Who gives you ‘signals?’

Julius Malema gave a moving eulogy at the funeral of the late Winnie Mandela last weekend. The speech was so moving that within days, it has gone viral on the social media.

The most captivating part of it is where he mixes two improbable occurrences happening concurrently—as if Winnie Mandela is both present and not present at the funeral. Present because Malema was speaking at the funeral and addressing ‘Mama’ (Winnie Mandela). But also not present because he was reporting to her which people had unexpectedly come to the funeral.

That combination was technically a masterclass technique in speech crafting.

To many, the unforgettable words were: “They are here Mama. Give us a signal on what we should do with them?”

Malema kept asking Mama for a signal. It was clear that Malema cannot do certain things without the advice and go ahead of Mama Winnie Mandela. And that is important in life in general and in career in particular. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that Malema looked to Mama as his role model, coach and mentor.

If she told him to go ahead, he would proceed. If she told him to stop, he would pause. That is the kind of power and influence that she had on Malema. Someone he looked up to. Someone he really respected. Someone he admired and someone he would not want to disappoint.

Having that figure in his life is important. It helps Malema have limits and standards.

Without Mama, Malema would probably do a lot of things that would be well out of expected standards. I know some of you will argue that Malema does that already—well if that is the case then he would be far worse without signals from Mama!

Who is that Mama who gives you those signals that stop you? The Mama that can tell you to go and immediately you would go? If it is not Mama, it could be Dada! We are not talking of your classmates or best friends that you have grown up together with. We are talking of people who are ahead of you—people who have more experience than you. People who have seen most of the things that you experience now as new things. These are the people from whom you can select your Mama or Dada who can give you the signals that help in directing your life.

This is also an appeal to those with the experience and wisdom to serve as the Mama that gives signals to the upcoming young ones. Be available and accept to help grooming young people the way Mama Winnie Mandela groomed many young South African politicians.

Remember that for you to reach where you are, you too had older and more experienced people that played some roles in your life. Similarly, you will do great to contribute towards the professional development of other people. They need your signals too. Give them your signals. You lose nothing.

In fact, everyone has signals that they can give to others below and behind them. This way, we create a world of order where everyone has a great chance and opportunity to grow and develop.

The key point, though, is that everyone must search for his or her source of the signals.

Who gives you your signals? Be sure to get good signals from great sources. Good luck!