Desiree-Anne Martin Legacy Project

Platinum-selling South African singer/model/actress Lira (which translates to “love” in Sesotho) has already conquered South Africa and much of Europe with her irresistible blend of R&B, Jazz and African styles. She is a multi-platinum selling and an 8x South African Music Award-winning Afro-Soul vocalist and with her debut U.S. release and a US tour in the works, Lira is clearly poised for a major stateside breakthrough.

Lira, Definition Of Success | It has largely remained the same over the years, because I have based my measure of success on the personal goals that I reach. I have had long and short term goals, some major and some minor ones that I set for myself and for everything I tick off my list I feel a great sense of achievement and success.

So simply put, reaching my personal goals makes me feel successful. I keep moving the goal post which every achievement because I do aspire to grow and keep getting better as a person but I also acknowledge every milestone and every small victory and so I have a great sense of accomplishment as measured by myself.

I Am Driven By | The desire to do and be better than I was before. I’m constantly working to improve myself in all areas of my life. I want to write better songs, to touch more people through my craft, to be healthier, to be of better service … I find that the rewards like money come anyway when you work towards serving and doing so exceptionally.

My Highlights | The fact that I have managed to create a career out of what I love and enjoy still blows my mind, I am most proud of that. It was always my intention to have a global career, to lead a team of economically active musicians and to be an inspiration in terms of displaying that one can lead a great life and still be a commercial artist.

The Difference Between good and Great | Simply the desire to be so. This produces the willingness to work that much harder than everyone else. Being great means you are dissatisfied with being good and you want to create memories in people’s minds. You work consistently to carve out your uniqueness which makes you outstanding.

My Critical Skills and Lessons I’ve Learnt | I believe that starting with an end in mind made a huge difference to how my career turned out. I have been focused on the same things since I began my career eleven years ago. I had a detailed vision and plan for myself and my career. I knew what kind of musician I wanted to be, I knew what kind of impact I wanted to have on the world, I knew why I wanted to sing and how far I wanted to take it. I defined my measure of success even from the start and why. This pretty much determined the things I would do and how, even right down to how I behaved in and out of public. Although I knew all this, I did not know it was all going to actually roll out. The point was to start moving and take it from there.

I think it’s essential to determine what you are trying to accomplish before you begin. Most people “just want to sing” and that does not mean much because you could stand right where you are right now and sing a tune and you would have accomplished just wanting to sing. It’s in the detail that one finds their own unique self-expression.

Ask yourself the question “Why am I doing this”? “What do I want to accomplish out of it”, “When?”, “How do I want to do it” and “what impact do I want it to have?” This gives you a reason and a purpose. It gives you clear goals and you can break them up into actions plan with smaller goals.

Some of the things you may end up doing will be a means to an end, sometimes you will need to be flexible and make changes to adapt to your ever changing environment and circumstances. The road will be winding and filled with challenges but remaining mindful of your end goal will keep you persistent and patient.

There will be many lessons to be learnt and you will have to be willing to learn. You may fall and fail, but it is at this time that your greatest learning will happen. It is important to keep a positive mind set; such a journey is incredibly rewarding and reveals much of who you are. You learn self-reliance and self-respect. You will hopefully learn to acknowledge all your accomplishments however big or small because that keeps you feeling good about yourself. In this way, you learn to be your own inspiration and hero if need be. You keep yourself in check because often no one will.

You need to surround yourself with people and things that make you feel good about yourself, things that serve your purpose and goals, you can no longer afford the luxury of wasting time with things and people that will not assist the plan. You need to be consistent and persistent. Trust that the longer you do something the closer you get to where you want to be, because this is indeed true. The trick is not to sabotage yourself with your own thinking, know in your heart as you work diligently that you are getting closer to your goals. I often found that my strong mind-set was my saving grace and this can be cultivated. Avoid comparing yourself to others, that is guaranteed to make you feel terrible about yourself and you have no idea what their journey is all about. Stick to your plan. Lastly, you need to endeavor to be the best version of yourself at what you have chosen to do. The highest possible level at any given time. Always be at your highest best and enjoy the ride!

Characteristics of Greatness | I cultivate a positive mind-set. I learnt a long time ago that my mind can be powerful tool or my worst enemy. Getting my mind right made all the difference. I have belief systems designed to make me feel confident, strong, successful, empowered and unstoppable… and this then becomes my experience. Even when I seem to have failed, or lost out on opportunities, I never really lose… in my mind something greater is always around the corner. This keeps me energized, excited and always looking forward to the next experience.

Principles and Values I Live By | I value authenticity, I think it connects you genuinely with others, which I love.

Resources I Use | I find I have less time to read so I got into audio books which has increased the number of books I go through each year. I find its great for those long flights and long drives when we are on tour. I enjoy meditation as it calms my mind and makes me feel centred and focused. I do it mostly first thing in the morning. I do a lot of research on line on various things. I love google, it has answers for everything.

Dreams and Ambitions | I’d like to continue growing my career internationally, I’d like to tour more and have my music easily available around the world.

Meaning of Life | To express who you are, using your unique talents and abilities. To serve and add value to the world through what you do. To be happy!

Advice On Building Wealth | Have a purpose for your wealth that is larger than yourself.

Inspiring Others | I try to find people who are passionate about what they do. In understanding their values and seeing how they are aligned to mine, I find that they can be fulfilled working within my team. I prefer people to think as owners of their service to my team, representatives of their own personal brands thriving to be the best they can be. If our environment no longer serves their growth, I encourage them to move on. I want to be surrounded by people who are excited to be a part of our team.

I am very open about what I have learnt about wealth creation in my team, right down to our kitchen staff. I always say “wealth is not built by winning the lottery, it is built but saving and investing”. I exercise the principal that says you must always pay yourself at least 10%. Various percentages of one’s income are committed to debt payment and a considerable amount unaccounted for. I encourage habits of paying oneself and building reserves, slowly and consistently and in time you build enough to take advantage of investment opportunities and begin to build wealth.

My Inspiration | My Mother Buyi is a gorgeous woman who looks 20 years younger than what she is. I love how she takes care of herself and has such zest for life. She inspires me greatly; Nkhensani Nkosi and Khanyi Dhlomo inspire me on a personal and professional level.