Anxiety is having a bit of a moment. It’s the quiet extra passenger in the car, the one piping up with unhelpful commentary just when the traffic gets lively. Clydelle Govender knows that passenger well. She’ll tell you – bravely and without flinching – that driving alone once tied her stomach in knots. What if she took the wrong turn? What if she pressed the wrong pedal? What if her thoughts ran ahead of the road? The questions were loud, but something inside her was louder. A calm insistence to keep showing up, keep learning, and keep going. That stubborn streak, polished by practice, is exactly why she’s so good at her job.

Clydelle grew up in Croftdene, Chatsworth, in a home more carefully built than bought – parents improving things one project at a time and children finding their voices under a roof where kindness and respect weren’t just rules, they were habits. She credits her mum and dad with the tough love and steady guidance that made resilience feel normal. That’s the foundation she stands on when she walks into work.

As Senior Legal Assistant at CEO (a promotion she holds close to her heart), her day is equal parts detail and nerve. She keeps matters moving, translates legal complexity into plain English, and supports officials so they can represent employers with clarity and care. She’s completed her LLB through UNISA, proof that she chooses momentum over moaning. And she likes CEO’s ethos for the same reason many members do – the mix of fairness, integrity and practical support that helps employers do things properly without feeling alone in the maze.

That’s where her story speaks to the moment. Anxiety among young professionals is real, and the bravest thing you can do with it isn’t to deny it – it’s to design around it. Clydelle didn’t wait for confidence to arrive fully formed; she built it in small, consistent laps. First short solo drives, then longer ones. First unfamiliar routes with a plan, then new places with a backup plan. Anxiety may have ridden shotgun, but determination gripped the wheel. The result isn’t a life without nerves; it’s a life with better maps.

Employers have a role to play here. Clydelle’s experience is a quiet masterclass in what helps. Clear structures. Patient mentorship. Room to grow without being thrown to the wolves. The sort of culture where people can say, “This worries me,” and the response is, “Right, let’s figure it out,” not, “Toughen up.” She loves that CEO values personalised legal support and long-term workplace development – because it turns scary, spiky problems into solvable ones.

Colleagues would describe her as warm, approachable and impeccably mannered, which is a pleasant way of saying she makes stressful days feel smaller. She’s proudest of the promotion not because of the title, but because of the person it required her to become. And while she’d tell her younger self to step out of her comfort zone sooner, she’s doing exactly that now – finishing her degree, prioritising her health and practising the kind of balance that keeps a career sustainable.

Away from the desk, she’s happily “lo-fi” – a tidy room, a good series and perfectly salted French fries. If you’re looking for her on a Friday night, try the couch, not the spotlight. She’ll be the one rooting for the underdog on Teen Wolf, plotting the next tick on her LLB checklist and texting her parents a thank-you they’ve earned a hundred times over. Her future picture is simple and lovely – work she’s proud of, a happy family, travel, memory making. A life that feels safe and wide at the same time.

Some people arrive bold. Others arrive brave. Clydelle is the second kind – the kind who edges fear into the back seat, sets the route and drives anyway. In a world that often rewards noise, she’s a reminder that soft-spoken persistence can be a superpower. And that’s why members and teammates trust her. When things get knotted, she’s the steady pair of hands that untangles them.