Posted by Sam Richards
This is a story that will humble most any listener. And frankly, I’d love to have every undergraduate business student in the U.S. listen to it–particularly those who assume that they’ll eventually land in six figure jobs with complimentary gold cards and regular frequent flier upgrades. (Not all do, of course, as most Penn State business majors are simply happy to get a job interview…I fully recognize that.) Nonetheless, many of them will make this kind of money, of course, and not necessarily because of their own abilities. Somebody has to fill those positions and, being staffed by mostly washrag talent from top to bottom, most companies simply reproduce what they know drawing on the vessels of empty vision and stale thinking that are available to them.
If that sounds judgmental and harsh, it is. But only because I just listened to this story and in my lifetime and travels I have met far too many people like Yvrose Jean Baptiste, the woman highlighted by NPR in this story. Had the creator/fate decided that her spirit should enter a body in a more developed nation, she’d very quickly have risen to the top and won any race or competition that required guts, determination, stamina, and outside-the-box creative thinking. This is a woman with an unmatched entrepreneurial spirit and a gutsy grit that would shame all but a few standouts on the path toward financial security here in the U.S. — people who are on THAT path only because they were born in a land a few hundred miles north of the land mass we call “Haiti.”
I hate to sound so damn uppity myself, especially because I’m pretty “wash rag” and mediocre in most of what I do, but listen to the story and then ask yourself: How would I get on in Haiti and what might Yvrose do if she had the opportunity walk through the world wearing my shoes?
I found this story to be very inspiring, but at the same time, somewhat saddening. Until Sam had talked about it in class the other day, I never really thought about the selectiveness of American companies and their ability to find talent. A lot of times, company's probably hire employees just to fill there positions. The only thing that might be required of a person who works in business is a college degree. I know that it is a process that works well in America, and its not like we are going to go outside our borders to find employees (especially in countries such as Haiti), but it is unfortunate to talent like Yvrose in such poor conditions. It is too bad that many people don't get the opportunity to excel the way that many of us do. This story also made me think deeply about the opportunities that I have been given. Despite the countless positive opportunities that I am given, a lot of the time I find myself not taking advantage of these opportunities. This story has helped me realize what I have, and what I should take advantage of. If a person like Yvrose were to be in my shoes, there is no doubt in my mind that she would climb the corporate ladder to the top. She would work hard and look positively on all of her fortunes. I cannot always say the same about myself, but maybe it is because I don't know any different? Someone coming from conditions like those in Haiti, thrown into conditions like ours, would undoubtably take advantage of the many new opportunities. The reality is, however unfortunate it may be, that people like Yvrose will never have these opportunity, despite their talents. Before reading this article, I never considered the number of people who had it like Yvrose. Only so many of us are presented with the opportunity to succeed and it is unfortunate to see many people, possibly even myself, unworthy of such success. Many people are so ungrateful for what is handed to them, but it is a system that involves getting lucky. Not everyone can be born into countries like the United States, where success is always possible. It inspired me to see Yvrose and what she had done with her limited resources. Maybe one day she will be recognized for her talent, however unlikely that may be. Unfortunately, we are not all equal as human beings. Luck, location, and even where you are born will always play a role in a person's ability to be successful. In America, a person could work as little as they pleased and still land a great job if they are born into a well respected family. This person might not possess any talent or skill whatsoever, but it is the system which we live in, and it is definitely unfair. It's too bad that things are unlikely to change, as we are not all given the same opportunities in life.
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This Haitian woman is a great example of how lucky some people are. Sam said before, that we made to college with some help of our parents and our economy, and this just gets me thinking, what if this woman was born in America, would she have been very successful? , would she have finished school?, it is crazy how people don’t have the same chance or privileges as others who are born in a different country, or even a different family. We are not equal. Think about it, some people go through a lot of obstacles through life and some don’t, some have to work hard than others, this is not fair. This Haitian woman probably does know more business than most of the successful people here in the United States. Or anywhere in the world, she follows her own theory of how to run a business, she doesn’t read books and follow everyone else’s theory, this part of the reason why she is successful, and the fact that she can run such a business in such a country shows how committed she is to her work, it shows that she was born to do this sort of thing, and it is a real shame that it is wasted. I am sure she is not the only one in the world that is very intelligent and is born in a poor economy and has not been appreciated or even given a chance to be successful.
