Old Mutual
Old Mutual
ON THE MONEY: Chats to DJ Sbu about his Relationship with Money
Entrepreneur and Iconic Entertainer DJ Sbu sat down with ,John Manyike, Head of Financial Education at Old Mutual, to chat about his relationship with money in this season opening of our “On the Money” podcast series.
Get valuable tips from DJ Sbu & John Manyike on how to get ahead of your finances, and hear DJ Sbu talk about overcoming his worst financial decisions, his thoughts on the major stumbling blocks impacting black children and their ability to create wealth, how people can play a role in your success, dealing with adversity and negative energy, and so much more!
OLD MUTUAL ON THE MONEY – JOHN MANYIKE
[00:00:05] DJ SBU: [Thank you, thank you.]
[00:00:10] JOHN MANYIKE: You're a household name when it comes to entrepreneurship locally, and I'm sure your brand is going places. But before we go there, I'm more interested in your family background because you know, sometimes we appreciate where you are. Because we know where you come and we want to know who is DJ SBU?
[00:00:31] DJ SBU: Thank you for the opportunity. I think just like most of South African households from [the townships] not rural, but I would say [township], you know, [ township] would be Township, you know, for lack of a better word. So I grew up in a township called Tembisa, dusty streets. Back in those days, there was no tar roads at the time, there were no streetlights was no internet or DSTV a lot of the privileges that I think we are enjoying today, although I believe that's type of upbringing, you know, shapes us, I think you're probably from a similar background as well, where we are taught that, it takes a village to raise a child where [the lady from next door can shout at you] where if you jump into a bus and there's an elderly person walking in, you know, you can stand up and give him a chance to sit down and we're raised on morals and values on community spirit on going [where you can go to your neighbor to borrow sugar, where “ my mom said I should come and fetch a parcel for her’ ] come on next door. You know, that community spirit, kids were kids, kids were allowed a chance to be kids, adults were there too, discipline kids and just play an adult role even though it was not their kids. So I grew up in an environment like that, but I think I was blessed to have traded from an early age since at home there was a Spaza shop.
[00:01:49] JOHN MANYIKE: Ohhhh.
[00:01:50] DJ SBU: So I would say that’s where I would say my entrepreneurship introduction sort of started without me being aware. I was just irritated with [the fact that I had to be at the Spaza shop. After school I had to go and sell.]. But basically, that was the introduction to entrepreneurship.
[00:02:05] JOHN MANYIKE: I think we all grew up from a similar background, because from the way you're explaining action that, is that familiar where you don't throw away the cooking oil?
[00:02:14] DJ SBU: Yeah
[00:02:15] JOHN MANYIKE: It's reused several times. And it still smells [meat] even though there's no meat there. You know, in hard times, yeah.
[00:02:22] DJ SBU: And you can open the fridge and it's frozen there. So we saved from last night's cooking oil. We put it in a cup, put it in the fridge, and it's now solid, but we're going to use it the following day. [the times of holsom] remember the time when I mean you wouldn't have even toothpaste?
[00:02:38] JOHN MANYIKE: Yeah.
[00:02:38] DJ SBU: When things would be so tough that you'd use [ash], you know ash to brush your teeth? I remember a time even when sometimes maybe there wouldn't even be lotion or Vaseline, you would use not even the big margarine, the smaller one [we’d take Rrica] but it was normal, because we’re kids it's not like we're exposed to anything better. So at the time, it was just normal for us you know.
[00:03:00] JOHN MANYIKE: [Do you remember the times of starch water,] yeah, but then you started blowing up as time went on, we started knowing you but then there's this thing I don't know whether you once came out DJ on this thing. There was this character. Did you ever come up? Did you ever confirm or use against them, or is there someone else?
[00:03:23] DJ SBU: It's a beautiful compliment when people say that, it's not a character is actually a human being. I did some great work together with him six months, you know, but I know a lot of people they still say it's a rumor they think it's me, which I think it's a beautiful thing he was ahead of his time.
[00:03:37] JOHN MANYIKE: So it wasn’t you, it was someone else?
[00:02:38] DJ SBU:Yeah, somebody else.
[00:03:39] JOHN MANYIKE: It was not you maybe in more than one character or…?
[00:03:41] DJ SBU: I would have to be Superman to achieve everything I guess I have achieved. But like I said, a trend you guys order masks now in 2022, they're gonna say, oh, masks like, what, 20 years ago. You know, he basically came out and said, it doesn't matter who you are. Yeah. It came out in overalls and said, it doesn't matter what I'm dressed, how I'm dressed? It doesn't matter how I speak. It doesn't matter how I look like, I can succeed. I can achieve whatever I want to achieve. And I'm going to show musicians that even though I'm not a fully trained musician, I'm going to force my way into the music game. And I'm going to conquer the music game. He used to say that even before he got into the game, and everything he said he achieved, and he had five albums later, multiplatinum albums, awards, he had a very successful career and I'm really grateful to have played a role in the record company that was I guess it was a part of so we all went together with the late great [Brown Dash ] and peace, and a whole lot of other guys. So we're young, you know, we had this youthful spirit. We all wanted to make it and we had this label that had like quite a talent that had like vocalist, talent producers. And we just all came together and created something amazing little do we know that will create South African music history as a record label at the time, TS records you know.
