A twice-exceptional woman among us is breaking the mold and thriving

“I want to change people’s worlds and make it better. So, I give myself permission to try,” says the 47-year-old from Durban.


Here she shares with us her passion and philosophy of life…


Hobbies & Passion


I love reading, writing, painting (I’m an acrylic artist), meeting and helping new people (yes, Toastmasters is a hobby), swimming, walking to enjoy nature, camping.


One of my greatest desires in life is to leave a positive impression, example and meaningful works to the world and most importantly my family. I believe in what Gandhi said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” Change always starts with us. Great leaders get this. They understand that no one is inspired to follow leaders who aren’t willing to do those things they are asking others to do.
There is something charismatic about people who understand all change starts with them.


 
If the job you do is NOT your passion then how do you balance the two?


If you value growth and learning over stability I would say quit your job. If the job leaves your most important values unfulfilled and another job would be better of fulfilling them, go for it. Don’t settle for less, it’s your life. Some decisions in life can be quite tricky. When you have a life purpose these tricky decisions become easier, your decisions will be more consistent. As you can see it’s more important for me to care about people and make honourable choices than it is to increase my personal wealth and abundance.
 
How important is financial independence to you on a scale of 10, with 1 being the least.


Scale: 9
 
Your biggest achievement/s to date and why?


I feel that my biggest achievement is yet to come. I’m always looking to achieve more tomorrow than I did today and I’m striving to improve myself all the time.
However, I would say that I have had several notable accomplishments in both my education and my work experience. Probably the most notable accomplishment was finishing school. My mom never thought that would be possible. Then I went to college and academically was a low achiever until my final exams when I learned “how to study” based on my brain profile. I now have 4 educational qualifications and many certificates.


Giftedness does not immunize a person against any other problems. In fact, an exceptional person displays both or one of the following:
    * Learning disability (like dyslexia in my case)
    * Other cognitive disorders (I also have Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD))


One of the biggest misconceptions is that dyslexic brains differ only in the ways they process printed symbols, when in reality they show an alternative pattern of processing that affects the way they process information across the board. Dyslexic brains are organized in a way that maximizes strength in making big picture connections at the expense of weaknesses in processing fine details. I was diagnosed at the age of 30! Massive accomplishment to have completed school and 2 qualifications by this time.