Junior Shapers Africa (JSA), the premier male youth personal development organization in Africa, as part of its activities for the year, has held the maiden edition of its quarterly seminar for teen boys dubbed “JSA Teen Boys Seminar”.

The maiden JSA Teen Boys Seminar which took place at the African Regent Hotel on May 1, was organised on the theme; “Self-Development; The Little Things That Matter”, to provide mentorship, counseling, grooming and inspiration for young boys.

Founding Director at JSA, Ethel Marfo, welcomed the boys and challenged them to make the most of the opportunity afforded them to benefit from the programme.

To commence the seminar, participants wrote down anonymously sensitive questions regarding some of the problems they encounter in their daily lives as young boys growing up in the 21st century.

Next was the Self-Discovery session where participants were taken on a self-discovery journey to gain an insight into their character and personality.

It was a very practical session and they were guided by JSA Coach, Nii Lankwei, to thoughtfully answer carefully laid out questions in a workbook to enable them to discover their self-identities, find their core values, strengths and weaknesses, passion as well as identify their temperaments.

After the self-discovery session, was the tete-a-tete session, where the questions they had written down anonymously at the start of the seminar were duly answered by JSA Teen Counsellor & Coach, Edem Tamakloe.

He offered counseling and provided solutions on how participants can handle some of the challenges they face daily as young boys.

The host of the Super Morning Show on Joy FM, Daniel Dadzie, served as the guest mentor for the seminar.

He interacted with the boys and engaged them on the theme for the day, “Self-Development; The Little Things That Matter”.

He shared his life story and spoke on the little things that make a man and emphasised on the need to be known for something you do as an individual.

He challenged them to be good men in order to succeed and be good at whatever they do, stating that “Men are good men before they become good lawyers, doctors, teachers, engineers, etc.”

In order to have a good foundation to succeed and shape their future, he advised them to know themselves, know God and make good friends. He also counseled them to consider their passion when choosing a career and to learn other ways of making money.

Concerning relationships with the opposite sex, he advised them to have boundaries and to show the utmost respect to women and girls always.

Moses Anyomi, JSA Assistant Coach also shared some effective tips for studying with the boys. He directed them to have a study plan, and enough sleep to enable them to study well. He also advised them to desist from waiting until a few days to a test or exam before studying as that was not effective.

The seminar provided the boys with the opportunity to be mentored on the “The Little Things that Matter” to become responsible and well-rounded adults. They were taken on a self-discovery journey to enable them to identify their passion and purpose to shape their overall upbringing. They were also able to voice out their problems freely to receive the right counsel.

Aside from formal education, 21st-century teen boys also require value-added education in the form of personal development training, mentoring and counseling to help them achieve their full potential and to enable them to seek solutions to their problems to improve their general well-being. A Kumasi edition will be held in July.