The New Age of Changemakers: Gitanjali Rao's Mission to Inspire a Generation
Gitanjali Rao has hosted innovation workshops for more than 85,000 people across 46 countries. From refugee camps to U.S public schools to corporate boardrooms, Gitanjali's work has reached an impressively varied audience.
This article will be helpful for anyone that works with diverse groups, speaks in front of audiences, leads partnership discussions, or wants to be a more effective convener of people in general.
__________
How does someone effectively bring together the right mix of people to create lasting change?
How do you apply a singular framework to various audiences?
Gitanjali Rao, an 18-year-old MIT freshman with a resume that reads like a seasoned professional, has a singular mission: "to create global change by starting an innovation movement of teens looking to make a difference."
With accolades such as America's Top Young Scientist of 2017, TIME's Kid of the Year, and a spot on the Forbes 30 under 30 list for science, Gitanjali is an expert at building momentum before most people know what career paths they’d like to explore.
Through her workshops that guide people to adopt an innovation mindset, Gitanjali goes beyond traditional learning. She engages not only students, but also executives and influential leaders - as evidenced by her recent invitation to the White House.
Gitanjali's approach to building momentum is rooted in inclusivity and diversity, assembling the right mix of individuals to foster a collective mindset geared towards making a difference.
This article explores how Gitanjali effectively brings people together, inspires them to participate, removes the fear of failure, and nurtures an environment where people can create solutions to everyday problems.
Building Momentum: Writing A Book
Before diving into Gitanjali's techniques for gathering, it's crucial to understand how she built the momentum that now has her leading workshops worldwide.
While the publication of her first book "A Young Innovator's Guide to STEM" wasn't the start of her momentum, it was a significant catalyst.
Gitanjali’s book is available in 5 languages worldwide, and is used as a STEM curriculum in the Kakuma Vocational Centre and other rural schools around the globe.
Having a 'body of work' to refer to and use as a foundation for workshops is a fundamental aspect of Gitanjali's momentum building. Few possess the expertise to write a book, and the lengthy process of writing and finding a publisher is enough to dissuade most people.
For those who achieve publication, it provides credibility by illustrating determination, hard work, and subject matter expertise.
The publication process may also require steadfastness by the author: Gitanjali was rejected by 30 publishers before finally getting a yes. However, that number of rejections could have been significantly reduced if Gitanjali had given in to publishers' marketing requests and shifted the book's focus to girls in STEM only.
Instead, she stayed true to her mission of fostering an innovation mindset for all.
Being mission-driven and demonstrating a level of perseverance that borders on stubbornness can also be a key principle in building momentum.
By doing so, Gitanjali made innovation accessible to everyone and she works with a broad swath of clients. Her book includes a five-step process, which she describes as "a great baseline for anyone interested in building an idea but doesn't know where to start, in a non-intimidating way.”
How She Gathers People Effectively
While innovation has long been a buzz word, it doesn't mean everyone is truly interested in, or understands innovation.
Knowing that she may be going into a setting where the term innovation could be foreign or unappealing to certain people, Gitanjali intentionally takes 2 actions:
First, she widens the concept of innovation to be “finding solutions to everyday problems,” and explicitly states that innovation is not just used in technology and science. For example, she touts that having an innovative mindset can be applied to art, personal interactions, or any field of work - which then makes her work relevant to all.
Second, Gitanjali starts with a broad message, or a large problem to kick off her workshops, similar to the approach of casting a wide net. For example "What are you passionate about, and how could we make that better?" or simply "What's something that doesn't work well?"
This method helps to set the tone of big thinking, and shows participants that they have the power and ability to come up with innovative solutions to whatever problem they'd like to solve.
In one workshop, the issue of littering and excess garbage was identified. The students devised a plan to encourage more young people to dispose of their trash properly. They proposed an app that awards points each time a user throws away garbage. Users earn rewards by scanning garbage cans, similar to the Pokemon Go app.
The other fundamental of Gitanjali’s effective convening? Preparation and customization.
Gitanjali has led diverse initiatives and served people in schools, refugee camps, corporate boardrooms, government, and more. According to Gitanjali "It's never just a workshop that I run through over and over, or a memorized script."
