School of Entrepreneurship creating excitement and gaining momentum

Author: THE SCHOOL OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP (SoE) FOUNDATION

Matric papers are currently being marked and thousands of young people and parents are anxiously awaiting the results. Finishing high school is a huge step forward that comes with a lot of pressure and destiny-shaping decisions.

This dilemma is one faced by many at this critical time, one that simply forces
us to explore all options and possibilities.

However, is having a matric enough? Is a school l eaver properly prepared for ’ life after school’?
“I firmly believe there is a critical backlog in subjects in our conventional schooling and university system,
and that the l earning is very far removed from technology developments and the job situation in real l ife,”
says Pierre van den Berg, Global Investor and Property Owner: ThanksToProperty.com. “Most young
people are therefore put in a disadvantaged position right from the start of their careers. We need to find
a way to stimulate entrepreneurship in kids from as young an age as possible. This is why the initiative
by Entrepreneur Activist, Leon Lategan with the School of Entrepreneurship, makes me extremely
excited”.

Pic: Pierre van den Berg

South Africa’s youth is facing the worst unemployment crisis in modern history with about 3.5 million
youths not in employment, education or training[ 1]. To make matters worse, the rising tuition fees, limited
space at higher educational institutions, and poor matric results leave most aspirant students without the
opportunity to advance their skills. The harsh reality is, that, even if a young person manages to get a
certificate, diploma or degree, only about 77% will find employment, eventually[ 3].

“In March we start, in earnest, with a new Entrepreneurship Mastery Programme that is dedicated to
upskilling South Africa’s youth” says Leon Lategan, CEO and Founder of The Lions Den and now the
School of Entrepreneurship. Lategan is highly focussed and extremely passionate about advancing
entrepreneurship and empowering the most vulnerable sectors of society in terms of unemployment. This
School, with a team of highly skilled coaches and experienced entrepreneurs, is on a mission to create
10 000 new entrepreneurs within 5 years who are capable of starting sustainable and profitable
businesses that create j obs and reduce unemployment.

Pic: Leon Lategan

Increasingly, creating your own income is a favourable option for many South Africans. Whether by
choice or out of necessity; alongside your career and tertiary studies or because it’s your only option,
learning how to start a business, can l ead to opportunities and i nnovation that one simply cannot i magine
when first starting out.

“When you l ook at someone like Elon Musk, how much more potential is out there?” asks Scott Picken,
Global Entrepreneur and Founder of Wealth Migrate, who opted to mentor a young man with big
potential when he was only 15 years old and, now that he’s completed matric, has sponsored him for the
year in the Entrepreneurship Mastery Programme offered by the School of Entrepreneurship.

“I fundamentally believe that the number one way to solve the job crisis in South Africa and in Africa in
general, is through entrepreneurship. By creating businesses, you create a lot more jobs than a
government can ever create, and it's people like Bongi that are the future of South Africa and this
continent.” According to Picken, who is a highly experienced, successful and global Entrepreneur, “this is
one of those opportunities that can really set someone on a path to success. If young people were
trained differently, if they were given different thinking systems, different techniques and different access
to opportunities that didn't previously exist in not only the schooling system, but within the traditional
tertiary education…”

Pic: Scott Picken

Let’s meet this ambitious young man - it could be you, or your child - it could be anyone just coming out
of school, unemployed or in the early years of adulthood:
“My name is Bongi Ndlovu and I am a matriculant - the first to sign up to study at The School of
Entrepreneurship. For a brief moment, when I think about ‘ the School of Entrepreneurship', my heart fills
with exhilarating excitement and joy. The institution has shown that it is capable of opening new and
brighter paths for matriculants by teaching principles that have not been substantially taught in school
education. Knowing that the institution will have coaches that have years of training and experience in
the world of entrepreneurship and business, gives me a lot of hope and faith that I will have an amazing
adventure and experience while learning and growing as an individual. Speaking of growing, I grew up in
a small town called Knysna and I plan to move to Cape Town while I study so I can find ways to put the
knowledge I am being taught into practice and begin to build a better future for myself. School of
Entrepreneurship, here I come!”

Pic: Bongi Ndlovu

The School of Entrepreneurship will equip South Africa’s youth through a highly practical online training
programme, empowering participants with the mindset, knowledge, insights, tools and essential business
skills needed to become confident, capable entrepreneurs, able to start and run a business within 8
months. The programme also offers practical support and assistance, while establishing if there is a
market (i.e. viability of the business i dea) pitching to investors and how to get funding. Every student will
complete a personal Enneagram Assessment, receive resilience and EQ coaching and will get invaluable
insights into their Entrepreneur Type, intrinsic motivators, as well as strengths and weaknesses so as to
make informed decisions about what kind of entrepreneurial career path plays to their unique strengths
and talents.

“I'm really proud of Bongi for joining the School of Entrepreneurship,” says his mentor, Scott Picken. “I
met the man as a very young man at the age of 15. He had tremendous tenacity, he had tremendous
persistence, and all he needed was an opportunity and love, and a bit of direction, and I truly believe this
is another catalytic moment for him, in bringing out that potential which lies within him, and I believe that
will be to the benefit of not only this country, this continent, but this planet!”

For more i nformation about the Entrepreneurship Mastery Programme, to attend a free informational
webinar, or to book a one-on-one call with the Head Coach and Founder Leon Lategan, go to
https://www.schoolofentrepreneurship.co.za.