“What did you like most about the course?” One student simply wrote: “Ira.” 🥹

That little answer made me so happy.

I recently taught a three-day course on finance and fundraising in the Berlin area, and I had so much fun with the students. I loved watching their interest develop over those days as they connected the topics to their own business ideas and became more involved in the discussions.

I get a little nerdy about finance. I can get very excited about what a financial plan tells us, what happens when we change an assumption, or why the amount you want to raise needs to connect to what you actually want to achieve.

When students start getting curious about those things too, it’s hard to contain my enthusiasm. And honestly, I don’t really try. 😊

And this feedback is a testament to the full teaching team. Students appreciated the instructors’ enthusiasm for sharing their knowledge, the different topics and perspectives, and the opportunities to practise throughout the course. Other instructors were named too—their names are blacked out here for privacy.

It was an honour to be part of this teaching team, and such a pleasure to work alongside them. A big thank-you also to the organisers for bringing the course, the people and all these learning opportunities together. A lot of work goes into making that happen.

You put so much energy into teaching, hoping that what you share will land and be useful. It’s incredibly rewarding to hear that it did—that something made sense, helped, or sparked an interest.

One of my favourite parts of each day was our morning chat. Hearing about their dreams for the future, what they wanted to do, and talking together about possible ways to get there. I loved getting to know the people behind the projects and understanding what mattered to them.

Thank you to the students for your curiosity, your questions and for sharing a little of your dreams with me. You made those three days such a pleasure. The feedback was the icing on the cake.