Before I moved to the United States, I met a lot of intelligent people who don’t have a chance of even going to college. Even though college is free in Egypt, there is only one or two in Cairo so they are very competitive, even if people get accepted, they would need to get an apartment in Cairo and buy food for themselves, and not that many student s in Egypt can do that since it is a very poor economy.
That is just another example of how unfair this world is, just like Sam said, million some people go to sleep hungry every night, that is freaking crazy,
We really need to appreciate what we have, people really think that their life sucks, and that they are unlucky because of the environment that they live in but they really need to realize that they are some of the luckiest people on earth.
This has opened my eyes to the fact that people are never equal, even if they have the same race, same economy or anything else. It is very hard to survive in Haiti, let alone run your own business, I have much respect for this woman ,and I hope that her business is working out again, if anything they should bring her here to fix this crappy economy.
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This story was incredible, and Sam was right about it humbling, or at least should be humbling, each and every one of us. When the reporters were explaining what Yvrose did on a daily basis for her business, I was blown away. It already seemed like so much work and effort to do single handedly with so many companies and customers. The fact that she gets a loan, loans products to customers, then makes profit with the interest off of the price of the item is incredible. I would be so difficult to properly run that in an organized manner. She cannot screw up or she loses money. When they added on that she ranked her education around the level of a fifth grader just makes it all the more intriguing and inspiring. She made a business by herself in such a poor and underdeveloped country and made it thrive to the point that she was able to feed, clothe, and house her children. Thinking back to the knowledge I knew when I was in fifth grade? We were probably getting into complex division and things like that, obviously extremely essential information for any kind of currency exchange in any type of business, let alone one based completely off of trade and interest. It makes me almost laugh that we have people in high business fields who would seem completely incompetent next to her. Sam's title and question to this article, is "Could you compete with this woman on a level playing field?" Honestly, I doubt many could. With such a small educational background this woman has worked far beyond her resources to succeed. I think we take advantage of the fact that we, as Americans, are automatically put on a higher playing field. White, black, hispanic, latino, all of us. Opportunities are endless here, especially compared to those in Haiti. It seems so unfair that a woman this smart and capable of doing anything she wanted was just.. almost unlucky in the sense that she lives where she lives. Had she been in America with all of our resources and abilities to get ahead, Yvrose would have gone far, really far. Farther than many of us could possibly fathom. It broke my heart when the translator said that she had just delivered all of her products to her customers to loan the day before the earthquake. Then when the bank was still on her back about paying back her loans? Unbelievable. When I looked at the link that would tell what happened after the interview, I could not believe that the bank had no sympathy. Actually, I do believe it, because banks only care about themselves, but it still is hearbreaking.
It's unsettling to know that people in other countries who work just as hard or harder than as Sam calls them, American "washrag" workers and have no benefit from their hardwork.
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This entry reminded me of how lucky we all are to be born in this country. I, myself, am not the biggest fan of a lot of the ways our government treats other nations in terms of trade, and loan interest payments, etc. I do, however, realize that I am among the luckiest people in the world. We live in a country where we have the opportunities to do so much more than people can do in developing nations. Among the population of the ‘luckiest’ people in the world, people in the ‘first-world’ that go to college are even better off, because they’re given the opportunities for so much more in the job market. In monetary terms, these are the wealthiest people in the whole world. These people can spend as much money in one day as it could take a person without these opportunities to earn in a year. This is something I have trouble wrapping my head around. The snacks that I live off of, the restaurants I dine at occasionally, all this money spent on recreational things because I have the ability to spend an expendable income on luxuries. If I was born in a country where the average income was less than five dollars a day, I would be leading a very different life.
