The tag line of “The Think Big Manifesto” is “Think you can’t change your life (and the world)? Think again.” That is a pretty good summary about what the book is all about, although the focus is more about changing the world than your life. The book focuses on challenging you to think big about life and what you can achieve. It challenges you to think about ways you can make a difference in the world.

What I Didn’t Like

I picked up this book expecting to read a book focused on, well, thinking big. While the book talks about that, it seems to be more focused on the idea of changing the world, rather than the act of thinking big. In other words the advice on thinking big is very focused on changing the world, not on how to think big. For example, Port writes,

“Small thoughts are not reality…. You are more than you think. You can do more with your own life and you can have an impact on the larger world outside you – your family, your community, your country, our global village.”

Great advice, and very true, but not what I was expecting from the title. Instead it seems to focus more on the fact that you should think big (which I knew), rather than on HOW to think big (which I want to get better at).

Another thing I do not like is the constant “I” focus. Perhaps the purpose of a manifesto is to share more from an “I” focus, however I found it difficult at times because the “I” focus seems to take away from helping the reader.

One more thing that I don’t like is that the book seems to be a little fluffy. For example, Port writes,

“Failure is nothing. It will happen. We will transcend it.”

While I think it is great to say that failure will happen, the idea of simply “transcending it” is a little whimsical. I would have preferred a more detailed look at how we can learn from failure, how to THINK BIG in spite of failure, and HOW to move beyond failure.

What I Did Like

There are, however, many things that I liked about the book. First of all, I really like the fact that Port focuses on making a difference in the world. The book focuses on changing the world, and the fact that every person can make a difference in the world. I like that he addresses how the thing that holds most people back from changing the world is how they think. We think small and therefore we act small.
Secondly, I like that the book moves beyond the common definitions of success: a better job, more money, and more things. Instead it looks at contribution and making the difference as being the true measure of success. Port writes,

“If you’re not happy now, you’re not going to be happy when you have more money, purchase your dream home, or whatever goal you may have.”

Another thing I like is that Port shares many examples of other people who are thinking big. While some of the examples are surprising and may seem out of place, they serve to demonstrate the power to make a difference even in what others might consider the “mundane” things of life.

The second part of the book really makes up for some of the short comings in the first half. One of my favorite sections of the book is his section on collaboration. I tend to be the type of person who just gets things done myself. I have not collaborated very often. Learning from this section means I need to be open to more forms of collaboration. Port writes,

“True collaboration is a give-and-take. True partnerships are founded in equality. Equality does not equal sameness. We don’t all bring the same skills or resources to the table, but we all bring something and we all need something….. . This kind of collaboration is possible only when we are very secure, win-win, without measuring who won more. Can we allow ourselves to be happy if we get what we want, even though others get more of what they want? It’s not at our expense.”

Conclusions

So is “The Think Big Manifesto” worth reading? Yes it is. Certainly there are many things that could be improved, and I don’t think it lives up to its title; however, there is a lot of good that you can get from reading the book. I learned things and was inspired – both things that I really appreciate in a book. If you pick up this book realize you are getting a book about changing the world more than you are about thinking big. Thinking big is just the method that allows for the world to be changed.

To give you a deeper flavor for the book I’ll leave with some of the quotes that I found inspiring:

“Inspiring others to think big is perhaps the single most important act of any one individual thinking big.”

“Know that we reach only what we aim for, so there is no choice but to aim high if we are to succeed.”

“Think: ‘Why not me?’ instead of ‘Why me?’”

“The truth is that big thinking is always, always [always, always, always] worth the expenditure of energy.”

“People will be excited about what you do only if you are excited about it. People will believe in you and what you do only if you believe.”

“The more uncomfortable you are, the more challenged you are.”

“Small thinking has the power to suck in everything around it. To influence and sway small thoughts, big thinking must first exert twice the strength to achieve a fraction of the same force.”

