Sharing Stories by Shanz
What does your company do?
Sharing Stories by Shanz (SSBS) is a transformative mentorship and empowerment platform designed to equip young women with the voice, mindset, and strategy to lead boldly in life, school, and the workplace. It also serves as a strategic intervention to address gender inequality
in leadership by cultivating a strong mentorship culture among women — a gap identified in the founder’s Master’s research. Rooted in storytelling, personal development, and psychological theory, SSBS offers a structured Personal Development Plan that blends reflective storytelling with leadership and career-building tools.
The programme follows the signature SSBS Metamorphosis™ Model, a 3-phase journey:
🔹 Foundation Phase – Finding Your Voice through storytelling and identity work
🔹 Metamorphosis Phase – A 6-part mentorship process focused on: goal setting, self-awareness (SWOT), emotional wellness (CBT tools), growth mindset, leadership identity, and career advancement
🔹 RISE Phase – Where mentees transition into mentors, building legacy and community impact
What makes SSBS unique is its integration of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) tools that help young women unpack self-limiting beliefs, reframe internalised gender bias, and build emotional resilience. These tools are intentionally used as interventions to address gender inequality—helping mentees identify gender-based barriers in academic and workplace environments while developing actionable strategies to overcome them.
SSBS also publishes a monthly digital magazine, SSBS MagNews, which amplifies the voices of young women by sharing their lived experiences, reflections, and leadership journeys through writing.
Through mentorship, mindset training, and community storytelling, SSBS is building a generation of confident, self-aware, and socially conscious women leaders.
What is your biggest success?
Successful Transition from Storytelling to Mentorship
Originally launched in 2022 through a monthly collaboration with MagNews, SSBS began as a platform for young women to share their journeys. The overwhelming engagement from readers and contributors showed a deep need for more than storytelling—it called for guidance, mentorship, and leadership development. This success led to the launch of the SSBS Mentorship Programme, rooted in academic research and practical transformation.
In 2023, I, as the founder of Sharing Stories by Shanz, was selected as one of the Top 50 leading females under 30 in the Public Service Category, in Africa. Representing South Africa🇿🇦. This opportunity was given by She Leads Africa.
What has been your biggest hurdle?
One of the most significant challenges SSBS has faced since its inception has been encouraging young women to openly share their stories, especially when those stories involve trauma, personal setbacks, or sensitive experiences. While the vision of SSBS is rooted in the power of storytelling to inspire and heal, many participants expressed fear of judgment, exposure, or not being "ready" to be vulnerable in a public space.
This hesitation stems from:
- Social stigma around vulnerability and perceived "weakness"
- Fear of backlash from peers, family, or community
- A lack of previous platforms where storytelling was met with empathy and confidentiality
