 it is out here for you to tap into. And today's discussion will be focused on empowering our generation. And we're talking specifically about our generation, us. So to help us drive this conversation is one Anthony Massesse. He also goes by the name The Mentalist, popularly known as The Mentalist. He's a mentor. He has his own YouTube channel, show called The Mentalist Show, and he's here to pour into us some of the nuggets he has. Can you please stand up, Anthony? Thank you so much. Glad to have you with us today. Yeah, I'm so glad too. I hope I've introduced you well. Yeah. OK, so you want to tell us a little bit about you being a mentor. What exactly do you do? I've been a mentor. I help the community, let me say the community, because it's not necessarily the youths. Yeah, the community comprises of a lot of individuals. We have the women, we have the men, we have the youths, and we have the teens. So I try to... Kite for all of them. Yeah, for all of them for a bright future. OK, great. I think that's amazing. When you talk about empowering a generation, how important is this? Because that's also just part of what you do. Yeah. Empowering a generation, it actually has a lot of aspects. You know, we have the education, we have the resources that the youth need, we have the infrastructures, you know, and one aspect maybe about education, you know, the future of today or the things that we do today, this will impact the next generation or the future generation. So what we do today, the decisions that we're going to make today as the youth, as the people, we're going to impact the future of tomorrow. And yeah, the generation we're talking about, you know, is as the youths. And the future leaders depend on the people we are going to create today, yeah. All right. So that's very important because we set the standard for how the future generation will be like. So what we do today is a determinant of how tomorrow will be like. So it's very critical to empower us as a generation, right? Yeah. How do you ensure you do this? So you have the mentalist show and I don't know if there's any other way, how do you ensure that you empower this generation in your own capacity? As for me, I try to... One, I try to educate the youths through what I do as the YouTube channel, as my show. I try to show them various aspects of life, you know. I try to give the youths away. You know, being a mentor is it has a lot. Yeah, you need to be a leader. You need to have good morals because a good mentor, what you are going to tell the people, the people are going to take it because they believe in you. They believe in what you say and they actually are going to follow it. So being a mentor on how I'm going to do things first, you know, I need to put myself, I need to be that picture, the good picture. They, I can say, the future, you know, the future depends on us, you know. And being a mentor, I try to get to be, to be a good example of the community. I try to show them the correct way and tell them good things that they need to do, you know. Yeah. Okay, so direct them at least in the right way. And you said that it takes a lot. It takes a lot. You have to lead by example, right? Yes, yes. Yeah, so in the mental, you have interviewed different kind of people and all that. So when we talk about, even before I get to that, there's something that I saw in your bio. You said your focus is unwavering to inspire, motivate and ignite a spark of ambition within the community. Yeah. What is the, what is the essence of this, you know, especially when you talk about igniting a spark of ambition, you know, within the community, but even now within the generation, what is the essence of that? When you see in Kenya nowadays, people are being, I don't know, I can't say the youths. Are being directed. We were taught to just maybe pass it academically. And if you are not academic wise, you cannot have a good job. And there's something that we forgot to tell our young generation or the youths that they need to follow. Not only education, we have also the passion. We have the talent. And most of the youths don't know how to maybe to follow their talent, to follow their passion. So for me, I try to bring, to spark, to ignite that fire in you. That I tell you that you can do this. It's not necessarily that education, that is, it's not necessarily that it's all about education. Yeah, there's also talent, there's also passion that you need to follow. So for me, I try to bring that out of you. I try to make that out of you. Because as a mentor, you are also a teacher. So I try to teach some people. And truly, when you do that, some have followed their passion. Some have followed their talents. Yeah. Okay, that's amazing. How, you know, being a mentor, what are some of the success stories that you've seen in the people that, that you mentor something that you look back to and like, I'm doing the right thing. You know, this is what I'm called to do. This is why I'm here. You know, being a mentor, actually, it's all about changing your life. It's all about trying to make something look better. Yeah. Yeah. It's all about trying to make a difference in someone's life. So when you're saying about how I try to, maybe the achievement, when I come, I tell you that what you're doing is not good, but you need to do A, B, and C for you to be this kind of a level, for you to reach certain level in life. And if honestly, you're gonna do that, what will happen? I'll be so happy because what I want you to be, if I said, follow your passion and you start doing it on it step by step, the steps I've been telling you to do. Honestly, when I see you coming one day telling me, oh, look at what I did and I've achieved, I'll be happy. As a mentor, it's not about my success, it's the success of the community. It's the success of those people who are out there and making that difference. Okay. Yeah. Wow, that's wonderful. How did you decide, how do you settle on being a mentor, like, you know, just developing the community? Why, how, was it something you were always passionate on? Is it something that you do, the main thing that you do, or is it just, you know, your papa, so you work and then you also do this? Actually, this is something, yeah, it is, I can say, I started back when I was in high school. Like, that's when I knew that I had a