With my internship ending last week and me moving back to Valpo next Tuesday I’ve spent some time thinking about what I want to do after graduation. I was blessed to be exposed to the world of entrepreneurship. I think being able to reflect on the past is one of the best ways to grow and move forward.
This summer was full of new experiences, places, and people. The CAPS fellows here in Chicago were great people to share the summer with. So many of us had the same questions about life and purpose. I also had the opportunity to go with Cindy to an MBA tour to look at grad schools. It seems weird to be looking at grad schools already when I still have two years at Valpo, but looking at options and new possibilities is always exciting.
However, looking to the more immediate future, I had the pleasure to meet with a Peace Corps recruiter. I think I’m drawn to the Peace Corps for the same reason I was drawn to the military, out of a sense of service. While the purpose of the Peace Corps and the military may seem different to be ideologically opposed, I think they’re rather well aligned. Being an exemplar of American values overseas.
The positions I’m looking to apply for are focused on economic development in Eastern Europe. Eastern Europe, specifically the Balkan countries, have been in turmoil sense the collapse of the USSR. I’m talking genocide, civil war, political unrest, and more. I think the philosophy of turning swords to plowshares is important in these countries. While Humanitarian work is important in these countries, economic development is going to be a vital catalyst into the country having a chance at long term recovery.
When we think of business in America we often think of fortune 500 companies with CEOs that have houses in every time zone. However, when I think of business, I think of small business owners. Every dollar that goes in their pockets isn’t going to be a third house. It’s paying for a child’s guitar lessons and improving a family’s quality of life. Essentially: Individual, family, community, region, country, then world.
By helping these business owners develop their businesses and assisting entrepreneurs, it’s laying the foundations for a better tomorrow in their country. Better business will increase the quality of the communities they are in and can provide the financial means in taxes to improve the country’s infrastructure overall.
I want to spend the next couple years refining my skills and gaining new knowledge to best prepare myself for this role. Often times in the Peace Corps you are on your own and most of the projects you take on are taken on your own initiative. Think the best pathway I want to approach is focusing in on is entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship is a skill that is universal, knowing how to use it will be critical in turning a former combat zone into a community.

As a business student I would not be surprised if my peers outside of the college of business thought all I aspired to in life was to make six figures, play a round or two of golf at lunch and try to make it into a corner office with a comfy chair. While all that sounds nice, it’s not what I want. What I want is to help foster peoples’ growth and make their dreams materialize.

Here at the Industrial council of Chicago, the ICNC for short, we do just that. Looking back to what I’ve read or learned in class, I discovered that entrepreneurs make up less than 10% of the population but make up over 30% of America’s overall economy. How could so few people do so much? What could I learn about them? Is it a personality trait, some animal urge, or a relentless pursuit of independence?

I don’t know. Entrepreneurs are from all strings of society and exist in almost any industry. They may be a banker who left his spreadsheets behind to go into making organic, gluten free bread or four friends who used to sell sports apparel out of briefcases outside stadiums until they finally created their own chain of stores. Young or old, an entrepreneur is an entrepreneur.

One of the most valuable qualities that I want to take out of this internship is an entrepreneurial sense of creativity and bravery. I think these are traits are critical to helping fix the problems of the world and would be some of the most important lessons I’ve learned at the ICNC these past few weeks alongside the other skills I’m learning.  The world is encapsulated in a whirlwind of problems day by day, and learning to think in an unorthodox way like an entrepreneur is critical in any plan to change the world, big or small. However, I think bravery is the most important aspect of my whole fellowship.

Learning to not be afraid of failure when it happens I think is one of the most inspiring lessons I can take out of this internship. At the events I work at for the ICNC so many entrepreneurs describe just how vulnerable they felt when things started to go south. So many of them have failed in the process of following their dreams, but hearing how they brushed themselves off, saw what went wrong and worked on fixing their issues to become successful is really something else. To an entrepreneur you only really fail when you just stop trying and give up.

While I only have a few more weeks left at the ICNC, I want to take on whatever challenges may come my way. Opportunities to learn this outside of the classroom are so rare to find. Even learning to network around influential Chicago businessmen and politicians can be intimidating it is no excuse not to try. Going back to Valparaiso this fall will be weird as I’m no longer trying to find a decent corporation to work for. I’m going to be looking down a different path and see about making my own way!