[00:04:59] JOHN MANYIKE: Yeah, so in your early years of your career, you know, when you started blowing up as a DJ and look at the role you're playing in the music industry, how would you describe your relationship with money in your early stages of your career?
[00:05:13] DJ SBU: I think the relationship with money is just like any other kid, we've got very bad habits. We are taught money is the root of all evil, you hearing that over and over from your household labor, caregiving, sometimes [at church], and as a kid, you're only, you know, as good as your environment, because you're being, you know, nurtured around this talk. And I think that's the talk in black communities. And because a lot of us come from impoverished backgrounds, and obviously, based on our history in South Africa, some of you guys would know the history, it's a sad situation that you know, we have to come from those circumstances. But be that as it may, you know, we've had to come from there. And we had to, you know, some of us prove ourselves, and also understand who we are and where we come from, and you know, feel the need to want to go give back. But I was given a chance to have a good relationship with money selling [at the Tuck shop] starting to understand money, game changer, new, etc. But I don't I didn't understand the systems of how banks work with money, what is credit? What is debit? What is savings? What is investing? And none of that stuff, I didn't know. I was just a teenager working at this plaza. But all I did, and all I learned at the time was to trade, was the skills to speak to people, was the opportunity to close sales, create relationships with some taxi drivers who buy from me even tomorrow. Do you know what I mean? And even go to school and grab like some sweets on loose drawers and chocolates into my school back [at lunch time I use to sell, I'd sell tinkies, singular cigarettes and sweets] so a little did I know that skill is a skill that I'm gonna grow up with, and it's going to help me relate to stage you know, and that's why I mean, I've written some books about selling etc. But the relationship with money was very, very poor. I've had to learn the hard way, just like a lot of us have had to, which is sad. And I'm glad there's programs like these so we can talk about our mistakes openly and transparent, to try and help some younger people out there so they do not get to repeat our mistakes you know.
[00:07:06] JOHN MANYIKE: Would you say your relationship with money, was a long distance relationship with money?
[00:07:11] DJ SBU: [No money was there, I am a person of money, I knew how to make money since I was a young man]. As I told you, I was good at selling. I mean, it didn't end with me just [at the Tuck shop> I was, I got so used to selling and I got so used to always having money. But even when I was moving out from home, I always had to find ways of selling, so I've sold in the trains, I've sold it parking lots, I’ve sold that a company called WWI worldwide wholesalers industries where they recruit people train them to sell, teach them a system called the five and the eight, teach them how to sell how to close sales, how to be excited on approaching customers, how do have a great positive attitude, how to make a customer excited. So even upsell, you even sell more, how you get them excited over your product, how you close, how you choose a territory, you know what I mean? All of those different skills I learned from a company called WWI. But luckily, I was already coming from a sponsorship background. So I think WWI then just intensified my selling skills. And at the time, you've had to build a crew of about eight trainee managers who are going to train others to sell. So out of those 20 people, eight of them have to be trainee managers, well, so if you've got a crew of those 20 people who are creating production because we need to go out in the morning every day and go sell, where today it's called [in Maboneng, 208 Fox Street 00:08:23] that used to be a warehouse. I used to get into a taxi from [the Township to Noord], and take another taxi to Jeppe, from Jeppe I’d walk all the way to go to 86 foot street. That's what I would learn in the morning would come and sing that pump us up, motivate us and give us products to go sell in the streets. And we begin to Johannesburg by going street to street, Market Street, Prichard Street, Commissioner Street, Folk Street, you name them. I mean, I know the entire city of Johannesburg, you know, just from selling and just trading, you know.
[00:08:51] JOHN MANYIKE: Yeah. So [ money is coming] and then, you know, you grew up with money around you and all that. What would you say, were your worst financial decisions you ever made in your life?
[00:09:05] DJ SBU: A good question. Worst financial decision is making money and not reinvesting it back to the asset that was giving me the money, making money and spoiling myself, you know, spoiling myself not accordingly, but spoiling myself with the hope that I'm gonna get more money. And that was a cycle that happened and over and over for a couple of years, I was very blessed. I mean, I did very well in the entertainment industry from my early days. So you know, we did really well for ourselves. But I think when you're young and you make the money, you also just want to be like the [the older guys] the men who you used to look up to you want to buy the flashy cars, you want to buy the designer clothes, you know, luckily, because I was in the entertainment industry. I traveled the world and other people's expenses, they were booking me to be everywhere. I'm blessed that even till today, I mean, I travel at other people's expense. So one of the blessings that I'm always grateful for. But traveling the world opened me up, it sort of made me you know, smarter, but still that subconscious, bad money management or let me say bad relationship with money that I had caught up with me because when you are spending on things that are not bringing the money back, at some point, whatever the source is where you making the money.
