‘No problem can be bigger than your determination to succeed’ — Thurston Sebotsane
A week before the launch of my tour on the 27th of September 2009; I got invited to a meeting in Sandton where I met Mr Collen Tshepiso Molefe who introduced himself as CEO of ‘Multimedia Communications’. He displayed excitement about THE POWER OF ONE initiative and pledged much needed sponsorship which included support for a further five years from the company’s CSI budget. This was clearly the backing that I had been looking for; I was now going to be able to reach my intended objectives.
The next day I got called to another meeting in the presence of the Financial Director where further details of the sponsorship got discussed and my banking details were requested for the transfer of funds. This all looked legitimate and with these promises I was ready to launch. I had been promised that the funds would reflect in my account by the 29th of September 2009.
To further fuel my determination, the management team from ‘Multimedia Communications’ attended the launch where Mr. Molefe again confirmed support for the initiative. I then launched and was on my way around the country.
When I got to Bloemfontein after having been to only two of the nine provinces, I had still not received the promised financial assistance from ‘Multimedia Communications’. I tried to reach Mr. Molefe on all the contact numbers he had given me; the phone would just ring but unlike before he would not accept any of my calls. At that point, it became clear that I had been used only for publicity and that none of the promised sponsorship funds would ever be deposited. I connected to the internet to try to confirm if ‘Multimedia Communications’ was a registered company; my search could not return a positive result. It seemed I had been caught in a hoax perpetrated my Mr. Molefe.
I now only had just enough money for fuel to get me back home. I was then faced with two options; ‘Quit and go home’ or ‘Rise to the challenge’. I decided on the latter, I started contacting people I know in an attempt to raise the required money to get me back on track. I only had a day and half from the Saturday afternoon to raise the required amount.
I had not embarked on the tour to fail, so I spent the weekend calling around to raise funds to enable me to continue. I contacted Richard Ho-Tong, Ongkgopotse Tabane and Prejelin Naggan; all of whom promised to come to my aid. Onkgopotse Tabane managed to get Sanele Nyoka to also pledge toward the tour. They promised to get some money to me by the Monday.
I woke up on Monday morning still faced with what-if scenarios: What if I fail, what if they do not deposit the money, What if I continue only to get stranded in the Northern Cape? What if… What if… What if… The thoughts were flooding my mind and they would not stop.
My determination to succeed was much stronger than all the scenarios. I packed my gear, strapped everything onto the motorcycle and navigated my way to Kimberly in the Northern Cape Province.
After addressing learners at the second school in the province, I received a text message on my mobile phone from the bank; Mr. Ho-Tong had kept his promise. I was now equipped to continue my tour further south to Western Cape. Later on in the tour, the other pledges became real. THE POWER OF ONE was still on track.
At times you will be presented with situations that may make you feel like giving up. What will set you apart from the rest is the way in which you choose to rise to the challenge. With the help of Mr. Ongkgopotse JJ Tabane, Mr. Prejelin Naggan, Mr. Sanele Nyoka and Mr. Richard Ho-Tong, I managed to raise the required amount and I was able to continue on the tour.
I could have easily given up and accepted failure, but instead I decided to take the road less travelled, I took a chance and now I am reaping the rewards.
“Failure will never overtake me if my determination to succeed is strong enough” — OG Mandino.
I was determined and I succeeded.
On my way to Western Cape Province after driving through Britstown in Nothern Cape Province, my mood was improved and the weather was agreeable. The sun was moments away from kissing the horizon and it had blanketed the land in soft colours. This is when the idea to write a book came to me. I had initially thought of a coffee table book but the concept of something more meaningful was much more exciting.
– Thurston Sebotsane (Inspirational Speaker and Life Coach)
