Building Your Personal Brand: A Step-by-Step Guide for African Leaders

July 29, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Thembe Khumalo

Are we still debating the importance of building your brand in a fast-paced and interconnected world? Didn’t think so! It’s an essential tool for African leaders looking to stand out, make an impact, and unlock new opportunities. One more time, for those who are new here — your personal brand is how you show up in the world; how you present yourself, your values, and your unique attributes to those you wish to influence. Now for the how-to: here are some step-by-step strategies you can leverage to build a strong personal brand.

Growth and development of people is the highest calling of leadership

July 29, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Margaret Hirsch

When starting a new job or career very few people think of themselves as leaders and I was one of these. For a while I was happy to be a follower, but as I progressed in companies I always took the initiative, went the extra mile, and was very soon frustrated by the red tape and protocol of corporate companies.

Why Are We Seeing So Many Fraudulent Qualifications Among Senior Employees?

July 29, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Sonya Skipp

Fraudulent qualifications are constantly being uncovered and we see the stories every day in the news. It seems no industry is safe from this epidemic. We’ve seen doctors, teachers, government officials, and more with fraudulent qualifications. All this begs the question, why this is happening?

Tips for Moving to GA4 from Google UA (Universal Analytics)

July 29, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Inge-Marié Borthwick

The date to migrate over to GA4 has come up fast, 1st July 2023, its imperative that advertisers start the process to ensure not only that the migration is done correctly, but also to ensure there is time for data checks, and to make sure that if you are doing any Google advertising, there is enough data to continue using conversion-based bidding strategies. Below outlines tips and things to consider either before you migrate, or to ensure is place after migrating over. Looking for advice and tips on moving to GA4? Discover the smoothest transition strategies and unlock the power of Google GA4 for comprehensive analytics.

Self Discovery - Exploring the Journey

July 23, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Margaret Hirsch

It’s always been amazing to me that I have lived in this body for so many years, and had never thought about myself, my journey, or my personal growth. I think that growing up in a poor household we were focused on keeping body and soul together and the next meal became the most important thing that we could focus on.

Building consumer confidence in the Digital Economy: Ensuring trust and security

July 23, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Nkemdilim Uwaje Begho

In today’s digital age, where human lives are intricately intertwined with technology, building consumer confidence in the digital economy is paramount. As individuals rely more on digital platforms for communication, financial transactions, and other essential services, it becomes crucial to establish a secure and trustworthy environment that safeguards user interests and protects their privacy.

You make or break your day in the first five minutes of waking up

July 23, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Lori Milner

Your alarm goes off at 6 am because you promised to start exercising…again. When you reach over to turn off the alarm, your mind tells you it's cold and dark and you should hit snooze for another ten minutes. What do you do? These next few minutes will determine the trajectory of your day. If you keep your promise to yourself, you generate energy, self-confidence and a deep sense of self-trust.

Personal development is a continual, unending journey

July 23, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Kathryn Main

As a small business owner, you bring an incredible amount of value to your business. To get a company up and running to the point where it is profitable is no easy feat. A business is something that requires you to devote a lot of attention and dedication to its success. Because it is so time consuming, you might get so busy running your business that you forget about yourself and the value that you can and do bring to the table. As your business grows and evolves, so should you. It's impossible to be a master of every aspect of business, so you will need to identify what aspects of your business you are least familiar with.

A surprisingly simple take on personal branding

July 15, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Thembe Khumalo

For ambitious executives, personal branding is like the stock exchange. Some stocks are valued higher than others, and the goal of every owner/investor is to see the price of his shares go up and stay up. Highly valued stocks mean more money and a better return on investment.

How to automate for success

July 15, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Kathryn Main

What is automation, and why do I need it in my business? Automation simply means that you take some of your business processes and automate them. Automation is an important concept in business. It allows you to, for example, automate many functions in your business, such as finance and sales. By reducing the risk of human error in common daily tasks, automation enables you to manage configurations in a predictable and repeatable way, resulting in increased consistency and increased speed of change. Automation gives us more time to work on the business and less in the business.

