Digressions With Befoune
“My mantra is “Unleash the human”.
I put the “self” at the center of all reflection in order to allow it to blossom in all serenity. All the actions deployed within the framework of Digressions have this ultimate goal.”
Born in Cameroon, Central Africa, C. Befoune is a Senegal based blogger, podcaster, and expert bilingual communications specialist who actively seeks to learn about everything and anything. A self-described translator, editor, columnist, activist, content creator, manager of a continent-wide civic engagement training course, and digital communication/campaign launch consultant, Befoune’s portfolio is extensive.
With a scope of work and activities that have included collaborations with International Organizations across the continent in diverse sectors, Befoune has worked with the West Africa Think Tank (WATHI), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the African Union. You can find her contributions on major international media outlets from Bakwa Magazine, Elephant Info, Africa Blogging, Africa Portal, to Radio France International. Befoune obtained both a dual Bachelor’s degree in English and French and a Master’s of Arts in Translation studies - the Advanced School of Translators and Interpreters (ASTI) - from the University of Buea, Cameroon.
Befoune’s work with Elle Citoyenne was awarded The Prix Connexions Citoyenne for the project Tout En Deux Minutes and the Next Generation Leader award from Africa Rizing.
Founder and editor-in-chief of the now-archived media blog Elle Citoyenne, Befoune is, as the extensive portfolio working with and contributing to diverse media suggests, no stranger to writing thought-provoking messages that encourage civic engagement and social action.
Prior to shutting its virtual doors, Elle CItoyenne, which was mostly self-funded, served as a platform to provide information on how to rouse and mobilize civic participation particularly in communities that continually await governmental intervention - which often never surfaces - rather then serve as authors of the change they need.
“When I launched Elle Citoyenne the success was immediate. I was traveling across the continent for events, my opinions were being sought on socio-political issues, people were asking me to be their mentor, people who recognized me on the street were looking at me with bright eyes. I frequented the elite of political activism across Africa, international media wanted me on their TV sets...
(Comment se débarrasser du syndrome de l’imposteur)
”
In December 2018, Befoune switched focus from another self-run blog on Medium called C. Befoune, where she had published over 200 articles with over 1800 loyal followers, to start afresh on her newly created personal website, Mesdigressions. The hope was to transition to a more intimate and comfortable space that did not require the formality of spaces like Medium but without compromising on quality, the diligent research that goes behind each post, and the well executed delivery that Befoune is known and recognized for.
Befoune is among other things, a translator, editor, activist, content creator, and digital communication/ digital campaign launch consultant.
“Medium was pretty, useful in its time, but I aspire to more, to better, to a more intimate content, but also more structured without being formalized. I want to remain me, and my writings must remain true.
(Non, vous ne me lirez plus sur Medium)”
Mes degressions is an everyday guide, providing insights on: navigating life as an adult, parenting successfully in a world that pushes for conformity, tips and resources on how to lead a life as a minimalist, and how to have that uncomfortable conversation on managing personal finances. If you are more of an on the go-person or prefer to listen to rather than read stories, the accompanying podcast, Les Papotages de C., takes you on a journey on adulting while providing well researched recommendations, book and podcast reviews, and musings on life. Both blog and podcast engage and interact with viewers, integrating commentary, and responding to questions.
A reflection of its author, both the blog and podcast are matter of fact, brutally honest, sarcastically funny, and just plainly unpretentious. If there is an elephant in the room, you can bet that Befoune will address it without fail and without hesitation. For Befoune, the elephant must and needs to be talked about to understand why in the world the elephant chose to be in the room at the particular moment, what lesson needs to be tried and tested and the action steps that need to be taken.
Befoune effortlessly demonstrates unpretentious mastery over words, going beyond presenting issues to proposing constructive, realistic, and self-tried solutions. Readers are often left captivated and made to feel that the sentences they are reading are in fact their own most articulated and well formulated thoughts, which they have most probably struggled to express.
In her blog post Comment se débarrasser du syndrome de l’imposteur, Befoune shares her personal experience with the all too familiar and relatable, imposter syndrome.
“Sometimes this fear paralyzes me. I decline invitations to panels because I feel I don’t have enough legitimacy to discuss the topics. ”
To navigate imposter syndrome, she provides readers with her own tried, tested, and refined steps that she employs to combat this feeling. Without giving too much away here, in the post, she highlights in eight realistic steps, the importance of continuous learning and a willingness to make and learn from mistakes, to be well informed and build a self-confidence that cannot be taken away.
“To give [them] the opportunity to express [themselves], to develop as much as possible a personality based on who [they] really [are] rather than on what [they] think is expected of [them].
(Pour quoi j’ai choisi une education gender neutral pour mon enfant)”
Others might also find Befoune to be controversial in her views as she constantly challenges the status quo and is often trend averse. In her blog posts Ma mere n’est pas une femme, translated as My mother is not a woman, and Pour quoi j’ai choisi une education gender neutral pour mon enfant, Why I choose to raise my child as gender neutral, she touches on the social construct of gender and its impact in conditioning and limiting individual identity.
In both posts, Befoune reconciles being raised by a mother who, although dressed in what society would describe as feminine, defied all the classic definition of a “woman” to live a life without limitation, and Befoune’s desire to raise a gender neutral child in a society that constantly chooses to label and box individuals according to their ascribed gender.
For millennials going through life, confused, and questioning their life purpose, Mesdigressions provides relatable personal experiences and tangible recommendations that challenges readers to define and grow into their own truth. If you happen to have life perfectly planned and well charted out, Befoune pushes you to continue to learn, grow, and question everything because as humans who constantly evolve, our views and beliefs must also be nurtured to do the same. And if you are looking to improve the quality and impact of your writing, Befoune offers a virtual 8 week writing intensive workshop, Lire utile pour écrire utile et interagir utile.
“We have to stop longing for the glorious past and stop dreaming on the basis of the promises of greatness by western countries.”
At Djellibah, we love to ask creatives a few questions about the African continent and any words of wisdom they would like to share with our viewers. Here is what C. Befoune had to say.
What is your dream for Africa?
To tell you the truth I have no dream for Africa. I think African people have dreamt enough. Now it's time to act! No dream for Africa. Africa is all about dreams and unfulfilled promises. It has to stop. We have to stop longing for the glorious past and stop dreaming on the basis of the promises of greatness by western countries. We need to accept that we are at the bottom of a hole and start working to get out of there.
If you didn't have to work a day in your life, what would you do, where would you go, and what would you create?
If I didn't have to work I would spend my whole life filling my brain with knowledge and write/podcast about the experience and how everything I discover is related to daily life.
What do you want to say to Young African creators who don't know where to start?
I don't have anything to say to young African creators because being African doesn't make them any special. They should stop thinking about themselves as "African creators".
Now if I have to talk to any creative who does not know where to start, I will say "Start exactly where you are with what you have. The fine-tuning comes later, meaning AFTER you created anything."
