Top achievers share their journey to success

Congratulations Sky. Thank you. Congratulations Alan. Thank you. How do you feel Sky? Happy. Very happy. Just happy? A bit nervous. Just tell us how many distinctions you got. I got eight distinctions. Eight distinctions. How many subjects in total did you do? Eight. And all of them you just aced like that? Yeah. Wow. Which is your best subject? Life orientation. Yeah. Okay. And the rest you did maths and you did other subjects as well and you did well there. Yeah. Okay. Was it tough? Did you think you were going to get eight? I was a bit nervous for like two subjects I wasn't sure about, but I did surprise myself that I got eight out of eight. Which of those two subjects that surprised you? Afrikaans and AP English. Okay. Well done. Alan, you also got eight distinctions. Good. Well done. Did you know you were going to get all eight? I was pretty hopeful and I was very happy when I did. What's the most nerve-wracking thing about your trick? I haven't done my trick in years. I mean, look at me. I'm like a dinosaur. I haven't done my trick in years. What was the most nervous thing? I think for me, I was very nervous mainly for results because it's kind of defining your future. So just waiting for results is probably the most nervous I've ever been in my life. It's like this milestone, the future is ahead. Are you clear about the future or is it still too early? It is a bit early but I'm pretty sure in the direction I want to go. Which is? So this year I'm hoping to study Actuarial Science. Wow. Yeah. Right. Actuaries, eh? Good. So you want to go to what? Have you applied already for the university? Where? I applied at WITS. At WITS. No, no, good luck. Thank you. We need more. We need more actuaries. And you, Sky, do you know what you want to do? I'm not 100% sure yet. I think I want to go towards Biotechnology. Biotechnology. Yeah. But I haven't applied for university because I'm taking a gap year and I only want to study after. I'm going to be speaking to a career guidance coach after 11, about half past 10, just for your information. And we're going to talk about this gap year thing. I mean, was it something that you always wanted to do because people are divided about a gap year. Yeah. I always wanted to do a gap year. Yeah. And what are your plans in the gap year? Because you can't just sit, I'm told, gap year doesn't mean you're just going to sit there and do nothing. No. Are you going to be travelling? I'm going on a programme. Okay. So the programme is to Israel. Okay. And it's with the youth movement, Bnei Akiva. Okay. And we learn in a seminary for like, for the whole year. And there's also travelling around the country. Yeah. And then in that year you'll be making a decision about what tertiary education you want to attend. Whether you want to do Biotechnology or not. Yeah. And you guys have crossed the line. You've passed. You've done well. What would you say to your fellow grade 11? I mean, I'm sure you have some friends in grade 11 now that they know you've passed. They might be giving you some tips. Say, please, Sky, what should I do? How can I get eight distinctions? What are you going to tell them? I think you just have to balance your priorities. And something that really helped me was if you get like an assignment, like you do it that day, well, you can't finish it on that day. It's okay. But as soon as you have a test, like start that day, if you have an assignment, start that day and pass papers are the way to go. Do pass papers and start what you don't understand. Go to your teachers and they'll help you and that's how you can work through it. So, prioritize, manage your time well, don't waste it and use pass papers. Yeah, and don't overwork yourself. Don't overwork yourself. So, balance is important. Very important. So, did you party a bit as well during the last year? Did you go out a little bit and balance that? Of course, yeah. That's good. And you, Alan, what would your advice be to your friends who are getting into grade 12? Well, I agree with Sky with like going to speak to teachers and everything. I found a lot of people like to do a lot by themselves and I found, especially with my school, my teachers were immensely helpful and to just not be scared and to go speak to the teachers, it really helped a lot. And like everyone says, pass papers are probably the best and it's very hard to find a balance but like it'll never be perfect but to just find some form of maybe exercise just to bring into your, and some form of socializing. Like Sky said, a few, maybe one or two parties or if you want to go to more. Yeah, I interviewed an educational psychologist yesterday to say how can we be helping you matriculants, you know, receive the results because some people might not have done as well as you've done and even if you've done well, the support from that family is very important. Yeah. Would you say that? Did you get a lot of support at home? Yeah, I did get a lot of support. And my older sisters also like went through the same journey as me so they were always there guiding me and helping me. Yeah, and you too? Yeah, a lot of support at home. And now have they promised you something? I mean, I don't know what happens nowadays, I mean, we live in a new world and you guys are not millennials, I guess you are zillennials or whatever, depending on when you were born but the idea is that you achieve something, you need to recognize it and celebrate it. Are you going to be celebrating? Yeah, I think so. You think so, you're not sure yet. There's something planned. Yeah, hopefully. Hopefully, okay. And Alan? Mainly with friends. Okay, but don't forget the parents. I mean, parents play an important role. It's not just the funding side of things, it's also the moral support. Yeah. You mentioned your sister and who was there for you, okay? Alright, now what would have been the biggest challenge? I mean, if you look back now, if you look back, it's a 12-year journey. Remember, you guys have been on from Grade 1, even slightly before to Grade 12. What would have been the biggest challenge if you look back at your education? Because this is the end of a chapter in your life, a very important chapter. Now you're going to be tackling a new chapter. But just reflecting, you know, just off the cuff, what would have been the biggest challenge over the past 12 years for you guys? Sky? I can't pinpoint exactly. Probably if you get knocked down, if you do a bad paper, and then if you don't get the result you wanted, then you feel like, what's wrong with me? How am I going to improve? But then we always get back up. So the challenge is picking yourself up if you get down a little bit. Because it can happen. Life is like that. Yeah, not only with academics, also with sports, like sports teams, culturals, like in plays, you know what I mean? So that holistic picture, you need to make sure that you keep on going. Yeah, I agree with Sky, finding the holistic approach to especially matric. It's really difficult to balance work and exercise and even socializing. And yeah, just to stay confident with yourself, especially if you do bad in some tests. I know myself, like when I fell down, I felt really bad about it, but you've just got to move on because no one's stopping. Guys, you're brilliant. Thank you very much for coming in. Thank you. Thank you for answering many questions. Alan, you're a bit far from me, but all the best and well done. And good luck with the actuarial studies and your gap here in Israel. And hopefully you make a decision to do biotechnology. We need more scientists in the world. Thank you very much. Thank you. Sky Solomon and Alan Gaddi. Well, there you have it and good luck to them. They're from King David's in Lynxfield, one of the top performing IEB schools now that the results are out.