Happy new month and new quarter! This month we chat with Khensani Godi who is an admitted attorney of the High Court of South Africa. She holds a Bcom Law degree majoring in Insurance and Risk Management and LLB from the University of the Witwatersrand
Khensani is a Mineral, Property and Permitting Legal Specialist and an educational content creator. She is the founder of Re-envision Wholeness, a platform that aims to educate and uplift people through, amongst others, conversations with every day people, living every day lives and shaping history with their every day habits.
In this interview, she tells us about her decision to leave practice, and the importance taking care of yourself in this demanding profession.
Below is our interview with this phenomenal woman in law.
FWIL:
What inspired you to study law?
KG:
The fact that life is unfair. In all aspects, life is unfair. As a child, I wrestled with the concept of unfairness and my goal has been to bring “equality” into the places where I serve. My desire to see a fairer and more just world inspired me to study law.
FWIL:
You previously worked as a practising attorney, please tell us why you chose to leave practice. To anyone thinking about taking the same route as you, what is your best advice?
KG:
I could not see myself within the structure of the law firm anymore and vision is important to me. I want to know where I am going. At the time of taking the decision, I felt that the person I wanted to be could no longer be accommodated within that space. I was physically and emotionally exhausted. I wanted to be healthy in every aspect of my life and started to work towards that.
My advice for anyone thinking of taking the same route as me is as follows:
Aim to learn as much as possible in practice. Practice teaches you law. It teaches you to honour the craft and to understand it’s importance from a substantive and procedural perspective. Be intentional about pursuing fields of law that you are genuinely passionate about and finding out your value proposition, i.e., what do you bring to the table. Once you know the value that you will bring into a corporation, you can then pursue your journey to be a non-practising attorney.
FWIL:
Can you provide an overview of your career journey and how you arrived at your current role as Mining, Property Rights & Permitting Legal Specialist?
KG:
In my final year of my LLB at Wits, I selected environmental law as an elective. The environmental module influenced me immensely and I knew that I want to work with environmental and mining legislation. I started my articles in 2019 at a firm specialising in planning, development and environmental law. Thereafter, I was admitted as an Attorney in 2021 and was retained as a junior attorney. In 2023, I chose to leave practice due to reasons mentioned above. I briefly joined a telecommunications company as Legal Counsel and, thereafter I was offered a legal specialist role at a mining company. I started working as legal specialist in December 2023.
FWIL:
What does your current job position entail?
KG:
I provide legal advice and support to the Mineral, Property and Permitting department. In simple terms, I have the responsibilities that a legal advisor has but limited in the areas of Mining, Property and Permitting. For example, labour and commercial related matters aren’t part of my responsibilities.
FWIL:
What are some of your main passions and why are they important to you?
KG:
I am passionate about education and wholeness (holistic wellness). Education is important to me because it helps us to enlarge, refine and redefine our understanding of the world and, hopefully, with all that understanding we serve humanity better with our inventions and information. Wellness is important because we cannot serve humanity to our fullest potential if we are not whole.
FWIL:
Can you share some of the challenges you have faced as a female leader in the legal industry (if any) and how you have overcome them?
KG:
The challenge I have faced is to be seen and my femininity embraced. Why can’t I state my desire for motherhood at an interview for a leadership role? Why is it that marriage and family are deemed to be setbacks? It is because to be recognised as a force within this industry and many others, you must restrain desires that can “slow” down your career.
FWIL:
In your experience, what are the most critical issues or opportunities in the mining sector within Africa today?
KG:
I think the most critical issues are the following:
First, the deterioration of infrastructure that serves the mining sector has a negative impact. Therefore, an opportunity presents itself to resolve that problem.
Second, sustainability. The balancing of environmental protection and mining.
Third, having good legislation does not mean much in the absence of implementation and political will. To commence with mining activities, you need a variety of permits. The process to obtain same is expensive and cumbersome. You need specialist reports and are required to undertake meaningful consultation with interested and affected parties. Without the willingness to process and consider applications timeously and thoroughly, mining projects can be delayed.
FWIL:
What advice do you have for young female lawyers aspiring to make their mark in the mining sector?
KG:
Know your value proposition and work towards that (a clear, simple statement of the benefits, both tangible or intangible of what you provide).
FWIL:
Could you share any memorable or inspiring moments from your career that have shaped your leadership style or values?
KG:
When we had tight deadlines, my seniors were not the type to allow you to drown in the work alone. If I was working late, that’s because they were working late. And if something was not completed to the best standard, they were able to criticise as well as take responsibility. Their work ethic was impeccable and was centred in providing clients with the best advice. Their leadership style reminded me of what true leadership is, which is to serve. It’s not just giving out orders. It’s doing the work yourself – even the tasks that appear to be mundane for someone at your “level”. It’s ensuring that the work gets done and being available to lead should there be any issues. It’s taking responsibility and being accountable. It’s integrity.
FWIL:
How do you balance your professional responsibilities with personal life and self-care, especially in such a demanding role?
KG:
It’s about setting your priorities and discipline. Self-care is self-mastery. Now I understand that to show up as the best version of myself and put in the best effort I must be healthy (mentally, physically and spiritually) and at peace. I am very intentional about choosing health and peace. If peace means I leave the house a lot earlier to avoid traffic that can change my mood, I leave early. I think the core to balancing (if it does exist) is grace – understanding that you cannot do everything all at the same time.
FWIL:
Are there any notable female mentors or role models who have influenced your career journey or leadership style?
KG:
There are many notable female mentors who have influenced my leadership style. My mom is one of them. Her leadership style is one of grace and that is something that I want to carry in my career. This is because the first few years in the legal industry are difficult.
FWIL:
What strategies or initiatives do you think can encourage more women to pursue leadership roles in the legal and mining sectors?
KG:
I’ll speak into initiatives that can encourage women:
Sinako We Can is a great initiative aimed at mentoring young law students. Sinako Lindazwe is the founder and through her platform she discusses various topics and brings successful attorneys, advocates and judges. From that representation, more women can see that it is possible and are encouraged to pursue leadership roles. FWIL is also a platform that encourages more women to pursue leadership roles. Women in Mining provides a network to support, inspire and develop the progression of women in the mining sector.
I believe that representation matters and creating initiatives such as Sinako We Can, FWIL, Women in Mining and producing educational content can encourage more women to pursue leadership roles.
FWIL:
As a professional, it is quite important to effectively use your network. How do you meet other professionals and what are some of your effective networking skills?
KG:
Social media has made it easy to interact with other professionals and attending legal seminars or workshops.
FWIL:
What is your take on mentorship and are you open to mentoring young lawyers or law students?
KG:
Mentorship is important and I advocate for it. I am open to mentoring young lawyers and law students. To a certain extent, I do a lot of online mentoring through my online platforms.
FWIL:
Finally, How can our readers reach out to you? (social media handles)
KG:
I am on Instagram @khenscee or @re_envisionwholenss and on Youtube @Khensani Claudia