302: Organizing 500 Trips to Africa, Becoming a Citizen of Sierra Leone, and Building Jelani Travel with Ashley Company

Learn about traveling to Togo, Benin, The Gambia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and building a successful travel company. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE Ashley Company starts off talking about founding Jelani Gives and how that led to founding her company Jelani Travel. Ashley reflects on running her company for over a decade, including the healing impact she has seen when taking people from the African Diaspora to spend time on the Continent. She then talks about how she traced her ancestry to Sierra Leone, was able to get citizenship in Sierra Leone, and had her passport handed to her by the President of the country. Ashely also shares some highlights from the Jelani Travel trips to Benin, Togo, Ghana, Senegal, and The Gambia. She then takes us behind the scenes of her entrepreneurial journey and explains how she built a successful travel company that she has now run for over a decade. Ashley shares tips and insights on how she optimizes her time, manages stress, and chooses what to outsource. She also reflects on how to avoid the pitfalls of voluntourism in Africa, and how all of her travels to 100+ countries have impacted her as a person. Finally, Matt and Ashley talk about the upcoming Black Travel Summit and how to meet them there in person. ⁠ ⁠ → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU: See my Top 10 Apps For Digital Nomads See my Top 10 Books For Digital Nomads See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally You can buy me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes! :)