BACKSTORY: Thamsanqa Tembani of Isuzu South Africa

What’s your one top tip for doing a deal?

Be authentic. This will make you remain true to your purpose and mandate, and eliminate any egotistic tendencies that may envelope you.

What was your first job?

I interned at BMW i [the company’s electric vehicle division]. In 2014 I was part of a team that was responsible for launching BMW’s electric vehicles in South Africa. My primary responsibility was to manage the launch project plan and engage with various internal and external stakeholders.

How much was your first pay cheque, and how did you spend it?

It was R8,000. I saved half of it and sent the rest to my mother so she could spoil herself.

What is the one thing you wish somebody had told you when you were starting out?

That things are never what they seem, and that you need to peel a couple of layers down to find the true intentions.

If you could fix only one thing in South Africa, what would it be?

I would make everyone read each other’s histories (before and after colonisation) so we can understand what informs our perspectives and ambitions. Hopefully this will contribute to allowing us to coexist better and build a better, unified nation. 

What’s the most interesting thing about you that people don’t know?

That I am also a fashion designer who cannot even draw to save his life. But I’m able to communicate, and have a tailor make the most beautiful African-inspired luxury wear.

What’s the worst investment mistake you’ve made?

I invested in a R400 (Faber-Castell!) pencil box set in 2012 to teach myself to draw. To this day I haven’t touched a single pencil from that box.

What’s the best investment you’ve ever made? And how much of it was due to luck?

Buying my own house at 25. No luck involved — just pure planning and executing as planned.

What’s the best book you’ve read recently and why did you like it?

The Prosperity Paradox: How Innovation can Lead Nations out of Poverty, by Clayton M Christensen. Besides the obvious — learning what countries can do to alleviate poverty and inefficiencies through innovation — the book made me realise there is and never will be a perfect formula for societal and economic development and growth. Nations will continue to learn from each other in innovation and governance models. It’s all an ecosystem.

What is the hardest life lesson you’ve learnt so far?

That you need to be ready for the unexpected, at any turn and time, but that you must not be deterred from your goal or mandate.

What phrase or bit of jargon irks you most?

It must be “ASAP”.

What is something you would go back and tell your younger self that would impress them?

That you are enough, and that all your dreams and goals are worth it. Pursue them, and don’t stop!

If you were President Cyril Ramaphosa, what would you change, or do, tomorrow?

I would be unapologetic about rapid sustainable and value-adding wealth redistribution policies and actions. These should be focused particularly on empowering the youth and their forward-thinking and entrepreneurial spirit, while continuing to holistically build an overall prosperous, inclusive and equal society.