"A Beacon of Hope: Honoring the Work of an Entrepreneur & An Educator"
When it comes to entrepreneurship educators and curriculum designers, few can match the enthusiasm and passion of Lisa Illingworth known as Batman her superhero name. Lisa has been a leader in the field for about a decade, and her work has had a positive impact on countless students, entrepreneurs, and business owners.
Lisa’s enthusiasm for her work is infectious. She loves to share her knowledge and experience with others, and she is always eager to help those who are just starting out in their entrepreneurial journey. She takes great pride in helping people develop the skills they need to succeed in business. Her classes are always filled with energy and excitement as she encourages her students to think outside the box and take risks.
Batman also loves to design innovative curriculums that challenge students to think critically about their business ideas. She believes that by pushing students out of their comfort zone, they can learn more about themselves as well as their potential for success. FutureProof programs are designed to help students develop the skills they need to become successful entrepreneurs.
In addition to teaching classes, Batman also serves as a mentor for many aspiring entrepreneurs. She is always willing to lend an ear or offer advice when needed. Her mentorship has helped countless individuals launch successful businesses on their own.?Young entrepreneurs like Espen, Jessica, Daniel, Megan, Krista etc, read about our young entrepreneurs here.
Lisa’s passion for entrepreneurship education is evident in everything she does. Her enthusiasm is contagious, inspiring those around her to strive for success in their own endeavours. Everywhere she goes, Lisa brings a positive energy that helps people reach their goals and achieve success in business.?
For these reasons, we celebrate her on her birthday month, as an exemplary entrepreneur, entrepreneurship educator and curriculum designer who loves her work and brings a lot of positive impacts everywhere she goes!
Get To More About Lisa And The Impact She Brings!
An Interview With Lisa;
Full Name: Lisa “Batman” Illingworth
Designation/Role:?CEO and Co-founder
Country of Origin:?South Africa
Organization Name:?FutureProofSA
FutureProofSA was started first as a passion project under a different name in 2015 because, as an educator and entrepreneur, I could see the glaring need to provide kids and teens with the opportunity to choose entrepreneurship as a formal career choice and not as a backup plan when all else fails. We have been operational now for 7 years and our purpose is to catalyse entrepreneurial thinking and action in kids and teens from as young as the age of 5 years old.?
FutureProof’s curriculum is underpinned by a strong behaviour change-based approach suited to developing economies and education systems. We enable our entrepreneurs and educators to sustain lifelong success by creating and solidifying habits, characteristics and competencies that support high-impact entrepreneurship across socioeconomic contexts.
We have a truly hybrid methodology of delivery using face-to-face teaching using active entrepreneurs to deliver the lessons; an online learning management system designed for self-paced extension exercises and portfolio development; and both online and face-to-face mentorship for all participants.?
FutureProof strives to create deep, long-lasting shifts in thinking and behaviour for both our educators and our entrepreneurs.?
I am a single mother and a founding CEO. Both of these are fundamentally important to who I am and deliver a great deal of focus to my life but keeping them both in balance has been a real personal challenge. I need to model for my children what a healthy entrepreneur looks like and not just teach it.?
In the journey of the business, downscaling the team during the COVID lockdown was the most brutal chapter in the history of the company. I learnt through that, that hard work and effort aren’t always going to result in a change of outcome. There are forces outside of your control that cannot be directed no matter how much you try.?
There are only a handful of “firsts” that you get to experience in life and all too often those moments pass without acknowledgement. One of my favourites about this business is that we get to witness and initiate the first entrepreneurial steps in the majority of our participants. I never take that privilege for granted.?
The shift in both our educators and students is remarkable. One educator commented that she left our workshop with a whole new toolbox, not just for her classroom but for life. Apart from the anecdotes, we measure the change from the start of programs to the end of them and 80% of participants show a shift in the key competencies.?
The challenge and the opportunity are one and the same, and that is to shape the national and continental narrative that if entrepreneurship is going to be taught using traditional pedagogies, then we are going to end up with walking entrepreneurial textbooks rather than change agents who are solving problems and creating value for themselves and those around them.?
Complete: Entrepreneurship is the key to…creating a place in the world instead of trying to find one.?
Cheers to us saving the world one entrepreneur at a time,?
Happy Birthday Month to Lisa Batman Illingworth