How Do You Know When It's Time to Change Direction?

“I’m in the driver’s seat now,” he told me. “I can decide if I want to do this or not. Not relying on it as a source of income.”

There’s a shift that happens when you reach this point - not just in football, not just in work, but in life. It’s the moment you stop chasing, start choosing, and realise you can build things your way, on your own terms.

For Sandile Masuku, who recently joined me on the show, getting to this point meant starting over - more than once! It was about staring down setbacks and letting go of chasing approval so he could learn how to rebuild ambition without pressure. Along the way, he discovered what “career clarity” really looks like, beyond any label or job title.

What Does It Mean to Start Over—Twice?

“It’s been quite a journey so far,” Sandile admitted early on. “I was born in South Africa. I came to the UK when I was two…started playing football from a young age…since then it’s been a football journey up till now. I’ve kind of just diverted, just graduated in software engineering.”

He didn’t sugarcoat the challenge: “Finding that time to kind of allocate it to building your own kind of business and identity…that’s what I found difficult mostly, but I’m not kind of rushing. I know it’s going to take time, as long as there’s no kind of time limit on that, it can take as long as it needs to take.”

How Do You Find Yourself When Your Dreams Change?

“COVID hit. Initially nobody knew how long this was going to go on for…I was only here for two years. I’ve done one year and halfway through the second year and COVID’s happened, it’s gone on for months. So by the time it’s done…I’ve got to move on…there was no exit…So I was kind of at a stalemate.”

He didn’t let it stop him: “I kind of took up driving lessons...That same drive I usually do in football...I put it into other things to help me get around this stale time.”

Switching to university was a shock: “It was like, it felt like I had imposter syndrome for a bit…when you transition into something like mechanical engineering where you know absolutely nothing…it takes a toll on you…But…the skills I’ve learned from football are universal. I can transfer them over here...I still can keep what my identity is as a person.”

When Do You Stop Chasing Approval?

He reached his limit with football politics: “I give it all my all. And then I’ve come here and I’m performing better than some of your players and I’m not taking the opportunity to play. So I was like, well, that’s what football is when you get to a certain age. It's sometimes more politics than actual games. So I thought, let me get to a position where in my career that I don’t have to depend on people’s opinions...So I thought, let me just kind of focus on myself and I’ll come back to the game once I’m ready and I’ve sorted out my life.”

How Do You Rebuild Ambition—Without Pressure?

“For me, financially, I weren’t able to support myself…play and learn. But now I’m stable financially…I don’t have to rely on football as a source of income. So it’s kind of something that I want. I’m in the driver’s seat now. So that’s the main box ticked off that I can decide if I want to do this or not. Not kind of relying on [it as a] source of income.”

Regain Career Clarity (Now)

Sandile’s advice to athletes is blunt and clear:

“I would say stick to your roots…what makes you unique can be transferable into any aspect in life or any avenue…look over a few things that have made yourself. Are you funny? Are you warm?...Whatever you are good at...you can transfer that skill...”

On perspective: “Ask the people who know you the best, just ask them what is something that makes me the person you like to speak to every day?...Ask questions about yourself, don’t be afraid to...find out more about yourself.”

Let’s keep it simple: “I’m in the driver’s seat now. I can decide if I want to do this or not.”

That’s Sandile, and that’s the challenge for all of us.