This ShE is Empowered session focused on the enhancement of our ShE Leaders’ soft skills including public speaking, problem-solving, critical thinking, and networking to advance their career development. The modern professional world requires quick and advanced ways to sell yourself for the next life-changing opportunity. Africa Matters Initiative knows that some of the most impactful partnerships, lucrative business deals, and even mutually beneficial friendships were the result of well-crafted elevator pitches. With this in mind, we tasked our ShE Leaders to write an elevator pitch about themselves, present it to a fellow leader in their cohort, and then report their findings. The write-ups below outline Fatma and Daniela's discoveries about one another and show just how much one can share and learn from a professional elevator pitch:
My Elevator Pitch: Fatma Ezzahra Maatoug, Tunisia
I’m Fatma Ezzahra Maatoug, twenty years old, and I’m from Tunisia. I'm a sophomore student at Tunis Business School, and I’m the CEO and Co-founder of Artalk which is a marketplace that helps artists connect to buyers and sell or co-create artistic products. I am working part-time as a coach for children. Not only that, but I’m a fellow with UN Women Arabic and a ShE Leader with Africa Matters. For more than six years, I have worked in civil society with national and international organizations which has helped me gain experience in volunteerism, education, debate, and advocacy. I have always been passionate about arts, especially writing, theatre and painting. My big interest in art drove me to work in the cultural industry and co-founded my start-up.
My Elevator Pitch: Kosi Daniela Ebere Daniel, Angola
I am Kosi Daniel, I am an Angolan final year high school student. During the course of my educational career, I was able to establish my first community-based organization called “The Good Samaritan Association” where I am able to join people of my community to help tackle poverty and the lack of resources in particular non-privileged groups, also being able to address the topic of poverty and how it can be dealt with, successfully hosting food and clothing drives in my community. Furthermore, I also am a Yale Young African Scholars alumnus and a part-time English teacher and tutor since my junior year of high school. Over the years, I have been a lively member of my school and community and gathered an in-depth background in community service, leadership, and entrepreneurship roles which I have worked diligently on.
What They Learned From Each Other
Daniela's lessons from Fatma:
Fatma is a passionate young woman who was able to incorporate both her interests in art and business to create a business, and I feel this is a great quality in a leader. I find her to be an innovator because she was able to integrate her two interests and create something that other people can involve themselves in. Fatma presents herself as an adventurous and goal-focused person, with her having many plans and involving herself in many organizations she has shown curiosity and interest in the world around her and causes that matter, she is goal-focused because when she has a vision, she follows through with it and I find it really admirable.
Fatma's lessons from Daniela:
Daniela is 17 years old from Angola. She is interested in neurosciences and is considering pursuing her studies in this field because she wants to make a change in her country by providing assistance to children with disabilities. She is also the founder of an association that makes actions to help people living in poverty. I see how empathetic this leader is toward her community and how many achievements she could have made despite her young age. She was just accepted to the African Leadership Academy, I’m sure that such an experience will help her improve her skills and achieve her goals.
