Endorsement by
Lindelwa Neo Mbuya
My name is Lindelwa Neo Mbuya and it is with great pleasure that I write this Endorsement for BhasweLihle Zilwa’s “Guide to Navigating Success”.
On reflection, by applying and living by the attributes Lihle has presented in her guide for Navigating Success, I attained 6 A*stars and was named among the Top Achievers in Botswana in 2020. In 2021, I won the awards for Best Student and Top Achiever at Livingstone Kilobeng College and I have been awarded a government scholarship to study medicine in Canada.
Through living a life of integrity, which Lihle describes as being honest and having good moral principles, I have earned the trust of all my teachers as well as that of my peers. I was given positions of responsibility which included being a prefect, as well as head of my chemistry class.
In this book, Lihle writes about ambition, the strong desire to do or achieve something, and this is what has driven me to attain academic excellence. As one of her quotes states, “If your dreams don’t scare you they are too small.” Naturally, my dreams are huge but because I have the courage to pursue them, I believe I can be whatever I want to be regardless of any hurdles along the way.
I have worked very hard for as long as I can remember and that is because I’ve always wanted to succeed. That entailed making plenty of sacrifices on my journey to becoming a Top Achiever such as giving up all social media platforms during the week for the two months of my final examinations.
As we all know, social media can be very addictive. I have been asked, “Was it hard?” Yes, it was probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do, but the incredible results I achieved made it all worthwhile. Here are my results: 91% for Physics, 93% for Chemistry, Physical Education and 92% for Computer Science. My lowest marks were in Accounting and English: 75% and 73% respectively.
I agree with Lihle that discipline is a very important trait for us to cultivate. I planned my study time with breaks at specific times and stuck to my schedule.
On another note, people often ask me how come I have my life altogether, and how I manage to carry myself in such a good manner. The simple answer to that is: “Being principled.” After all, as Lihle says, image is everything.
In addition, I love the word ‘resilience’ because that is what got me through the lockdown period despite the complications brought about by the global pandemic as a result of Covid-19. It was resilience that had us bounce back when we suddenly had to adapt to Online learning. Besides, the number of times I have risen up is much more important than the number of times I have fallen short of my expectations.
In retrospect, applying the attributes contained in BhasweLihle’s Guide to Navigating Success, catapulted me to where I stand today. It therefore goes without saying that those who do the same are assured of incredible success in their endeavours as well as the self-confidence that comes f rom that.
I heartily endorse BhasweLihle’s Guide to Navigating Success and recommend it to all teens who desire to attain success in their academics and in life overall. Thank you, Lihle, for prompting us to go in the direction of our dreams. I believe this inspirational book you have so brilliantly compiled will impact the lives of many teens worldwide.
