ANSA news reported that she succumbed to a heart attack 30 minutes after the show, in which she showed solidarity toward Italian journalist Roberto Saviano, who had received death threats following on his book, Camorra, which discusses the crime syndicate in the Naples area.

“It’s a monumental loss not only to South African society in general, but for humanity,” said Department of Arts and Culture spokesperson Sandile Memela.

Miriam Makeba or Mama Afrika, as she was affectionately known, was born in Johannesburg on 4 March 1932. The daughter of a Swazi mother (sangoma) and a Xhosa father. She shot to fame in the late 50’s and the 60’s with a documentary (Come Back, Africa) and winning a Grammy working with Harry Belafonte.

She left South Africa in 1959 and spent more than 30 years in exile, becoming known as an anti Apartheid activist in the process. In 1960 when her mother died she tried to return to South Africa for the funeral, but was denied access to the country as her passport had been revoked. Some of her marriages were to Stokely Carmichael (American Civil Rights Activists) as well as Jazz legend Hugh Masekela.

Anyway this is the first television show where I was introduced as South Africa’s #1 Dating Coach aka Hitch…lol…The host Pepsi Pokana and his wife, who does the make-up, helped me relax quickly and the director, the camera crew and sound engineers have by far been the most professional I have worked with in the broadcasting industry in South Africa. I was extremly confortable before and afterwards the filming of my segment.

Melanie Son, the content producer confirmed the following transmission information:

• Channel : SABC 3
• Date: Sunday, 26th October 2008
• Time: 16h30

More about this show that I highly recommend for all men. And for women who want to understand men, instead of trying to “fix” them:

Zooming in on Men is a quirky, humorous television property that is partly influenced by, but not limited to, men’s print formats like Best Life, GQ and magazines like Afropolitan, Tribute and Blaque. It is an entertaining, engaging and informative platform that moves away from being merely a lifestyle show, but rather uses topics relevant to men to create a space where “real men talk” about the variety of issues that affect, confound, inspire, anger and humour them. One of the key pillars behind this new season of ZIOM is to create a platform where we can laugh at ourselves in our exploration of the constructs of Masculinity. We discuss debate, argue, laugh and experience a range of topics ranging from the serious to the frivolous. The show, hosted by an anchor host, supported by a comedian, will be studio-based, which serves as the foundation for the show. It will be driven by the banter between our two hosts and their interaction with the various guests in studio. The space will reflect men and their interests. Each show is driven by a topic/theme, and all the elements in an episode serve to explore the relevant topic. The core of the show is the conversation between men, which will happen in our location studio.

Target Market: Urban men aged 25-40

I delivered for me one of the most important messages since I began blogging in 2003. I have taken up the cause of bringing blogging to the masses and also using these platforms to enhance entrepreneurship. We can never have enough collaboration or communication between. Through a series of experience and travels I have met and become friendly with many bloggers in South Africa as well as the rest of Africa.

The journey for me started back in 2006 when I attended the inaugural Digital Citizens Indaba. I am returning to Uitenhage via the Garden Route and will blog more about the background to this project this weekend…

Anyway here’s the Presentation, cleaned up a little bit from 27Dinner in Cape Town:

Mutual Aid Between African Bloggers

The Economist Intelligence Unit has declared 2008 to be the year of the emerging market. They are not alone in this prediction. Emerging economies present companies with some of the biggest opportunities for growth this year. And this doesn’t refer just to China and India.

In Cape Town, from 18 – 20 August 2008, at this year’s Gartner Africa Symposium, you will learn about the tools, technologies and management techniques to position your company to take advantage of this growth in emerging markets, while maintaining the fundamentals of efficiency.

On of the people I am looking forward to meeting in Johnny Clegg, especially after I have been to one of his shows in Johannesburg. He will be delivering the guest speaker today, the opening day at 11h45am.

One of those people is Anthony Fitzhenry whom I first met in May 2007 at the now defunct Futurex event. Anthony is the founder of a non-profit organisation, Qhubeka Bikes for Life, which helps poor, previously disadvantaged communities across South Africa purchase bicycles to solve a serious transport and movement problem that exists, especially remote towns or villages. This has been my first exposure to this project and it hit my like a ton of bricks…here is a real solution.

It was starring me in the face all along. And its especially poignant for me because I’ve been talking about purchasing a bike to increase my fitness levels. I’ve always hated jogging and the machines in gyms are even more mechanical. The beautiful things about a bicycle is that I can do some sight seeing while working out as well. In this day and age I suppose the environmental concerns are valid when it comes to reducing car pollution.

