All Thoughts

Explore Strive Masiyiwa's complete collection of writings, curated from his social media posts spanning years of insights on business, faith, and African development.

Image credit: KWB - Ubuntu Hope via Google Gemini Nano Banana Pro. // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook)

LeadershipJunior Class

#Reflection: Speak and walk with dignity

My grandmother drilled it into me: 'Speak and walk with dignity.' The most powerful lesson on communication I ever received came before I was six years old.

2 weeks ago

Image Credit: Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (LinkedIn) // AMAYI means “mother” in our home language. Joanna says her muse is her own mother, pictured here with Joanna as a child, a reminder that lineage, learning, and legacy all play a role in the businesses we build.

Junior ClassSolution Seeker

From crayons to couture: My daughter just launched her first AMAYI womenswear collection

From crayons to couture: Strive's daughter just launched AMAYI. But this isn't just a fashion story. It's a masterclass in product discipline, scarcity, and long-term brand building.

3 weeks ago

Image: Photo by Ron Giling of Māori man with mobile phone in 2018, during Waitangi Day, the national day of New Zealand, commemorating the signing in 1840 of the Treaty of Waitangi. // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook)

FaithSenior Class

How to build a global business

"New Zealand?! That is too far, mate!" I retorted. But after weeks of prayer and fasting, I bought a ticket. Today we have businesses across Africa, Europe, India, the Middle East, and the Americas.

3 weeks ago

Image Attribution: Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook // LinkedIn)

LeadershipSenior Class

#Reflection: An interesting conversation with “Father Zimbabwe," Joshua Nkomo

"There's so much I don't know about business," he said quietly. A man in his late seventies, willing to learn things so different from what he had previously believed. What about you?

1 month ago

Image caption: I double-checked with my AI Assistant to see if this cool bird was really made only with LEGO bricks. Answer was yes, with a lot of analysis why. [In case you wondered, I don't do any business with LEGO, I'm simply a fan!] // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook)

Junior ClassSolution Seeker

#Reflection: Lessons from a business called LEGO

A humble carpenter made children's toys during the Great Depression. Today LEGO is the world's largest toy company. Success doesn't depend on the type of business you're in. Sink your bucket.

1 month ago

Image caption: "Every time you make the hard, correct decision you become a bit more courageous..." Ben Horowitz // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook)

ResilienceJunior Class

The Buffalo Hunter (Part 3)

A venture capitalist once told me: "I prefer to invest in entrepreneurs who have failed before." When mistakes don't kill you, they can be your best teacher. Do you have it in you to get back up?

1 month ago

Mike Tyson with one of his beloved racing pigeons. // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook)

Junior ClassSolution Seeker

Will your idea really fly?

A business plan is only as good as your first contact with a customer who is willing to pay. Good ideas are a dime a dozen. The hard part? Turning one into a product someone is eager to buy again.

1 month ago

Junior ClassSolution Seeker

"Give me one reason I should help you!"

There is nothing that can stop an entrepreneur who does not want to be stopped. The very essence of being an entrepreneur means that you will find a way around any obstacle.

1 month ago

Image credit: Johan Swanepoel [not AI] // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media

Timing

The Buffalo Hunter (Part 2)

Knowing what to do and how to do it will take all your smarts. But knowing when to do it? That requires wisdom. Like the Wright Brothers, you must wait "until the wind is right".

1 month ago

Junior ClassSenior Class

The Buffalo Hunter (Part 1)

Until now, I thought all you do is just go out and shoot, but now I know there is more to this than meets the eye!" A story about patience, preparation, and not chasing rabbits when hunting buffalo.

2 months ago

Image credit: With thanks to Zaheer Ali of South Africa for his special photo posted on Touch the Heart Facebook page in October 2025. // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook + LinkedIn)

Solution SeekerJunior Class

Sink your bucket (Part 2)

The philanthropist in me demanded from the entrepreneur in me a solution. What if people could pay a small monthly subscription to cover funeral costs? That became EcoSure. Millions of customers later...

2 months ago

Image credit: KWB - Ubuntu Hope via Gemini Nano Banana Pro // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media

Junior ClassSenior Class

Sink Your Bucket (Part 1)

Sink your bucket!" This sea of problems you are seeing also contains the greatest opportunities just gift-wrapped with your name on them. Look again with the eyes of an entrepreneur.

2 months ago

Image credit: KWB - Ubuntu Hope via Gemini Nano Banana Pro // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook / LinkedIn)

Philanthropy

From intention to action: why not start an annual #Giving tradition... today!

When it comes to giving, I have always tried to institutionalise what I do. Put in place a system showing long-term commitment. Don't do it once. Make a tradition of it. Start today.

2 months ago

Image caption: African Fish Eagle, South Africa. // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook)

UpskillingJunior Class

A learning "gift" as promised...

You have the wings, but taking flight is up to you. My challenge for you this New Year: AI the business you are in. To do that, you will need to skill up. Here's how to get started.

2 months ago

Image credit: "You're not going to lose your job to AI; you will lose your job to someone who uses AI". Jensen Huang // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook)

AI & TechnologyUpskilling

Why this was my best year as an entrepreneur...

In the age of AI, the only jobs that are secure and guaranteed are for entrepreneurs. This was my best year because of AI. You must commit to "sacrificial" learning. It must cost you something.

2 months ago

AI & TechnologyUpskilling

From “What if?” to... Launch of EcoFarmerAI!

From a USSD platform serving 1.5 million farmers to an AI that identifies crop disease from a photo. 10,000 beta testers later, EcoFarmerAI officially launches in Zimbabwe.

3 months ago

Image credit: KWB - Ubuntu Hope via Google Gemini Nano Banana Pro [GPU image purchased from stock photo company] // Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook & LinkedIn)

AI & TechnologySolution Seeker

Wake up and smell the coffee [Part 2]

So-called experts expected Africa wouldn't get access to GPUs because they couldn't imagine we'd come up with a viable business model. But of course we did. It's called GPU as a Service.

3 months ago

Image Attribution: Strive Masiyiwa Social Media (Facebook)

ResilienceLegal

The court decision that changed my life... Forever (Part 4)

The Supreme Court ruled against us. The monopoly extended to cell phones. There was no appeal possible. We had lost. And yet, this loss changed my life forever. Now my testimony begins.

February 28, 2014

LegalTeam Building

Preparing For Court (Part 3)

"Always get the best people to advise you." We assembled a team of Zimbabwe's finest legal minds. For six months, I did nothing but work on the court case. On 24th January 1994, the court ruled...

February 26, 2014

Legal

How I Entered Into The Cell Phone Business (Part 2)

Dr Nkosana Moyo read my business plan and said: "Can I suggest a name change? Call it ECONET." The state monopoly could have owned it. Instead, they declared war on me.

February 24, 2014

LeadershipTeam Building

My Five Year Battle To Set Up A Cell Phone Business (Part 1)

In 1993, I began putting together a business plan for a mobile phone network in Zimbabwe. At the time, less than 5 countries in Africa had built such networks. This was the next frontier.

February 20, 2014

FaithResilience

Lessons from the Early Days: One More Thing...

I had gone from $75 to a multimillion-dollar business in four years. Then I was abducted at gunpoint. On my knees in captivity, I learnt the most important lesson of all: God answers prayer.

February 10, 2014