Starting Somewhere

Throughout our lives as students, I find that we are taught to work hard to get a degree in a field of study that interests us, or an area we think will lead to the most success. At university, we work through a daily educational pattern of going to lecture, taking notes, doing the readings and preparing for midterms, because ‘that’s just how it is.’ I chose my program, Communication Studies, based on what I thought fit my area of interest, passions, and skills that I could take with me when I would apply my degree in the real world. However, it did not take long for me to realize I wasn’t being challenged or inspired in the way I had hoped.

I have always been looking for ways to make a positive impact, make a difference, empower others and lead people to success. Whether that may be making a difference for one person or a group of people, I knew I wanted to be a part of the change. I was told by my peers to volunteer and pursue my academic achievements in school, but growing up in a family of entrepreneurs, I knew I there was something more.

I came across Social Entrepreneurship in my second year at Laurier, which I found to encompass the entirety of my values, my passions and goals. I learned quickly that explanation is incomparable to experience, and that’s exactly what the Social Entrepreneurship option provides. It takes students outside the lecture-based learning and introduces experiential learning. It presents the platform to express my concerns, develop my passions and be a part of that change. The necessary skills are developed rather being a product of ones nature. It’s an open-ended means of expression to create a sustainable ‘fix’ or solution to a social need that one finds prevalent or personally meaningful.

The idea of entrepreneurship and innovation can be intimidating. We often question how we can truly make a difference, when some problems seem so big, or even more so, how can a passion that seems so atypical (in the sense that it doesn’t fit within the lines of being a doctor or a lawyer) become a sustainable venture?

Truth is… we just have to start somewhere. Look for the gaps that exist within today’s society. What is being done already and what isn’t being addressed; what needs to be done? Opportunity exists everywhere; we just have to be open to it. Creating change doesn’t have to be done alone, and it certainly doesn’t have to be done over night. Social entrepreneurship allows the opportunity to co-create, explore and break down the barriers that segregate us as a community as we develop a more inclusive space.

#StudentBlog #SE400 #Innovation