The man behind the hats
About
Origins
The name
My name is Thandwefika. It means “loved on arrival”. My mother chose it, and I have spent my life trying to live up to the welcome.
Many hats
The hats
I have never managed to be one thing. I run projects and programme offices for government and enterprise. I speak on stages, and in 2019 I became the Toastmasters Southern Africa Champion of Public Speaking. I co-founded a storytelling movement, Hadithi ya Africa, because I believe Africans should document their own time on this continent. I travel this continent with a goal of reaching all 55 countries. I build businesses, some that worked, some that taught me. And I am a father, which is the hat under all the other hats.
The seal
The crest
The seal on this site is my family’s coat of arms.
Generations back there was a king called Mandlangampisi, and people could only describe his strength one way: like the bite force of a hyena. The name stayed, and so did the lesson underneath it. A hyena hunts with its pack, and together the pack brings down lions. Alone we are strong. Together we take down giants.
The crown above its head is our royalty. Noble blood runs in this family, and with it a God-given right to lead and to succeed. The crown is also a daily instruction: treat yourself and each other as royalty, and act like it.
The stars are the ancestors. Every Tshabalala who came before us stands scattered across that sky. And notice where the hyena looks: past all of them, at one distant star. We honour what is behind us and we face what is ahead, because one day I become one of those stars, and the only question that will matter is what foundation I left for whoever looks forward next.
Press
In the media
Hadithi ya Africa on SABC News
The storytelling movement, on the national broadcaster.
Watch on YouTube
#MidnightTrainToBeira on eNCA and SABC
The citizen relief campaign for Cyclone Idai, covered nationally.
Watch on YouTube
The travel club in motion, taking Africans across their own continent.
Watch on YouTube
Southern Africa Champion of Public Speaking, 2019
The championship, and the chicken that crossed the road.
Watch on YouTube
Bio
The short version
Thandwefika Tshabalala is a South African project delivery and PMO consultant, founder of DBiLL, an AI adoption coach, and the 2019 Toastmasters Southern Africa Champion of Public Speaking.