Congratulations to all our Achievers at our Academic Prize Giving.
Deputy Head Prefect Khawulani Thwala addressed the school and parents:
Success is never an accident; it is the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction, skilful execution and the vision to see obstacles as opportunities.
Good morning to Mr Viljoen, members of school management, staff, parents and most importantly to the squires and knights seated here this morning. I stand this morning proud to see so many of you here and it makes me prouder to know that you all have earned a right to be here because, you worked hard and it paid off. You have succeeded!
Success is defined as “the fact that you have achieved something that you want and have been trying to do or get ‘’ what can be concluded from this that success is different to each and every individual, but there are common characteristics of success.
A wiseman in Mr Barry once told us as his grade 11 English class that if you do something you love you’ll never have to work a day in your life .This statement entranced me, I wanted to find out why it was true and, as our generation does when they faced with knowledge they can’t understand , I went to google .I found that, this is because of PASSION, the first characteristic of success, a feeling of intense enthusiasm towards or compelling desire for something. To be successful you need to motivated because what you want to achieve and what you have achieved is not easy. A study done at the McGill University, in Montreal found that being harmoniously passionate for an activity contributes significantly the outcome by providing one with hedonic and eudemonic happiness, emotions that you experience when you achieve success.
I over my high school years developed an understanding that we all will face adversity and failure as these are both steps in the path to success. The solution to these setbacks is the second characteristic of success Persistence. Persistence is not the failure you face in the journey to success it’s the ability to pick yourself up dust yourself off and go at it again. The adversity is a given be it trying to balance the work load of all your subject and it not working out, or studying very hard for attest and not achieving you desired mark, you have to try again because giving up is not an option if you want to succeed.
A crucial factor in continued success is self-improvement. In every achievement there is always an opportunity to improve weather you have achieved 75% and want to improve to 80% 90% to 95% and for those of you with 100%’s and think there’s no opptunity to improve.Improve by doing it again or by getting it for the year and not just a term. That Desire to Improve is The fourth and penultimate characteristic of success. It is what separates a one good mark and a good end of year report.
Our school’s motto has the Latin phrase Quisque Sibi Verus which means to thine own self be true which perfectly defines the fifth and final characteristic of success which is Self-Accountability. You know yourself, your strengths, your weaknesses and your potential. You know when you have worked hard or when you could have worked harder, this introspection is the first step to self-accountability. You have the right to hold yourself accountable for your success because ultimately you where in that exam venue writing that exam, alternatively you should hold yourself accountable when you don’t achieve your goals. This self-accountability it allows you to learn from your mistakes and eventually improve.
Gentlemen you have exhibited these characteristic’s hence why you have succeeded academically but the hard part now ,and is to maintain and improve this excellence, maintain and improve on the success that has brought you here today. I say this so that in a years’ time you find yourself succefull again and not regretting the choices you have made because the ball is in your court. I shall leave you with a quote by a famous Greek Philosopher Aristotle it reads ‘’the roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet’’ . Endure the bitter roots to eventually enjoy the sweet fruits.
– Khawulani Thwala
