Cheryl Paarwater is the owner and managing director of Enerlytics and Call Lab BPO, who strives to provide utility revenue management services while simultaneously making a positive change and creating job opportunities. She focuses on equipping South African youth with the necessary skills they need to succeed in the job market.
1. Today is International Women’s Day, a moment when we highlight women with great ambition and purpose. As part of this, we would love to showcase your story. Can you share with us a specific ambition or goal you’re currently pursuing, and how you’re taking steps toward it?
One of the ambitions I’m deeply committed to right now (and I honestly don’t know if this will ever change) is the creation of meaningful employment while building a world-class customer experience business.
In South Africa, unemployment, especially among young people, is one of our biggest challenges. It the reason for so many of our social ills such as our high crime rate. My goal is to prove that businesses can be both commercially successful and socially impactful. Through Call Lab, we focus on creating jobs, developing skills, and giving people access to opportunities they may not otherwise have had.
The steps toward that ambition are very practical: building strong international partnerships, investing in training and digital skills, and creating an environment where people can grow professionally and personally. A place where they feel cared for. For me, ambition isn’t only about scaling a company, it’s about changing lives in the process.
2. We talk about “Carry Your Ambition” as a play on words. It is both a literal bag and a symbol of the weight of ambition. In your life, have you ever felt that ambition as a burden, something that drives you but also puts a lot of pressure on you, weighing you down and sometimes making you doubt yourself? If so, how do you navigate that tension?
Absolutely. Ambition can be a powerful driver, but it also comes with pressure. When you care deeply about what you’re building and about the people who depend on it, the responsibility can feel heavy at times.
What helps me navigate that tension is grounding my ambition in purpose rather than ego. When the focus is on impact, creating jobs, supporting families, and building something meaningful, the pressure becomes more manageable because you know why you’re doing it.
There will always be difficult moments in business and leadership, but approaching challenges with the right mindset and surrounding yourself with good people makes a huge difference.
Ambition shouldn’t feel like something you carry alone, it becomes lighter when it’s shared with a team that believes in the same vision. Which I am grateful to have!
And I’m a very spiritual person and I believe that I can do all things through God who strengthens me, this knowledge is so powerful.
3. We’ve seen how icons like Margaret Thatcher used color in their outfits to stand out and project power, making a strong statement. In a similar way, how do you use color in your outfits to elevate your confidence, assert your presence, and help you rise above self-doubt as you pursue your ambitions?
For me, colour is about energy. When I wear bold colours, whether it’s bright pink, or a vibrant green, I feel extremely feminine and confident, it reminds me to show up fully and unapologetically as myself.
However, I primarily wear black, I think I do this to “fit in” in the male dominated world I move in.
I’ve challenged myself this year to show up more and make my presence felt more, colour is part of this challenge! Thank you for the reminder that this is a solid plan!
Curious to meet the next bold woman in our mini-series Carry Your Ambition? See the full publishing schedule here.
