A year of Matt Suggett: 2010 and beyond

However you look at it, 2010 was a big year for me.  I travelled the world, got hit by a giant Earthquake, left my life in Chile to return to England, got married, and finally started at London Business School.  More than anything it was a year of transition: one of contrast. 

At the start of the year I was helping families rebuild their houses after they were destroyed by an earthquake, huddling around a fire pit dug in the mud floor of their shack waiting for a simple dinner to slowly cook.  At the end of the year I was playing golf at some of the world's most prestigious private members clubs and drinking champagne with the world's top executives. The contrast could not be starker. 

At times it has been difficult for me to reconcile the two worlds.  At the start of 2010 I was more confused than ever: where did I fit into the picture?  The transition that I've felt since then is marked.

More than anything I think 2010 was a year of self-discovery: a year of many mini-epiphanies.  I think, despite all the crazy/scary/exciting stuff that happened, I will always look back on it as the year I figured a few things out.  I'll probably remember it as the year I truly came to believe that anyone can do anything.  I'll stop with the 'finding myself story' now, but not before I quote an LBS professor who sums up my feelings nicely:

"Be yourself.  More.  With impact."

Now, onto a quick reflection of some of the major events of 2010:

Travelled the world:

I visited 9 countries on 4 continents.  I saw the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, watched as Julia jumped out of a plane in New Zealand, and toured southern south America.  I drank delicate pretentious reds from fine glassware in a room full of high society pseudo-strangers and passed a warm bag of cheap Goon (boxed wine) around a group of new friends.  I realized that I'd rather do the latter.

Hit by giant earthquake:

There is no question in my mind- that earthquake was the scariest moment of my life.  You can't know what it's like to be scared until you wholly believe that you are about to die at the age of 23.  It puts a lot of things in perspective.  I think I'll remember the weeks that followed as much as the quake itself: from riding out the aftershocks by huddling in a dark room playing card games to volunteering in a Red Cross warehouse and helping to rebuild houses, the sense of 'we're all in this together, and we're all going to help each other' was inspiring.

Left my life in Chile and returned to England:

One of the toughest decisions I've had to make in my life.  It's never easy to leave behind a group of friends that you love and a cause that you feel so intimately a part of.  The first couple of months were more difficult than I had imagined, and I repeatedly wondered "why?".  Life in England seemed so sterile by comparison.

Got Married:

One of the easiest decisions I've made in my life.  Before hand I never really put much stock into marriage: the institution, but seeing Julia walk into the room, barefoot and smiling, was one of the happiest moments of my life.

Started at London Business School:

I would be lying if I said I didn't have my doubts about business school when I started.  But the experience so far has helped define who I am as a person.  I've never been challenged so rigorously before.  I would also be lying if I said it had all been smooth sailing- you can't expect to grow if you're not pushed absolutely to, and sometimes beyond, the limits of your ability.

Into 2011:

Looking back, it's going to be tough to top 2010 as a pivotal year.  More than anything, I hope that I remember the lessons I learned and carry them forward.  I'm just past the half-way mark in my London Business School course, and I'm determined to make the most out of the time I have left before the opportunity is gone. 

Matt Suggett; 02/03/2011

The Madrid Marathon

At 7:55 a.m. on Sunday 17^th of April, Julia and I will be standing amongst thousands of anxious and excited people in Plaza de la Independencia in Madrid.  At 8 a.m. we’ll cross the start line of the 2011 Madrid marathon.

The following few hours will be a blur of pain and exhaustion. 

Neither of us enjoy running and neither of us believe that this will be an enlightening journey of self-discovery.  We’re not running for fun or to somehow better ourselves: We’re running for a cause.

In 2009, I began volunteering in an orphanage in Chile.  I worked with teenage girls who had been abused, neglected, and abandoned.  For 15 months I watched in amazement as an organization named VE Global brought joy, happiness, and real opportunity into the lives of children who would otherwise have nothing.

After learning about the girls I worked with, Julia organized a fundraiser, named Somos Mujeres.  She was able to collect the underwear, clothes, hygiene products, and female sanitary items that the girls desperately needed, and delivered them to the orphanage in Chile.  While she was in Chile, Julia saw first hand the powerful results of the work that VE Global does.

Having been there and seen the impact the organization has in the lives of the children they serve, VE Global is a cause that’s close to both our hearts. 

We also understand how valuable every donation really is:

·      A few dollars can provide teaching materials for an educational program.

·      $26 can provide the materials needed to run a series of sex education workshops.

·      $30 can provide healthy meals to 30 kids as part of a sports league.

Our aim is to raise $1000 to help VE Global provide educational opportunities to these children.

Over the coming months, we’ll cover hundreds of miles of cold, wet pavement.  We’ll be getting-up before sunrise to run in the dark and we’ll be out on Sunday mornings to run in the cold and the rain.  The training will test our commitment, our patience, and our resolve.  But it will all be worth it, if we can reach our target.

Please support us by donating, or click here to find out more.



Thank you for helping!

Matt.