517: How to Break Into Microfinance and Poverty Reduction With Alex Counts, Grameen Foundation [Espresso Shots]

Alex Counts is the former CEO of the Grameen Foundation which he established in 1997, after having worked in microfinance and poverty reduction for 10 years. He trained under Professor Muhammad Yunus, the founder and managing director of Grameen Bank, and co-recipient of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize. Today Alex is a consultant to nonprofit organizations and an adjunct professor at the School of Public Policy at the University of Maryland College Park. Earlier in his career, Alex served as the legislative director of RESULTS and as a regional project manager for CARE-Bangladesh. His newest book, When in Doubt, Ask for More: And 213 Other Life and Career Lessons for the Mission-Driven Leader, was published in March 2020 and details the highs and lows of being a leader of a nonprofit organization and what he learned along his own journey. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT IN THIS EPISODE: What are the best entry-level jobs to look out for to break into this field  (4:04) Why to look into overseas opportunities like Fulbright Scholarship and Rotary programs (4:04) What makes a good leader as a nonprofit CEO (6:04) What hard and soft skills you need to be successful in this field, including writing skills, language skills and statistics (6:44) Why a graduate degree isn’t always necessary for nonprofit work, and why having a mentor is beneficial (10:52) What makes nonprofit work totally worth it (16:26) What books relate to this field, including Giving Done Right:Effective Philanthropy and Making Every Dollar Count by Philip Buchanan, Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World by Anand Giridharadas and Alex’s own book Changing the World Without Losing Your Mind (21:56) Why working in nonprofits does not doom you to have low-pay (24:17)