Taking the Leap As a Student Leader

This is part 10 of an 11-part series on Undergraduate Social Entrepreneurship coordinated by the Social Innovation Initiative at Brown University. This post's author is Anna Ninan, Executive Director of the Mali Health Organizing Project.

I never made a specific choice to enter the world of social entrepreneurship after college -- it was more of a reality I fell into as my college career progressed. For me, it was simple: I wanted to use the skills I had to make the greatest positive impact on the world possible. When the Mali Health Organizing Project (MHOP) emerged as the best option, it seemed what I had to do, and I honestly couldn't imagine doing anything else.

Working abroad with global health organizations during college in Ecuador, India and Ethiopia, I found that many groups working to address the challenges of health in developing countries misdiagnosed the root causes of the problem, or gave rise to unintended negative consequences. In Ecuador I couldn't believe the "blame-the-victim" mentality that existed within my team at the onset of AIDS, and in Ethiopia I was shocked to discover that the infant of a company housecleaner died of diarrhea, despite the fact that her mother worked 12 hours a day in a mansion full of doctors. One project after another, I found myself fighting not just tuberculosis or malaria but arrogance, bureaucracy and organizational failures.

Social entrepreneurship, and in my case the Mali Health Organizing Project, gave me the flexibility to focus on new ways to address age-old problems head on. MHOP uses community organizing to create local health programs in Malian slums, addressing the most basic causes of morbidity and mortality. As a young organization, the Mali Health Organizing Project is able to adapt quickly, try innovative approaches, and go straight to the heart of the problem. Given my passion, I could not imagine not continuing this work after graduation.

Not to say that it has all been easy: jumping from my work as a student to the professional life has felt rocky at times. The cold reality that yoga pants and a sweatshirt are not considered "dressing for success" has begun to sink in, I have lost my fair share of sleep to anxieties of fundraising, and setting my own schedule has proved harder than I anticipated. I count myself lucky to have graduated debt-free, as my bank account is not exactly thriving, and I've met more than one person who fails to take me seriously because of my age.

At the same time, there's literally no other job that I'd rather have -- or could even imagine having.  The opportunity to mold our programs, craft and carry out a vision, and challenge the status quo from the bottom up offers unprecedented freedom, and the possibility to make an incredible impact. The wonderful thing about working in social entrepreneurship is that it's not just about the 2,000 people enrolled in a specific program, but rather the opportunity to reach millions of people through a new way of thinking about problems and solutions. And altogether it's hard to beat working for an organization where the possibilities are endless.

Photo Credit: rcosens12