How Lesego Maphanga Is Building His Personal Brand Lesego Maphanga is young (he only graduated in 2014), yet he has already made a name for himself in multiple industries. His secret to success? Always doing more than is asked of him.

Vital Stats

• Player: Lesego Maphanga
• Company: Standard Bank
• Position: Manager: Card & Emerging Payments; Africa Regions
• About: At only 27, the maths & science whizz works at Standard Bank as an Emerging Payments manager responsible for implementing remittances products across multiple African Regions. He also has his own radio show on CliffCentral called the Urban Culture Drive, and is founder of social entrepreneurship movement called Unplugged and in Charge.

Lesego Maphanga is young (he only graduated in 2014 with an Industrial & Systems Engineering degree), yet he has already made a name for himself in multiple industries. His secret to success? Always doing more than is asked of him.

Here is his advice on building a personal brand.

I studied engineering knowing right from the start that I would never work as an engineer. I just couldn't see myself working at a mine, or something like that, but I knew that engineering would give me a solid foundation and allow me to keep my options open.

A STEM (science, technology, engineering, maths) degree is a great base, as it shows that you have a mind for numbers and the analytic mindset needed to get things done. I don't think you can go wrong with a degree in one of these fields, even if entrepreneurship is your ultimate aim.

How can I set myself apart?

You have to ask yourself this question. There's a lot of competition out there. You might have a great academic history or work experience, but so do a lot of people, so you need to have a differentiator — something that makes you stand out. I entered Mr South Africa, for example, because I knew that it would increase my profile and add something interesting to my CV.

I didn't win, but I was a top-five finalist, which was good enough for me. Find interesting things to add to your CV as well, since it'll make it stand out in a massive pile of similar submissions.

Always go the extra mile

I had a lecturer who always said: "There are two kinds of bad engineers. There are those who don't do what they're told to do, and there are those who only do exactly what they're told to do." You need to add value and show that you are a crucial part of a team, so don't just do what you're told.

Instead, look for ways in which you can go beyond the brief. Work hard and spend time coming up with your own ideas and projects. At the end of my studies, I interned at Standard Bank. I knew that I only had five weeks to make an impression, so I gave it my all. When you're young, you don't have many responsibilities apart from work, so that's the time to put everything into your work.

Be audacious and make things happen

Seizing an opportunity that comes to you is great, but creating your own opportunities is even better. Don't take no for an answer, and don't wait for someone to give you a chance. A friend and I had an idea for a radio show and decided to put a proposal together.

We had no experience and no contacts in the field, but we emailed our proposal to everyone we could think of. We spammed them, sending it out every single day. Eventually, CliffCentral got in contact with us.

I don't want a "normal' life

I want an extraordinary life, so I demand a lot of myself. I think Elon Musk is a great example of this. He's doing things no one thought possible. Of course, it requires extreme levels of dedication and hard work. If you're aiming for the top, I don't think work/life balance is possible. You need work/life integration. You need to be pursuing your passion all the time. If you're on a path you're truly interested in, work doesn't feel like sacrifice.

Exercise is important to me

I go to gym twice a day. It's significant to me, as it allows me to relax and clear my mind. It also provides structure to my life. When I get up early and go to gym, I find that the rest of my day falls into place. It sets the tone.

As long as I maintain focus in this part of my life, I find that things overall stay under control. Sometimes, though, I need to take a day off and just sit in front of the TV. Generally speaking, however, I find that routine helps maintain focus and momentum.