Chapter 1 begins with Jacqueline recalling an incident regarding a blue sweater. The blue sweater was given to her by her uncle and later donated to Goodwill. She later ran into a little boy wearing the same blue sweater. She says, "Our actions - and inaction - touch people we may never know and never meet across the globe". Her statement, especially regarding inaction resonates with me because I also believe that we may hurt others or the planet simply through our inactions. Our carbon footprint is an ideal example; when we fail to take actions to reduce our carbon footprint, we contribute to and accelerate the process of global warming.
In the later chapters, we witness Jacqueline's journey as she transitions her career into the African Development Bank to serve as an ambassador to African women in Côte d'Ivoire. In the office, Jacqueline's colleagues do not like her because of her position; they feel that because she is a foreigner, she was given the job. On the edge of quitting after falling very sick, Jacqueline realizes she has to understand herself and the women more deeply before attempting to make a difference. She soon understands, the women have to be given accountability.
Jacqueline is later introduced to an opportunity to help start a credit program for women in Rwanda. After arriving in Kigali, Rwanda, Jacqueline spends time in the Kigali markets, understanding the reasons why the women would want to borrow money. For the most part, women needed money to start their businesses and generate income. Establishing a self-sustainable business allows the women to have accountability of their capital and power to make important decisions for their success. Jacqueline aids a group of women in setting up a bakery, helping them develop a sustainable business plan for the course of two years. After coming back to the US, Jacqueline decides to apply for the Stanford Business School and gets accepted. Achieving higher education will help her gain a stronger foundation to aid others build businesses around the world.
Chapter 8 ends with a dialogue from a Buddhist monk in Cambodia who says that one must move forward with, both, compassion and intellect; moving forward with merely one will not give one the desired end result. Compassion and intellect are two very strong qualities of a leader, and people need leaders to move forward. One of my favorite things about the book is that every chapter begins with an insightful quote related to the chapter.
