Durban -KwaZulu-Natal women had an inspirational start to their week at the FNB Business Women’s Breakfast in Durban on Monday.
Hundreds of women from all walks of life filled the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre in Durban.
Guests included Fawzia Peer, the deputy mayor of eThekwini Municipality, and Nomusa Dube-Ncube, MEC of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs.
The keynote speakers were businesswomen Lynette Ntuli, Basetsana Kumalo, Dr Judy Dlamini and Emma Sadleir.
Ntuli, born in the township of uMlazi, has kept her roots firmly planted in KZN.
She is the founding director and chief executive of Innate Investment Solutions, a firm that provides property and infrastructure development services and enterprise asset management solutions.
“No one backs Lynette Ntuli more than Lynette Ntuli backs herself, no one,” said Ntuli.
The 34-year-old said her father told his daughters that although they were born in apartheid South Africa, they would be prepared to lead a new South Africa.
Vision
At the age of 20, Ntuli had a clear vision of how she would like her life to turn out.
Being the general manager of The Pavilion shopping centre at the age of 24 made her the poster child for transformation in the retail sector in South Africa.
“I could not be defined by that story and that incredible title for ever. It was a platform and simply a step up,” Ntuli said.
She wakes up every day to her dream job.
“A big part of my being unstoppable has been giving myself permission to be multidimensional and to make these discoveries about myself.
“I have decided that the sky is no limit for Lynette Ntuli,” she said.
Media mogul Kumalo said her journey had a lot to do with personal mastery.
She decided to be a rebel with a cause, and change lives and create jobs.
She wanted to make sure she wrote a new script about excellence, about what women could achieve and how they could propel another generation to greatness.
“Be unstoppable in pursuit of your dreams. Have the courage to stand up for others, too, because that’s how you create a movement of unstoppable women, how you impact the greater good,” Kumalo said.
“You do not need to change who you are to be unstoppable. You need to master your own strengths and work on your weaknesses. Personal mastery is the answer to many questions.”
Sadleir, a social media law expert, said she thought an unstoppable woman was not one who was fearless, but one who felt the fear and did it anyway.
“You’ve got to feel challenged in your life, particularly in your professional life.
“You’ve got to push boundaries and you’ve got to get out of your comfort zone,” Sadleir said.