purpose to talk to people. I had that passion to inspire someone. Yeah, and it was, in high school, you know, I was in boarding school and a lot of people, some were depressed, some had various problems, you know, in school. And I was like, bro, just keep down, just do this and that, everything will be okay. And you know, after some time, one individual starts to follow your thing and comes against saying, oh, it really helped me, you know, you're a good person, or you inspire me a lot, yeah, even when we talk. And that's how I started when I was in like, form one, I remember in an incident where I was trying to talk to a form three. Yeah, he had no fee and he had no food. And I was there, I was like, hey bro, what's wrong? I didn't know him in school, what's wrong? Said bro, life is not easy. Like, I feel like I'm not chosen to be in school, you know, like this is not my place, I just feel like I wanna quit. I said bro, you're quitting and you're just remaining with one here, you just don't do that. Instead, try to look friends like me. Actually, that day I remember, I had 20 shillings, I bought him a bread. And it was like, oh. So they're good people? Yeah, they're good people who can help. And through that, I also became a leader in high school where I now could express myself clearly at the parade. I could tell people quotes, I could inspire people. I could even, I remember even I was chosen to be an academic advisor in my school. I had to just advise some students on how to do study work, on how to manage your time well in school. And actually, I can say it's my passion. It started way, way back. Wow. I mean, that's amazing. That's amazing. Imagine, from one, you're fresher. You fresher on the advice from the three of you, how you work well. But that's really nice. You know, people say, each generation, and I love to ask this question to almost all my guests. Just like, each generation, you know, they want instant gratification, instant things, kind of job, you know, it's easy, it's easy, it's easy, it's easy. They say come, come, come, come, mine, I do it, it's easy. You know, anything that gets your hands on, they want it to work fast. So, what do you say to that? For the youth who are out there, shortcuts are maybe, they're very short and sometimes very good. But for how long, you know, but how long will you take the shortcuts? There's nothing, no. I remember my father told me when I was very young that good things take time. So, if you like, you want something good, if you want something, a good performance, you need to take time on that, you need to dedicate, sacrifice, you know, your time in what you wanna do for you to achieve the best. So, there's nothing like instant, these things are very short, they're just for a short while. Yeah, and imagine, you don't have a job, you can earn like 100,000, you can pay, that is yours. I'm gonna earn like 200,000 every week. Now, I'm gonna earn like 2K every week. I'm gonna earn like 100,000 every week. I'm gonna earn like 200,000 every week. You see, so sometimes, instant things are not good, I only advise them just time, they trust the process. Yeah. So, it takes time to manage the little that they have, the resources they have, for more is even given to them. Okay, so there's this other thing that you had also mentioned. When you talk about the mentalist show that you have, and you was explaining that the interviews are not just dialogues, but they are lessons in perseverance, dedication, and the power of dreams. So, let's start with perseverance. You know, why is it important to persevere, and what does perseverance mean to someone who's watching? Perseverance is the illest sacrifice what you're passing through for you. When you come out of perseverance, there's always the price, you know? Like, why won't you do my daily? That waking up, even that every morning to do something that you have a goal on it, that's called perseverance. You know, I've seen a lot of people, I said here, trying to make it, and trying to making it in life, it has a way. Maybe you go and work, maybe to Mijengo, you go and work in Bandayako, you know? That process here, where maybe every day you say three or four, like, to just go and do something to your life, just go and do something that will benefit you, you know? Actually, why is it important to persevere? Because... How so? Yeah, when you are trying to inspire somebody, somebody, Pia and Afkiria, that are, hi, why are you even telling me this? Who are you? Afkiria Nani, you know? Afkiria Nani, and... I'm just talking to you, I'm not here for anything, just wanna talk to you, but have you seen even in the Bible, Jesus persevere, like, He had to pass through some things for us to be saved, you know? He had to be crucified. He had to be tortured, you know? To be called names for us to be saved. And through that, you can see in our days, like, after that, we were saved from the sin, but again, you know, as human beings, that's what happens. All right, I think that's very profound, but everyone's is important. You get to the other side, you know? You want to go through some stages, trials, and then you persevere through it, then you'll see the lights, then you'll see the lights at the end of the tunnel. Yeah, true. I'll speak of dedication, and then now the power of dreams. So we talk about education. What does dedication do? Dedication to your service, and this effect is in regards to those that are just even volunteering somewhere, you know, not necessarily getting paid for it. Yeah. People nowadays don't want to volunteer. I can say honestly. People want to do something and be paid, and that is something that maybe nowadays is trying to hinder our youth from even going to look for jobs or something else. No, when you dedicate yourself to something, it means you have set aside time to do it. Like you have humbled yourself in a level that now you can start from down there to somewhere you want to be. Dedication is very important in life. Yeah. For each and every youth who is always outside there, like you need to dedicate yourself in doing what you are doing. Like you need to dedicate your time, your money, for you to have the success you want to have in life. Yeah. And when you set the goals in your life, when you set everything like, you know, and now you start dedicating yourself by giving