In a world where automation reigns and having a sales flywheel is lauded as the path to passive income, Gitanjali takes the time to prepare and customize each engagement - leading to acclaim for her work, which then leads to more opportunities.
Leveraging Partnerships
Behind the scenes, when Gitanjali is not giving workshops or shaking hands at the White House, she has built a foundation of strategic partnerships - a key in her ability to scale her momentum.
These partnerships provide students with tools and opportunities, which in turn further amplifies Gitanjali's work: she leads the workshops and her partners provide the resources to students.
To ensure alignment, Gitanjali takes a strict approach in her partner selection process.
First, she determines who to partner with based on the needs of the kids she serves. For example, she asked one company "What can you do to provide for the students in this refugee camp where they don't have similar opportunities to students in the US, and they likely haven't ever heard of your company either?"
Next, she paints the overall vision. “It's more than providing funding,” Gitanjali explained. “It's creating a new program, fulfilling a new idea, or better yet creating an ecosystem that will continually provide new opportunities.”
An example Gitanjali gave was how the Reynolds family foundation was providing students with copies of the book The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds, and also building a community library. At the time we spoke, they were even looking to fund the purchase of computers for students.
How Gitanjali Operates
Many wonder how an 18-year-old becomes an acclaimed author and global workshop facilitator. Gitanjali's approach is simple: she has the courage to reach out to leaders.
When Gitanajli talked about approaching leaders in government, business, etc, she recognized her disadvantage by saying "Nobody is going to take you seriously as just a kid with an idea." Instead, she explained, she "sells them the vision instead of asking for help."
"Start with what you want out of it and build upwards from there" Gitanjali advises. "I don't start with a request, I start with here's my platform, here's my identity, here's what I want to do, here are the people I want to support - and now, here's my request."
Moreover, Gitanjali understands that a successful partnership must be mutually beneficial. "I always try to give a two way street. This is what you can do for me and how you can support my cause, and this is how I can support yours."
The Power of Relationships
Gitanjali Rao's extraordinary momentum at a young age is directly linked with the power of relationships, particularly guidance and mentorship. As a minor, she mainly relied on the adults around her, and they have steered her in the right direction.
Gitanjali credits her parents first and foremost, for their encouragement throughout her life, and for introducing her to the business world when appropriate.
Additionally, mentors such as school teachers and lab managers have significantly contributed to her journey.
Gitanjali was quick to mention that her 2nd grade teacher was one of the most incredible people she's ever met, and her junior and senior year physics teachers "changed her life" because they "believed in her and her mission."
Interestingly, while Gitanjali appreciates the adult guidance in her life, she also stresses the value of trusting her intuition. "I trust my own gut," Gitanjali affirmed. She then shared her thought process: "What do I truly want to do? I don't want to copy paste someone else's life. I want to take this and go as far as I can with it on my own."
Dare to Think Differently
Like many leaders, Gitanjali Rao's journey reflects her mission; innovation is both a tool to leverage and a mindset of pushing boundaries and daring to think differently. Her work reminds people of all ages that it's acceptable, and often beneficial, to have unique ideas and perspectives.
There is also a fine line between speaking your mind and harming others.
A story Gitanjali shared with me exemplified how our words can affect others and even deter their progress. She recalled a man asking her, "Why are you wearing a business suit? You are just 13 years old!" and it bothered her so much that she reverted to wearing dresses again for a short while, despite hating dresses.
Despite setbacks, such as discouraging remarks by an adult male to a young girl, Gitanjali has harnessed her unique thinking and paired it with dedication to her mission. Gitanjali seems to inherently understand that innovation, by definition, means being different, which can unsettle people.
Nevertheless, Gitanjali’s ability to collaborate with diverse individuals, understand group dynamics and find the right partnerships, has enabled her to generate global impact. Her success is characterized by mentorship relationships, meticulous planning, intentional action, thought leadership, strategic partnerships, and a focus on inclusivity.
This first chapter of Gitanjali’s career is just the beginning, and shows that with the right mindset and team, tremendous momentum can be achieved.
Want to see Gitanjali in action?
Watch Gitanjali’s acceptance speech at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center's Beloved Community Awards here (starting at minute 24:25).