I love me some Ethiopians. The ones I have met are very beautiful inside and out. These people are so proud of their culture and very territorial when it comes to any external influences that threaten their way of life. It is no wonder they were never colonized.
Today we travel back to Addis Ababa to engage with a great young leader, Henok Wendirad. Henok is one of those smart, funny, random and crazy people.
I shared a class with him recently and I got the privilege of being in the same small group with him, and please pardon me as I refuse to engage you in his wild, crazy, random and out of the box ideas in this blog.
Henok graduated from Addis Ababa University, faculty of Veterinary Medicine with a CGPA of 3.24/4. He is the current overall winner of 2016 Startupper Total accelerator program in Ethiopia. He is waiting for the Pan-African level competition among first place winners from 34 African countries. He is also a current participant of President Obama’s Young African Leadership Initiative.
When I was at the university, I was very interested in finding new ways to treat sick animals. For the first time in the history of the Uni, I introduced the concept of alternative therapies for animals via acupuncture, massage, hydrotherapy and homeopathy.
I was a star in promoting positive thinking among clinicians. I remember I even went ahead and proposed that the University pursues this path of conventional medicine in order to minimize the risk of drug resistant diseases but they declined. He laughs.
Henok’s youth has not been buttered cheese bread all through. He has had to overcome many challenges while enjoying his triumphs. When he was a fourth year student, his life took a turn one day when his best friend accompanied him to a nearby lake to swim. They were both horrible at swimming. His best friend drowned as Henok watched helplessly. This event changed his mindset and life forever.
Death was alien in my mind before that accident. I now live every day to the fullest because death can decide to sting you any minute.
Henok is the Co- founder and managing director of Mak-Addis Tutors. Before he founded it, he confesses to being a jack of all trades at some point in life. He has done it all, from selling potato crisps to hawking clothes
He confesses that finding his purpose through Mak-Addis is the most fulfilling work he has ever done. He gets to have direct impact to thousands of people through tutoring and to offer employment to others.
The young African leader won the 2015 accelerator program, Reach for Change competition for social entrepreneurs and bagged USD 2,000. He was placed to compete for the final competition that would have seen him bag 20,000 usd but he had to make a choice between YALI and the competition in February this year.
He chose YALI and says it was the best decision he ever made. I mean who says no when President Obama selects you for his program amid fierce competition? He urges young Africans to become go getters, to work and strategise like there is no tomorrow.
Learn to acknowledge that fear is a response to a stimuli that needs your action, not traction. Don’t fall for fear. Learn to use your fear as a lever to push you upward and onward. Be willing to fail as quickly as you can and get the lesson fast. Don’t repeat the same mistake twice- you only live once and hence can’t afford it.
Wendirad thinks of billions of seeds waiting to bear fruits when he thinks of Africa. He has not yet planned where he will be in the next 10 years because he is as spontaneous as they come. He loves to help people he meets along the way and just wants to keep it simple, fun and smooth.
I am an easy person. I love our Ethiopian dish, Shiro. And I look forward to continue teaching my kids our Ethiopian culture so that they will not forget their heritage.
Keep up the great work Henok Wendirad, you are a true representation of a young African Leader.