It’s so crazy how a person’s “spirit” is placed in a body somewhere in the world at random. I could have just as easily been born in Haiti… but I wasn’t. This alone just boggles my mind. I am not more worthy of this luxurious life than any person in any other country. I don’t know how I was so lucky to land this life, but I plan on making the most of it. I want to join the Peace Corps after school and give back to the world what I feel I have taken in my first 20 some years of life. We lead lives that are so much more luxurious than they should be. It would take about 3 worlds to sustain this world if we all lived as lavish lives as Americans do. I feel like this is so unfair to everyone else in the world. The guilt I feel makes me want to turn around and improve the lives of those less fortunate than me, in monetary terms.
This lady’s story is very inspiring. She takes what little she has, and runs with it, stretches it as far as it can possibly go. Many people in America do not really exercise this concept. For example, if I can’t eat everything on my plate, I throw it away. In the dining commons, we compost all excess food at the end of the night when people in Haiti have NOTHING to eat at times. I try to change my lifestyle now, but it is so hard to change something our society has been building around us since the moment we were born. I just hope that with some knowledge of what we take advantage of, we can work together to try and level a playing field in terms of consumption.
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This woman is absolutely incredible. When I hear stories like this, it makes me wonder why me? It is so strange to think how a luck-of-the-draw kind of situation made it so that all of us could go to school, attend this university, and someone so smart and talented as Yvrose ended up in Haiti. Sam asked in the blog what would happen if our situations were reversed. I know for me it would be incredibly difficult to even begin to imagine having lived my life in Haiti, growing up in those conditions. Given the same situation, I can not believe that I would have the ability and inventiveness that Yvrose has had. And I also know, that if she had been in my situation, she would have risen to the top of the business world. She would probably be extremely wealthy, and it is difficult to think that with all her intelligence and business skills, she is still so poor. It seems completely unfair and is difficult to think about.
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Yvrose Jean Baptiste is a woman to admire, I’ll give her that. And yes, it is tragic that she wasn’t born in America and she didn’t have a chance to make it big, BUT do not underestimate the power of nurture in this whole “Nature versus Nurture” problem that you’ve created for yourself. MAYBE, just MAYBE, Yvrose would be a financially successful executive if she were born in America versus if she was born in Haiti. But there’s also the chance she’d end up not having half the drive and motivation she has while in Haiti.
Think about it. It is the wolf that makes the deer sprint; the deer does not run when it sees no danger around. And, on that same token, it is fear that gives men wings. The wolf in Yvrose’s case would be hunger, death, and the wellbeing of her children. She makes due with her microbusiness because she has to. If she doesn’t, her children won’t go to school, they won’t have food to eat, they’ll starve, and they’ll die. It’s hard to say that many Americans have that kind of drive that would push us to the limits like that. Most of us (not all) are well off and aren’t in the danger of starving to death. If Yvonne was in America and was well off, do you really think that she would have something pushing her to be her best? Maybe; but we’ll never know.
People aren’t just the innate talents that lie within them. They are also the circumstances in which they are raised up. A war orphan in a developing country that’s in the state of civil war will fight and struggle much harder for a better life than a kid that was raised with a silver spoon in his mouth. Sam, you asked what do you think will happen if you were born in Yvrose’s shoes and if she was born in yours. I’ll tell you that the question wouldn’t be applicable. You wouldn’t be the same person. Yvrose wouldn’t be the same person either.
Another thing that you need to remember is this: Life is not fair. Some of us are dealt really bad hands at life (Poker term… or general card-playing metaphor) but we all make due with what we have. But you can’t expect by wishing that Yvrose was on a level playing field, the field will suddenly level itself. It’s impractical and it doesn’t work like that. Remember about the kings of the mountain; they don’t want to give up their top spot. I wouldn’t either.
