Reading Reflection 1

1) I read about an entrepreneur:  Muhammad Yunus, who is best known for founding the Grameen Bank.  He has received international recognition, including being awarded the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize, for his work to alleviate poverty in Bangladesh through microcredit.

• What surprised me the most?

At the beginning of the book, the author discussed how Yunus receiving the Nobel Peace Prize was controversial.  It surprised me that a man who dedicated decades to lifting up poor people would receive so much criticism.  As I read on, I began to understand some of the reasonings.  Nevertheless, I believe Yunus is an incredible entrepreneur who fostered great social change in his country and the world.

• What about the entrepreneur did I most admire?

One thing that really stands out to me about Yunus is his selflessness and humility.  Putting his own interests aside, he worked tirelessly to help the poor people of Bangladesh.  He travelled around a ton, lived in less modest circumstances for a man of his executive standing, and set aside personal relationships to do so.  He is a man with a mission, and he fought until he achieved his goal of helping more and more people.

• What about the entrepreneur did I least admire?

Although, Yunus was an extremely hard-working man dedicated to improving the lives of his people, he was hypocritical in many situations.  For example, he received a lot of criticism for blatantly speaking out against the World Bank and its mission, along with other donor agencies.  However, he did accept money from them on several instances to fund the growth of the Grameen Bank.  Having an opinion and sticking to it can be admirable, but hypocritical actions like this are not.

• Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it?

Yunus experienced adversity in the stages of growing his bank, especially toward the beginning.  Many people did not believe his idea would work, including government banks whom he needed support from.  To push past these issues, he made connections with people who would help him, and  he used effective persuasion techniques.

Later, the Grameen Bank ran into organizational issues, and Yunus saw the need to do a reconstruction.  Instead of being stubborn with what had worked in the past, he was willing to work with new circumstances and adapt.

2) What competencies did I notice that the entrepreneur exhibited? 

Some of his greatest competencies I noticed were the ability to connect with people, the ability to persuade, and ability to innovate.

3) One part of the reading that was confusing

The names in the book were confusing to me, as there is a different naming structure in Bangladesh.  There was a note at the end about the names, but I still don’t really understand.

4) If I was able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, I would ask… because…

1) How do you envision Bangladesh in the future? 

Since Yunus was willing to work so hard to create social change, I want to know what he thinks the nation can become.

2) If you could change one thing about your career, what would it be, if anything?

Learning about others’ regrets can help one avoid such regrets in their own lives.

5) For fun: what do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?

I believe Yunus would say hard work is 100% worth it if there is a purpose driving you.  Perhaps, he would go so far to say that it’s not really hard work when it brings great satisfaction or drives you toward your goals.  I would agree.