[00:10:14] JOHN MANYIKE: It dries up.
[00:10:15] DJ SBU: It can dry up depending on whatever that asset is. And [ us ], the asset was a record label, which did so well that at some point at the peak of our success as an independent South African record label, we were offered for record label to be bought for a good amount of money, especially for those days, couple of millions would have set us up nicely for us to go either go or re-invest, or see whatever else we wanted to do. But we never sold, we're so much in love with the business a little did we know that the 2008 crash was about to come. And the physical distribution of music was just declining. And we had the market crash happened. And we're no longer the top record label anymore. Music wasn't selling, we lost an opportunity to cash out or make a bit of money by bringing in some investors. But all of those days while all of that is happening, one is blessed with money I'm getting good shows, I'm giving talks about TV shows and radio shows I'm making a lot of money, right. It dried up and when money dried up, that's when you start waking up [thinking]. You know, I could have done this with the money, I could have invested the money, I could have bought that. But luckily, at least I would buy some homes. So I've had you know, I had one or two or three properties that I would invest in at the time that when things were bad, I would sell you know.
[00:11:30] JOHN MANYIKE: So what were your lowest points in your life when it comes to finances? I mean, we've always known you to be this guy and you’re a famous guy, DJ. I mean, clearly money was following you everywhere?
[00:11:41] DJ SBU: Yeah, till today, money is following me everywhere.
[00:11:46] JOHN MANYIKE: Some people are chasing it and they’re following you.
[00:11:48] DJ SBU: Same for me, I used to chase it. But whatever you chase runs away. But they always say money is easy. Money is energy. And once you understand the concept of money, only now that I'm only learning understanding it better. I can say those words.
[00:12:00] JOHN MANYIKE: Yes.
[00:12:01] DJ SBU: But yes, there's people like me who are blessed. Whom opportunities follow them. But because of your bad habits and your bad relationships with money, the money will come. But you will not have the skill to be able to keep it or to grow it you know, so that was me. My lowest point was when I had my things getting repossessed, you know.
[00:12:23] JOHN MANYIKE: What was repossessed?
[00:12:23] DJ SBU: My homes, my house, my cars, and just not having money anymore.
[00:12:30] JOHN MANYIKE: Okay, yeah. So you lost your homes, you saying homes, which means there are many.
[00:12:34] DJ SBU:The house, I lost the house.
[00:12:35] JOHN MANYIKE: The house and cars?
[00:12:36] DJ SBU: Yeah.
[00:12:37] JOHN MANYIKE: And how did you feel at that time?
[00:12:38] DJ SBU: Because of my other investments elsewhere, at least I've had to go and let this with your homes, with your property, I didn't have any other investment at that time. I've had to go and get rid of my other property. But it was said, I think the only say, even in a lot of research is that finances are the biggest cause of a lot of divorces all over the world. And I'm not only just talking about South African, sometimes I see a lot of young people are doing well. And then at the back of my mind is like you could just bring them clothes and just whisper to them and say, Hey, that tap might just run dry one day, you don't know that might just be a COVID that hits and you're not gonna get a chance to go perform anymore. What are you doing with the money that you're getting? Are you buying some homes? Are you investing in some Ubers? Or, investing in another startup company elsewhere? Are you buying trucks? What are you investing your money on? So that tomorrow when you no longer as hot, at least you've got other things that you've invested in that can look after you for the rest of your life you know, [Apologies on being forward and telling you that money follows me] sometimes other people might miss interpreted as [boasting]. But that's my attitude, right. And my attitude before used to say, I used to repeat the same words [that money is] of all evil, but not now. I haven't cancelled such words. Now I say, I love money. Money loves me, money follows me. Money comes to me because I serve, because I'm doing the Lord's work because I'm empowering young people because I'm doing initiatives and strives to inform young people, to help young people, to encourage, inspire young people. And when you're doing the Lord's work consistently, money will always follow. I always say to people, I write to read my books as well. And I say when money is your motive, you'll always be lacking. But when purpose is rooted in service, or money chases, you can't get away from it. So I kind of believe that, it's the energy, right. So if your energy and your spirit is pure, and your spirit is about giving, I do believe that you know at some point your frequency will align with that money frequency and it'll forever follow. So I mean, that's just been the case with my life because I don't like giving advice because I'm not a financial expert. I always tell people to go to financial experts or speak to professionals because I've made my own mistakes. But what has worked for me and what I've been blessed with is having served my entire career that till today, I mean, you know, [even if I fall] opportunities will come back to me, they still chase me and I always kind of feel maybe it's because of all of the work that one continues to do by giving back you know.