Review by:
Danny Gamache

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Seth Godin is a powerful voice in the field of marketing.  The contribution Godin has made to the field over the past decade is substantial.  In particularly Godin has been a leader in thinking about the implications of the web and social media on marketing.  His previous books include Permission Marketing, Purple Cow,  The Dip and Meatball Sundae.  Each of these books brought to light an important concept for marketing or entrepreneurship.

In his most recent book “Tribes”, Godin adds to our understanding of the world today by explaining that the world needs tribes. He says,

“A tribe is a group of people connected to one another, connected to a leader, and connected to an idea….  A group needs only two things to be a tribe: a shared interest and a way to communicate.”

Naturally today’s increasingly flat world and the technology that makes it run allow tribes to form and function more easily than ever before.  What is missing, Godin argues, is leadership.

That is the crux of this book.  Unlike his previous books, the focus of Tribes is not marketing or entrepreneurship.  The focus is on leadership. The book would fit much better into the “leadership” category of the bookstore than the “marketing” category.  Of course both marketing and entrepreneurship involve leadership, and as such people with both types of interest would benefit.  However, because leadership is a broader target, the number of people who should read this book increases.

Within the umbrella of leadership Godin touches on topics such as:

• why the fear of failure is overrated
• a brief history of the factory
• the connection and difference between faith, fear and religion
• watching the music industry die
• what is sheepwalking

Who should read this book?  Everyone who wants to make a difference in the world! People who want to make a difference in the world need to lead, and leading today is different than leading yesterday.  Yesterday was made up of local tribes, today while tribes may start local, but they all have the potential for global reach.

“Before the Internet, coordinating and leading a tribe was difficult.  It was difficult to get the word out, difficult to coordinate action, difficult to grow quickly.  Today, of course, instant communication makes things taut, not squishy.”

If you want to make a difference in the world, you need to become a leader – even if you don’t think you want to.  “Tribes” will encourage you, challenge you, and teach you how to make a difference and to lead a tribe.

“Tribes” is also about breaking out of the mold that we are put into, whether it is by our boss or our habits. It is about working against the grain:

“Heretics are the new leaders. The ones who challenge the status quo, who get out in front of their tribes, who create movements. The marketplace now rewards (and embraces) the heretics.  It’s clearly more fun to make the rules than to follow them, and for the first time, it’s also profitable, powerful and productive to do just that.”

As all of Godin’s books, “Tribes” is easy to read.  It is short and filled with section after section of advice.  The book is filled with examples of how tribes are formed and how they are making a difference around the world.  The book is encouraging because it is through and through a call to action: a call to lead a tribe.

I’ll leave you with some other quotes from “Tribes”:

“The market wants you to be remarkable. The most important tribes are bored with yesterday and demand tomorrow.”

“Life’s too short to fight the forces of change.  Life’s too short to hate what you do all day.  Life’s way to short to make mediocre stuff.  And almost everything that’s standard is now viewed as mediocre.”

“If the only side effect of the criticism is that you will feel bad about the criticism, then you have to compare that bad feeling with the benefits you’ll get from actually doing something worth doing.  Being remarkable is exciting, fun, profitable and great for your career.  Feeling bad wears off.”

“Leadership is scarce because few people are willing to go through the discomfort required to lead.”

“Change isn’t made by asking permission.  Change is made by asking forgiveness, later.”

“Leadership almost always involves thinking and acting like the underdog.  That’s because leaders work to change things, and the people who are winning rarely do.”

Review Written by:  Danny Gamache – The Success Professor

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Outliers by Malcom Gladwell is a book I was excited to read from the moment it was released.  The previous books by Gladwell, Blink and Tipping Point set a high standard for excellence.  Often, however, when I’m this excited to read a book, my expectations are not met and I finish disappointed.  Thankfully Outliers lived up to its advance billing. It is an excellent book that everyone should read.

Outliers is a fascinating read that uses research from Psychologists, Sociologists, Anthropologists and others to try to understand what makes people successful.  Gladwell builds on this by doing his own research into fascinating people and events that help to build an understanding of what success is.

