It is an experiment involving humans – men and women in their prime, who are at a crossroad in their lives.
Twelve strangers from different parts of the world come together on a professional development program. Away from their families and their spheres of influence, they get a common platform to share their experiences, culture and skills. They learn to lead, get mentored and gain exposure to a whole new world of opportunities and possibilities. They like each other, they argue & grudge, they compete, they work & they party.
I have been part of one such experiment since August this year and the experience so far has been amazing. Meeting new people, experiencing different things, gaining fresh knowledge, honing my skills and traveling to different locations have been the takeaways of this semester. I am happy that there is one more semester to catch up on things that I haven’t done or want to do more of.
Here are 10 fellows from different parts of the world in a program that binds us together – two fellows are missing in this picture
I believe what takes one from A to B, doesn’t necessarily helps to move from B to C and programs like these facilitate that transition or change of gears. You are given a canvas to fill in the ideas for yourself. Being away from the rigmarole of the daily grind, allows you to think and envisage the big picture of your life.
Every time that I have had to write a blog, I was compelled to think, introspect and arrive at a view point. Be it about my ethics code, or my experience at the global leadership forum or the global me. Every time that I presented my ideas to the group of fellows – I learnt something new – learnt from others and learnt from my reaction to others. I feel like a sponge absorbing things that I am exposed to.
In the beginning of the program, we all were acutely aware of our identities – comparing and contrasting the things that we held inside with those that we saw outside. As the time passed, the realization seeped in that this is transformative – and is changing our perspective towards things. The ideas outside are inspiring a lot inside. I don’t know how will I be by the time the program ends – but I guess I will be packed with lots of actionable ideas and the will to make a difference to my community and workplace. Will have to work on keeping up the same enthusiasm and optimism as I have here.
I am coming to realize what 10 months of your life could mean. You can make scores of new friends, can make many innovative plans and can effectively change things for yourself for the better. It is an opportunity pregnant with lots of possibilities that you carve for yourselves.
There are still six months remaining for the experiment to end. Six months full of activities, involvements, speaking engagements, travel plans and professional affiliations. If past is anything to go by, the future appears to be pretty rocking!
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