Last summer, when AFRCN APPRL was looking for some new projects to support, I thought to check in with ALA and see if we could support its students in some way. As I searched, I noticed a job opening: “Leadership Faculty,” it said. As soon as I saw it, something within me jumped. Not only was this a chance to work at an organization that I had admired greatly, but it was also an opportunity to do a job that went to the core of who I was/am. Teaching leadership is what I love, what I do, and what I do well. I applied, not thinking that I stood a chance; and yet, somehow, days later I had my first interview, and a year later, here I am on campus, a Leadership and Entrepreneurship Faculty member.

When I was deciding whether to accept this “dream position” or not, I had to consider my involvement with AFRCN APPRL and decide what I should do. I’m a believer in the research that shows that people who do what they’re gifted at are happier, wealthier, and more successful than people who don’t do what they’re good at. After much deliberation, I decided that I was a teacher, a mentor, and a leadership enthusiast above all—those things are what I’m best at and those were the things I knew I needed to do.

These guys don't stop smiling EVER except when the camera comes out...

No matter how much I loved AFRCN APPRL, it never allowed me to do the things that I was best at (believe it or not, I’m not a natural with fashion design, a screen printing, or a sales). More importantly, though, ALA gave me the opportunity to do what I am best at for the benefit of Africa. In microeconomics, they call this “comparative competitive advantage,” and the idea is that if everyone just does what they’re best at, then the whole system will have the maximum amount of output. For me, teaching and mentoring the next generation of young people in Africa will yield far more than my feeble efforts with AFRCN APPRL. And once I realized that that’s how I could make the biggest splash, I made the difficult decision.

So, long story short, I moved to Africa because I thought I could do the most good (that I could do) there. Was this thinking like my economics teacher dad or was this following my heart? Eh. Neither/both. I think this was just my realizing that this might be the very realization of where my journey started five years ago with a 40-minute video about cotton farmers. Maybe this is what God had in mind all along.