[00:14:57] JOHN MANYIKE: When you lost some of your assets, did it cost you any relationship? Did you have people that disappeared out of your life because money was everywhere?
[00:15:04] DJ SBU: Yeah, it happens. I think it's normal. I think it's very natural. Anybody out there, ask the best athletes all over the world, ask the best musicians, they'll tell you that when you had money, you've got an entourage, you've got friends, you've got people that want to go out with you. The people that just want to be close to him for whatever reason, other people have got their own personal agendas just, you know, to be around you. But also, because of the type of communities we come from. We also generous, you know, you want to give back, you want to bring some of your friends to come and taste a bit of your success. You want to go and do some good things with, you know, some of the monies that you carrying, sometimes we forget that not everybody who's around you are there for the good reasons, right. So, when you experience the challenges, then that's when you get to see that alone. I always thought everybody is around me, [they understand me], but then it's just how life is you know. And it's not only just friends, I mean, I've heard of people who lose their marriages, who lose their significant others. It's normal, it happens. But when it happened to me at that time, I never understood, you know, I was angry, I was on the brink of depression, my heart was set, because I was just this famous person who everybody knows my troubles and problems among the newspapers charged every weekend. But it's not easy, you don't handle it, like an ordinary person would handle it, right. And I think those are some of the days where I sort of started deciding that you know what, I don't ever want to lose money again, I'm gonna come up with a strategy to go and not become rich, I'm going to go and become wealthy. However it takes, how long it takes me, I'm deciding to go and become wealthy, so that I can be able to have resources to go and help out and do good things in my community, you know.
[00:16:36] JOHN MANYIKE: Talking about wealth, what do you think is the biggest stumbling block for a black child to create wealth?
[00:16:43] DJ SBU: I think a lot of institutions still don't have tailor made products for the use of 2022. I think a lot of institutions still have products that were catering to us. I'm 43 years old bro. Some of them they still have products that were catering to us, when we're still at varsity. A lot of institutions have not moved on with the times, a lot of institutions have not understood the country that we in, and you know, sort of come up with ways to empower the small guy on the ground. I'll make an example like what you guys are doing partnering with, MMP studios in town and environment has good Wi-Fi. But all these workstations when young people come in here, they don't even pay a single cent. They can spend time here that can be online, they can record their podcasts, which are the facility is like that. So the fact that your institution partners with such amazing initiatives, it shows that you guys have got the world to want to, you know, to help out the small guy, the fact that you guys are doing these types of talks, shows that you guys want that information, but so that it goes out to the young guy out there. So we need that. But we don't need institutions that want to just look good for PR purposes. We want institutions that are rooted and wanting to help out an ordinary South African I think right now, we've got the biggest crisis, bro like we've got the highest unemployment rate ever. There is like more than half young people in the country not working. So that's why I'm also here. I'm trying to hook up with as many of them as I can, try and help out as much as I can. I record podcasts, I interviewed other young people who are doing well especially on the internet and online and ask them questions. How are you making this money? How do you make money on YouTube? How do you make money on TikTok? How are you monetizing your brand? How did you become a TikToker? How did you become an influencer and I share this information to other young people so they can no they don't have to hustle as hard as we did. Remember [getting on two or three taxi’s, get rejected and had to go back, we did not have cellphones, waiting in taxi and public phone queues] for the public phone. I'm like you guys right now have got, you guys have got this. And when you've got this and data, you got an entrance into a whole world of amazing opportunities, you can become an affiliate marketer with all these different companies. You can sell other people's products, you don't have to go start your own [Bathu and MoFaya] drip you can come up with punch lines for companies or pay off lines for companies and get paid for, you can listen to music and get paid to go and watch ads and get paid online. You can listen, there's so much money to make online. But it's just that a lot of our young people are only online for entertainment, gossip, fun and entertainment and music and there's nothing wrong, everything has got its own time but I always try and advise young people to step out of your comfort zone. Just put away your guts or just start un-following some of these celebrities that are always just talking about buy my this, buy my that like just go to people that are adding value to your life, and start opening up a YouTube channel and start watching other. YouTube on its own. I'm not even talking about other platforms, is YouTube on its own has got a video for everything that you can learn. You can even learn how to boil eggs, you can learn how to do the brick wall, you can learn how to make that chair, you can learn how to make money online, how to become an affiliate marketer. You can learn how to start a podcast, how to start a TikTok page. How to, you can learn all of that stuff on YouTube. You can even learn forex trading, you can learn crypto currencies, you can learn about money. You can inform yourself on the do's, and don'ts as far as money is concerned because also money is evolving. We're in a different world as people were predicting the crash and back in 2008 are predicting that there's going to be there might be a financial crash this year or next year, if you are somebody who's blessed enough to have an income, you should be investing that income somewhere or hold on to it. Even if it's a lot you overflowing, hold on in terms of spending on expensive things. Right now is not the time to do that. We just come from COVID-19, which has showed us what can happen. So even if you aren't making money, please hold on to it. Because apparently, there might just be a crash coming up very soon. So why am I saying all of these things, these things are all money related. We have to know about money. We have to consult professionals. We have to sit down with professionals and learn from them. Because when I was young, when people would tell me about the financial advisors like, [no, and no one is going to tell me about my money] because that was my attitude.
