Category: The 10 Most Inspiring Business Women Making a Difference 2021_profile

A qualified Master Transformation Coach, Life Coach, Neurolinguistics Practitioner, and Inner Conflict Therapy Practitioner with a sustained passion for people’s welfare, Liezl Thom is one such inspiring woman who has been guiding people on their journeys to self-discovery and awakening. She helps people re-evaluate and change the stories they tell themselves about themselves, which liberates them from their fears and limiting beliefs and helps them harness the power of change. With an aim to inspire, guide, and help as many people as possible to give birth to their own expression of inner excellence, Liezl Thom established the foundation of Liezl Thom Coaching on 21st September, 2021.

An alumna of the prestigious University of Pretoria, Lizel did her graduation in Political Science. She is also an experienced Journalist, amazing Author, and renowned Producer, Researcher, and Media Trainer. Further, the inspiring lady shared about her journey- “I have always questioned everything – especially my own thoughts. My inquisitive nature led me to a career in journalism and I absolutely loved my job. Unfortunately, my exposure to the dark side of humanity created some serious internal conflict and cognitive dissonance, which eventually caused some mental health issues. As a result, I stepped away from an extremely fulfilling career and focussed my attention on healing myself. Through this deeply meaningful process, I discovered tools and processes I now use to help others reframe their narrative to change the stories they tell themselves about themselves.

What Influenced Lizel to be an Entrepreneur?

Her approach to work has always been that she works for herself – even when she was employed full-time, she viewed her employer as a client to whom she provides a service. She would not necessarily describe herself as an entrepreneur, because an entrepreneur creates jobs for other people, but Lizel empowers people to take charge of their own destiny.

Clients & the Unbreakable Faith

Lizel says that she has been extremely fortunate to have an eclectic mix of clients over the years but they all have one thing in common – the unstoppable desire to harness change to take charge of their own lives. It is said that the only certainties in life are death and taxes. Change is inevitable, but it creates a momentum that, when used with intention, can propel us into the life of our dreams.

Her clients know that regardless of where they are in their journey, Lizel is their biggest cheerleader. She believes one of the biggest joys in life is to serve others and she serves her clients by opening their eyes and their hearts to their own inner wisdom.

The Key Players behind Liezl’s Success

“There’s a saying in coaching that “what you resist, will persist” so I try to allow and encourage change as much as possible. There are hundreds of teachers along the way – most of them we never get to meet in person, but through their books, their words can have a profound impact on the lives of others. Some of my biggest influences are Martha Beck, Louise Hay, Caroline Myss, Deepak Chopra, and Dr Joe Dispenza”, Liezl proudly shared.

From the Founder’s Desk

Covid-19 has changed the way we approach work irrevocably. It also reaffirmed – if we had any doubts before – that we as humans need each other to not only survive but to thrive. In South Africa, we have a concept called Ubuntu, which translates into “I am because you are”. Another principle we live by in South Africa is Batho Pele, which literally means “people first”. We have to put people at the centre of what we do – whether it is clients, shareholders, or employees.

A Day in Liezl’s Life

Liezl begins her day with a positive note saying to herself that it’s going to be a great day. She then goes down to her office and gets some coffee while scanning the papers. She meditates for half an hour before taking her son to school. After the school run, she hits the gym before taking a shower and getting ready for work.  Depending on the day, the inspiring coach will coach clients, study, write blogs or proposals, do interviews, record podcasts or meet with collaborators or potential collaborators, create new tools, read and research. After work, it’s either time for family or studying Sepedi – one of the eleven official languages spoken in South Africa. On some days Liezl takes her son to soccer. She lives to have dinner together as a family as it creates the opportunity to connect. After dinner, she will either read or watch a series before meditating again and then preparing for bed.

Favourite Book

When asked about her favourite book, Liezl apprised, “Books can be some of our biggest teachers and it’s hard to choose just one favourite but if I’m pressed, I’d have to say “Finding Your Own North Star” by Martha Beck and then its companion, “Steering By Starlight”. I have several qualifications in coaching – but my first introduction to coaching was when I became a Martha Beck Life Coach. These two books formed the basis of my training. I often buy copies of North Star to give to people as I know it will change their lives as much as it did mine.”

Jewels in the Crown & Road Ahead

• The leading lady has been a coach on two reality tv shows.
• In 2018, she was honoured as one of the Coaching Top 50 by CV Magazine.
• Earlier this year, she was awarded Best Life & Transformation Coach 2021 (South Africa) in the African Excellence Awards hosted by MEA Markets.

While discussing her future plans, Liezl Thom said, “I would love to inspire more people to find their own truth and to share the insights and wisdom I have accumulated with a wider audience. Over the past year, I’ve had several speaking engagements – which I absolutely loved – and I look forward to many more.”

Words of Wisdom

In the immortal words of Polonius: ”This above all: to thine own self be true, And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any (wo)man.” We first have to know who we are and what we want before we can make a difference in the world. You have to ask yourself What are your unique talents and gifts and how can you use them?