Anyway I still have to get my own bike but maybe the Qhubeka movement I can get one for me, and for the Uitenhage community. Taxi fare from the Rosedale, Gamble suburbs into the Uitenhage town area is R7.50 and that makes a return trip R15. Now multiply that by 5 or rather 6 days a week and you’re spending R90 per week on travel and a whopping R378 per month. That monthly amount is particularly important because its about enough to purchase food for a week if you stretch it. The taxi drivers, in my view, do very little to give back to the communities. They monopolise transport, especially in Gauteng where trains and in general, the entire public transport system, is horrendously unsafe and unreliable for a multitude of reasons.

Back to bringing Qhubeka to Uitenhage and the Kwa-Nobuhle township…this is really something tangible for the community to work towards. Its just ironic that most of the people working at the Volkswagen factory in Uitenhage, the biggest employer in the town, will never, ever be able to own the vehicles they are building.

Here’s some more from the Qhubeka Facebook group:

In the Nguni languages of South Africa , of which Zulu is one, Qhubeka means “to carry on”, “to continue”, “to progress” or “to move forward”.

Transportation is a fundamental element of development. Most of Africa’s rural population have no access to any form of transport and people have to walk long distances to access economic opportunities, education, healthcare, shops and other community services.

Some of the potential benefits attached to bicycle transportation include:

• Cost effective transport
• Environmentally-friendly transport
• Time savings
• Healthy extra-curricular activity

Question: You say that children below the age of 13 should not have cell-phones for health reasons do you not think that in todays world all kids should have access to an adult in case something does go wrong?

Yes, kids should have access to adults. However, the access that is required has always been there. Before cellphones parents had a relationship and understanding with the schools they go to as to when and how they are dropped off and collected after school, from sporting events or when traveling with the school. When visiting friends, arrangements were made with the parents of the friends to look after your children as if they were your own. This is a fear-based myth that cellphones is the only or safest way to make kids safe. The more you buy into a fear mindset, the more you create a dependency on technology or anything outside yourself. So in a very warped way technology has made people more insecure than ever before.

Question: Do you have kids? If so, are they allowed MXit and Facebook?

No I do not have any children because I am not married. I would only allow my own children access for for a limited time per day or on weekends. I recently bumped into a guy who was at school with me, and he has one son in high school and one in primary school. He treats them like this: they only get access for 1 hour on Saturdays between 5-6pm. This is radical, yes, but he succeeded as father by setting the ground rules from day 1.

Question: Do you believe parents should be more “internet and cell-phone aware”?

Parents need to understand that the technology is growing and improving at a vast rate. The best way they can maintain some sense of confidence about the technology is to cultivate an open discussion on a regular (weekly) basis with their children about technology. This is much easier than you may think, simply because technology is so high on the values of children. What I mean is you cannot stop them talking about it when you ask the right questions.

Question: Do you believe the internet is a good way to meet people and start dating?

I have used Internet dating successfully because I have been so persistent and made a tremendous effort to educate myself about the best ways to write my online dating profile. After hundreds articles, books and interviews, and comparisons with other forms of dating and the psychology of attraction, I do not believe its the best way to meet people. You will always have some uncertainly about that elusive obvious called “chemistry” with the opposite sex. So overall your chances are very slim to find a compatible match and sustain the relationship. I consider my last relationship, which lasted about 18 months; as well as best friend of mine, who married a woman he met on www.datingbuzz.com, the exceptions.

Question: What are your tips to people using the internet in order to meet others?

1. Create a detailed and specific a profile with what you want
2. Always ensure you have the best, recent photo of yourself – a headshot, full body.
3. Begin with a narrow set of search criteria e.g. women between 20-30, height 1.65 or above, unmarried, no kids, etc. You can always broaden the scope to reach a wider selection.
4. Have at least two telephone conversations before meeting and decide, based on that if it is worth meeting the other person.
5. Arrange a first date with an activity like tenpin bowling, window shopping at a flea market because traditional coffee/dinner dates become to much like an job interview. At the very least you can make good friends if you have common interest but no physical attraction. The first women I ever met from an online dating website, is one of my best friends today!

Question: What sparked your interest in the safety of these gadgets?

The interested was sparked by years of working in Information Security for various Internet companies and banks protecting them from hackers, to a more recent experience with my sister who inherited my cellphones over the last 10 years whenever I upgraded. My concern for her safety prompted me to become reframe my practical experience in Internet security into an research and educational role now.

Question: Do you miss living in the Eastern Cape?

