A Changed Mindset. A Changed Life.

The poverty mindset says: “I am poor, I will always be poor, nothing is going to change.”

The result is always the same, watching the day pass by, never looking for opportunities because you've already decided there aren't any, assuming that people who do get ahead are just lucky or connected.

It's a powerful way of thinking, and it's widespread, fuelled by circumstance, by what's been handed down, and by the thinking patterns of the community around us. It doesn't discriminate by colour, gender or age. We see a lot of it at our W4AL Hubs.

So what happens when that thinking changes?

“WORK 4 A LIVING has taught me self-discipline, how to carry myself in the workplace, and most importantly, how to be independent. From the day I started the W4AL class, I became a different person, in a good way. I let go of the idea that I was entitled to anything, and learned that I have to work for what I want and need. I'm grateful for our facilitator, who was so loving, caring and supportive, it felt like we'd known her for a lifetime. My life has never been the same since. Thanks to W4AL, I'm working!”

Buhlebemvelo

Nosiphiwo attended W4AL unemployed and without much hope. Equipped with W4AL's principles of excellence and her own hard work, she became unstoppable, she now breeds chickens and runs a garden that sells vegetables and seedlings in Zwelihle, Western Cape. She's started paying course fees for other women so they can do the same.

“It's not normal to sit at home doing nothing. What's normal is providing for yourself and your family. If you can't find a job in the meantime, start a small business.”

Nosiphiwo