[00:20:47] JOHN MANYIKE: We will be like unemployment, and we know that about 66% of young people are unemployed. What do you think is the mindset of young people when it comes to employment versus entrepreneurship?
[00:20:59] DJ SBU: I think you and I were always believed that getting a job is the future getting a degree. That was our lifestyle. That was our goal. That was that's what was drummed into us. Our generation. I love the fact that [our kids are more online] . I love the fact that [our kids are inspired by the likes of Theo Baloyi who started Bathu, our kids are inspired by Lekau Sehoana, Tshepo the dream maker, the kid online are inspired by Rich Mnisi, Sbu with his MoFaya, our kids are] starting to think entrepreneurially differently from how we thought, as much as some of us were entrepreneurs. I was saying that [I was selling at Spaza] but I didn't even see it as entrepreneurship, right. But [some of us were selling on the corners, at the Taxi’s and the trains.] but some of us never even bigger dreams to take that skill and grow with it. But I cannot believe the generations now the young guys now even some of them that I interact with here at MPD studios, when they're sitting on their laptop, they're locked in. They don't want you to come and say “Hi” to them, or disturbing them, they've got their headphones, they've got their internet, they're locked in, they're learning or they're making money. And I think that's how it's supposed to be. Even the ones that are creating their own products. I mean, I used to have a hashtag, I currently don't have a Twitter account that's been hacked. Hopefully I'll get it back. But on Saturdays, I'll encourage my followers to use the #DJSBU and then I just promote and retweet their businesses, the amount of businesses that are out there, the amount of brands and products that a lot of young people are putting out there. It's amazing. So I kind of feel this generation is different from us. This generation wants it they want it now. [Us as the older guys] my time will always have to be there to guide, mentor, etc, and use online facilities to even reach out to these young people wherever they are, just like I use my platform to, you know, to do whatever I'm doing to sort of give back on empower, share information, I cannot believe they're on the right track, they're not always gonna get it right. We're only still in the beginning of this entrepreneurship, I would say phenomenon. It's only the beginning. I can only imagine how far South Africa would be 20 years from today, 40 years from today. But I'm loving the narrative that is loud all over the country right now, we do our own thing. We're building our own businesses, we're doing it ourselves. We're sick and tired of being sick and tired. And sometimes things might be bad. And you might go through COVID-19 or lose your job or lose money or lose your business. But then maybe that situation is good the other side of the coin that might just be a wakeup call to say, I don't want this to ever happen to my family ever again. And as a man, as a sister, as a breadwinner, as an elder sister or elder brother or the youngest, I'm gonna go out there and hustle so that my family doesn't have to go through this ever again. What if SBU is telling the truth? What is the, is going to be another curse that's coming soon? What am I doing right now to prepare for that? You know, so we're living in another world, bro. Young people are inspired to become entrepreneurs, some of them that might not have the answers. But the more we talk on platforms like these to send them online, the more a lot of them listens. I mean, if you listen, if you speak to the team here at MPD studios, how many young people are here every week, or just in a month? It just shows you the hunger they have in wanting to learn, you know what I mean?
[00:23:58] JOHN MANYIKE: Yeah, failure is the fault or lunch of entrepreneurs. How do you define failure?
[00:24:04] DJ SBU: Failure is necessary because you have to go through it for you to become better, right. You know what not to do. And it makes you think differently. It makes you re strategize. It makes you stronger and it makes you smarter. It stretches your thinking, because what you thought was gonna work. Didn't work, find out different ways, connect with other people, learn from other people, take a step back, maybe what you're doing is probably not the right time, that time you don't even have the finances to support the dream. Maybe that opportunity that they've been trying to give you a job, but your mind is so wired on becoming an entrepreneur, maybe you must take a few steps back and say, maybe look, let me go take that job, and learn just for a couple of years. I'll still come back into the game and start my own business or I'll start a side hustle while I'm in that job. It's not bad after all to still be an employee because a lot of young people, what I see is we lack etiquette. I mean, if I call an Uber for instance, right now, you find an Uber driver answering [Hey!!! where are you?]. I walk into my business and the lady that works with me is answering clients in that tone. I lose it, you might even get a warning you might even get fired. That's not how you speak to client’s etiquette, professionalism, focus, punctuality, respect image all these different things you learn when you're working for somebody else because you have to be led and learn for you to grow and then become better so you can go and lead. I was led by DJ fresh. I was led by [Kabzella], I was led by [[Rudeboy Paul, Phat Joe, Thomas Msengane ], I was led by [TK Ngciza] I was led by [Simphiwe Lukhuleni Shongwe], I was led by [Nick Regisford, I was led by the older guys, fathers, our mothers] I've always been led. And I think that has given me an opportunity to learn so much that right now a lot of young people, you know, look to people like myself for some sort of inspiration.
