I recently got to know a group of 26 inspiring entrepreneurs at the Unreasonable Institute, a startup accelerator for social entrepreneurs passionate about tackling the world’s greatest social and environmental problems. The entrepreneurs, or “fellows” as they’re called, came from all over the world to spend five weeks in Boulder, CO, learning how to get their businesses off the ground and meet with potential investors. I was invited to stay for a weekend to be a mentor.
I was happy to offer my advice, but what I enjoyed most is what I took away from the entrepreneurs, such as their:
- Passion for what they do. I observed this in Morris Matadi, a former Liberian child soldier turned entrepreneur who founded the Initiative for the Development of Former Child Soldiers (IDEFOCS). Through trauma counseling, agriculture programs and advocacy for scholarships, his nonprofit is helping rehabilitate and reintegrate former child soldiers into society.
- Can-do attitude. Take Thilakam Rajendran, who founded ARUNIM, an initiative to market products made by the physically or mentally challenged population of India, which numbers 60 to 80 million. Her goal is to help people with special needs become part of society. It’s a huge task, but nothing’s going to get in her way.
- Non-conformism. I call this innovating despite the corporate antibodies. All the entrepreneurs were housed under one roof away from any naysayers, and the ideas that were shared would blow your mind.
I am glad HP was able to support the entrepreneurs with a donation of ProBook 5330s to help them grow their businesses. I got to play Santa Claus and hand them out, and I discovered that many of the fellows had never owned a computer. They already have enough challenges ahead, and technology shouldn’t be one of them!
I plan to stay in touch and wish all the fellows success in their endeavors. I can’t wait to go back next year!
If you want to see my interview with Daniel Epstein, co-founder of the Unreasonable Institute, watch this video:
Phil McKinney - Library of Knowledge from Unreasonable Institute on Vimeo.
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