrow’ candidates:
“The ‘Inspiring Tomorrow’ series taught me a lot about myself, it made me discover things I didn’t even know that existed within me. It was the first time I got to share my writing with a larger audience – the feedback made me realise that I’ve a lot to offer. In a nutshell, this has been a journey to self-discovery for me.
It fascinates me when I learn why people behave the way they do. Writing this series allowed me to tap into other people’s brains. It helped me understand their raw feelings and interact with the person they have hid deep inside themselves. It taught me to be patient and humble with other people as I discovered that each one of us is fighting a different battle.
I used to be more of an introvert – someone who would rather sit on his own and mind his own business – but not anymore. Hearing other people’s touching stories has helped me express myself better. I learned that each of us has a story to tell.
I relate to most of the interviewees that I have had because I also went through some tough challenges to get where I’m today. So, I’m writing about something that’s close to my heart; in some ways I feel that I am sharing my story through other people’s life experiences. I don’t think I would have been able to accurately execute their stories if I came from a different background and wasn’t able to easily relate to the challenges that many of the interviewees have faced.
I always believed that you can’t change your community if you do not challenge the way people see life. You first have to change their way of thinking. This series helped me do exactly that. I got the privilege to address the stereotypes that are the main causes of our problems.
Martin Luther King JR. once said ‘our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter’ and I saw it as my responsibility to address the issues that other people would rather not talk about.
Inspiring Tomorrow talks about gender, race and religious stereotypes. Our past wounds will never really heal if we keep suffocating them with a plaster (silence). The first question I’ve to ask myself prior to writing is: What lessons will my readers take from this? And I have to answer those questions before I even put together the first sentence. We’ve a section in our mobi site where people can get entertained through fictional stories, but Inspiring Tomorrow is FunDza’s way of having a deep and positive impact on people’s lives by introducing the readers to the real-life challenges and triumphs of some amazing individuals.
The feedback we’ve been getting from our readers is immensely positive. In my mind, that means we are heading into the right direction. One reader once said ‘I see FunDza is the best advisor’ and that’s precisely what our intentions are: we want to help shape young people into making the ‘right’ choices for themselves through these stories of people’s lives. Another thing we picked up is that good deeds often go unrecognised because our general media so frequently concentrates on conflict and negativity.
There are other people out there who’re doing great things but they get discouraged because nobody is giving them the thumbs up. That’s where this series comes in: we hope to close that gap – small keys can open big locks.
The positive effect this series has can’t be explained in words. Our interviewees have told us about the difference we’ve made in their respective careers; more people now recognise and respect their work. One thing that satisfies me and helps me sleep well at night is knowing that my writing is having a positive impact. Otherwise, why even write if your words won’t even make anything right?”
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Thank you Ndibulele for introducing us to amazing, diverse individuals – from spinach kings to ex-offenders, from surfers, to performers and boxers, from CEOs to models. These diverse true-life stories are so inspiring for our young readers.
Curious? Be inspired by reading here