On May 21st 2019 we announced to the world our Scholarships Scheme in collaboration with YSYS, however, it was months before that the conversations about this began.
Prior to Jolt’s UK Launch in London, back in January 2019, we were introduced to the fantastic James Frewin who began teaching at Jolt. James introduced us to the community that is YSYS, after we’d been following their journey as a team for a while.
YSYS (Your Startup, Your Story) is a startup community for founders, developers, creatives, investors and more on a mission to make a difference. At YSYS, they know that amazing things can happen when people start sharing ideas and collaborating. The YSYS community is a space for people with shared values, interested in launching a startup, joining a team or building a diverse and inclusive culture. Together, YSYS support accelerators, incubators, venture capitalists, startups, not-for-profits, universities and corporates on initiatives which foster diversity, inclusion and social change.
As leaders in their field of creating an incredible community, fighting for causes they believe in, and nurturing impressive talent preventing it from becoming undervalued, YSYS was a community we knew we wanted to collaborate with. They share our values in terms of making things happen, getting incredible people together in a room, and the importance of social change and inclusivity. It was a no-brainer for us at Jolt to bring on board some of their finest community members, into our very new community as we launched in London.
The Scholarships Scheme was an idea worked out between Jolt and YSYS to provide, originally five, of their members access to Jolt for 6 months. The applications came in thick and fast when the whole idea was launched, and the standard of them so high we selected seven, not five applications to be brought on as official YSYS Scholarship holders at Jolt.
As members, they will not just be given exclusive access to the Jolt Not An MBA® programme, but they will become core figures of the Jolt community, emulating what they have created in the YSYS community, into ours. Just one-month into the scholarship scheme, they have collected attended over 90 hours of learning, written a total of 1 blog post about Jolt and the difference it is making, and helped us bring 1 community-led initiative to life. We cannot wait to see where these incredible members of the community help us navigate yet, and we have a lot to gain from their being here.
So, with no further ado, please meet the incredibly talented Jolt x YSYS Scholarship students.
Founder of BamBamBoogie
Instagram 12.5K followers
As Founder of BamBamBoogie, London’s confidence-inspiring dance, fitness class subscription and club, Bami has inspired her 2,000 members to twerk their way to feeling sensational about their bodies. Bami started her career in banking, before moving to Google as a Digital Strategist and then going on to start BamBamBoogie. Bambamboogie is not only customer-facing but also holds dance and confidence classes for employee’s, with business customers such as Google, Stripe, Shopify and Facebook. BamBamBoogie was approved as an enterprise in 2018 and has since launched with instructors all around Europe. Bami regularly speaks at events about growing an international business enterprise.
A proud multi-passionate entrepreneur working full-time in tech as a Customer Success Manager at MixPanel & spending all other hours as a Life coach, London Startup bookclub co-creator & podcaster (The Palm Podcast out on all platforms). I have had an interesting journey since graduating in 2012 til now. I have a millennial CV often moving jobs in the pursuit of knowledge, challenge and qualifications which has formed my background in hospitality, real estate and now tech. I am obsessed with humans 24/7 in both my roles, I seek and create opportunities to empower, train, challenge and inspire my clients as a customer success manager and also during 1:1 coaching and group coaching scenarios. My podcast was birthed out of my desire to remind people of their journey's which are often dismissed as business as usual. To remind them that the wisdom they carry is valuable to the person slightly behind or alongside them and deserves to be shared.
Ibiere is the poster girl for the facts that 80% of people that work in tech, are not ‘techies’. Ibiere originally studied Psychology with the hope of becoming a practising psychologist. However, technology grabbed Ibiere’s heart after completing a Product management internship with the awesome company Eve Sleep. Ibiere fell in love with the idea of building products and moved onto be a Junior Product Manager where she was in charge of not only navigating developers, testers and designers but also imagining new features that would be tested and created. It was here where Ibiere was empowered and starting thinking about using her skills to create something that would help and support thousands of young people across the UK. Ibiere started Zootown in 2016 whilst enrolled to the Code First Girls UK coding course with a mission to help young people all over the UK. Tackling the devastating unemployment rate amongst school leavers and university students in the UK, Zootown using machine learning to build the first Upwork/Linkedin for young people. Zootown will give students the opportunity to 1, create a digital CV that will be reviewed by employers and 2. Receive pay for their role straight into the bank account as the role is finished ad finally 3. Give higher institutions and apprenticeship bodies access to information that will help them provide better opportunities to their target audience. The platform aims to be able to connect employers to an array of self-starting and skilled candidates, to fill positions they desperately need entry-level candidates to fill.