Early on in the book we see that Gladwell truly is focused on the exceptional.  These are the outliers, those “markedly different” from the rest of people.  The book takes these outliers and looks to determine what makes them successful.

Gladwell’s findings in many ways go against the grain of what we might expect: “What’s the question we always ask about the successful?  We want to know what they’re like – what kind of personalities they have, or how intelligent they are, or what kind of lifestyles they have, or what special talents they might have been born with…….  I want to convince you that these kinds of personal explanations of success don’t work.  People don’t rise from nothing…… They are invariably the beneficiaries of hidden advantages and extraordinary opportunities and cultural legacies that allow them to learn and work hard and make sense of the world in ways others cannot.”

Now this might sound a little fatalistic.  People become successful because of factors that they can’t control.  In reality, as you read the book, you see a trend.  Yes, successful outliers tend to have some advantages over others.  But the purpose of those advantages was to create the type of person who will work hard, practice hard, and get the right sort of training to become successful.

The first section starts of by looking at athletes in team sports.  The particular case study looks at hockey players in Canada and soccer players in Europe.  The same phenomenon occurs in both, because there is a January 1 cut off for when kids play with a certain age group. The best players tend to be born early in the year. This is not because there is some magical quality that makes kids born in January, February, or March better athletes, but rather it is because these kids are bigger when they are young and get chosen to be on teams that have better coaching and get more practice.  So the success factor is better coaching and more practice.

The second chapter is called “The 10,000 – Hour Rule” and it shares how researches have found that to become an expert at something it takes 10,000 hours.  That’s 10,000 hours of hard work and extra practice that it takes to become successful. Gladwell looks at what kinds of childhood advantages allow someone to have that much time to put into an endeavor.  He looks at Bill Gates and The Beatles as examples.  Of course they didn’t just have the opportunity to put in the hours, but they had the passion, the drive, and the willingness to work hard for that much time.

Later, Gladwell compares geniuses and looks at how geniuses from different backgrounds perform later in life.  The thing that separated geniuses who succeeded from those who didn’t was often the family background and economic status of the home they grew up in.  Those that grew up in middle class homes had the opportunity to be in more activities.  This gave them more confidence, taught them skills like teamwork, and gave them the ability to interact with others.  In other words it helped with social preparedness.

As you read through the book you’ll continue to be exposed to fascinating research and examples that show why people born at a certain time, or from a certain ethnic background living in a certain city tend to be more successful.  Usually it’s because something about these events drove them to work hard, study well, or get better education.  All of which then allowed them to become successful.

One final study I’ll share is Gladwell’s look at why Asian students tend to do better in math.  He traces it back to two factors.  One is the nature of numbers in most Asian languages.  They follow a logical system that makes math easier than the English language.  A second, and perhaps more fascinating reason, is because of the cultural heritage.  The cultural heritage is traced back to the way rice farmers work.  He argues, “the people who grow rice have always worked harder than almost any other kind of farmer.” The effect of this kind of hard work on a culture, caries on for hundreds, perhaps thousands of years.  Today this is seen in the success of Asian students, particularly in the area of math.  It also helps them have an attitude that doesn’t give up.  In math, Gladwell concludes, “Success is a function of persistence and doggedness and the willingness to work hard for twenty-two minutes to make sense of something that most people would give up on after thirty seconds.”

So, while reading Outliers won’t give you a magic list of things to do to become successful, it will open your mind to the forces at play around you.  The events that take place “behind the scenes” so to speak that help people become successful.  But you’ll also be inspired by one trend that Gladwell brings up as he brings the book to a conclusion: “Virtually every success story we’ve seen in this book so far involves someone or some group working harder than their peers.”  So….. get to work!

Written by:

The Success Professor — Danny Gamache
On Twitter: @successprof
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Leo Babauta

Today you are in for a special treat. This week, I had the privilege of interviewing Leo Babauta, the author of the blog Zen Habits and of the new book (released today!) called “The Power of Less”.