time, your time, and not cheating to yourself, you know. That is gonna help you maybe in achieving your goals that maybe you set at the beginning of the year. Yeah. Yeah. Your dreams are gonna come true. Mm-hmm. Yeah. So dedication, there's a lot. Yeah, a lot. To be achieving whatever you want to achieve. Yeah. And I think it also goes with consistency. Yeah, consistency. For the dedicated, you're also consistent. Mm-hmm. Even on YouTube, you know, they say once, if you want to get a good viewership, you have to be consistent in posting every day Monday at 10, then it should be every day Monday at 10, meaning that you have to be dedicated to whatever you do and give it to your all. Yeah. And then you will see where you are at for it. Mm-hmm. All right, now, even as you wrap up on the conversation, power of dreams, you know, why is it important for someone to have to dream? You know, they say it's the only, Lupita said, your dreams are valid. Yeah. And Obama said, yes, you can, you know. And the dreams are the only things that you don't have to pay for. You can go beyond your imagination. It's free, yeah. So what is the power of dream? Power of a dream. That's actually, I can say, when you have a dream, let's say you want to be a mentor. You know, there are some of the things that comes as a mentor in life. There are challenges. And you being a mentor, there are some of the things you want to do, right? And for example, I can give you an example of Barack Obama, as you have said. Barack Obama had a dream to become a leader and honestly became the president of the United States of America. And the dream, it did not just wake up one day and say that, ah, today is election day. Let me now tell people to vote for me. No, there was a behind, you know, behind the scene. Barack Obama faced a lot of difficulties. There were challenges. There were a lot of things that he had to pass through. There's also Hussein Bolt. Hussein Bolt had to train like for four years for him to just run for less than 11 seconds for him to be crowned the champion. He had a dream that one day I want to be the record holder. Yes, but for him to be there, he had the dream. The vision was there. Now it was remaining. The work, the consistency, the dedication, no, the sacrifice that he had to wake up each and every morning to train, you see, for him to be the best, for him to achieve what he wanted to achieve in life. Yeah, even the youths who are out there, for you to start something, you need to have that dream that if you want to be the doctor, then start thinking as one, start working as one, start doing what doctors do, you know? And now that's where the problem is. A lot of youths dream a lot. There are a lot of people nowadays, they're dreamers. They're just dreamers, you know? And no set goals, nothing, no dedication. Okay, all right, great. So it's important to dream, but it's also necessary to have plans, you know, goals, working towards the achieving dream that you have. Yeah, you know, failure to plan is planning to fail. That's what I can say. Okay, and it's a good quote, it's a common quote, and you know, it's very important to just put it down also, right? But you know, this is where I want to be, this is where I'm headed, and all that. How would you advise youths, even as the last question I'm asking, how would you advise youths to tap into that potential, to discover what is in them, you know? Some people are just sitting on gold mines, you know, talents, skills, abilities. How do you advise them to tap into this ideal potential within them to make it work for them? One they need to follow their heart. What does your heart say? Two, they need to avoid peer pressure. You know, a lot of youth nowadays, they're lured by their friends. If you see your friend is working, doing well, you won't just be there. Not forgetting that you also had a dream. You also had a talent, had a passion. So it's all of follow your heart, avoid peer pressure, set your goals clearly. It doesn't matter, you know. Some youths think that when now they're detached from their friends, there's no life. But not knowing that life is an individual. Like we came on earth as an individual alone, and we are gonna- Leave alone. Yes, and everything we are gonna do is all about you and not anybody else. Mm-hmm, okay. So you just do something. Just make sure you do something. Okay, finally, do you have a word for a youth that's out there that's not really, you know, that someone who doesn't really have a direction of where they want to go in life, they're not sure what they want to do. They're almost hopeless because they've tried different things and they're giving up. So yeah, you can speak to them directly. That is your camera. Ah, for the youths out there, giving up is not an option. Giving up has never been an option. It's all about that last breath that you have. That last chance, you know, in life, you need to set up plans clearly. In life, you need to know that there are ups and down. In life, you need to know that in everything you do, it is not a mass that you must achieve or you must get 100%. So have zero expectation in life. Yeah, do your best. Do the best for you to be the best and for you to have the best. Mm-hmm, okay, great. I mean, that's very straightforward. Yeah. Where can people find you on your socials in case they want to reach out to be mentored or anything? Okay, they can find me on TikTok, Instagram, on YouTube, the mentalist, the mentalist show. And on Facebook, Antony Masese. Yeah, also on Spotify, they are on Twitter, the mentalist. Yeah. Okay, so on TikTok and Instagram, it's the mentalist. Yeah. And then the rest of the platforms, Facebook, Antony Masese. Yeah. Thank you very much, Antony, for coming on board and sharing these amazing insights with us. Thank you so much. All right, so this has been a conversation on empowering a generation, and that means you and me. I hope you've taken some points from that. We've had Antony Masese, who's a mentor. He also goes popularly by the name, the mentalist, and that is from the show that he does. All right, so you can talk to us at Y244Channel, the hashtag to use today is one of the morning. We're going to take a short break, and then Brian Sackwell will be coming back as they're contending with a conversation that they started last week. So stick with us.