The one thing the organizers emphasized is that this programme will test your character to the limit, and will help you to develop physical and mental courage, by making you face and conquer fear as an individual as well as part of a team. I stand firm in my conviction that enrolling you for this programme was the best thing ever, to help you discover yourself and your true potential.

And if I break my thoughts down into components, there are a number of key areas that I want you to reflect on:

Character:

If you want to be a person of character, you have to discover that hidden reservoir of will power within yourself and build on it, piece by piece through courage, will and determination. We can build our characters incrementally, and the key to change and growth, is to let go of fear. Life often brings with it some unpleasant situations that require a brave heart, and you have to face your worries head-on. If you do that it becomes possible to face everyday challenges with confidence and courage. I know it is really hard at times to summon enough courage to go on, but you cannot let your fears hold you back. Alexander the Great once said, "There is nothing impossible to him who will try”. That means forget past mistakes and failures. In fact forget about everything except what you're going to do now - and do it.

Doubt:

If doubt is challenging you and you do not act, your self-doubts will grow, and with it your self-esteem will suffer. So you have to challenge the doubts with action and inevitably you will grow, because doubt and action cannot live side by side. If you doubt you can accomplish something, then you can't accomplish it. You have to have confidence in your ability, and then be tough enough to follow through. Failure to get out of our comfort zone will only reinforce that your determination to succeed was not strong enough. When we do not feel strong enough to do something, we at times fall back on making excuses. Excuses are for quitters, and I know you are not a quitter.

Excuses:

When something seems too daunting, at times we build up excuses to justify why we should not do this or that thing. But the truth is when we excuse ourselves, we are pointing a finger of accusation at our own selves. I would like you to try your best to hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anybody else expects of you, and that means never excuse yourself. When you are able to stand up and take up a challenge, the world stands up and cheers for the doer, the achiever, the one who faces the challenge. Nothing is impossible, but it is through excuses that we say things are impossible. If you get rid of excuses, you are on your way to making courageous choices.

Courage:

Be daring, and bold and fearless, and you will automatically earn the respect of others. But if you find yourself baling out of things that make you feel uncomfortable, those around you will usually indict you for it, and you end up feeling like people do not respect you, yet all they are doing is expressing their disappointment, rather than lack of respect. People respect someone who tries again even after failure, has confidence in his abilities and stands up to be counted among others during difficult tasks. Live daringly, boldly, fearlessly, and put your best foot forward my son. Courage is the greatest of all the virtues. Because if you haven't courage, you may not have an opportunity to use any of the other things that you are good at.

Success:

Success has to be a mental attitude that translates into tangible results. When you want to succeed, you will pull out all the stops to achieve your goal. People who succeed put in superhuman effort to meet their target. Once they achieve success, they believe that they are invincible. It is this self-belief that carries them towards the next success. Hence there is no doubt that success will truly bring further success. I believe this is the ethos of the Quest Africa programme, to create young men who conquer all obstacles in their way, and in that way are set to take on the world and all that it might throw at them throughout the years of their adulthood. Once failure is allowed in through the door, it becomes really tough to break the mold. However, if you challenge your failure and work towards success, you can turn the tide. In this way you will be able to measure your success by the obstacles which you have overcome.

Team work:

Quest Africa as a concept, promotes the notion of collectivism which prioritises group goals as a pre-condition for success. This means that as participants you will develop stronger relationships with each other through repeated or continued team interaction, and the links between you become stronger. You are being taught skills that will help you later in life. Just like in real life – family, work, relationships, etc – there could be disagreement among team members about task content, different viewpoints, ideas, opinions, values, and even interpersonal incompatibilities that are given expression through tension, animosity, and annoyance etc. You have to learn to cope with that in a respectful and fair manner, without losing your own values as an individual. It’s inevitable to have differences in group situations, and at the same time you have to realize that there can come a time when these differences have to disappear, and you are called upon to rely on each and every individual for survival of the group. That’s why cohesion is so very important. Team-building is not a picnic, its hard work. Remember some of what we see in movies, when army recruits are being taken through the drill. I am not saying Quest is an army camp, I am just emphasizing that they are preparing you to face the world as a man of courage, substance and gravitas.

And finally, I personally can put no monetary value on the experience and life skills that Quest Africa has offered you. The world seldom measures our worth by the shiny new cell phone or laptop we might have, but by the character and grit that we show as human beings. And we seldom gain respect by what we say, but more by what we do. Actions speak louder than words. It goes far beyond that. I hope one day you will realize what an incredible opportunity and privilege it has been to go through this experience. The Quest Africa Programme recognizes that as a group of young men you have the potential to be the greatest power force in society, in your own individual lives and in your work.

Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe, one of Germany’s greatest writers and philosophers is quoted as saying: Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.