In the interview below Babauta shares about his definition of success, how he got the book deal, and how to start of 2009 with purpose!

I encourage you to order his book and check out the  book’s website which has a wealth of resources including audio training and a free ebook.  Finally, if you purchase his book by January 1 you can enter this special contest.
For now, enjoy the interview:

1. What is your definition of success? How did you come to that definition?

I define success as happiness — doing the things and spending time
with the people that make you happy. That might be something as simple
as having a satisfying life with your children and spouse, or
achieving great things and helping people while doing something you’re
passionate about. Whatever makes you happy.

It took me awhile to figure out that wealth and the traditional
definitions of success — making a huge name for yourself, achieving
status in society, having a big house and cars, and so forth — didn’t
mean much if you weren’t happy. I tried to pursue those traditional
definitions of success at first, but after a time I realized that I
wasn’t spending time with my wife and children, I was working too
much, and the material things weren’t worth the sacrifices. I had to
rethink my view on life, and once I realized the true definition of
success I’ve never been happier.

2. What steps do you take to pursue personal growth?

I learned to focus on what I really love doing, and restructured my
life so I had time for those things. So today I make my living doing
something I’m passionate about, instead of making a living doing
something that makes money and waiting for the day when I had a chance
to do what I’m passionate about. This has lead to so much in my life
– not only happiness but greater accomplishments than ever before.
That’s a nice side benefit because the happiness is what really
matters.

3. What led you to start Zen Habits?

I’d been going through a series of positive personal changes –
quitting smoking, running, waking early, eating healthier, getting
organized and productive, and so forth — and I’d been learning a lot
while doing these things. I was so excited about all of it that I
decided to share what I’d been learning, as well as my failures, so
that others could benefit too.

4. Could you explain the meaning of the name Zen Habits?

It’s a combination of two ideas I’d been trying to implement — it
embodies my philosophy in two words. The first word, “Zen”, refers not
to my religion but to what I’d learned from reading about Zen and
doing some Zen meditation — learning to focus on the moment, on
whatever I was doing at the time. It’s a simplicity that I’ve learned
is very powerful in all areas of life.

The second word, “Habits”, refers to the series of habit changes that
I’d been making in my life, and my belief that simple but effective
habit change techniques can have a great impact on whatever we do. We
are our habits, after all.

5. How did your book deal come about? What was the writing process like?

The book deal followed the success of Zen Habits — I’d grown to
20,000 or 30,000 subscribers and it was clear that a lot of people
were interested in the things I was writing about on Zen Habits. I was
contacted by an agent and some publishers and decided to do a book,
and received immediate interest.

The writing process was actually very difficult — first of all
because I was still trying to write for Zen Habits and start up
another blog and get married and train for a marathon and plan for my
honeymoon. It was too much, so I simplified and cleared my schedule
and focused entirely on the book until I got it done. It’s more proof
that the techniques in The Power of Less actually work!

The Power of Less

6. Could you explain the meaning of the name, “Power of Less”?

It refers to how we can achieve more by focusing on less — if we focus on the important things. It also talks about how starting small is better, as it leads to greater chances of success. It talks about simplifying, about the power of applying limits, and the power of doing one thing at a time. Concentrate your focus on smaller things and you’ll be much more effective.

7. What are your goals for the book?

The same as my goals for Zen Habits — help as many people as possible. I’m hoping to reach a wider audience through the book, to share some of my simple philosophy and effective techniques so that others can benefit from things I’ve learned. If it does well and I get another book deal out of it, even better!

8. Who are the biggest influences in your life?

There are so many! I’m influenced by philosophers and doers, such as
Gandhi, the Dalai Lama, Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh, Zen and Taoist
philosophy, and many many writers. I’m influenced by my mom, Shannon
Murphy, my dad, Joe Babauta, my grandparents, my children, my wife
Eva. Many blogs and books have also helped shape who I am.