Resolving Disputes: Choosing Collaboration over Conflict

July 15, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Nicolene Schoeman-Louw

Disputes and conflicts are inevitable in human interaction, often arising in both personal and professional settings. In business, resolving disputes in a timely and amicable manner is crucial for maintaining healthy relationships and fostering long-term success. Traditionally, conflicts have been addressed through the adversarial process of litigation. However, an alternative approach that has gained significant recognition is mediation. In this article, I explore the key differences between resolving a dispute in court versus mediation. I argue that mediation offers a more favourable approach to maintaining good relationships, which is essential in business.

Are you pacing in your own cage, not knowing how to get out?

July 15, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Eldari Visser

At a typical game farm in Africa animals roam free, well free within boundaries that is. This means the owner has a piece of land or property that allows his animals to experience life in a carefree way. Many animals have to be kept like this due to human activities and urbanisation, herds for homesteads and unfortunately poachers. These animals are not really free, they have boundaries or fencing, even cages. They see electric wires and gates. There are timestamps, branding, chips and permits that gives you this “freedom”. They are free to move around within limits of the boundaries. The big cage.

You have to be in it to win it!

July 9, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Margaret Hirsch

“You have to be in it to win it!” The saying came from a discussion with a person who always wondered why they didn’t win the lottery and every week they would complain that other people won something and they didn’t until eventually one day someone said to them, “well if you want to win the lottery, the first thing you must do is buy a ticket”.

Empowering the Future: The Crucial Role of Human Oversight in AI

July 9, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Sasha Knott

In the rapidly evolving landscape of artificial intelligence (AI), one thing remains clear: humans are essential. AI is advancing, and for it to keep being an aid, human oversight is needed to ensure that it remains ethical, that biases are detected and addressed, and that AI decision-making remains transparent. As the world latches onto the idea of AI making our lives easier, we need to be harnessing its potential through human intervention, thereby mitigating risks and safeguarding societal values.

Personal Growth Is Not About Adding but Editing

July 9, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Lori Milner

What if you approached personal growth like decluttering your wardrobe? If you want to add new items more suitable to your current style, you want to free up space first and let go of the items that no longer serve you or are not aligned with who you are. Instead of reading another personal growth book or attending another workshop, what can you edit out that is no longer aligned with who you are first?

How to keep your business resilient through change and uncertainty

July 9, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Catia Mondlane

The key to keeping your business resilient through change and uncertainty is to have a flexible business plan. This means creating a plan that can adapt to changing circumstances, whether it's a sudden shift in the market, unexpected challenges, or new opportunities. Start by identifying the core values and goals of your business. These should remain consistent even as your strategies change.

Be a good seller and improve your conversion rate

July 2, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Josefa Masinga

Do you know how to be a good seller? There are those who believe that sales talent is something people are born with. It may be that some personalities really have an advantage when it comes to selling, but anyone with the right direction and a willingness to learn can figure out how to be a good salesperson. The art of selling is based on many techniques ranging from good communication to follow-up after the sale has been closed. At each stage of this process, you can learn more and develop to increase your results.

Seja um bom vendedor e melhorar a taxa de conversão

July 1, 2023 Melanie Hawken

por Josefa Masinga

Você sabe como ser um bom vendedor? Há quem acredite que o talento para vendas nasça com as pessoas. Pode ser que algumas personalidades realmente tenham vantagem na hora de vender, mas qualquer pessoa com o direcionamento correto e vontade de aprender pode descobrir como ser um bom vendedor. A arte de vender é baseada em muitas técnicas que vão desde a comunicação e a vestuário, até o acompanhamento depois que a venda já foi fechada. Em cada etapa desse processo, é possível aprender mais e se desenvolver para aumentar os seus resultados.

Why you shouldn't believe everything you think and what to do about it

July 1, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Lori Milner

Thinking is choice architecture. Laying a foundation of negative and fearful thoughts builds your next levels of emotions, beliefs and actions. Author and Professor John Kabat-Zinn describes thoughts as soap bubbles of the mind. You can choose to attach yourself to the thoughts or see through them and pop them.

Marketing that works

July 1, 2023 Melanie Hawken

by Kathryn Main

Marketing is the planning and action of promotional activities that result in the selling of products or services. Your marketing strategy is the road map you will use on a day-to-day basis to let potential customers know that your business exists. Marketing messages should be tailored to your customers and highlight the problem that you solve for them in a concise and effective manner. Marketing efforts are normally campaign-driven and should take your potential customers on a journey with your business.

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