They say if you pay attention, you learn something every
day. The more I do this work, the more I
learn; and the learning makes me crave the work all that much more.
I had finished with a group of entrepreneurs early, and I
opened the floor for discussion.
Expecting Q&A on the material we had covered during the course of
the day, I was surprised when the request was, “Tell us some stories.” What kind of stories, I asked. “Tell us how you got involved in the work you
do today.”
This was an interesting question, because it became a kind
of self exploration for me. Without a
game plan, I grabbed a marker and headed to the white board to map it all out.
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| Telling stories in Kazakhstan. |
The short-ish version of my story is that I created a
program for an NGO is Washington, DC in about 1999 called the US Market Entry
Program (USMEP). The group that approached me wanted a simple bundle of
marketing communication deliverables that foreign entities could use to help
them prepare for doing business in the US. A rep in Tunisia—good friend
and frequent collaborator Rym Bedoui Ayari—jumped on and sold the program to
several Tunisian companies. And though
the NGO group I originally designed the program for has ceased to be, lots of
others see its value and promote it through their in-country reps. It has
led me to work on USAID-funded projects in Egypt, Ethiopia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Tunisia and the
Palestinian Territories, and allowed me to visit lots of other places, too.
I often now work as a trainer to help governments, trade
organizations and companies ‘up’ their marketing game for the US and other
growing market opportunities. Recent
trips include working with entrepreneurs in Kazakhstan interested in developing
business relationships in the US, and abattoirs and live animal exporters in
Ethiopia who want to increase their market share in the MENA region through an
upcoming appearance at the 2014 Gulf Food Show in Dubai.
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| Working with abattoirs & live animal exporters in Ethiopia. |
As I said, the explanation of the program was a journey of self
discovery for me, and a validation that marketing fundamentals are still the
basis for strong business growth and international development. It also reminded me of my passion for my
work, and why I do what I do.