9. What inspires you?

I am inspired by others who are living their dreams, who have found
simplicity and happiness, who have learned to be compassionate, who
live in the moment. I love reading blogs and books and magazines about
these things, and of course I find people every day in my life — both
online and in the real world — who are doing amazing things and who
inspire me daily.

10. How do you recommend someone starts the new year?

By creating a new positive habit! Don’t create resolutions — they are
often vague and unactionable. Instead, use the habit-change techniques
in my book to create a new habit that will last much longer.

Go to thepowerofless.com to join The Power of Less New Year’s
Challenge — we’re going to help people create a new habit in 30 days,
using just 10 minutes a day!

Thanks Leo Babauta for the interview.  Everyone, check out his book today.

The Success Professor – Danny Gamache

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In his new book, “Hot, Flat and Crowded”, Tom Friedman shares the following thought:

In some ways, the subprime mortgage mess and housing crisis are metaphors for what has come over America in recent years: A certain connection between hard work, achievement and accountability has been broken. We’ve become a subprime nation that thinks it can just borrow its way to prosperity – putting nothing down and making no payments for two years. Subprime lenders told us that we could have the American dream – a home of our own – without the discipline or sacrifice that home ownership requires.  We didn’t need to save or build a solid credit record.  The bank around the corner would borrow money from China and lend it to us – with a credit check no more intrusive than the check you get at the airport when they make sure the name on your airline ticket matches the one on your driver’s license.

This quote can remind us of some simple success principles.

1. Hard Work is Key -

Society has become fixated on easy ways to wealth.  People everywhere are looking for quick fixes to their problems.  The lesson in this is that hard work is key.  That doesn’t mean you need to spend time doing things that aren’t important, or that you can’t be more productive at times working less.  What it means is that achievement is contingent on working hard (and smart).

2. Debt is not the Answer –

The focus on using debt as a form of leverage has failed.  Corporations leveraged to the max have failed.  Individuals intent on turning the realestate boom into instant wealth are now stuck with properties they don’t want and can’t afford.

3. Wealth and Success do not have to be Instant –

In a society focused on speed we have grown to cellebrate and admire the instant success.  For most succes doesn’t come in an instant.  It comes as a result of hard work and determination sustained over a period of time.  We need to move away from an instant society and reward cellebrate those who persevere.
The good news is that we can use this time as a wake up call.  We can work on cutting uneeded spending, getting out of debt, and committing to worthwhile goals.  By working hard and persisting towards the worthwhile we can all achieve true success.  It might not be in an instant but it will come!

The Success Professor – Danny Gamache

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Recently, I shared with everyone my Top 10 Books.  At the time I mentioned that I was currently reading “Getting Things Done” by David Allen.  In the comments, Dave Jones, asked me to share my thoughts on the book when I finished.  This post will share my reflections on the book, as well as a few take home points that will help you become more productive.  Please be sure to share your experience with Getting Things Done (GTD) in the comments section below.

Reading and applying tips from GTD will make you more productive. The subtitle of the book is “The Art of Stress-Free Productivity”.  There are two claims in this: 1) You will be stress-free in your work, and 2) You will be more productive.   Obviously, both of these are very appealing thoughts.

The idea that you will be stress-free comes from Allen’s belief that if you have everything on your “to do” list written down and in a trusty system your subconscious mind will stop worrying about the task, stop reminding you about it, and allow your trusted system to go to work. While, I do see the system as a way to reduce stress, and help you relax more, the idea of being completely “stress free”, may be pushing it a bit.

The real strength of the book for me is in providing ways to increase productivity.  The book is designed specifically for knowledge workers; people whose primary work is to use, process, and share knowledge.  Chances are that if you primarily work in an office, you are a knowledge worker, and this book will help you be more productive.  For me, this would necessarily include all three of my major professional areas: being a professor, writing this blog, and building my home business.

The System

GTD is designed to be an entire system, not just a few activities. The system will allow you to take any activity, task, email/voice mail, or project and move it more quickly towards completion.  The system involves five major processes that every activity needs to go through.