I moved back from June 2008 for a few months to write my book, The Psychology of Technology. The stress levels in Johannesburg has gone through the roof in the last 2 years, especially after load shedding and also the Gautrain project, which has caused more unhappiness and disruptions than anything else.

Question: From Uitenhage to the hussle and bussle of Johannesburg - how do you cope?

It was easy because my father is from Johannesburg. I moved in with one of my aunts for a while and eventually made many new friends. There is a use “expat” community of people from Uitenhage and Port Elizabeth living in Gauteng. And so inadvertently I was forced to become more social, to adapt and survive. Those skills are serving my very well these days with the media and my public speaking career.

Question: Would you ever consider moving back here?

Yes, I doubt I can ever reside permanently in Uitenhage itself but Summerstrand is very appealing for a long-term residence. Did you know that Summerstrand was voted the #1 suburb in South Africas by Finweek in December 2007?

Question: Growing up in a small town like Uitenhage, what did you do for fun as a kid?

From my earliest recollection I played in the sand. I build things in my backyard and played with toys like lego and trains. The things all boys used to do – I think Anyway I also got excellent stimulation from my mother and father, again I believe in inadvertently, reading comic books. This lead me to drawing and sketching which further expanded my imagination. Art is still one of my hobbies today, and it’s not something you would commonly associate with a technologist. Maybe the best thing I had going for me was freedom to express my overactive imagination. You know the kids in my talks laugh when I say television used to start at 4pm and end at 11 or 12 at night, when I was in primary school. Kids today are so burded with home work, projects, extra murals, and other obligations they do not have the freedom to discover their own genius.

Question: What school did you attend?

My primary school was Dower Practicing School, and my high school was Uitenhage Senior Secondary School, from which I matriculated in 1992. On a side note, I launched a school newspaper that same year because I was not voted a prefer, head boy or part of the student representative counsil. The newspaper is still going after 16 years!

Question: Do you consider yourself a celebrity?

No, because I am not an actor or musician with constant media coverage. Perhaps when I get my own radio or tv show I will revise this opinion.

Question: You have been on Carte Blanche and been interviewed in various publications - what has been your most grueling/exciting interview?

The first time Zuraida Jardine interviewed on Vicious Delicious, a show on Go channel on DStv. She did not give me chance to complete my answers, and kept hitting me with new questions one after the other. A year later I was invited back on the show. And she treated me like an old friend.

Question: Are you on Facebook, if so, how many friends do you have?

Yes, I am on Facebook. And have over 800 friends now. My goal is to get to 1000 before September. On LinkedIn.com, a business social network I have over 1,700 connections and I’m in the top 10 most connected South Africans.

Question: You will be speaking at the Women’s Day conference on August 9 - you are obviously an inspiration to many in the Eastern Cape - how does this make you feel and what is your central message to them?

My central message is that you have access to the world through your cellphone, so there are no excuses to finding the information, resources or people who can help you get what you want, or where you want. This tool is like a double edged sword so train yourself. And for parents in particular, set boundaries for your children, because it gives them something to break through that initiates them into adulthood.

Question: Why do you think you were asked to speak at this conference?

The organisers are determined to make this an annual event and bring other people like Deshun Deysel, the first black woman to climb Mount Everest, and Uitenhage-born, to the next event in 2009.

Question: You deliver your messages to many churches - are you religious?

Yes, I do speak at churches. In fact the first ever speaking engagement I had was at the request of a church in Riverlea, Johannesburg. Many pastors have consulted with me about the challenges facing their communities because obsession with chat rooms through cellphones and MXit is effecting the biggest to the smallest, the poorest to the wealthiest communities across South Africa.

As my online dating profile says, I’m spiritual not religious. As a wise man asked me, where is GOD not?

Question: After you talk at the conference, will you be staying in the Bay for a couple of days?

Yes, I will be staying with my mom for a while in Uitenhage. And spending some time in Summerstand

Question: What is your favourite tourist attraction in Port Elizabeth?

In no particular order I love the oceanarium because of the dolphins bring back amazing memories. After that I love Goven Mbeki Avenue because my mother worked at the FNB branch there for about 20 years and I used to tag along to work with her growing up. Otherwise I can never get enough of Summerstrand.

This Demartini Institute initiative, partnered by The Star (Independent Newspaper Group) and The Community Policing Forum (CPF), was designed to inspire and empower the people who play such an integral role in protecting South Africans. This is the second presentation to the SAPS, the purpose of the first talk was to inspire vision whereas this second talk was designed to address practical steps to assist the SAPS take their inspiration into action.

