ULTIMATE ‘OUTLIER’ FROM MARITZBURG

MALCOLM Gladwell in his book Outliers examines the secret of exceptionally successful people.

Gladwell states: “The real secret of success turns out to be surprisingly simple and it hinges on a few crucial twists in people’s life stories – on the culture they grow up in and the way they spend their time.”

That Llewellyn Naidoo, a smalltown boy from Pietermaritzburg, is an outlier is without question.

He started work at the age of 11 working as a taxi conductor for R20 a day and attending school thrice a week. Today, he is the chief executive of Oaksure Insurance Brokers, one of the top Financial Intermediary Association’s largest black brokerages, employing more than 300 people.

He co-founded Oaksure with a friend, Steven Cory, at the age of 21.

It was not always a bed of roses for Naidoo, who went from conductor to working 20-hour days at a call centre to selling insurance.

“I manifested what I have, and I will do whatever it takes and work harder than anyone else to succeed,” he says. “I had borne many hardships, faced numerous challenges and setbacks, but I was determined that I was not a victim.

“If anything, I use the negative experiences I have endured to overcome any limitations that would inhibit my burning desire to win.”

Entrepreneurs are born or made through their circumstances and he is the epitome of both.

“When I was at school I sold flashing stickers for the Nokia 3310 that I bought at a flea market, re-selling them to wealthy kids at 900percent profit. I went from stickers to cellphone covers to pizza delivery boy to building my own computers with individual components from Rectron that had exceptional capacity for gaming.

“The turning point came when I realised that if I could sell R2million in premiums for the insurance company I had worked for, then I could do it for myself and pay myself recurring money. We started the company in my mum’s bedroom, then moved to a garage and eventually acquired office space.”

Today he has offices across the country and mentors, coaches and provides systems infrastructure for young entrepreneurs to create their own brokerage companies. He owns his own Insurance Sector Education and Training Authority (Inseta) college that educates unemployed, previously disadvantaged youngsters.

Brenda Kali is the chief executive of Conscious Companies and the founder of the Conscious Leadership Academy, www.consciouscompanies. co.za