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As I learn more about this process, I am seeing how the combination of training, relationships, and support leads to stronger businesses and new jobs. Those jobs create provision, protection, and dignity for thousands of people across local communities.

When they are ready to grow, Sinapis helps them prepare for capital and connect with aligned investors.

Mentorship follows. Entrepreneurs work with founders who understand the realities of frontier market business. They also join a long term community of peers and advisors who continue to walk with them long after the classroom work ends.

The content is designed by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs and adapted for different cultural contexts, which is something I have come to value as I learn more about our global network.

Training begins with programs that meet entrepreneurs at the stage they are in. It covers the information, skills, and tools they need to build stronger businesses.

We had blown it. Correction, I blew it. I hadn’t set my CEO up for success. I didn’t prep him well. I knew the giver. I knew the context.

That’s on me.

Character in fundraising isn’t just about how you treat givers. It’s how you support your team when it’s their moment in the room.

That decision was a turning point in my work - the moment I moved from transaction to transformation.

And the giver? Years later, they circled back in a big way.

Character first. Always. 🐪

This was late 1999. The photo? That’s me around that time - on a camel, on a vision trip with some givers in Egypt. (The camel was not impressed by my fanny pack. Or my shorts. Or my head scarf. So many things.)

So instead of making the ask, I made some introductions. I connected them to other causes that aligned more deeply with where their hearts were pointing.

It didn’t make tactical sense. But it made relational sense.

As I learn more about the businesses in the Sinapis network, I’m seeing similar things. When leaders choose to combine solid business practice with compassion, the workplace becomes a steady place in the middle of crisis.

When Anne shared about this experience, she said she had never worked anywhere that felt as supportive. It “felt like family,” she said.

She arrived at work the next morning unsure of what to do next.

Her boss, a Sinapis trained entrepreneur, stepped in with care that went far beyond a typical employer. They made sure she and her children had clothing, school supplies, and support until they could regain stability.

🎧 Includes the audio version if you’d rather listen to my soothing voice while you drive, walk, or sip something good.

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Grateful for all of you who have encouraged, supported, and believed in me along the way.
You make this work sacred. 💛