About Mbali
Hi! I am Mbalenhle K, but I go by Mbali for short (that’s: mm-bah-lee).
I am a mental and emotional wellness blogger, running a blog called Budding Regardless which is all about growing regardless of what obstacles you encounter in life.
More on my wellness journey
My wellness journey started in my late teens. I was a ‘cool kid’ in school and although I had a passion for writing, back then, owning a blog was for the ‘nerdy girls’ but when I graduated high school, I jumped straight into it.
I had always been struggling with mental health issues and growing up in a traditional African home made it that much harder for me to talk about what I was going through. So I just started writing.
I didn’t give advice in 1st person, nor did I talk about my own personal problems. What I did was think of something I was struggling with and write a whole blog post on it, giving advice on how to deal with that particular issue.
Within a month, I gained thousands of views and positive feedback from people telling me that this is exactly what they needed to hear and I just kept going. Still am, to this day!
Wellness Q&A with Mbali
What does a healthy life-work balance look like to you?
Honestly, as long as I don’t have an allocated ‘clock in’ and ‘clock out’ time, I am happy.
That is also my current work setup. I work wherever I want and whenever I want to, just so long as I complete all my weekly tasks and have my two 1:1 meetings with my team and with my manager.
How do you make sure you are regularly prioritising your mental and physical well-being?
Setting boundaries!
This is super important. I make sure everyone around me also knows that I have boundaries. My boss knows I am not responding to any messages during the weekend. My partner (who I live with) knows not to be in my space in the morning for at least an hour. My friends know not to randomly call me even if I said I am just chilling, they can text anytime but would have to check in with me if I am available for a call.
Creating these boundaries has helped me focus on my mental health, unwind and reflect daily.
“Creating these boundaries has helped me focus on my mental health, unwind and reflect daily.”
Mbali | Budding Regardless
How do you show yourself self-love and self-care? Are there any particular activities you indulge in and what inner work do you do?
Me doing anything alone is my form of self-love and self-care.
I have been surrounded by people all my life and have had to spend time with them even when I don’t really want to. Now, I prioritize my alone time.
I could be doing anything – taking a nap, watching something, creating something… Anything!
What is your go-to productivity hack?
I have been struggling so much with being productive, especially because I am one of those people who get distracted every 2 seconds.
I feel like every day, I learn something new and valuable but I am not quite getting things done and that is something I am working on now.
What self-help or personal development book would you recommend and why?
Omg! That would have to be When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chödrön.
This book teaches you the power of accepting things as they are without attaching emotion to them.
I am not going to lie, that’s one of the hardest things to do because we assume that if we strategically plan things out, they should work out the exact way we planned them, if not better. But that’s honestly hardly ever the case.
This book also brings to light the fact that nothing is certain and there is no manual to life.
It’s not a comfort book that will tell you to stay positive and things are going to be okay but it opens your eyes to the fact that life is tricky, messed up and unfair so we have to adapt.
Get When Things Fall Apart on Amazon today
What would you say to your 21-year-old self?
I would tell her that her dreams are attainable! Keep going!
And lastly, what’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
The best advice I have ever received was from my sister actually. I was about 16 years old at the time.
She told me that people are always going to talk, if you are doing great, they are going to talk about that or gossip about how you don’t deserve it. If you are doing badly, they will talk about how much you have managed to mess things up for yourself.
So either way, they are just going to talk. You just gotta keep doing what makes you happy because you can’t please everyone.
“You just gotta keep doing what makes you happy because you can’t please everyone.”
Mbali K | Budding Regardless
Where to find Mbali
Find Mbali across most social media platforms on @imbalenhle_k
And for more mental and emotional wellness tips from Mbali, head to https://buddingregardless.com/
One last thing…
I am always on the lookout for guests who are in the health and wellness space or individuals who have inspiring stories to share about their mental health and well-being. If you would like to be considered as my next Q&A guest then please fill out this form to show your interest and I will be in touch shortly with the next steps.
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Thank you so much for the feature Thalia, I absolutely loved collaborating with you! You are doing great, keep going 🤍
Aw it was my pleasure Mbali! What you wrote was amazing and inspirational and I can’t wait for people to read it 😊