For the teenager reading this
Every teenager deserves a success team. I'd like to be part of yours.
Your parent found me, but this page is for you.
Before we work together, you deserve to know who I am, what I believe, and what I've done. Read it, then decide for yourself whether you're in.
Nomveliso Mbanga, your Teencoach™
Who I am
I became the person I wished I had.
I'm the founder of Mayine Development Institute and the creator of Nomveliso Mbanga Teencoaching™, an indigenous-rooted way of helping young people grow into who they want to become. I've been working with teenagers and their families for over 30 years.
Before I started Mayine in 2015, I spent six years at the Allan Gray Orbis Foundation, mentoring and coaching scholars from Grade 8 all the way to university. Long before that, I was doing youth work in communities through theatre, sport and drama.
I've coached teens in townships, in government schools and in private schools. I've designed programmes for SABC Education, the Department of Basic Education and the Student Sponsorship Programme. My coaching method is ICF-accredited.
None of this is theory. What I'll share with you has been tested by teenagers from very different lives who chose to apply it, and it worked for them.
You might have seen or heard me
On TV, on radio, and in schools across the country
I've been talking to young people and parents on air for years. If you want to know how I speak before we meet, go watch and listen.
Television
- SABC EducationYouth Culture, Episode 1: "Girls and Money" (2017), and a further SABC Education programme in 2022
- Breaking the SilenceSABC and the Department of Basic Education, 2022/23
- SABC News
Radio
- Metro FM
- Power FM
- Radio 2000
I also took SABC Education's schools roadshow into classrooms in Gauteng and the Western Cape.
Watch and listen on my media pageHaving a coach doesn't mean something's wrong
The best in the world have coaches too
Some teens think getting a coach means they're failing. It's actually the opposite. People at the top of their game work with coaches because talent alone isn't enough. A coach helps you see what you can't see by yourself, and pushes you past where you'd stop on your own.
Basketball
Michael Jordan & Kobe Bryant
Both worked with George Mumford, a mindfulness coach who helped them train their focus and handle pressure. Jordan credits him with changing how he led his team.
Tennis
Novak Djokovic
One of the greatest tennis players of all time has worked with a mental coach, Pepe Imaz, alongside his tennis coaches.
Athletics, South Africa
Wayde van Niekerk
Broke the 400m world record and won Olympic gold in 2016, coached by Ans Botha, a great-grandmother everyone called Tannie Ans.
Business
Steve Jobs & Google's leaders
Steve Jobs, Larry Page and Eric Schmidt all worked with the same coach, Bill Campbell, known as the Trillion Dollar Coach.
“Everyone needs a coach.”Bill Gates, in his TED talk on feedback
None of them got a coach because they were doing badly. They got one because they wanted to get even better. That's what a success team is for.
What I believe
Six things I'll keep telling you
Your marks don't measure how smart you are.
They show what schoolwork you've captured so far. That can change. Your intelligence was never the problem.
"Better marks" is rarely the real issue.
Usually it's fear of failing, fear of looking not-smart-enough, or confidence that took a knock somewhere. That's what we'll work on.
You have more power than anyone realises.
Nobody can make you study or read. That means this journey belongs to you, not your parents. When you own it, the confidence you build is yours too.
Start competing with yourself.
In this process, it's not about competing with your classmates. It's about competing with your own last result. Beat that, and keep beating it.
"Average" is a habit, not an identity.
If you've been told you're average, we'll look at where that came from and what your habits are proving. Change the habits and you can prove something different.
I won't give you advice I wouldn't give my own child.
That's my rule for every young person I work with.
An African proverb behind my logo
A child who does not cry while on their mother's back may die.
Crying is how the mother knows something is wrong. Asking for help works the same way. If you've been stuck on the same problem for months and nothing is moving, reaching for help is courage and wisdom. It isn't weakness.
How we'll work
Coaching built around you, not around your report
Teens are not the same, so your coaching won't be generic. It's shaped by your grade, your story and your goals, across five areas of growth:
What I am
- Part of your success team
- A bridge between you and your parents
- Honest with you, even when it's uncomfortable
- On your side
What I'm not
- Your parents' way of controlling you
- Here to judge or embarrass you
- Another teacher giving you homework
- A three-month magic wand
Your parents have given their permission
Your parents have agreed that you and I can talk openly about everything that affects your growth, including what's happening at home and in your family.
Family dynamics can affect your marks, your confidence, and how you see yourself and your place in the world. So if family comes up, you can talk about it freely. These conversations are part of your holistic development, and they're there to help you grow.
Real growth takes consistency. Some results show in months; others take longer. What changes outcomes, every time, is the choice to receive help and act on it. That part is yours.
What happens next
You don't have to decide anything today
- 1
We meet
Our first conversation is about getting to know you. No tests, no lectures.
- 2
You decide
After we've talked, you decide for yourself whether you're in.
- 3
You commit
If you're in, you make your own commitment to the process. It's yours, not your parents'.
I'm looking forward to meeting you.
Nomveliso