Born Paul Banda hence popularly known as Paul River Williams is a common face you are likely to have seen on TikTok cruising in perfect English articulation and one is instantly hooked to whatever he has to offer in a particular clip.

From sharing concrete business advice to basic life etiquette together with relationship advice and sometimes being a genuine client giving feedback on a product, his content is indeed engaging. On a day to day, Paul is a marketing executive at one of Zimbabwe’s leading property corporate.

My Afrika Magazine’s Ngonidzashe Gwatidzo (NG) sat down with Paul (PB) to discuss his upbringing, content creation journey, authoring talent and a whole more.

NG: Thank you for taking time to sit with us, firstly, briefly introduce yourself.
PB: I’m Paul Banda online moniker is Paul River Williams— I’m a strategist, consultant, Author content creator, and part-time comedian depending on who you ask. I help people and organisations think clearly, communicate better, and actually get things done. Everything else about me is just a by-product of that mission.

NG: Where did you get an education from pre-school to tertiary?
PB: I’m a product of Zimbabwe’s schooling system from day one. Pre-school to secondary was all local — I was the student that over did it. The over achiever I was in all the clubs and attended all the after school events. I was the one called upon to give speeches when we had guests at school. I was a senior prefect too. And I was in the Harare City Junior Council as the chief of committees clerk Tertiary in South Africa was where I got formal training in business and communication. And fell in love with it.

NG: I’m most interested in Paul the content creator, how did that start?
PB: It started accidentally. And to be honest it took me a long time to appreciate that I was a content creator. I had always thought of my self as a professional who sometimes gets online to talk on business and marketing. I started out just wanting clients for my business. Then this thing kept getting bigger.

Next thing I knew, people were sharing the videos, and strangers were telling me how they helped. That’s when it clicked — ah, okay, apparently we’re doing this now.

NG: As an avid follower of your content, I’ve come to notice that in all your videos, you look well prepared for them, how do you prepare?
PB: These days these videos are easier to do. I can casually switch on the camera and say a thought. But when I was starting out it was quite hard. I had never really been on camera, I was somewhat shy as well. The business videos take some time to develop. There’s research and a script mostly. It can take two to three days to properly do a video. The other ones are the easier. It’s a stream of consciousness. But generally
I prepare by thinking clearly first. If the thinking is clean, the recording is easy.

NG: Your articulation stands out, can you say that came by practice or you’re a natural?
PB: I’ve always been talkative — ask my uncle – he used to call me radio Banda I could talk your ear off. In school I was in debate and public speaking and as I mentioned above the Harare city junior council. I also used to be on TV a lot, on star kids. I hope that footage is lost and never found again. But the refinement came from years of having to pitch to executives who have the attention span of a goldfish. If you don’t get your point across fast, they move on.

So yes, some of it is natural, but most of it came from practice… and a few embarrassing presentations that I still think about at night.

NG: I understand you’re an author, talk to me about your books?
PB: My books are basically me taking about all the lessons life has thrown at me — the wins, the losses, the near-disasters — and packaging them in a way that helps someone else avoid unnecessary headaches. If I learn something and I think it’s useful, that’s a book waiting to be written. My first book was a cool book, simply because I learnt how to cook. My 30s book was simply because I went through a tough transition to from 20s.

NG: You’re also in marketing, an author, a content creator, how is the work – life balance for you? PB: Balance? I’m still looking for it — if you find it, please send it my way. My life unfortunately works in spurts. There are days or weeks when everything happens, book signings, interviews, conferences, consultancies, trainings etc. and then weeks when nothing happens. Some weeks I’m brilliant and energetic and some days I’m just trying to remember where I left my charger.

I’ve also learned to slow down. There was a time I wanted everything. Every opportunity, every phone call, every offer. Now I take easy. One thing at time mostly.

NG: What can you say to young Zimbabweans aspiring to also excel in the areas you have succeeded in? PB: Don’t wait for permission. Don’t wait for the perfect moment — it’s a myth. Start where you are, with what you have, and improve as you go.
And most importantly, learn skills. Real skills. Skills that survive electricity cuts, data shortages, and economic mood swings. The greatest skill you can learnt right is how to market yourself.

NG: What are some of the things you’re interested in that most people might not know? PB: I’m a nerd. I really like learning about science. When I was younger I wanted to be a scientist. I’m also a huge fan of aviation.
I’m also the guy who shows up to events, talks to everyone, then goes home and needs two days of silence to recover. If I wasn’t in my line of work I’d be a pre school teacher ha ha. I like kids.

NG: Whats more to come from Paul, say in the next five years?
PB: Growth — on a bigger scale.
More writing, more books. A bigger content platform. More training programs, more consultancies hopefully beyond the continent as well. Paul is the brand not anything I do specifically, just the whole of my interests, I hope to make that the brand.
And hey maybe a political career too.