Dr Demartini pointed out that they (the police) are at this talk which means they truly care and are receptive to innovative ideas. “You obviously have a vision to protect society or you wouldn’t have joined and sustained your police service and whether you realize it or not your very presence makes everyone become more accountable,” he said. He likened their fight against crime to moving a large boulder. It is tough at first, but the boulder starts moving slowly and it eventually gains great speed or momentum. ”You can create or build almost anything through persistent action and by momentum and this can be applied successfully to crime fighting.”

Dr Demartini said life is designed to be challenging and only through challenge can we grow. He explained that focusing on problems alone is futile and that great things can be achieved by concentrating efforts on solutions and by taking accountable actions. Dr Demartini shared that in most of his talks and interactions in South Africa, in his experience the majority of South Africans are truly behind the police force and are grateful for their persistent efforts and accomplishments. He urged them to hold onto their vision of possibility, have clear objectives and apply prioritized actions that have a high probability of achievement and make sure that their vision is bigger than any criminal’s. “If man can set foot on the moon through one man’s vision, you can, as a collective force, change the crime statistics in South Africa,” he said.

Special thanks go to:

Montecasino and Dalene Devereux in Johannesburg and The Westin Grand CT Arabella and Martin van Oordt in Cape Town for assisting this crime combating drive by arranging and sponsoring the talk venues and to Gear House (Kelvin) and Integrity Sound (Alex) for sponsoring the sound equipment. To Commissioner Naidoo, Commissioner Reddy and DCP Daniels for their time, trust and permission to activate our vision of empowering and inspiring police men and women in South Africa. To Moegsien Williams, Editor of The Star (Independent Newspaper Group) for activating the opportunity and assisting in the coordination of these events. To Lionel and Geoff Green from the CPF for their invaluable insights. To Tracy O Brien for the introductions that made this all possible. Most importantly, thank you to the men and women in South Africa who dedicate their lives to the service of South African society, you are the heroes within South Africa and your actions make a difference in the lives of many every day.

A Special Note:

When someone believes in you, you increase in self worth and rise to the occasion. Long-term visionaries know to stay the course. They don’t focus on how things aren’t being done; they wisely look at what is being done and what can be done. They are solution orientated, not problem focused. As a nation, hold a vision for South Africa, don’t let outer forces deter your vision and actions towards it; look for what is working; acknowledge the heroes; be grateful for the men and women who put their lives on the line to protect and serve South African society. When you see the genius in another, you have the power to awaken the genius you see. Acknowledge the heroes and show your gratitude, for when you are grateful, you get more to be grateful for.

Share this message with someone that is going through a hard time because they need to know someone cares about them. Colman McCarthy often starts his lectures with this, “Nobody makes it alone. It’s always important to show appreciation for what we got.” And one way of show you appreciate them is sharing this message with them when they need to hear it the most.

The Best Bank in the World…

Imagine there is a bank that credits your account each morning with R86 400. It carries over no balance at the end of the day. Every evening it deletes whatever part of the balance you have failed to spend during the day.

What would you do? Draw out ever cent of course!

Each of you has such a bank. Its name is TIME. Every morning it credits you with 86 400 seconds. Every night it rights off, as lost, whatever balance you have failed to invest to good purpose. It carries over no balance and it allows no overdraft. Each day it opens up a new account for you. Each night it burns the remains of the daily deposit. There is no going back. There is no drawing against the “tomorrow”. You must live in the present on today’s deposit. Invest it so as to get from it the utmost in health, happiness and success. The clock is ticking. Make the most of today.

• To realise the value of ONE YEAR ask a student who failed a grade
• To realise the value of ONE MONTH ask a mother who has just given birth to a premature baby
• To realise the value of ONE WEEK as two lovers who are waiting to meet
• To realise the value of ONE MINUTE ask the person who just missed the train
• To realise the value of ONE SECOND ask the driver who has just avoided a head-on collision
• To realise the value of ONE MILLISECOND ask the person who won the silver medal in the Olympics

Treasure every moment that you have, and treasure it more because you shared it with someone special to you. Remember TIME waits for nobody.

YESTERDAY is history, TOMORROW is mystery, and TODAY is a gift, that’s why it’s called the PRESENT!

Give a copy of this message to a friend, for it’s a special gift and may just change their grey dull lives into brightness. There is also a Powerpoint presentation called “The Bank Account of Life” you can view here.