1. Collect – writing down and recording everything you need to do.
2. Process – going through everything you have collected and determining whether it can be done quickly, or as part of a project, and then deciding to either do it, delegate it, or defer it until a later time.
3. Organize – taking the activities that you need to do and putting them into actionable lists and set projects.
4. Review – going through all of your lists and projects to ensure that you are doing what you need to do.
5. Do – taking action and getting things done.

Allen’s system comes with a thorough flow chart, and sub systems for each of these five processes to help you move through it efficiently and quickly while not dropping any of the activities you need to do.   The entire system will take significant time to set up and get used to.  You really need to set aside two full days after you have read the book to setup the system in your life.

Beyond the System

The good news is that you don’t need to use the entire system to get a lot out of this book. At this point, I have been implementing a number of elements of the system rather than the system as a whole.  This may change later, but at this point, there are some elements that can fit my life and that I know will make substantial differences in my productivity. When you are reading the book, be open to implementing the entire system, but also realize that you can start with one activity at a time and build up towards the systems he suggests.

Value for Me

Initially, the tips I learned while reading GTD made a bigger impact in my role as a professor than in my blog or business.  As I have gotten better at implementing these ideas in that setting they have now started to naturally carry over into my blog and business as well as other areas of life.  The following are five tips that I have already implemented and that have started to make improvements.  I will list and briefly explain the tips here.  Many of them will become full length articles over the next month or two.

1. Two Minute Policy – Allen suggests that whenever you are processing tasks to ask yourself if what you are looking at can be done in two minutes.  If it can, then do it.  This helps to prevent procrastinating on the small things.

2. Weekly Review – Each week you need to have a time of weekly review where you go through your lists and projects and make sure there are not any outgoing activities that you need to get done, and that all of your responsibilities are written down and set up in the correct part of your system.  This review goes great along with my weekly planning process.

3. Write Everything Down – Every activity that you agree to do needs to be written down.  Simply write it down on a piece of paper and put it in your in box for processing.  By writing everything down you won’t be worried about missing something that you have committed to doing.

4. Folders for Each Project – For each project you are involved in you need to have a folder.  That folder will allow you to place anything that you need for accomplishing that project.  Big projects will have several folders each representing a different aspect of that project.

5. Asking “What’s the Next Action?” – By asking this question of every project you have, you will always know what you need to do next.  Often this next step will be smaller than you had pictured, and may even fit within the two minute rule.  Also, ask this question at the end of every meeting you have, ensuring that all parties go away ready to make progress.

Reading Getting Things Done

“Getting Things Done” is certainly worth reading.  When you pick up the book, remember that it is not a quick read.  Much of the steps that Allen describes require that you take time to think through how that would fit in your life.  Make sure that you read with a highlighter in hand so that you can mark up key areas and return to them later.  Also, have a pad of paper and pen with you so you can write down ideas as you come to them.

One of the reasons it took me longer to read this book than others is that whenever I sat down to read I became inspired to go and get things done! I would sit down with the intention of reading for 30 minutes and would be up accomplishing something after about 10 minutes of reading.  Of course this is a very good thing!  The act of simply reading the book helped me to accomplish more.

This is also a book that you cannot just read once.  I will be returning to this book again in a few months to help me readjust the tools that I have put in place and reconsider ways that I should implement the system as a whole.  I know it will be something that will provide continued value for years to come.

Enjoy the book!

The Success Professor – Danny Gamache

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Recently I wrote an article entitled 6 Ways to Grow Daily, and the subsequent follow up, how to create a reading plan and where I shared my Top 10 Book Choices.  Today’s article follows in that series by providing another way for your professional development – TED!

Are you familiar with TED?  TED is an annual conference held for top leaders in the fields of Technology, Education, and Design.  The conference is very exclusive, with a detailed application process, and an expectation that you will only be accepted if you are top leader in your particular field.  At the conference this exclusive group of people is exposed to 50 top notch lectures from other leaders, authors, and educators.  There are no breakout sessions, instead everyone gets every lecture all together. The goal is to literally change the world with this group of leaders as a starting point.

