South Africa is a gawky 16 year old with an amazing opportunity in 2010 to showcase ourselves to the world.  Most 16 year olds are facing the question of what they want to be when they grow up and for South Africa, as a country, the dilemma is no different.

As a Fairy Godmother helping individuals and companies to get clear on their dreams, goals and visions; I am very cognisant that we have not defined a clear vision for South Africa post 2010 or certainly not one that I, as a South African Citizen, am aware of.  And without a clear vision that can be translated between government, business, civil society and the average man on the street we are in danger of running around like a chicken with its head chopped off.

The 2010 FIFA World Cup has given us a goal as a nation – it has provided the impetus to invest in much needed infrastructure such as roads, it has created jobs and is a brilliant marketing tool for this country to catapult our tourism to even greater levels.  As we herald in the New Year the country is experiencing the positivity, upliftment and energy that comes with  reaching a goal. 2010 is a great year for South Africa, people are saying.

But what vision do we have for this country post 2010?

What is our vision in the areas of education, health, safety, economics, the environment, poverty alleviation etc. etc. etc?

You may think that vision-making and setting goals for this country should be done by the government or big business or other people.  Just not you, right? You may think that coming up with a Vision for South Africa is not your responsibility but if the leadership of this country isn’t going to do it, who will?

In my work as a Fairy Godmother I know that if you defer responsibility in an area of your life, you give up your power and others then determine the outcome in that area. In other words if you don’t have clear direction and goals then you merely float down the river of life reacting to circumstances rather than PROACTIVELY moving in the right direction.

It is the same with a country, at the moment South Africa is a reactive country rather than a proactive one.

Here is a beautiful little picture by one of my favourite illustrators, Edward Monkton – which describes the situation that we find ourselves in perfectly.

Whoever begins to shout the loudest and show some semblance of leadership and vision will attract followers.  One of the people shouting the loudest at the moment is Mr Malema.  Do you want to live in a South Africa in 2020 that has been created out of Julius’s head? Or how about living in the SACP’s vision of South Africa?  Wouldn’t it be better to live in the vision that you have in your head of South Africa in 2020?

We all have best case and worst case scenarios for this country running through our minds, yet we are more likely to bemoan the probability of doom-and-gloom and blame others than actually begin active discussions about a powerful and positive future.

So today, I am taking a stand to be a responsible and active citizen of this country.  As a person who regularly helps individuals and companies create vision, I pledge my skills to this country.

I am responsible for helping to create the vision of this beautiful land that I love and I am starting to do that by creating a Facebook Group called South Africa 2020 where we all as active citizens can begin to dialogue about our POSITIVE and powerful visions and goals for this country and how they can be activated.

Please Join me