Notes on Power by Tsepo Tebogo Matsimane

Ideas about power in plain sight.
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  • PHILOSOPHY
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A study of how power operates, how incentives shape behaviour, and why systems produce the outcomes they do. tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

Episodes

  1. The Corruption We Ignore Inside Ourselves

    FEB 10

    The Corruption We Ignore Inside Ourselves

    Corruption is usually blamed on politicians and powerful elites. But what if corruption is also shaped by survival, broken systems, and everyday compromises? In this deep psychological and philosophical podcast episode, we explore how corruption operates beyond government offices and into daily life. From bribing traffic officers to manipulating funding systems, this conversation exposes how power structures shape behavior and normalize ethical compromise. This episode breaks down the hidden relationship between power, survival, accountability, and moral conflict. It challenges listeners to rethink corruption as both a structural and cultural phenomenon affecting societies worldwide. If you care about social justice, governance, philosophy, economics, and human behavior, this conversation will challenge your perspective and spark deeper reflection. Subscribe for more thought provoking conversations about power, society, and human nature. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

    10 min
  2. Power Without Accountability: How South Africa Normalized Dysfunction and Silence

    FEB 7

    Power Without Accountability: How South Africa Normalized Dysfunction and Silence

    This episode of Notes on Power unpacks how power operates when accountability fades and dysfunction becomes normal. Using South Africa as a living case study, we explore how human behavior adapts to broken systems, why exhaustion is a powerful tool of control, and how societies learn to cope instead of confront. This is not a rant about politics. It’s a forensic look at power, compliance, and the quiet cost of adaptation. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

    10 min
  3. The Power Of Being Counted

    FEB 5

    The Power Of Being Counted

    Automatic voter registration is being debated as a major electoral reform in South Africa. But this conversation goes far beyond increasing voter numbers. In this episode of Notes On Power, we explore how automatic registration with the IEC could impact voting rights, youth political participation, constitutional protections, and democratic governance. This episode unpacks the hidden power behind being counted, the barriers that prevent citizens from registering to vote, and what automatic voter registration could mean for the future of South African democracy. From equality and civic inclusion to privacy and state data integration, we examine the political, philosophical, and societal implications shaping this national debate. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

    4 min
  4. When Power Speaks and Citizens Answer

    FEB 3

    When Power Speaks and Citizens Answer

    This episode unpacks the hidden forces shaping South Africa today by exploring the intersection of politics, economics, diplomacy and human behaviour. Through real national events and philosophical insight, the conversation breaks down how power operates in government, industry, culture and everyday life. It challenges citizens to understand governance beyond headlines and shows how grassroots awareness and participation can influence the future of democracy, economic stability and national identity in South Africa. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

    9 min
  5. How Power Really Works: Politics, Economics, and the Psychology of Obedience

    FEB 2

    How Power Really Works: Politics, Economics, and the Psychology of Obedience

    Power no longer relies on force. It relies on compliance. Drawing from political philosophy, behavioral economics, psychology, and research on human nature, this episode explores how modern power operates through rules, incentives, fear, and normalization. We unpack why people obey authority, how economic systems reward certain behaviors, and why sustained attention threatens power more than outrage. Ideal for listeners interested in philosophy, politics, economics, psychology, and social power dynamics. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

    6 min
  6. Will the Madlanga Commission Lead to Arrests Or Is It Just Another Performance?

    JAN 31

    Will the Madlanga Commission Lead to Arrests Or Is It Just Another Performance?

    The Madlanga Commission promises truth but South Africa has learned to doubt endings. In this episode, we strip away the ceremony and ask the uncomfortable question everyone is avoiding. Will truth translate into arrests, or is this just accountability dressed for television? This is not about hope or cynicism. It is about power, precedent, and what justice actually demands after the microphones are switched off. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

    9 min
  7. Big Brother Show Was Never About the Money

    JAN 31

    Big Brother Show Was Never About the Money

    Notes On Power is a solo deep dive into how power really moves when nobody is giving speeches. Using culture, politics, psychology, and social experiments like Big Brother, Tsepo T Matsimane breaks down influence, control, and human behaviour under pressure. No sugar-coating. A little dark humour. Real lessons for thinking clearly inside systems designed to shape you. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

    8 min
  8. The Politics of the School Gate

    JAN 29

    The Politics of the School Gate

    At Addington Primary School in Durban, a dispute over learner placement has escalated into protests, police intervention, and urgent government meetings. While activists argue that unregistered South African children are being excluded, education authorities insist admissions followed the law and capacity limits. This episode steps away from slogans and into substance. It unpacks what happened on the ground, what the Department of Education says, and why school gates are increasingly becoming pressure points for unresolved national tensions around migration, public services, and trust in institutions. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

    13 min
  9. The Philosophy of the Power of Money

    JAN 29

    The Philosophy of the Power of Money

    Money is not just currency. It is power that moves quietly through families, workplaces, and society. In this episode of Notes On Power, Tsepo Tebogo Matsimane explores how money disciplines behaviour, creates silence, and defines dignity in South Africa. This is a grounded, philosophical conversation about survival, inequality, and how to navigate a money driven world without losing your humanity. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

    8 min
  10. Where Power Actually Lives

    JAN 28

    Where Power Actually Lives

    This episode lays the foundation. Not by listing topics, but by explaining the lens. Notes on Power looks past personalities and into systems, incentives, and outcomes. From politics and economics to workplaces and everyday life, we explore how power operates quietly and why understanding it changes how you interpret success, failure, and fairness. This is where the framework becomes clear. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

    5 min
  11. Notes Before the Noise

    JAN 28

    Notes Before the Noise

    This first episode is a quiet entry point.Not a manifesto. Not a performance. Notes to Power begins by explaining what this podcast is and what it refuses to be. We look at power not as drama, but as structure. Not as villains and heroes, but as incentives, systems, and decisions made out of sight. These are reflections meant to slow thinking down in a world addicted to speed. If you’ve ever felt that most commentary talks past reality instead of into it, this is where we start. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

    1 min
  • 11 Episodes

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A study of how power operates, how incentives shape behaviour, and why systems produce the outcomes they do. tsepotebogomatsimane.substack.com

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