On the 05th of August 2021, we had the privilege of listening to an inspiring woman in leadership who shared not only her success and wisdom but also her hardships.
We managed to catch up with Thokozile Mahlangu and here is what she had to share:
[IIWC] You are an inspiration to all women! As you mentioned the insurance industry is
still a male-dominated environment. What is your advice to a woman to get
noticed at the table?
[TM] We need to take ourselves seriously, by this I mean: prepare for meetings, read the
meeting documents research on topics you don't know speak to experts in various
fields to learn about topics that may be areas of development Be willing to be a
lifelong learner Challenge yourself Avoid complacency
[IIWC] You are passionate about leadership – what is the advice that you would give
other women who aspire to be leaders in their field?
[TM] Identify what skills you need to get to the leadership roles you are aspiring for, then
work on developing those skills. Be open to being uncomfortable, to be
challenged, be resilient and allow yourself to fail
[IIWC] Mother, single, career and studying – what do you do for leisure to unwind? What
keeps the one and only Thokozile Mahlangu motivated?
[TM] I read a lot, I take regular breaks – weekends away (not as much since 2020),
spending time with my kids is refreshing – just to talk about nothing or play some
games.
[IIWC] What advice would you give your 20-year old self?
[TM] Identify your passion early in life and work on it
[IIWC] You mentioned you believe in practical learning (experience). It is very difficult for
young individuals to enter the Insurance Industry without experience. What do
you see for the future of skills development and on-the-job experience?
[TM] There is a need to develop skills differently from the foundation phase of schooling.
Skills development needs to be practical, we need to test the theories i.e. apply
them check if they work. Adjust and re-adjust.
Higher learning institutions need to produce graduates that are ready to apply the
knowledge they acquired and not only to assess through examinations. We need
outcome-based learning.