I'm an addict. Like many addicts, I belong to a club. Some
of my fellow addicts come from household-name businesses like
AT&T, KPMG, Kraft Foods, Radio Shack and Wal-Mart (to name just
a few). Others hail from companies you've likely never heard
of. The name of our club and the source of our addiction: Students
in Free Enterprise (SIFE).
To the uninitiated, SIFE is a nonprofit organization devoted to
spreading the gospel of free enterprise. Part of what makes SIFE so
addictive: It's impossible to argue with the message. As
business owners, we understand freedom and independence take root
from the seeds of innovation and entrepreneurship. It is SIFE's
mission to plant those seeds, and they're sown by thousands of
college students, led by an amazing array of professors, who
undertake various projects (sometimes dozens) locally, nationally
and globally. SIFE is so infectious, it has already spread to 31
nations, including China.
I first got hooked (SIFE CEO Alvin Rohrs calls it "getting
SIFEd") several years ago at the SIFE National Championships.
Every year when I return to the championships, I think, "These
kids can't possibly top last year." But I am always wrong.
Very, very wrong. Time and space don't permit me to tell you
about the 159 teams that competed in Kansas City last May. So let
me share what I discovered.
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From the students at Florida's Bethune-Cookman College, I
learned you can teach others about the value of our dollar and
other currency by using a can of Coke. The students at BYU-Idaho
taught me that true success comes from vision, passion and
enthusiasm. Demonstrating there's strength in diversity, the
team from Hawaii Pacific University (consisting of students from at
least five different countries) showed passion, enthusiasm and
spirit cross all borders. Florida's Flagler College students
illustrated you can make a good thing better by morphing their
successful Radio Free Enterprise into a better College of Consumer
Knowledge.
The SIFE 2002 champions from Louisiana State University in
Eunice (two-year division, pictured with winners from LaSierra
University, below) proved the true power of the Net by sending
lesson plans to teens in Africa, Central America and other
developing nations.
Years ago, the students at Southern California's LaSierra
University (this year's SIFE champions, four-year division)
changed villagers' lives in India by loaning them cows. Last
year, they used hens to start a microenterprise in Mexico. This
year, they went to Peru and loaned alpacas to families in one
village, so they could increase their annual income 200 percent by
selling wool, and bought 210,000 bees for students in another, who
rent them to farmers to pollinate their orchards.
Every year, I learn from the students at California State
University, Chico. This year they decided "to start a
fire" and increased the participation of state high schools in
their Cal-High SIFE program by 300 percent. (For more about this,
visit www.teenstartups.com.) Chico student
Allison inspired me with her determination and boundless energy.
Her teammate Jill touched me by saying, "For those who lack
the opportunity, SIFE can be the spark that gives them their
dreams."
There were individuals who taught—and inspired me as well.
From Jessica (Southwest Texas State), I was reminded to ask for
what you want; nothing just comes to you. Ally (from Flagler)
showed mistakes are merely lessons, and, when given a second
chance, jump at it. A student at LaSierra reminded me to "take
inspiration anywhere and everywhere you can get it."
All addicts want to spread their habit. If you try SIFE, I
guarantee you'll get hooked. Start your addiction by calling
SIFE at (800) 235-9585 or by logging on to www.sife.org. Go get
SIFEd! The high is well worth it.