Mandla sibeko, FNB Joburg art Fair director, tells us what he’s learnt
Value your relationships.
Your relationships in life, whether family or those that you work with, will help you sail through all the good and bad times. I have made mistakes in business and I have made good deals but it was my relationships with those I worked with that carried me through.
invest in your passions.
I’ve learnt that investing in your passion gives you a sense of purpose and fulfilment. When I started in business I was driven purely by profits and over the years that changed and I started investing in businesses that I was passionate about. That way it has never felt like a job.
Respect your history, your culture and your heritage.
When we one day depart from this world, the one thing that will be left behind won’t be our accumulated wealth but rather it will be our culture and heritage. This is the reason that I made a decision to get myself involved in visual arts through the FNB Joburg art Fair, so that I could contribute in preserving our culture through contemporary art.
You only have one life.
I was raised by three beautiful women: my late grandmother, my mother and guardian mother who taught me all about life and love and to seize opportunities every day, living within each moment.
I have a way of wrapping up negative experiences so that I end up focusing on the positive lessons within them. We must never waste the time that we have been given.
Avoid toxic relationships.
There are many people you will meet in business and in life, and it’s important to nurture positive energy and avoid relationships and friendships that are toxic or don’t contribute to your development as a human being.
Empathy.
have empathy for your fellow human beings. It does not matter where people come from, treat each one with respect and dignity wherever you go.