“Leadership is about jumping off the tracks that others are following and making your own pathway to success.” 

I read today the fabulous story of our new auditor general Tsakani Maluleke.   

As the first woman to take the reins of responsibility for our national finances, her role is to ensure “propriety, regularity and compliance with all the statutory and regulatory requirements of the public sector”. She is the auditor of the country’s finances, so the buck really stops with her! 

Tsakani certainly appears to be a woman of grit, skills and leadership ability. I wish her the strength to stay true to the numbers and immune to inevitable political pressure that goes with the job. 

But what really jumped out at me was the story that she was serving customers in her family spaza store aged 9 and cashing up not long after that.  

It is a reminder of the gift of being raised in an entrepreneurial home. A home where conversations around the dinner table are about creating possibility, making things happen and generating one’s own success. As entrepreneurs and business owners we often beat ourselves up for not spending enough time at home with our children, forgetting that the life we have immersed them in is one of great riches. Children of entrepreneurs learn skills others only dream of. 

The second part of her story that made me chuckle was when she was told that “black people aren’t auditors because they struggle to pass the board exam” which immediately spurred her to prove them wrong! Which she did, and here she is now, auditor of the entire country. 

This feisty nature stirs my heart as I have a long-held belief that it’s those who “jump the tracks” and break away from the norm that are those who make a difference. 

So, this week it’s really a chance to celebrate the feisty, stubborn and downright difficult in us all, for it is this that makes us different. And being different is a great trait for leadership and certainly top of the ranking for entrepreneurial success. Let’s take a moment to congratulate ourselves for all the ways our differences have encouraged us to “jump the tracks” and if you have children, let’s celebrate this in them as well! 

Have a fabulous week. 

With kind regards 

Catherine