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Takudzwa Nyamombe

Victims of the System: Why University Is the Time to Set Yourself Free


25 February 2026  ·  2 min read
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Victims of the System: Why University Is the Time to Set Yourself Free
Victims of the System: Why University Is the Time to Set Yourself Free I want you to do something simple. Take a piece of paper and write your name using your stronger, more natural hand. Done? Now switch and write your name again with your weaker, less dominant hand. Look at the two results. Now pause and reflect: How did each one feel? If you're like 99% of people, writing with your stronger hand felt smooth, natural, even effortless. But with the weaker hand? You probably had to slow down, adjust your posture, grip the pen differently, or force control that just wasn’t there. It felt awkward. Tiring. Frustrating. We’ve been raised in a system that constantly pushes us to operate outside our natural strengths, like writing with the wrong hand every day and being told to excel at it, and it starts early. We're told what to study, how to think, what success looks like. I still remember, back in primary school, almost everyone in class wanted to be a pilot. Not because we were all passionate about flying, but because it was the “respectable” dream. Conformity was rewarded. Creativity was only accepted if it aligned with the marking scheme. Some of us never truly loved medicine, engineering, or law. But society told us that’s what success looks like. That it's safe. That we’d “get a job” after we finish. By the time we reach university, we've mastered the art of coping. We live by the syllabus. If it’s not in the coursework, it doesn’t matter. We celebrate sleepless nights. We treat burnout like a badge of honour. We see chronic stress as a normal part of being a serious student. And while we chase these degrees mostly in the name of financial security, the irony is that no one ever teaches us how to manage money. Financial literacy? Not in the curriculum. You’re in university now. And I believe if you work on yourself over these four years, you can set yourself free and even build a life beyond anything this system ever planned for you. University is the time to make mistakes. Try new things. Explore wild ideas. Read things no one is testing you on. Challenge what you’re being told and discover what you actually believe. This is the season to begin writing with your true hand and doing what feels authentic, energizing, and meaningful to you. Take time to discover what comes naturally to you and then double down on it. I’m not saying abandon your studies. I’m saying don’t abandon yourself in the process. As the wise saying goes: “Youth is wasted on the young.” But we don’t have to let that be true for us. Let’s not waste this time. You have a role to play in this universe. UNI = one. VERSE = song. You have a part to play in this song. Make it count By: Takudzwa Nyamombe
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Takudzwa Nyamombe
Takudzwa Nyamombe

Comments (2)

Tendai Mufambisi

Tendai Mufambisi

 software engineering, uz 6month

Bro Takudzwa this is a piece of gold and it's very important for one to choose his or her own path regardless of what the society thinks or approves. Do not just limit yourself to your degree or a program you are studying, explore more things, read read read, read books that builds you not reading for exams or to get distictions. We often overspend our time on formal education or overworking on our degres This is food for thoughts to every student.

Tendai Mufambisi

Tendai Mufambisi

 software engineering, uz 6month

Bro Takudzwa this is a piece of gold and it's very important for one to choose his or her own path regardlessof what the society thinks or approves

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