(W)omentum brings women together to redefine success

L to R: Jo-Ann Strauss, Rapelang Rabana, Elana Afrika-Bredenkamp, Jeanette Marais and Dr Vumy Mkhize. Photos by TMVisuals

Momentum brought together women from across business, entrepreneurship, technology and media for the launch of the eighth season of its Women’s Month platform under the theme Success Has a Number, creating a space for conversations around ambition, achievement and the personal meanings attached to success.

Held at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Sandton, the afternoon featured a panel discussion with media personality and entrepreneur Jo-Ann Strauss, Momentum group CEO Jeanette Marais, technology entrepreneur Rapelang Rabana and entrepreneur and leadership expert Dr Vumy Mkhize, who explored the experiences, expectations and personal choices that influence how women measure success.

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Rather than presenting achievement as a destination, the conversation unpacked the different numbers women attach to success, whether that number represents financial independence, career growth, personal fulfilment or the ability to create a life that reflects their priorities.

Momentum’s latest research with Kantar, through The Success Women Want Report, reflects this complexity.

While 68% of South African women identify financial independence as a key measure of success, the research shows that achievement extends beyond finances, with women also placing value on career progression, relationships, wellbeing, education and personal fulfilment.

The afternoon reflected that reality that behind every number is a different story, and every woman’s definition of success is shaped by her own circumstances, ambitions and choices.

Curating her own definition of success

The panel unpacked the expectations women often navigate, from entering industries where they may be the only woman in the room to feeling the pressure to constantly achieve, prove themselves and meet standards that are not always self-defined.

Strauss reflected on how her understanding of success has evolved throughout different seasons of her life. For the media personality and entrepreneur, success in this chapter is centred on balance, creating space for ambition while remaining present for the people, responsibilities and moments that matter most.

Rabana, who is also the co-CEO of Imagine Worldwide, an education technology NGO, continued the conversation by reflecting on the relationship between ambition and self-perception.

“You can’t hate yourself into loving yourself.”

Her words challenged the idea that success must be driven by constant dissatisfaction or the need to prove oneself, highlighting the importance of confidence, self-awareness and personal growth in pursuing goals.

Dr Vumy Mkhize also highlighted the role of community in shaping success, encouraging women to be intentional about the people they surround themselves with and the support systems they build.

What emerged from the conversation was not one answer, but many. Each perspective offered a different view of success, showing that achievement is shaped by the goals women set for themselves, the choices they make and the lives they are building.

The freedom to define success differently

As the dialogue unfolded, Momentum group CEO Jeanette Marais reflected on the pressure women often feel to constantly achieve, carry more and prove themselves in order to be recognised.

Referencing the sentiment behind Mercedes-Benz’s Be One of Many campaign, Marais challenged the idea that women need to be extraordinary at every moment to be worthy of success.

Her message questioned whether success always needs to be tied to the next milestone, the next achievement or the need to stand out. Instead, she encouraged women to consider what success looks like when it allows space for simply being, being present, being fulfilled and being guided by what matters most to them.

In that reflection, Marais highlighted that the pursuit of what comes next can sometimes overshadow the progress, relationships and moments already taking place. Success, she suggested, is not only found in what women achieve, but also in the lives they are creating along the way.

From Momentum to Womentum

The event concluded with a symbolic moment that brought the afternoon’s message to life as Momentum’s iconic “M” was transformed into a “W”, becoming Womentum in celebration of Women’s Month.

Photo by TMVisuals

The transformation represented more than a visual moment. It reflected the conversation that had unfolded throughout the afternoon, that success does not have one measurement, one timeline or one definition.

The number that matters is the one each woman chooses for herself.