Your Mission, Your Future: Stand for Something – The Quest for Personal Discovery
The most dangerous person in this world is someone who stands for nothing. Dr Martin Luther King Jr said it best: “If you have nothing to die for, you are not fit to live.”
The choices you make are also making you. Your values are embedded in what you say is important.
Very early in my life, around 10 to 12 years old, I made a decision: I will fight poverty. I drew a serious line between what mattered and what didn’t. Little did I know that decision would lead me to work with different organizations fighting poverty in our society. It all started with standing for something.
Ubuntu remains my core value. I still remember my first meetings with staff who provided after-school meals for orphans and vulnerable children. I told them: “If you cook for these children, cook something you would eat yourself.”
The integrity of our society is tested when we decide who deserves respect based on their economic status. Respect cannot have a price tag.
There are non-negotiables I believe we must all stand for:
- Respect: Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity.
- Love: Show love in everything you do.
- Time: Use your time effectively and creatively to build the future you want.
“We do not attract what we want, but who we are.” The moment you choose to stand for what you believe in, you give permission for like-minded people to be drawn to you.
The choices you make are making you.
So I ask you: Stand for something.
Sicelo Ngubane is a social entrepreneur, an inspirational speaker and a youth activist with interests in leadership and personal development. Has been with Love Life, Sibikwa Arts Centre and the South African Association of Youth Clubs