When it comes to The Secret, you either love it or hate. And if I had to go by the very heated Amazon.com Customer Reviews I would say that those who love it, cannot stop talking about it; while those who hate it, absolutely loath it. From 1681 total votes at the time of writing this is the overall feelings about those who purchased The Secret DVD:

• 58% love it *****
• 13% think it’s great ****
• 8% though it was average ***
• 6% didn’t like it **
• 15% hated it *

For better or worse, the law of attraction is no longer a secret thanks to Rhonda Byrne, the creator and producer of The Secret DVD. What bothers me most is the companies who used to retail this product before it got into CNA or Exclusive Books: Going4Gold and The Secret Online, were both selling it at ridiculously inflated prices. However, as of writing this neither of them stock the DVD any more but they do offer other related products like the book version, which is really just a transcription of the DVD. I refuse to read it because it’s a bad attempt by Rhonda Byrne, wanting to be considered and author. This fake book is a transcription of the ideas of the teachers in The Secret, and even some of them are quoting other sources as well or borrowing ideas liberally.

One female friend of mine swears by the book and is now obsessed with paying over R200 for a gratitude book. She hardly has money for taxi fare to and from work! “My god woman,” I said to her, “use a notepad or a hard cover if you have to express yourself in writing”. It’s simply a waste of money or cash because you can spend less then R10 to get you going with your list of gratitudes or even use some old paper you can surely find in your house. And if you have a computer just begin writing a daily list of gratitudes because that costs you ZERO. And I suspect it has something to do with not admitting that she made a mistake. She would basically be putting her own decision making down.

The point I’m getting to is that experimental psychologist concur that you retain 6 times more information when you learn from a audio-visual source compared to audio only. The studies I looked at don’t make a direct comparison with reading, however, I suspect it is even worse compared to reading depending on the person’s comprehension levels. So it is 6 times better to WATCH The Secret, rather than READ The Secret.

The Science of Getting Rich Scam

While I’m at it let me say this publicly for the first time: I’m absolutely and totally disgusted that Going4Gold and The Secret Online both sell a book, The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace D. Wattles, from their websites.

They incorrectly use a photo of Benjamin Franklin on the cover of this book. This is the book that helped Rhonda Byrne recover from her breakdown given to her by her daughter. What you may not know is that this book is in the public domain. That means it is completely free to republish by anyone and you can find many, many copies on the Web. To me this is like daylight robbery because they are selling something free and putting a price on it. And just because they add a new “Foreword” does not justify adding a R110 price tag on it.

So if you have bought The Science of Getting Rich from one of the above mentioned companies I suggest you return the book, ask for a refund, and access on the free copies here.

You can purchase a copy form Bid or Buy for R225 or for only R66 from Loot.

Over the last 5 years I have experienced various ups and downs in my own business growth. For the most part I was self-employed as described in Robert Kiyosaki’s Cashflow Quadrant. And it’s only in the last 6 months I have taken the idea of working on my business more seriously than working inside my business. This is not something that happened over night and I have bumped my head time and time again trying different things to grow my business. Maybe the best part of the experience is that I have now figured out how to generate cash flow at will. And for the most part this has to do with being clear about my products and services that I offer.

Anyway Jo Duxbury and Pam Sykes are organising this unconference and asked for volunteers to do short presentation on their areas of expertise. I jumped at this opportunity because I get more practise as a speaker in front of a new audience. And with their feedback, I can constantly improve my material. So since the above mentioned 27Dinner event I have been reworking my business networking presentation and more importantly the way I want to deliver that to this audience. In all my other training programms I offer the delegates a free CD with resources I have collected and collated from the Internet. This ads tremendous value because they now have something specific to go through upon completing my seminar or workshop.

What turned out to be a surprise for me was this message requesting a deposit of R200 that goes toward the food and drinks for the day. I emailed Jo and Pam to ask if the speakers also had to put down this deposit - and I received ZERO response from them. I take my presentations and talks very, very seriously as a member of Toastmasters and the Professional Speakers Association. More over I also subscribe fully to the principle of Fair Exchange as advocated by Dr John Demartini in his excellent book, How To Make One Hell Of a Profit and Still Get To Heaven. At the very least I would expect any fees to be waivered for the speakers because I am forfitting my fee and paying for my own travel to Cape Town.

Oh just before I forget to mention this: I fully understand the Wild Fig restaurant is sponsoring the venue, however, forcing people to buy your food is not the way to go. What about all the people who may have wanted to bring their own picnic basket or fast good?

Anyway what do you think is fair exchange for speakers to speaker at no cost at this event or any other?