Fortunately, I was allowed by my family to be the owner of my destiny. I am originally from Brazil, where I did my University, but later moved alone to the United States to take a course in Los Angeles and after that to Toronto, in Canada, where I am pursuing a graduate certificate in Interactive Media Management, at Centennial College.
I was always able to decide my future and what is best for my career, but have never thought of influencing other people’s life so directly.
As part of the Global Citizenship and Equity Learning Experience (GCELE) program, I had the chance to travel to Nicaragua for two weeks, in May, to help develop a marketplace at a rural village. Our group of 12 students was divided in doubles to work closely with the entrepreneurs. And, luckily, I was assigned to the hot dog stall, ran by five girls in their senior year on high school.
My job was clear: I would help these girls with skills to run their first business. I was a small piece in this big puzzle, but I wanted to make a good impact.
I didn’t notice at first, but as the days passed I realized that I could be a mentor to Ruth, 17, Erlinda, 17, Hazel, 19, Exma, 16, and Kailyn, 15. They all have big dreams, like me. They all like Taylor Swift, like me. They all want to take direction of their lives, like me.
When we think of sustainability often it tights to environmental issues, but the word is more global than that. In Nicaragua, we wanted to create a market that could sustain itself, which means survive, thrive and teach others, like a “start, evolve, repeat” movement.
So there we were. Preparing to create this sustainable environment baptized as Mercadito Manzanillo. And I was able to pass on to these girls knowledge I acquired during all my experiences in life, a weapon that will make them better business women.
The girls didn’t choose me and Lilian (my double in this venture) to be their mentor. But they openly received us with a timid smile and warm hugs every time we met. They patiently listened to my portuñol (being a Portuguese speaker, I sometimes fall on some small mistakes when speaking Spanish) and followed the instructions we gave throughout a week of seminars.
They did that because they want more of life. And I sympathize with that. I had an urge of seeing more. So Leaving my country and my comfort zone was the way I found it and starting their own small business is the way the girls found it to meet this need.
So in this sense, they are change makers. They want to go to university and be able to improve their reality, whether is working with tourism or agronomy. And this is the first of many steps for them.
But the challenge was bigger than I initially thought. Living in a rural area makes everything slower and more difficult. The girls don’t have the habit of going to the supermarket and buying whatever they need to run a food business. First, they don’t have the money. Second, the closes supermarket is 45 minutes away from the area.
To solve this our group from Centennial College ran a crowdfunding campaign and was able to give each entrepreneur US$100, which in Nicaraguan money is a good amount, to buy minimal equipments for each stall. And the ONG organizing the marketplace provided the structure to buy those things, taking them in a rented van.
The first trial run of the marketplace was not the best. The girls were shy and didn’t know how to prepare things properly. But the willing to make it work was there and that is the most important.
By the end of the second week, after attending a series of workshop around business related subjects (accounting, customer service, marketing, operations) plus the experience from the second week, they did great during the real opening of the market!
I felt like a proud mama. During two weeks, I tried to give them advice on how to do things, but making them think what is best for them, what did they need. I gave them my personal money bag so they could use to keep money while working and some post-its that they could use to send orders to the girl cooking. I am sure that they are better prepared to run their first business, and experience will take care of the rest.
To be honest, I thought I was changing them by teaching them business skills. But, by the end, what I realized they also changed me. It felt really great to coach these ladies and see that I could share knowledge for a good cause.
They might have a very different life from mine, but the eager to win is in all of us. I somehow empowered them with skills and, in a similar way, my parents empowered me with education and love. To be an entrepreneur requires so much work, they are learning and I’m part of this. I can’t wait to hear the news from Nicaragua.
