As the second term of the school year gets started today, I want to encourage the class of 2019 to really focus their energy on getting through the rest of the year.
You guys literally have only a few more months of school left, before the final exams.
But it is a tough stretch and at times it’s going to seem impossible, especially if you haven’t been doing your very best.
See your matric exams not only as the end of something significant (namely your schooling career) but also as the beginning of the next chapter of your life.
Get it going on the right note, and who knows what amazing things could be lying ahead for you!
But I also realise that there are still hundreds of young people from previous matric years, who are at home and despondent.
Some have studied further and are looking for a way into the job market, while others have opted to pursue their own passions, but are finding it extremely difficult out there.
A few weeks ago, I met a 25-year-old, who strikes me as an intelligent and ambitious guy with some wonderful ideas.
He is just not able to catch a break and doesn’t know what else to try.
I started talking to him about volunteering and offering his time for free, which sounds a bit silly, considering that he’s desperately trying to earn some money.
The conversation was an interesting one and made me realise a few things about today’s youth.
Many of them are what my mother used to call “bang vir werk”; frightened of a bit of hard labour.
Now on top of that, I am still suggesting that they work without getting paid.
So I can understand why they are looking at me like I have lost my marbles.
But you guys don’t understand that there are hundreds of thousands of people just like you out there looking for jobs.
Most of you are doing it in exactly the same way and expecting to get scooped up by an amazing company and get offered a great salary.
While that is going to happen to one or two exceptional ones, most of you are going to have to find ways to sell your skills in innovative ways.
And let me tell you, nothing impresses like a hard-working young person, who is confident enough about their choices to prove it with some free work; who solves their own logistical problems along the way, without complaining.
Actually, it’s not really free to work when you think about it.
The experience you gain is invaluable.
And because you’re volunteering, people are keener to share things with you, that they otherwise may not be willing to share.
Do it right, and the character references you’re likely to get could become career catapults that will blast you ahead of your peers.
And if you spend a few months doing it and nothing happens, it’s not a waste of time at all. Because I can almost guarantee you that when something does come up in that company, your name will be the first to pop up.
All you have to do is grin and bear the tough times.
Even if you have to wake up at 4 am and walk there.
Don’t complain. Don’t moan and groan.
Just keep your eyes on the long-term prize.
No income, but getting experience with a daily purpose, is still better than sitting at home with no income AND no experience.