Favourite Quote 

Staying positive in a negative situation is not naïve. It’s leadership.  – Ralph Marston

“Be Still and know that I am God.” – Bible

These words effectively steer motivation for Lynda Aphing-Kouassi, Founder & Managing Director, International Firm KAIZENE, a renowned name in Professional Training & Coaching that aims for excellence, Transformation specialized in capacity building; coaching, the organization of institutional conferences and women empowerment through the accelerator focused on agriculture.

Personifying a rigorous, determined; hardworking, daring, disruptive, spiritual, passionate for development, optimistic, and self-motivated individual who diligently transverses the path to achieving, Lynda enjoys the reputation of chairing a front-runner in the industry with a name that has ripened since she rooted it years ago.

In her 18 years of professional journey, Lynda managed to navigate through a journey of new experiences working with different professionals and achieving realistic goals. She started her career in the banking sector at Santander, Societe Generale, Vaultex (a subsidiary of the HSBC banking group) as a team leader, director of investments, and then investment banker in London for over 15 years. This career gives her solid expertise in the banking and financial field and the management of human capital constituting for her the “heart of the development of any Companies and the Society”.

In recent years, she has decided to return to her country in order to share her experience through the activities of her cabinet KAIZENE and thus contribute (i) to the development of the African continent (ii) to the empowerment of women and young people in through mentoring, coaching and training and (iii) through the organization, since 2015, of the annual conference on infrastructure and construction. She is a member of the board of directors of the African Diaspora Network (ADNE) based in Brussels (Belgium), the British chamber of commerce and a member of the Institute of Directors of London (I.O.D).

KAIZENE, Focusing on Women Empowerment & Youth Inclusion

KAIZENE was founded in 2015 on the initiative of Lynda Aphing-Kouassi. It is a training company that aims for excellence, specialised in capacity building; coaching, the  organisation of institutional conferences, and finally KAIZENE accelerator for women SME.

The leading lady came up with this initiative when she realized that there was a lack of adequate training for companies but mostly that the employee’s soft skills were not fully utilized; that women’s empowerment was at the back of the agenda, and youth inclusion slow. She decided to contribute at her level in the ways she knew possible:

KAIZENE is a team of experienced employees who put their expertise at the service of their clients. They all share the values of rigor; faith and excellence.  It is based in London Pall Mall Piccadilly (United Kingdom) and in Abidjan zone 4 (Ivory Coast).

Here, the clientele mainly includes institutions; governments small and medium-sized companies.  We instill in them values of determination, agility; excellence; ambition, innovation, efficiency, and commitment.

Some conference themes organized by KAIZENE

• Mining, Oil and Gas (December 2015) – London, United Kingdom
• Oil Sector: Challenges and Opportunities (April 2016) – Abidjan, Ivory Coast
• Electrification of Africa (October 2016) – Cape Town, South Africa
• Construction and Infrastructures (December 2017) – Dakar, Senegal
• AGOA FORUM (August 2018) Cote- d Ivoire
• Construction and Infrastructures (December 2018) – Kigali, Rwanda
• Construction and Infrastructures (October 2019) – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
• ROADMAP CONFERENCE PRESIDENCY OF THE REPUBLIC OF COTE-D IVOIRE (October 2020)

Challenges & the Driving Force

“Our main challenges have been the sustainability of the empowerment for a larger number of women and the integration of young people through vocational training not being discouraged we carry on and are doing intense lobbying to achieve our goals”, shared Lynda when asked about her major challenges during the journey.

She continued, “As a woman entrepreneur in Africa, we worked hard and smart; we have met some very talented people and institutions that have also contributed to our growth.”

A Day in the Leading Lady’s Life & Her Hobbies

Lynda’s day is punctuated by her family and her work from the moment she wakes up she prays; speaks to her family and gets ready for her daily meetings, then she has meetings with her employees. Her hobbies are watching animated movies; travelling, art and culture and spending with her few friends

Jewels in the Crown

Lynda Aphing-Kouassi has been recognized by Forbes and Financial Afrique mentions; ASCOM awards, TOP MANAGER awards for our Nobel initiatives and contributions. Besides, the CSR activities have earned her the recognition of Forbes Africa and Financial Africa magazines as a development actor.

Through her services, Miss APHING-KOUASSI wishes to make a contribution to the economic and social development of the African continent. In her perpetual quest for development, she deeply believes that the desire to succeed and move forward must overcome obstacles and difficulties.

Favorite Read

Lynda said, “I have read a lot of books but the Bible is where I draw my real inspiration.”

Future Roadmap

Lynda Aphing-Kouassi and her team will continue to train as many businesses as possible to help them grow, empower as many women as possible and change the mindset and integrate as many young people so that they become the African leaders of tomorrow.

A Piece of Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

Be unapologetic; intentional; determined; Believe in yourself, pray; have a mission and don’t give up until it’s done; embrace failures, don’t apologise for who you are and stay true to your values, don’t look for people to love you or to like your quotes look for real tangible impact in people lives and remember to stay humble.