My Story: From Morgan Stanley to Afghanistan

Choosing where to go after business school was a struggle. I did a summer internship at a boutique consulting firm, and it led to an attractive job offer. I had it kind of mapped out: I was going to go to business school, get a job in the private sector, and hopefully make enough money to move into the public sector and do some cool work there. The thing is, on a whim, I’d applied to the PMF program. I went through several rounds of interviews and got an offer to work on the Asia team of USAID’s Development Credit Authority. I actually wrote one of my business school essays about eventually using my finance background to help the emerging middle class in developing countries, so it was a fantastic fit.

I ultimately decided that the PMF Program is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It’s a two-year program, so I figure that if I love it, I can stick with it, and if I’m not in love with it, I can go to the private sector and stick with my original roadmap. The only box the PMF Program doesn’t check is the paycheck box, but work isn’t all about that. I just need to be able to pay off my loans. I’m trying to. Plus, if you go straight from Tuck to a nonprofit or the public sector, the school has a program that gives your salary a little bit of a bump.

What I do on a day-to-day basis changes all the time, but essentially, I work with USAID missions abroad, and I look at which of their programs could use some private sector involvement. Right now, my four countries are Afghanistan, Pakistan, Indonesia, and Vietnam.

I recently went to Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, and it was a fascinating experience. It’s a little scary, because you arrive at the airport, you don’t know anybody, you don’t speak the language, and you can’t blend in at all whatsoever. Then, you get in these armored cars—their doors are a hundred times heavier than any car doors I’ve ever felt—and you get offered this big, heavy vest. The cars have these devices that just like zap every cellphone call within a certain radius around us to prevent people from using cellphones to detonate bombs. You kind of feel bad when you’re driving on the street and you see someone on the phone, and they’re like, “Oh, shit, stupid assholes driving by with their zappers on!”

You hear a lot about Afghanistan in the news, but actually going there showed me a different side. A lot of people in Kabul were very optimistic and excited about the future of the country. There were definitely some mixed reviews, but I think people are glad to see how far it’s come.

I always look for a purpose in everything I do. I look for it even in small things, like creating a pong league at Tuck. What was the purpose? To collect all these people and celebrate our last couple of months together. And there are larger things, like what I’m doing now: What’s the purpose of this $10 million loan guarantee? To help farmers, for example, who could double their crop output if we could just provide them with capital. I feel like I’ve been given a lot; by no means do I come from a ridiculously wealthy family, but I feel like I’ve always had opportunities. I think going into the public sector is the ultimate way to give back and impact change from a very high level.

Business school students don’t usually think about going into the public sector, but it’s a path I think everyone should at least explore. I get frustrated with certain aspects of the government—like when you need 50 different people to sign off on something—but the government needs more business-minded folks, and it offers unique opportunities.

My mom has always told me, “Whatever you’re doing, just make sure you’re happy. If you’re not happy, then you need to reevaluate what you’re doing with your life.” Whenever I talk to my mom on the phone, she does a happy check: “How happy are you right now?” It’s a reminder that you control your happiness. There are so many external factors, but ultimately, you’re in control of you.

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