I am Graham, 21 years from Riverlea. I completed matric in 2018, but the course I wanted to do at a college was not accredited, so I did not study further and decided to take a gap year to reflect on what I wanted to do next. I did not really experience the effects of being unemployed because my family supported me financially and I had side jobs that kept me going and I could afford my basic needs. Before joining the YES program, I was on a learnership with Afrika Tikkun Services when my manager informed me of the opportunity and I was excited to be part of it. Within the YES Program I am still hosted at Afrika Tikkun as a Project Assistant.
The programme has given me an opportunity to gain work experience and to receive a stipend to cover my day-to-day expenses. I have learned to be goal orientated, how to write professionally and expanded my excel skills. I see myself more disciplined than before, and found out that I work well under pressure and I am a good team player.
I see myself having my own business employing lots of people and having financial freedom. I am thankful to the sponsors for giving me the opportunity to gain working experience.
To the unemployed youth, stop looking for motivation and start looking on how to be more disciplined and how to work on your craft to a point where nobody can do it better than you.
