596 Tererai Trent: Awaken to Your Full Potential and Achieve the Impossible

Jan 31, 2018

Tererai Trent, a Zimbabwean-born scholar and founder of Tererai Trent International, shares her incredible journey from childhood challenges to earning a PhD. She emphasizes that true empowerment begins with one's own dreams and the importance of education in breaking poverty cycles. Tererai discusses her mission to uplift women and girls, highlighting transformative community initiatives and advocacy for universal education. Her story inspires listeners to embrace resilience, solidarity, and the pursuit of their own goals, proving that greatness can stem from the most challenging beginnings.

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Intro

00:00 • 5min

Empowerment Through Overcoming Generational Challenges

04:41 • 3min

Dreams Beyond Boundaries

07:39 • 16min

Transforming Financial Stress and Reigniting Dreams

23:33 • 2min

Dreams and Education: A Journey of Hope

25:52 • 11min

Empowerment Through Dreams and Solidarity

36:54 • 15min

The Pursuit of Education and Wholeness Beyond Traditional Routes

51:31 • 3min

Lessons of Pride and Unity

54:56 • 4min

Recognizing Greatness and the Pursuit of Purpose

58:58 • 3min

Awakening Your Potential: Embracing Dreams and Overcoming Challenges

01:01:42 • 3min

"I REALIZED THE PATHWAY I WAS GOING THROUGH WAS SILENCING ME.
I've learned that greatness can come from anywhere, everywhere, or anyone. It all starts with a dream, a vision. Of course one of the secrets is never giving up, but the biggest one is that it needs to be yours.
You need to know that your goals are your goals, not something pushed on you by someone else.
No matter where you are in your life, or what obstacles appear in your way, you can achieve it. I believe this now more than ever after sitting down with our most recent guest, Tererai Trent.
Tererai was born in Zimbabwe, was forced into marriage as a child, and even gave birth to 4 children by the time she was 18. She came from a place where education wasn't an opportunity given to women.
Tererai ended up pushing through so many obstacles and now had a PhD - and that's just the beginning of her incredible accomplishments.
Tererai was named by Oprah as her All-Time Favorite Guest and received a $1.5 million donation to rebuild her childhood elementary school in recognition of her tenacity and never-give-up attitude. With the firm belief that education is the pathway out of poverty and a desire to give back to her community, she founded Tererai Trent International.
Eleven schools are being built in Zimbabwe and education has been improved for over 5,000 children so far. And this is only the beginning.
Today, Dr. Trent is invited to speak all over the world, to share her remarkable story and the valuable lessons she has learned along the way. She just came out with a new book all about empowering women to awaken to their full potential (she is the poster child of this). Her favorite motto is Tinogona, meaning, It is achievable!
Discover all of that and much more, on Episode 596.
Some Questions I ask:
What interested you in agriculture? (16:15)
What made you bring your 5 children and your abusive husband to America? (17:20)
What was it like when you met the same woman who inspired you 14 years later? (26:26)
Do boys have more access to education around the world? (36:10)
What's your message to girls from privileged and non-privileged parts of the world? (40:36)
How can anyone make an impact in the world? (42:43)
What is available for a woman who is not sexually happy with herself? (46:05)
What advice do you have for men to support the women in their lives? (48:15)
What's your vision now? Have you planted new dreams? (50:00)
In this episode you will learn:
What it's like to be a young mother in Kenya (and mother of 4 by 18) (7:43)
The struggles of raising kids in while going to school (21:18)
The thoughts that helped Tererai find her greatness (23:12)
How Tererai funded her dreams (30:09)
How writing down her dreams helped her achieve them (37:28)
The ways women have been silenced (44:40)
A ritual someone can do to rekindle the fire within themselves (47:18)
What makes Tererai whole (54:32)
Plus much more...

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