The NJ Podcast

In this episode, we talk with Khanya Nkosi, a self-proclaimed foodie. We cover the topics of food, Swati tradition and finding meaning in life.

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In this episode, we sit down with Philbert Phembani as we discuss the beauty of photography, technology and life.

In this episode, we sit down with Karabo and we talk about sports, manhood and being real with yourself.

In this episode, we sit down with Sandy Kirkham to discuss overcoming predators and rebuilding your life.

Bio

I have committed my life to raising awareness around clergy abuse. What does this mean? Simply put, any abuse of power by the clergy or any spirtutual leader

Little did I know this would be my journey. When I was sixteen, I had my trust betrayed in ways I never imagined. A church should be a place where an insecure sixteen-year-old girl should feel welcome, happy, and most importantly, safe. Tragically for some, the church can become a place of great harm.

I experience the deceit and lies that come with being the victim of a wolf in sheep's clothing… my church’s youth minister. After decades of keeping my deep secret, I discovered my voice and have made it my life’s work to be an advocate for others.

Through my speaking, podcast appearances and writing, I use my voice to help victims of clergy abuse.

I have spoken before the Ohio Senate, a Maryland court, and appeared on a local television show in Boston. My story, “Stolen Innocence,” was told in a documentary produced by The Hope of Survivors.

I work with survivors conducting victim support conferences. I’ve participated on panels moderated by SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests), sharing my perspective from the non-Catholic point of view.

I currently serve on the board of Council Against Child Abuse.

PODCAST INTERVIEW AVAILABILITY

I am available for podcast interviews. Visit my website at https://sandyphillipskirkham.com/ for more information.

In this episode of The NJ Podcast, we sit down with Lukho Nomala about the impact sports, the workplace and friendship have to change the world.

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In this first episode of season 2 of the conversations segment, we sit down with Adrien Condradie to talk about the music industry in South Africa. Adrien is a House DJ, producer and events organiser. His sound is techno-inspired house. He is the mind behind the documentary, The State of the Arts - The Forgotten Industry.

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In this episode, we will unpack lessons from Kobe Bryant.

5 National Basketball Association (NBA) championships, 2 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards and 2 scoring championships are among his achievements. He played 19 years for the Los Angeles Lakers. He is 3rd on the all-time scorers' list in the NBA. He was known as the 'Black Mamba' for his mesmerising movements on the NBA court. He is known for his hard work ethic, indomitable will and ability to come back from failure. His name is Kobe Bryant and here are some lessons we can learn from him.

When Kobe Bryant decided to join the NBA, he was drafted to the Charlotte Hornets in 1996. However, he traded a month later because he knew his outcome. Kobe knew from early on what he wanted to achieve in his career. He envisioned gold, previous greats and being a high scorer in a team called the Los Angeles Lakers. Kobe was about to make millions but forwent that in order to go to the Lakers. Had he stayed with the Hornets he may have never won a single title. A teammate told the story of Kobe when he joined LA. He said, "I am going to win about four or five championships. I will be one of the greatest scorers and players to have ever played the game." Kobe ended up achieving what he did because he knew his outcome from the very beginning.

Knowing your outcome is important as you will be able to know what you will and will not do. If you know who you are, then you know who you are not. Stephen Covey calls this principle beginning with the end in mind. Very few people will invest in a company that does not have a clear outcome to achieve. So why do people invest time in themselves if they do not know their outcome? With no vision, the people perish, but when there is a vision - when the outcome is known from the beginning - there will be direction and achievement. Know your outcome from the very beginning.

Kobe Bryant was known as the fiercest and hardest working man in the league at one point. He would wake up at 4 am and go to the gym. He would begin with a rigorous cardio workout and then start shooting hoops. He would not stop shooting until he made 500 shots. His other teammates would join him at 7 am and they would practice until the afternoon, have lunch and carry on the practice until they stopped in the evening. Kobe would carry working until the evening when his other teammates had left. This mindset is very impressive but it is even more astounding given how long he carried this work ethic. Kobe played in the NBA for over 19 years where his consistency of action ended up in strong results, awards and honours. A result worth noting is that he is the 3rd highest scoring player in NBA history; a feat you can't achieve without consistency of effort - over a long time.

A work colleague of mine told me that there are no good or bad consultants. There are only those who are prepared, and those who are not prepared. There are those who fluctuate in performance and there are those who are the most consistent. Only the most consistent people go on to achieve great feats. In a world where almost everything is instant (coffee, tea, food and social media posts) there can be a temptation to not stick with a course of action long enough to yield results. Study history and those around you; you will find that those who are legitimately at the top, have the consistency of effort on their resume. Only consistent action over a long period of time will yield strong results.

