Onboarding your friends for the sake of expansion

As we aspire to study abroad, many of us start organizations or initiatives to reflect our leadership, commitment, and dedication to a cause. Somewhere in between, we know that neither it is not something we are doing from the deepest of our hearts nor it is something that we are passionate about. We do this for the sake of filling in the community service or passion project section of the CommonApp.

If you are deeply interested in working for a cause and have shown perseverance in it, congratulations, you have found your purpose in life. As long as you work consistently and achieve milestones in your work, you are doing great. With your hard work and dedication, you will have grown your passion project to a feat that it starts getting recognized and appreciated.

Then, the problem arises. Many of your friends will want to onboard your initiative or organization. The call is yours. Either you accept them or defer them. In this section, I will share with you some important advice I learned from Mr. Ujjwal Shrestha, Executive Director of Panchakanya Group, and Mr. Prasanna Ratna Bajracharya, Learning Manager-Nabil SSE Consultant-CSR during our Self-Competency Workshop as a part of Glocal Teen Hero Nepal 2023.

- You'll want to expand your initiative/organization/startup once you feel like you want a team to move forward.

- At the same time, your friends will approach you for being a board member of your initiative/organization/startup.

- Remember, they may not be as passionate about your idea as you are.

- Only onboard people if they can dedicate the same number of hours and work with the same passion as you do.

- Never onboard your friends for the sake of expanding your organization/initiative/startup just because they are your friends. You are strong alone, too. Only onboard when you find the right fit.

Who to onboard?

Onboard a person, friend, or stranger, who shares the same passion and vision as you do.

How to onboard?

Before you onboard a team member, work with your papers first. Nepali entrepreneurs make the mistake of forming a team without proper documentation and tend to fail when it reaches a feat because of internal disputes between the team members. Provided you have clear documentation of what responsibilities each member holds, it can be avoided.

Concluding, the world needs innovators and leaders like you. However, please don't generate numbers for the sake of your college application. If you are really interested in making an impact on the lives of people, start by volunteering until you find a purpose in your life.

Closing remarks: This article is my view on the scenario of Nepalese students and initiatives/organizations/startups and links it with wise bits of advice from industry leaders.