[00:25:49] JOHN MANYIKE: Yeah. I love how you give credit to people who have played a part in your life in your success in shaping your future. How do you explain this phenomenon where your young people, they friends they dont mind buying you alcohol every weekend? But the day you say [please help me with R50, I want to print out my CV] or I want to start a small business all of a sudden [they dont answer your texts]?
[00:26:11] DJ SBU: Yeah. So just know they are not your friends I mean, as you know, as well, it's a very common line where they say, “Show me your friends, I'll tell you a future”. I think it's very easy for you to understand the people around you. People usually tell on themselves, you know, whatever comes out of people's mouth, they tell you about themselves, they tell you, people will tell you who they are. It's like this chat that I've been having with you over the past 30 minutes, it gives you an idea as to who I am, even if maybe I might just try and think I don't want to say other things I'm hiding. But because I'm so passionate and talking about myself, I'm telling on myself, that's who I am. So I kinda believe when people tell you that you need to trust or believe them. And you have to be very honest with yourself. And I always say [When we were growing up in the township ] when there's gonna be summer or there's gonna be [festive season, christmas], we begin spring cleaning, spring cleaning where the house is being spring cleaned, [with the red stoop, do you understand me, behind the couches you would find R5 coins that were lost when visitors come around] the house is being painted, you know, spring cleaning, and business people in corporate language. I call it a SWOT analysis. But I always say as a person as a who loves themselves, and who takes themselves seriously, there has to be a time in your life where you either promote, demote, or delete, promoting because a lot of us are not even paying attention to the people who will really love us, the real people who love us, we don't see them that often anymore, we visit them once in a while, we putting them in arms that they can even be your parents, that can be your brother, your cousin, or even your best friend who loves you very much. They need some sort of promotion. After you've done your own SWOT analysis, you've done your own spring cleaning in your life, promote, demote, some people are too close to you, man, you can't be always available. And you can't always just be giving them easy access to your life. If you think you're going somewhere, you only have to have people that are also aligned with where you're taking your vision.
[00:27:55] JOHN MANYIKE: That's right.
[00:27:56] DJ SBU: So some people maybe not necessarily to delete them, maybe there's sort of some sort of value they're adding and you're also learning from them. But they need some sort of distancing [for a bit] at arm's length, you know what I mean? But then there's other people who are just toxic to you, who are just there to take from you who are just there to sometimes discourage you, who are responsible for you vibrating low, who speak behind your back who spread rumors about you, and you think they're your friends. So you have to look at yourself in the mirror and be very honest, [But this guy] all the time, we always go to drink, either we go like it's always about fun. I've never even heard them talk about let's start a business. I've got this idea, hey, this like, and the last three times that I was in trouble [it’s this guy, it’s this] sister, so you need to take that they call it an epiphany and be like, you know what, let me be honest with myself, let me make these tough decisions with my life with where I'm taking my life. And you have to either promote, demote, or delete. So your friends are who you hang around with, they play a very important role.
[00:28:53] JOHN MANYIKE: So this will take us into your confidence. What has been your biggest money lesson?
[00:29:01] DJ SBU: Biggest money lesson, Jesus, there's been so many. But I mean, I would say for now, my biggest money lesson was just the birth of my daughter, you know, [I looked at her and was like “You know what, the last thing I want is when my daughter is older to see my videos everywhere]. I was once famous and a man has been and I never invested anything in her life. So I used to look at her when she was just like still a few months old when she was a year old and she was two years old. And then I was like, you know what I really need to make means and I need to be intentional about it to go and create a future for this Baby of mine. I wasn't even thinking about myself anymore you know. As much as I love myself, but I think my, the focus of my on myself shifted about eight years ago when my daughter was born. And it's just always been about my daughter. About me, I don't care. I mean, I can walk in a plain t shirt [that costs R20], I don't care. I can just put on a blanket, I don't care. I believe my value is in me being me, not in what I'm wearing or in what I'm drinking or in what car I’m driving, so I've had to shift my mindset, unlearn some things, relearn some things, and look at my daughter as a life changer and say, she's inspiring me to change my money habits so that I can go and create a future for her. And for her unborn brothers and sisters, you know, so for me, that's what I would say, apart from everything else I've already mentioned about money and losing cars. And just learning that sometimes if you don't invest in assets, it'll keep coming, coming, coming, and then it'll eventually run dry. You know, all of those are small lessons that one has learned. But the biggest lesson has just been that beautiful, innocent little baby daughter of mine, you know, she's just been a big life changer for me. And I think I'm not the only one, I'm sure you're a parent as well. And a lot of parents out there, they'll always tell you, when their firstborn came, they started changing their ways.