The best thing that Yvrose can do now is to climb as high as she can up that ladder of financial security and secure a better life for her children. Then, maybe, in the next generation, Haiti won’t be as underprivileged as you see it today. Everyone can only do their best.
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The work ethic of this woman is astounding. With no education past the fifth grade, she has somehow developed many key skills and abilities usually held only by million dollar business executives. The fact that she can make a living off of this ingenious business she has is astounding. The work ethic of many people in developing countries makes the work ethic of many people in America and other “developed” countries very unimpressive. I realize that many people spend years working very hard and long on a job that they eventually grow to resent and hate in developing countries. Many people in developing countries can spend a smaller amount of time gaining the skills they need to work at a job that they put their all into; a job that requires much less academic ability, but more work ethic. These people are, on average, much happier than the rich ‘first-world’ business people. This is really fascinating to me; even though they’re richer, they’re not as happy with themselves as people who work much harder with lower education levels. Maybe money really doesn’t buy happiness…
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Yvrose’s story is really an inspiration and it is great and encouraging to see that there are people out there who are making the most of what they have. This woman’s story should be more widely known because there are millions of people around the world who just float through life and do not realize how good they have it. I have to admit that most of the time, I am one of those people. Just the other day I was laying in my dorm bed surrounded by comfy, clean pillows while watching a television show on my Mac. I do not even remember what I was watching but something made me think of how lucky I am to have all that I have, and how lucky I am to have parents that can comfortably afford to send me to college. I am so lucky to be where I am at in life and have the mind that I have. Like many people at Penn State, I floated through high school, not really applying myself to anything but still managing very good grades. Imagine what I could have done if I had been motivated towards a certain cause?
Yvrose Jean Baptiste is someone who would thrive in a country where these types of resources are available. Granted, for someone with only a fifth grade education she has established herself very well and if this catastrophe had not had happened I wonder where her business would take her. She is an intelligent woman who has a knack for the business world, it is a shame that she has had this set back. Had she been born in America she would probably be on top of the business world, or at least steadily working towards it. Even though she is a black woman, with her creativity and will to learn I am sure she would surpass many of the college students and post graduates who are still trying to establish themselves in this world.
But then there is a flip side to this story. If Yvrose were born in America, would she be just as unmotivated as the next person? That is not to say that every student at Penn State is unmotivated, because if they were then they probably would not be here. But I feel as though most of Yvrose’s determination is because she has a need to survive. She is working as hard as she is because she needs to feed herself and her children. If she were born in America into a wealthier family who is maybe in the middle class and had a comfortable living, would those creative juices be put to work? Or would they sit there idley like so many other people in this country?
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In an ideal world, hard work and motivation would equate with success in life. When I listen to the story of this Haitian woman, and I can't help but feel that she deserves a measure of prosperity for her efforts. And in a world which was essentially right and good, she would have it. Unfortunately, we live in a crummy, run-down slum of a world, where everyone is trying to screw everyone else and get ahead at all costs. And that means that there's no time to promote prosperity and opportunity amongst the world's poor, no time to look toward the greater good. There's only time to look out for Number One, whomever that may be.
Everyone does it, don't get me wrong. You do it. I do it. That's how the world works. We like to believe that we live in a way that promotes the general welfare—a way that helps others, that makes the world a better place for all of us—but when push comes to shove, if you and I both want the same doodad, I'm gonna fight you for it. And if I've got a gun, while you've got only your fists, I'm going to win. In the end, that's how the world is divided, into the haves and the have-nots. If I have a leg-up over you on the socioeconomic ladder, then when push comes to shove, I'm likely to end up on a higher rung, regardless of individual merit.
