Become Inspired by Jacqueline Novogratz to "Just Start" During Covid-19

Jacqueline Novogratz, Twitter.

Ten years ago I was sitting in an office building during my lunch breaks with Jacqueline Novogratz's book The Blue Sweater open on my lap. Then incredibly the following year I got to meet her at the East Africa launch of the book.

Jacqueline is one of my greatest role models and inspirations for her tenacious commitment to a better world, belief in dignity for all people, and compelling storytelling. I'm so excited to be able to see her livestreaming just about every day this month.

Manifesto for A Moral Revolution, audible.com.

Manifesto for A Moral Revolution: Practices to Build A Better World

Jacqueline released her new book on March 5: Manifesto for A Moral Revolution: Practices to Build A Better World.

Here's a summary of the book, shared by the publisher, Henry Holt and Company:

"In 2001, when Jacqueline Novogratz founded Acumen, a global community of socially and environmentally responsible partners dedicated to changing the way the world tackles poverty, few had heard of impact investing - Acumen's practice of "doing well by doing good."

"Nineteen years later, there's been a seismic shift in how corporate boards and other stakeholders evaluate businesses: impact investment is not only morally defensible but now also economically advantageous, even necessary. 

"Still, it isn't easy to reach a success that includes profits as well as mutually favorable relationships with workers and the communities in which they live. So how can today's leaders, who often kick off their enterprises with high hopes and short timetables, navigate the challenges of poverty and war, of egos and impatience, which have stymied generations of investors who came before? 

"Drawing on inspiring stories from change-makers around the world and on memories of her own most difficult experiences, Jacqueline divulges the most common leadership mistakes and the mind-sets needed to rise above them. The culmination of thirty years of work developing sustainable solutions for the problems of the poor, So You Want to Change the World offers the perspectives necessary for all those-whether ascending the corporate ladder or bringing solar light to rural villages-who seek to leave this world better off than they found it."

Daily Practices with Jacqueline Novogratz

Join Jacqueline’s Daily Leadership Practices Series exploring what it takes to create meaningful social change. The first session, "It Will Take All of Us," was livestreamed on May 5 at 10:30 AM EDT.

You can register for the free online events. I registered for all of them. But you don't really need to register for the ones on the website that appear in color blocks and are organized by Acumen. Those are livestreaming from Jacqueline's Facebook page.

The May 6 livestream was lovely. She told us to "just start." Watch it on her Facebook page.

On May 5 she gave us a preview of that May 6 livestream, posting on Facebook, "Most people want to change the world, especially now. But too many sit and wait for a sense of purpose. Those strategies lead to more waiting. So just start.

"Join me on Wednesday, May 6th at 10:30am EDT as I share from my new book an essential short list of leadership practices for everyone who wants to do good in this world. For 3 weeks I am hosting daily readings of 12 practices exploring what it takes to create change. On Wednesday I will livestream from my page our second session: Just Start."

Jacqueline Novogratz, Jacqueline Novogratz Facebook May 6, 2020.

Jaqueline Novogratz

"Jacqueline’s work began in 1986 when she quit her job on Wall Street to co-found Rwanda’s first microfinance institution, Duterimbere. The experience inspired her to write the bestseller, The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap between Rich and Poor, and create Acumen. Indeed, when she founded Acumen in 2001, few had heard of the words impact investing. Nineteen years later, under Jacqueline’s leadership, Acumen has invested $128 million to build more than 128 social enterprises across Africa, Latin America, South Asia, and the United States. These companies have leveraged an additional $611 million and brought basic services like affordable education, health care, clean water, energy and sanitation to more than 260 million people. In 2015, Fast Company named Acumen one of the world’s Top 10 Most Innovative Not-for-Profits."

Continue reading Jacqueline's biography on the Acumen website.