Inspiration comes in many forms.

In 2003, Jessica Jackley heard a speech by Grameen Bank founder and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Muhammad Yunus, an economist from Bangladesh who had pioneered the idea of microcredit: loans offered to entrepreneurs too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans. “I was so completely blown away,” she says, “by the idea that I quit my job, dropped everything and moved to East Africa to help.” In late 2005 she co-founded Kiva.org with Matt Flannery.

Kiva’s track record over the past decade is simply amazing.

Over 1.3 million lenders have loaned almost a billion dollars to almost 2 million borrowers – using a peer-to-peer model in which lenders sort through profiles of potential borrowers — be they a farmer in Cambodia, a pharmacist in Sierra Leone, or a shopkeeper in Mongolia — and make loans to those they find most appealing. The minimum loan is $25, and the interest rate is 0%. And the repayment rate for loans is more than 98%.

To find out exactly what $25 can do and to hear more about Jackley’s inspirational story see the video below.

  • Go to Minute 4 to hear the story of how Muhammed Yunus’s story motivated her to do something about the poverty she saw.
  • Go right to Minute 6 to hear the good that a microloan can do for a goat herder, a farmer and others who live on a few dollars a day.

 

Managing and motivating others can be challenging, frustrating and difficult at times.  I hope Jackley’s story helps to encourage you to stay the course – and maybe spread the word – about how it’s possible to change the world.

And for another entrepreneurial story of lives being changed, come hear John Ratliff, Founder and former CEO of 650 employee Appletree Answers our Keynote speaker at our 10th Annual Growth Strategies Breakfast on Friday, April 1st.

John is a champion of creating a strong Culture and Management team using the tools and best practices from “Scaling Up” and “Mastering the Rockefeller Habits” AND we’ll be sharing the results from our 10th Annual Growth Strategies Survey too.

Or just reach out and connect to learn more about how you can become a more inspirational leader!

 

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