Perhaps I've become cynical since I started looking more closely at the world, but I've come to accept things for what they are. I don't agree that it's "right", per se, but I agree that it is what it is. I believe that the best place to start is to see the world with absolute clarity, so I try to avoid letting my views be obstructed by emotional baggage. And when push comes to shove, as I've noted in posts in the past, there's not much to do about it except to be informed and to work within your limited sphere of influence. Talk to your friends. Talk to your family. Share with them the failures of the world, so that they can share in turn.
On a related but separate note, I must comment on the reporter for the NPR report. While he was talking about how Yvrose was deeply in debt to her bank, in an amount on the order of a hundred U.S. dollars, all I could think was "Why don't you write her a check." "Come on, write her a check." "Okay, don't write her a check—I'LL write her a check." It reminded me of the stereotypical reporter, offering live coverage of a brutal car accident, passively reporting as more and more cars pile up. I hope that the follow-up offers some resolution to this looming question.
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I have several points regarding this blog. Ultimately, I want to defend the talent of some outstanding achievers here domestically while not taking away anything from this truly remarkable woman in Haiti. To understand at such an intricate level, the details of microfinance and loan maturities as well as expected future cash flows based on her own assumptions is truly extraordinary. Yvrose Jean Baptise has an entrepreneurial spirit and an appetite for risk-taking that has paid off so far for her. She also has trust and confidence in her client’s ability to reimburse her, which is a crucial aspect of the lending cycle. This amazing confidence is comparable to U.S. lending institutions reviewing a person’s credit score before allowing them to receive a loan for a mortgage, car, cell phone contract, etc. So, her actions definitely exemplify the out-of the box creative thinking that is crucial to a successful career in business, especially in this modern and innovative day and age.
It is extremely unfortunate that she was place in a position whereby she distributed all of her goods on credit to her shopkeepers in Port-au Prince right before the Earthquake hit. Now, all ten of her clients are either dead or have fled the country and are unable to pay back the loans to Yvrose. Now, Yvrose faces the daunting prospect of having to re-negotiate lending terms with her bank and notify them that she will likely have to default on her loan. This could easily damage her ability to acquire future credit from this bank or any other bank, especially when Haiti starts to see full-blown recovery efforts. I think it is safe to say that Yvrose is extremely talented considering that the maximum level of her education is the 5th grade.
Now, these complex concepts and business fundamentals are expected knowledge of college students pursuing a bachelor’s degree in any business major. However, for Yvrose to have a firm understanding of these ideas with her level of education, not to mention the fact that she lives in the poorest country in the Western hemisphere, is incredible. Surely, if Yvrose were to have been born a few hundred miles to the north, she would most likely be an outstanding performer with a college degree and might be herself, in a position as an economic adviser to our President!
Having given Yvrose the full credit and recognition that is entitled to her, I would also like to defend the ability of outstanding achievers, here in the US. First, it is important to note to Dr. Richards that, in this modern day and age, it is extremely competitive to land a job in which there are prospects for rapid professional advancement and all of its benefits, including compensation. Investment banking, strategy consulting, management consulting, securities trading positions are examples of these types of roles. The top-tier employers in the financial services industry such as Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, and Morgan Stanley to name a few, don’t even consider many Penn State students who hold a cumulative GPA less than 3.8. For some of these positions, the minimum GPA requirement is even higher.
Furthermore, if you look at most of the successful CEOs, excluding Ford Motor Company where the CEO position has been handed down in the family from generation to generation, they have all worked extremely hard and have had to be exceptionally talented to be where they are today. The same applies to people in government positions that serve to advise the White House on economic issues or guide the economy and markets of the U.S. Some of these figures include Hank Paulson and Ben Bernanke, the latter of which came from a middle-class family and worked hard his whole life. Indeed, when Bernanke received an acceptance call from Harvard, he thought that his friends were prank calling him. This is just one example of people not feeling entitled to anything, and working hard to make their way in this world.