Read more about Ibiere’s company, Zootown, here
Alice is the definition of self-made. Alice funded herself through education her entire life, working as a cleaner through high school, holding down four jobs while studying at UCL and after finding nothing but unpaid work on graduating, Alice started a very successful online magazine, which enabled her to do a journalism internship in Italy. Alice set up Reading in Heels 18 months ago, which has become the Ampersand Book Co - and now comprises three-book subscription brands shipping to thousands of customers every month. Alice has got big, big plans (new products, events, new brands and more), and their growth numbers (customers and cash) are impressive. Reading in Heels has won awards, launched a podcast, partnered with the likes of Bloom & Wild and been on ITV, Evening Standard, The Independent and many more.
Campaign Lead #TrailblazingMuslimWomen
Zainab works for in Digital/Social for Creative business JOINT in London. Zainab has previously worked in tech in operations and community management for e-commerce and fin-techs. Zainab started the hashtag #TrailblazingMuslimWomen which has reached over 2 million people and saw features in The Times, Campaign, Buzzfeed, Stylist and Amaliah.com. Zainab was named one of Pitch’s 100 superwomen in 2018 and received a special mention in Campaign x Creative Equals Future Creative Leaders 2018.
Hanna is a freelance assistant producer working across different platforms to tell untold stories. Hanna has spent the majority of her time at the BBC in all three areas, television, radio and online. Hanna teaches a workshop with the BBC about how to engage young and diverse audiences. Hanna is currently working on a VR piece with the BBC and has previously worked with Vice.
Muhammad is a speaking and start-up coach, after launching many startups and initiatives, including Ramadan Legacy. Founded in 2014, is an award-winning education organisation. Our mission is to use design thinking and technology, to create learning experiences that empower people for the month of Ramadan. During an initial phone call, Muhammad expressed his passion for becoming a student a Jolt and the connection was instant. A natural community leader, he’s exactly the kind of person we are looking for, with a huge passion for product management and a humble approach to learning, Muhammad is bringing a lot to the Jolt community already in terms of vibes and passion!
Charles Darwin took long walks around London. Kurt Vonnegut made listening to jazz a daily priority. Fiona Apple disappeared for 6 years after the release of her third album.
I ask because I can often be found agonising over the "more". If only I posted on Instagram more, I'll think in the bath. I'd have more followers if I pitched to more publications. I need to post 2 more times a week, minimum. I could go on...
Between you and me, I've got frustrated with myself for browsing Facebook or watching too much TV more times than I can remember.
And I'm not alone. So many of us are terrified of taking a break, creatively speaking. We won't let a moment pass without listening to a podcast, consuming an article or sharing something.
The cognitive load is real, y'all.
But like Vitamin D, sleep and good food, it's not only ok to take a break, it's essential.
Living a successful life is also about knowing when not to work. For your best output, you need to focus on your input, too.
The world won't end if you disappear from the internet for a week or so. Your creativity won't suddenly stop. Your time is now, but your time was also then and it will be again.
Many of us confuse being "busy" with being constructive. But you can only do your best work by taking breaks.
And science backs it up, too. The brain requires substantial downtime to do its most innovative thinking. The ideas you have while driving or in the shower aren't coincidental. They're a result of you taking a step back, whether you're aware of it or not.
Let yourself take a wonderful and indulgent break. Several breaks. Hell, get downright bored.
Wallow in it. Don't be afraid of it. Push it as far as you can.
When you leave your laptop behind, something always happens. A new idea or a fresh perspective appears.
Take proper breaks, often. Completely clear your mind. Your next best idea depends on it.
By taking this 10-min test I can set myself up for success
