I chose to attend Bainbridge Graduate Institute without so much as a visit to the campus. I decided to apply based on the recommendation and support of three people I trust—three people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world. I did my research. I turned to LinkedIn and Quora to ask professionals what they thought about the school. Many had never heard of it. But the ones who did greatly respected the program and the citizens the learning community develops. Did I say citizens? Yes, I did. How can we expect businesses to be good corporate citizens, if the individuals who go into business don’t know how to be individual ones?
We often refer to ourselves as consumers. When we use language like this, we must be careful not to overgeneralize who we are as people. We are not consumers. We are people who consume. Consumers do not feel an obligation and responsibility towards fellow human beings. People do. I chose to attend BGI because I wanted to surround myself with a group of people better than me who want to use business as a tool to promote positive social and economic change. During orientation, I asked my Leadership and Personal Development professor Mary Kay why she chooses to teach at BGI. You can watch her response here.
In just 37 seconds, Mary Kay reaffirmed why BGI exists and validated my decision. We exist because we want to be the change we want to see in the world. They might call us hippies. They might call us optimists. They might even call us crazy. But as they say, “The ones who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.”