Last year, in June 2024, we gathered a group of young people in South Africa for a five-day Instigating Excellence training.
They came from different places in life.
Some were still in school.
Some had dropped out.
Some had already finished high school and were trying to find their footing beyond it.
What they shared was not a lack of intelligence or ambition — but a lack of access, structure, and belief in what was possible.
Among the school-age learners in that cohort, academic scores at the time ranged between 40–60%. In their context, that range often signals a hard truth: repeating a year, dropping out, or quietly disappearing from the education system altogether.
Not because they don’t care.
But because no one ever taught them how to work with pressure, attention, habits, and setbacks.
What We Did Differently
During the training — and in the months that followed — we focused on a different kind of education:
How to take responsibility for what is in your control
How to build habits that support focus, consistency, and self-trust
How to see yourself as a creator, not a victim of circumstances
In October 2024, we hosted a follow-up workshop grounded in principles of abundance, intentional attention, and digital minimalism. The learners didn’t just listen.
They applied the tools.
They experimented.
They practiced — daily.
And then something remarkable happened.
The Results (Sustained, Not Temporary)
By the end of the 2024 academic year, 100% of the school-age learners in that cohort passed.
By the end of the 2025 academic year, 100% passed again.
Every learner eligible to progress advanced to matriculation (their final year of high school) — an outcome that is statistically rare in their environment.
Even more telling:
Their grades didn’t spike and fall.
They rose into the 80s and 90s — and stayed there.
This wasn’t a one-off boost or short-term motivation.
It was durable change.
And it’s important to be precise here:
This data applies specifically to the school-age learners within a mixed cohort that also included dropouts and post-matriculates — many of whom are now stepping into mentorship and leadership roles in their communities.
What This Proves
This work confirms something we’ve believed all along:
Young people do not fail because they are incapable.
They falter because they are under-equipped.
When you give youth:
tools instead of slogans
structure instead of shame
belief paired with practice
they rise — and they keep rising.
Why We’re Sharing This Now
Because we’re standing at another threshold.
In early January, we have the opportunity to bring Instigating Excellence to a new community that reached out asking for help — at the very start of the school year, when direction matters most.
And now we can say, with integrity and evidence:
This works.
Not just emotionally.
Academically.
Sustainably.
An Invitation
If you’ve ever wondered whether investing in youth development truly makes a difference — this is your answer.
The dividends aren’t abstract.
They show up in grades.
In confidence.
In choices made under pressure.
In futures that stay open.
If you feel called to support the next cohort, now is the moment.
Because when potential meets practice — and practice is sustained —
transformation follows.
You can make a matching contribution and receive a US deductible receipt, by clicking here:
At the bottom of the page, where it says “Where should your donation be used,” just select “Heroic South Africa Workshops”
As before, you can always contribute directly to Operation Instigation, and your contributions will also be doubled! Click below:
Thank you for being part of this movement & standing with these young heroes.
With courage and gratitude,
Alycia
Founder, Operation Instigation
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