Reflections
Strangely, I found the presentation last week to be a bit of a relief. We have been studying all these social entrepreneurs who are practically saints and have sacrificed much of their lives for their respective causes. Noreen Keleshian is a very bright and dedicated woman, but came across as completely… normal. Am I making sense?
In reading many of the stories in How to Change the World, I have felt a mixture of inspiration and discouragement. Like “wow, that’s great, but I’m never going to do that.” I would love to save the world and all, but is it wrong for me to put the needs of my kids and family above salvation of the planet? So I started thinking that maybe I was too practical (or lazy) to be a social entrepreneur. Then I saw the presentation by Noreen and I guess I felt a bit relieved. Sure, she has a tough job, but she seemed pretty grounded, realistic, and she even has time left over to prune her juniper bushes. I like the idea that a social entrepreneur can be someone who doesn’t necessarily come up with something brand new but someone who can take an existing idea and make it better.
