Ooléle Recap

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Person · MM

Author, entrepreneur and financial educator

Mapalo Makhu

Founder of Woman & Finance; author of You’re Not Broke, You’re Pre-Rich

Mapalo Makhu is a South African author, entrepreneur and financial educator. She founded Woman & Finance, a platform offering content, workshops and guidance designed to help people make financial decisions with greater confidence. Her book You’re Not Broke, You’re Pre-Rich addresses money in the South African context, including budgeting, debt, investing, retirement and Black tax.1,2

01 · The profile

Background & perspective

Mapalo Makhu holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Finance from the University of Johannesburg, a Postgraduate Diploma in Financial Planning from Milpark and a Postgraduate Diploma in Investment Planning from the University of the Free State. Through Woman & Finance, she works as an educator, speaker, podcast host and personal-finance coach, with an explicit focus on the realities facing South African households.1

Published by Zebra Press in October 2019, You’re Not Broke, You’re Pre-Rich offers an accessible introduction to financial behavior, debt reduction, saving, scams, investing, estate planning and retirement. The book includes Black tax among the obligations shaping the financial paths of many young South African professionals. That context should not be generalized to every Black or African family.2

Mapalo Makhu also hosts The Woman & Finance Podcast and co-hosted a Money Bootcamp journey with Maya Fisher-French for Santam in 2024. In Ooléle’s retained 2025 Colour-Full episode, she examines how family history, unequal starting points, expectations of visible progress and mutual support can meet inside one salary. The recap preserves the tension between solidarity and burden without turning one South African experience into a universal rule.3,4,5

02 · Verified landmarks

The journey in a few dates

A selective timeline established from identified sources.

2019

Publishes You’re Not Broke, You’re Pre-Rich

Publishes a Zebra Press personal-finance guide written for young South African professionals.2

2024

Co-creates an audio Money Bootcamp

Presents a thirteen-episode learning journey and practical tools with Maya Fisher-French and Santam.4

2025

Appears on Colour-Full

Joins a conversation about Black tax, family cycles, status purchases and wealth building.5

03 · Ooléle

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1 recap
MONEY IS NOT THE GOAL FREEDOM IS

Ooléle Special · Playbook #01

FINANCIAL INDEPENDENCE IS NOT A NUMBER

Fifteen sources, 16h02 analyzed, and 56 lessons on turning money into resilience, time, and choice.

Open recap

04 · Transparency

Profile sources

  1. 01About UsWoman & Finance
  2. 02You’re Not Broke, You’re Pre-RichPenguin Random House South Africa
  3. 03The Woman & Finance PodcastApple Podcasts
  4. 04Resources: Santam Insure Your Future Money BootcampWoman & Finance
  5. 05When History Writes Your Paycheck: Black Tax with Mapalo MakhuColour-Full Podcast