[00:30:46] JOHN MANYIKE: Something changes, you know, I tend to relate and some people might not understand when you say that has been your biggest money lesson. You know, sometimes when we bring children into this world, all of a sudden takeaway represents something else to you. And you have a different way of looking at takeaway versus rather buying something that we can eat [together] as opposed to behaving like you're still single.
[00:31:10] DJ SBU: A simple thing, like when somebody goes crazy, like young guys, when they go crazy about, I always say sometimes [Do you know how much pampers costs, do you know how often the baby needs a diaper change? One packet of pampers is] between three to five [hundred rand] you know, a week is even a lot, and then a week that can finish [those pampers] are in a week, or in less than two weeks. So which means you must buy how many packs of that, and that's already 500 bucks, bro. And that's just one child, I haven't talked about school fees, they are borrow, I haven't spoken about hospital fees, medical aid, and then that's an expense forever, so you know what I mean? So be very careful when you also socialize and have fun. So we're not saying don't, but do very responsibly, use the matters that have to be used. But when you do get a baby in this world, just know that it's no longer about you, it's about your child. And that's for me, that's how I can explain my biggest money lesson.
[00:32:10] JOHN MANYIKE: How do you deal with adversity and negative energy?
[00:32:14] DJ SBU: It's a mindset thing, right. You have to work on your mind. And something called personal development, you have to work on yourself. Only certain people, even people want better relationships, like you can't jump from one relationship to the next you have to take some time to heal first and work on yourself. And a lot of the times in my past, I used to blame my exes like we all do. But at some point, it came when I started maturing, that you have to look within, have your own, you know, personal introspection, and be like, you know what, I actually messed up, things probably could be different if I didn't behave this way, if I didn't take or make those decisions, if I didn't do this, if I didn't do that, and you have to be honest with yourself. But then you have to start working on yourself, you have to start following other people that can help you whether it's reading books that are about personal development, that are gonna make you better, whether it's listening to podcasts, or motivational speakers are what I do going to church, I think we all get up inspiration differently, but starts trying to get yourself used to habits, that better your life that make you better, because the more you work on yourself, you won't see, it's like you don't see a tree grow outside, right. Anybody can tell me they've seen a tree grow [I’d give them money] but you can see a tree like, you’ll ask [what? I was here at home during Easter, my aunt] was busy watering this plant isn't this tree. Now it's like the size of this TV, you know what I mean, we don't see the tree grow? But it's those consistent nurturing of that plant and watering it and looking after it. It's the same thing as the gym, you don't see the difference after you've gone to the gym a couple of days, the more you do another rep and then another rep and then another rep and another rep. But an accumulative effort of all those things that you do daily over and over and I write about this on my book, my book, by the way, is for free. It's on YouTube, even read it for if in case you lazy to read, it's called “The Art of Hustling” an accumulative of all of that then becomes the success. That's when you start seeing people get a six pack, you start seeing somebody you haven't seen in six months why you've lost so much weight, but they didn't see themselves every day as they were training, live on or they can just only compare. Wow, this was my picture last month. Oh, comparing, oh, now I look a little bit slimmer, then you start seeing the difference, right. But it's those little efforts on a daily basis, that thing and that accumulate to the big thing. That's how I run my life. And I say if you're going to personally develop yourself, that's what it takes. It's just reading that one or two or three pages. It's finishing that book. If you're lazy to read, there's audio books that you can read. You can even fast track them. You can read an hour's content in 30 minutes. You can watch somebody interview who's your inspiration, you can start following less and less of the people that are about negativity and gossip and fights and [who’s dating who] and there's nothing wrong about that. You can have time for that but maybe then try and substitute a certain number and balance that you start following people that are also helping you to become better. So for me, I'd attribute personal development to being the person that I am becoming, I'm slowly becoming, and I can hear it from people as much as and I still feel I'm the same person. But I can still tell that I'm different from how I was 10 years ago, and some people come and tell me I wish I was so impressed with their growth, you've grown smooth, amazing stuff that's coming out of your mouth, things that you doing so then that shows maturity. Why? Because I have been working on myself on a daily basis till today, I still work on myself every day.
[00:35:29] JOHN MANYIKE: I like what you said about “The Art of Hustling”. So [those who are working] with a nine to five, some people call it eight to four, or whatever they call it. Why do you think people are struggling to transition from depending on a single income? For me put it that way, and just exploring the possibility of having a side hustle. What do you think is the stumbling block there?
