Interview with Quillin Campher

As a young professional, I've always seen education as being the cornerstone to growth and success in life. Coming from a small gangster-driven environment, I told myself that being part of a gang was not part of my career path and where I see myself in life one day. The only way was to develop myself through education. Knowledge is power and knowledge is gained through education which will always be the one thing that no one can ever take away from you.
After finishing my undergraduate studies (Bachelor's Degree in Business Admin), I realised that this is not going to be the last one. Then I completed my Advanced Diploma in Management, focusing more on Project Management, which helped me tremendously while I was part of one of Pragma's FM centre project teams. Both of these qualifications were obtained at the University of the Western Cape.
Building further on my success story and with aspirations of becoming a regional manager, MD or a director, I realised it is time to broaden the playing field and continue my learning path. Now that I have two qualifications in the bag, and I'm busy pursuing the third and am aspiring for a fourth.

After relocating to the City of Gold in 2018, I had to take a break from studying to settle in first. Then, when applying for BCom Honours and a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration at the University of Witwatersrand, I was initially declined. The second time around, I got accepted for the postgraduate. I believe that the time is right. I am at the right stage of life and have gained so much experience that would be enriched with further studies. I believe that this is my stepping stone towards an MBA and moving into a managerial role in the next three to five years.

A working student is always a tough situation you find yourself in, but it is never impossible to work on yourself. For this to work, one has to be disciplined and motivated, both academically and professionally. Time management is key to this success factor which will help a person find a balance between the two. Neither should be neglected. One of my lecturers said that successful people do what needs to be done when it ought to be done, whether its convenient or not. Sacrifice some personal time for the books after hours and over weekends where the full focus go towards education and keep the professional life going during the working hours of the day.

My plan for the next five years is to move into a managerial role to complete my MBA, and I would like to start a business of my own. Its time to expand on the success story of my life.

Time is valuable, and we should spend every minute of every day to the fullest. Dwayne Johnson said: "Don't work eight hours for a company then go home and not work on your own goals. You're not tired. You're uninspired". What you sacrifice now will be the success of tomorrow, so don't say you don't have time to work on yourself and develop yourself.

A support system is essential in all aspects of life, be it sport, work or education. Without proper support, it will be tough to accomplish set goals and stay motivated to the cause. In my case, my support system is always my family and friends as they are the ones that are true to me and I am grateful for them and the support they have shown me in my life.

Motivation is key to success; firstly one has to start with self-motivation as this is where it all begins if one doesn't motivate himself or don't have goals it is difficult to get others to motivate you. My family and friends always drive me to better myself and reach for the skies. It is a privilege to be able to further my career through education as there is a lot of people out there who are not fortunate to do so even when they want to, so one should never take anything for granted when you achieve things in life.

Living a balanced life can be tough, but it is not impossible. In life, as you grow older, you acquire skills to make things work for you. Time management is one of those skills. Try at most to keep the office work in the office, while focusing on your personal development after hours and on weekends. It can be stressful and to relax I always hit up a good training session in the gym. Then I'm ready to grab the bull by the horns again and continue where I left off. It is not always easy, but I try my best to make it work, for myself and to inspire others.