Kobe Bryant is not without failures and setbacks. Black Mamba has been in seven finals and lost two of them. He has been the subject of scrutiny in the NBA by being accused of being a harsh critic and not being able to win without a strong ally, Shaquille O'Neal. Kobe has been faced with legal action and faced divorce amidst accusations of adultery. Towards the end of his career, plagued by injury and poor performances, he was scrutinised for being an old man who did not want to let go.

When faced with winning, he would not stop until the deal was closed. When on the way to winning an NBA championship. In a championship series, you have to win four games to clinch the title. When he was up 2-0, a reporter asked why he was not smiling. "The job is not finished. Is the job finished? I don't think so," he replied. This display showed that there was no place for complacency. In his very last game, where he would retire after 19 years in the league, he scored 63 points - which is way above the average. Whether faced with failure or success, he didn't have time to stop working to win - he kept going until the end.

Only 50% of businesses that start make it after 10 years. Now, making it doesn't mean that you are making any money, it means that you are breaking even. Even after 10 years, there is no guarantee that you will succeed. Lehman Brothers was a global financial services company that had been around for over a century. Lehman Brothers made over a trillion dollars in revenue over this time but they folded due to the lack of focus in the face of failure or successes. When you are faced with failure, keep working to win. When on the brink of success, do not get complacent but rather keep working until the job is done. Keep working until the end.

In this episode, we talk about the hedgehog principle.

In this episode, we unpack lessons from Mteto Nyathi.

He is the CEO who heads up the technology powerhouse Altron. He is responsible for transforming Altron into a world-class information and communications technology company that does good business while doing good. He was once the Chief Executive Officer of MTN South Africa, where he succeeded in returning the mobile company to growth by overhauling employee engagement and transforming the customer experience. Over a period of 12 years, Mteto held various leadership positions at IBM in South Africa and Europe. He later joined Microsoft South Africa, where he was MD for six years. In 2019 Mteto won the Business Leader of the Year award at the All African Business Leaders Awards (AABLA) and the IPM CEO Special Award from the Institute of People Management. He was also the joint winner of South Africa’s 2013 IT Personality of the Year. In 2004 he was named one of Yale University’s World Fellows on Global Leadership. 

He is Mteto Nyathi and here are some lessons we can learn from him.

Mteto has built his life and career on making good quality decisions. From the choice of the degree to study, to which jobs to take and how to change the course of a business, good quality decisions have been a staple. Decisions should be based on data and key values. Demming said it best “In God we trust, all others bring data.” “People will try to bamboozle you so you...you must be able to pick that up quickly and address it,” Nyathi said in an interview. Deciding on misinformation can be costly. In addition, the values need to be clear to everyone as they will be your guidance system. If you have a key value of excellence, you will make decisions aligned with excellence and not let your past dictate your future despite your background and upbringing.

There is a reality that the future may be different than today and conditions may not be favourable. One way to combat this is to ensure that there is a way forward in the case of uncertainty. Scenario planning is making assumptions on what the future is going to be and how the business environment will change over time in light of that future. Mteto has employed this to lead his organisations to the pinnacle of growth and success. We are currently going through a pandemic and those who have successfully implemented scenario planning are faring better than those who have not. Scenario planning needs you to find driving forces, identify the uncertainties, come up with multiple sustainable scenarios and collectively discuss the implications. People from multiple backgrounds have so many valuable takes so it will be in the best interest to involve all their inputs. If scenario planning becomes embedded in the culture then you will be prepared for when the worst happens.

Mteto Nyathi is a man who bases his entire leadership style, interactions, decisions and speech on key values. His mother’s influence taught him to respect people, customers and operate a business. If a decision had to be made, and it went against a key value, he would not take that root. This was easy since his value was defined and became his guidance system. A first step when he entered a new organisation is to review the values, define the right ones and then embed them throughout the organisation. Everyone who is part of the organisation will be crystal clear on the values and the associated behaviours and would be able to hold each other accountable. This practice was the catalyst that led to the turnaround of the companies and the Age of Ultron.

It is difficult for some to operate in terms of excellence, integrity, openness, professionalism, and transparency because the values and behaviours were not defined in the first place. If someone finds it hard to steal it’s because the value of honesty was never embedded. If someone finds it hard to be on time at work, it’s because the value was never defined. If someone finds it difficult to be truthful, it’s because the value was never embedded. To turn your life and business around, define the best core values and the associated behaviour and then live by them.

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In the season finale, we talk about the five stages of grief.