Lastly, I would like to use myself as an example. Although both my parents hold college degrees, I in no way shape or form, feel entitled to a “six figure job with complimentary gold cards and regular frequent flier upgrades.” My academic success and professional experience have stemmed as a result of my hard-work and ability to apply my talents to my courses and beyond. Thus, I cannot justify the statement that, in this increasingly competitive and cut-throat environment, those without much ability are able to thrive in business. Based on my observations and understandings, you not only have to be talented but very diligent and persistent in order to be a successful leader in business.
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Wow. I think Yvrose's optimism in this situation is outstanding. If this were to happen in the United States most businessmen and women would have panic attacks and break down right from the start, yet Yvrose has the determination and power to start from the bottom and work her way up. If I was in her position I would be crawling up in a corner and just crying until I couldn't any more. There is no way that I could imagine what it is like to have my entire life earnings swept away just like that. It's unbelievable. I want to backtrack for a minute and let everybody know how amazing I think it is that Yvrose basically carries her entire business in a plastic bin on her head every day. It blows my mind that Yvrose has only obtained the education of a fifth grader and still understands how to run a successful business. There are so many difficult concepts to put together to make a business successful and in some way, shape, or form Yvrose was able to figure it out without any common training that most people here in the United States go through. Exchange of different currencies is an extremely difficult conept to grasp with the knowledge of only a young child. I could only imagine what kind of business Yvrose could run with a college education and the training that all business majors go through here in the United States. I never realized how much we take education for granted here in the United States. I grew up with the assumption that I was automatically going to college and getting a job. There was no doubt in my mind and it kills me to see that so many people have to make do and get by with the little that they have. Yvrose is a remarkable woman for getting right back on her feet after such a disaster as this earthquake in Haiti. When I think about how Yvrose invested all her capital in the Dominican Republic the day before the earthquake occurred, it makes me think of September 11th. On the day of September 11th my dad was in the first tower just 20 minutes before the first plane hit it. Fortunately he go out in time, but it really makes you think that you never know when you're going to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. I find it so sad that even though Yvrose invested all her money and now no one can pay her back, the bank is still demanding money from her despite the devastation that is known about worldwide. You would think they could cut her some slack being that she has to keep her kids in school and keep a roof over their heads, but of course there is no compassion.
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Yvrose Jean Baptiste is just one example of someone who is taking the cards that they are dealt and playing them wonderfully. I think this story is very surprising to people because they assume that if you are poor you maybe are stupid or got into poverty in some way and would not be able to get out of it or make a living. Although Yvrose is not rich by any means, she is obviously very smart and is doing all that she can to earn a living. I went on a missions trip to a very poor city in Mexico, and people there lived in a dump and their houses were literally cardboard sheds. All this to say, the people in this city worked very hard in order to provide food for their families and survive. If people did not do this, they would not survive. That is precisely what Yvrose is doing. She is doing what is in her power to get by and to make a living. Yet, Yvrose is going above and beyond, and she is using her resources wisely. She has taken advantage of this microbusiness opportunity, has seen an opportunity and taken it. The fact that she manages all of her business dealings, loans people money, collects interest, and buys from people in a different country, all while having a fifth grade education is very impressive. Would I be able to do that if I was in her situation? Who knows…Heck, I’m not even sure if I could do that now. This story is so impressive, but it is also very sad. The Haitian earthquake was such a terrible, sad disaster, and obviously everyone was affected. Now, Yvrose has to pay the bank $700 because the people she had dealings with have either died or they cannot pay her back. On one hand I think the bank should just dismiss the fee because probably no one who was affected by the earthquake will be able to make payments, but I know that that is an impossible thought and they have to demand the money from her. Yvrose has worked so hard and done wonderful for herself, and now she has to deal with something that is far out of her control. She was born into poverty and has dealt with that very gracefully, I have no doubt that she will take new obstacles and deal with them gracefully as well. If she was in the United States I’m sure she would think that many Americans are lazy and do not know the value of hard work, or what hard work even is. She should be right. I think we should all be like Yvrose and have her work ethic, yet that is just wishful thinking.
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