Naturally, because the event is so exclusive, the likelihood of any one person being able to attend the event for personal development reasons is slim-to-none.  Fortunately, TED talks are also made available online. The videos have become a top source of online personal growth and learning about a wide variety of subjects.  With numerous videos from several years of recent TED conferences means that you have hours and hours of videos right at your disposal.

So how do you narrow them down?  Obviously you will need to search their database for areas of personal interest, but to help you out here is my top 5 TED talks list:

1. Malcom Gladwell – author of The Tipping Point & Blink

Talk: What We Can Learn From Spaghetti Sauce

2. Tony Robbins – author of Unlimited Power & Awaken The Giant Within

Talk: Why We Do What We Do

3. Seth Godin – author of Purple Cow & The Dip

Talk: Sliced Bread

4. Billy Graham – evangelist (See: Autobiography: Just As I am)

Talk: Technology, Faith, and Suffering

5. Richard St. John – author of 8 to be Great

Talk: Secrets of Success in 8 Words & 3 Minutes

This list will give you a great start.  Do you have a favorite TED talk?  Which is your favorite out of these five?  What other talks would you recommend?  Share the details below and we continue to help others grow.

To your success,
The Success Professor – Danny Gamache
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Today is blog action day.  All around the world, thousands of blogs will be writing about the same issue – poverty.  There are many ways to combat poverty.  One of the methods that is increasing in importance is microcredit.  Microcredit has come under the world spotlight over the past several years. The United Nations declared 2005 the Year of Microcredit and in 2006, Dr. Muhammad Yunus, considered to be the founder of microcredit, won the Nobel Peace Prize.

What is Microcredit?

Microcredit is the use of small loans to people who are too poor to qualify for standard bank loans. The goal of the loan is to help them move out of poverty by helping them start or expand some form of business known as an income generating activity. The loan is then paid back quickly, generally in one year or less. Payments are made weekly with interest paid as part of those weekly payments. Microcredit caries a natural appeal to people who might be skeptical of traditional methods of international aid because it promotes the idea of a “hand up not a hand out”.

In March of this year I was privileged to take a brief trip to Bangladesh to witness the work of the microcredit division of an organization called Child Development Network.  This was a profound trip that opened my eyes to the issues of global poverty and how microcredit can be used in the fight.

Income Generating Activities – Entrepreneurship

Rickshaw Driver in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Microcredit is all about supporting and developing entrepreneurs.  Loans are made for income generating activities – in other words for small (sometimes very small) businesses.  Some examples from Bangladesh include:

* Rickshaw drivers – one common purchase with a microcredit loan is a rickshaw.  Rickshaws are often used instead of taxis in Bangladesh.  A loan for one rickshaw generally creates two jobs, as the owner will use it for 10-12 hours a day, and then hire an employee to drive it for the remainder of the day.  Enterprising people will turn their profits from their first rickshaw into a second rickshaw that they hire employees for.

Farmer in the slums of Dhaka

* Farmers – in rural areas the farmers are the primary entrepreneurs to benefit from microcredit.  Money is often used for a cow or a bull.  The farmer is able to sell the milk and the calves to create an income, and slowly over time increase their herd.  Even in the slums of

the city entrepreneurs will set up small farms (see photo).

* Small Shops – some entrepreneurs set up small stores with their loans.  These are generally small tin shacks with an open front for customers to come to.  They sell everyday use items such as soap and toothpaste, as well as some basic foodstuffs.

* Fruit and Vegetable stands – similar to the shop owners, some people develop fruit and vegetable stands where they are able to sell fresh produce that has come in to the city from the countryside.

Sewing Shop

* Sewing shop – another popular use of microcredit is to purchase a sewing machine and do sewing services for people.  Again, this has the potential to create many jobs as people often will pay off their first sewing machine and use future income to purchase a second machine and start hiring people.

