Los Angeles Times!!!

Exciting news!

I have been contacted by a reporter for the Los Angeles Times who is interested in my work.  She sent me the following questions and portions of my answers will appear in the Los Angeles Times.

This will be my first content published by a major media news outlet.  Exciting!

I will let ya'll know when the article is published.

Why I chose to do a volunteer sabbatical:

            I had always dreamed of volunteering in the developing world.  While working in corporate America for five years was rewarding and challenging, I wanted to use my skill set in a more altruistic manner while I had the means to do so.

            My decision to volunteer wasn’t completely selfless though - I knew that by volunteering in Uganda I’d be exposed to an extremely resilient, talented and diverse cross-section of people.  I wanted to engulf myself in a categorically different culture, because as Andre Gide said, “One does not discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time.”

 

How my sabbatical has impacted me:

            When I told people I was volunteering in Africa for 6 months a common response was, “You won’t be the same person when you come back.”

            I was fine with that.  I am continually looking to evolve and grow as a person.

            Little did I know how much of an impact my sabbatical would have on me – its more than I could have ever asked for: increased confidence, renewed mental calm and clarity, a greater understanding of life, a more global understanding of the world and a vast satisfaction knowing my work is helping people.

           

How my sabbatical has impacted my career:

            Furthering your career and volunteering abroad are no longer mutually exclusive concepts.  Having a stint as a volunteer on your resume at once differentiates you and also conveys to your potential employer that you are more than an empty suit. 

            I am using the skills I garnered in corporate America to teach Ugandan high school students how to start and scale socially responsible businesses.              I have met other people using their professional competencies while volunteering - someone using his dancing background to spread AIDS awareness among the youth of Africa, someone else using her ceramics background to teach people vocational skills.  Volunteering allows people to strengthen their skills and to apply them in unorthodox scenarios that encourage creative thinking and problem solving.