[00:35:52] DJ SBU: I think it's a comfort zone and security and just the fear, people they are so rooted in loving their families, and loving what they've built. Whatever it is, whether it's your family, you've got three kids, you got a wife, or you got a husband, you've got, oh, you got a boyfriend, you're planning to get married. A lot of people have been on a comfort zone so much so that they are scared to go and explore. Because already I've got bills to pay, already have kids here, what if, what if, what if, and [what would people say], that's why a lot of people are scared. What if I lose all of this? But then, you know, in this day and age of 2022, 2023, I think we're at an age where information and good information and financial education is for free. It's out there. You can follow people like most [Nicolette Mashile], you can follow people like there's a lot of people like you, by the way, great work brother, for the work that you've been doing. You know, there's so much content that is out there that you don't even have to pay for and learn. And we're not saying you're gonna learn everything in in two weeks, you are gonna learn everything in a month. But a little bit of just learning, a little bit of just learning. It does make a difference, bro, you know.
[00:36:56] JOHN MANYIKE: Your final words, if you were to give tips to young people about how to have a responsible relationship with money, what would that be?
[00:37:06] DJ SBU: A responsible relationship with money starts with you being a participant with money, I was a participant by selling as much as I wasn't aware that I was learning about money and sort of building a relationship about money. So somebody else would say [Sbu I want to start selling, I want to start selling MoFaya, but for you to get a job at the bank ], it takes you selling that kind of modifier to that polo player of that guy who's driving and he's so impressed with the way you are speaking. And he's so impressed with the way you rent to him. And the way you're speaking to him, the way you're smiling that he's saying there's my business card or give me a call. Let's meet at such a place next week. Choose it, you don't get the next level of opportunities sitting here or sitting [at home]. Yes, nowadays, you can still use the internet and hustle online. But if you want to get somewhere, you still have to get data, you still have to get a phone, you still have to apply yourself and do the work online even if it means [you are cleaning toilets], the next opportunity [ you might find while cleaning those toilets] so make sure that, that toilet, you try leave it sprinkling clean. Even if you're pissed off, there's days when I'm irritated. There are days when I even fight with my business partners. But we all have got a common goal, I have to make sure that job is done. Because we've got goals to achieve. And we've got a mandate, we’ve got a mission, we've got a lot of work to do. That's the attitude that you must adopt doesn't matter where you are, whether you're a waiter or waitress, whether you're still looking for a job, you're unemployed, you really, really, really have to believe that you are capable. You're great. You're awesome. You are, it's not your time yet, the opportunities out there. It's just that it's not your time. You are smart, you're bright, you're beautiful, you're better than other people that you think are better than you. They probably just started before you did, they probably had better resources than you did, but you can even do better. You're great. You're awesome. And just you need to start understanding that and just loving yourself and understanding that the answers are not out there. The answers are in here. It's you that you have to work on. It's not your friend that you have to blame your mother, the parents that you did not have, the government, yes, we have to keep our governments accountable. Yes, we have to tell our stories about what happened to our past. Yes, we have to keep our friends accountable who maybe might have betrayed us, or might have done us wrong, but what's going to happen when you're 65? What's gonna happen when you 78? Are you going to be blaming those people when your grandchildren are standing yet, or when time is gone, your energy is gone, life is gone, are you going to keep on blaming people? Are you going to keep on complaining about the past and complaining about what was done to us? Or, are you going to start being a solutions driven type of a young person and [go out there and concure] guys internet is there for you, exploited the best way you can take guys, there has never been a time like this. There's never been a time like this, there is even wealth transfer that is currently happening. There's YouTube ones for instance, who started turning eight years ago who are now becoming any young millionaires. Why? Because they are online. There's just this bar that is taken over all over the whole world and if you're not wanting to become a part of it, unfortunately you will be left behind And it's time to get up that behind of yours [and join people like DJ Sbu, stand up and go hustle!!!].
[00:40:09] JOHN MANYIKE: I just remembered one thing though.
[00:40:10] DJ SBU: Sure.
[00:40:11] JOHN MANYIKE: What is the one thing financially speaking that people don't know about SBU?
[00:40:16] DJ SBU: I'm creating wealth so that I can give it all back.
[00:40:18] JOHN MANYIKE: Okay. SBU, thank you [for your words of wisdom]. I appreciate it, and please continue doing the good work brother.
[00:40:27] DJ SBU: May you continue doing the great work to and congratulations old mutual. Thank you guys for the awesome work you've done. You also guys were instrumental in creating some of the most successful podcasts in the country and you still continue to participate in these premises. I want to tell you guys, you can't go away from AMPD studios. We need you here. You need to continue doing the incredible work you're doing towards young people. So thank you so much.
[00:40:51] JOHN MANYIKE: [You’re welcome]
[00:40:51] DJ SBU: God bless. Thank you. Thank you [Thank you].
[00:40:53] JOHN MANYIKE: Sure.