Benefits of using Microcredit

1. Freedom from moneylenders
Microcredit moves the debt out of the hands of moneylenders who charge extremely high rates of interest. These borrowers are not eligible for loans from traditional banks for many reasons. In general, they are not considered to be viable borrowers. Usually, they do not have a suitable form of collateral, many are illiterate, and often the loans are so small that the bank would not make enough profit to cover the costs of completing the paperwork. Because of this, people who are already struggling with severe poverty are forced to go to the money lenders. Much to the surprise of the traditional banks, microcredit organizations tend to have repayment rates around 98%.

2. Creating savings
Many microcredit organizations require beneficiaries to save for the future. Dr. Yunus’ Grameen bank requires that 5% of each loan is saved on a weekly basis in a group fund.  Other organizations save the funds on behalf of the borrowers allowing for the funds to be used only in cases of emergency. Beyond required savings, many microcredit organizations allow borrowers to save at their own initiative. By encouraging people to save for their future they are able to help people prepare for the possibilities of floods, famines or other disasters, as well as saving for future purchases.

3. Empowerment of Women
Another advantage of microcredit is that most loans are made primarily to women. This results in significant empowerment for women in cultures that often have very few rights for women. Empowerment also comes through the relationships that women develop. As women meet weekly with other borrowers they develop relationships that help them both with business growth and other life goals.

4. Providing Other Services
The framework of microcredit provides for the possibility for organizations to provide borrowers with many other services.  The variety of extra services is vast and may include provision of health care and disease prevention, literacy programs, as well as savings and insurance programs. One of the most important services that many microcredit organizations focus on is training. The group approach especially provides opportunity for easy and efficient training whether on business skills, character development.

5. Multiplication of Donations
The donations that are made also have a multiplier effect as the money is often loaned out several times. Each time it is repaid it is loaned out to another beneficiary. This is a big part of what makes it so appealing to donors.  The multiplication effect can be even greater when you consider that more than one job is often started from each loan. As the borrower grows her business, she is able to hire other people increasing the level of employment in the region.

Further, the lending agency should eventually be able to become a self-sustaining enterprise. After an initial period of funding from outside organizations, the lending agency will be able to continue to expand their services to more and more beneficiaries by simply using existing revenues.

6. Poverty Alleviation
Naturally the big benefit of microcredit is that it helps people move out of poverty.  This is a slow and steady process that occurs as borrowers grow their business. As their standard of living increases through their business or other income generating activity the borrowers move past the point of fighting for survival and are able to start dreaming about the future.

It may take a year or two for a borrower to move from $1 a day in income to $2 a day in income. By progressing even in this small way, the borrower is able to substantially improve their life. The goal for borrowers with their extra income is to move to a point where they are not worried on a daily basis about what they will eat. This moves people from a point where they are barely surviving to a point where they are able to start to focus on other goals.  Normally the next goal becomes providing education for their children.

Book Recommendations

Banker for the Poor – Muhammad Yunus – The original book on microcredit, written by the man many consider to be the founder.

A Billion Bootstraps – Thurman and Smith – A thorough book looking at the use of microcredit and related services for poverty alleviation

End of Poverty – Jeffery Sachs – The most important book written in recent years on the topic of poverty

Action Steps

Before blog action day ends today you need to take action.  Here are a few concrete options:

1. Phone your favorite international aid agency and ask them how you can support microcredit through them.

2. Visit  http://www.kiva.org/ to personally loan to an entrepreneur.

3. Sponsor a child through Compassion or World Vision.

Final Comment

Poverty needs to be all of our concerns.  Too often we neglect to care for world wide poverty because it doesn’t hit close to home.  As a Christ-follower, it frustrates me that the Christian church often focuses on secondary (even petty) issues rather than the important work of fighting poverty.  After all Jesus started his ministry with poverty on his heart:

“He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. ”

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”  (Luke 4:16-20).

Written by:
The Success Professor – Danny Gamache
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