JUST DO IT!

So as when i thought i would be heading for the future- then APXLDS in India happen and once again, i changed my route decided to try one last route that i had never imagined i would go for.

In 2004, after finished my term as LC VP HR and also when i thought that i was heading towards the "heading for the future stage, i headed off to India in my "last" months of my AIESEC Career, to do a 5 months internship with an amazing organisation in Bangalore- and in the middle of my internship, i changed my mind and decided to JUST DO IT and decided to take the next step of running for the National Committee... and there i spent the next 3 years of my life -on the national committee of AIESEC in Malaysia.

In 2007, as i was towards the end of my term as Member Committee President of AIESEC in Malaysia, i once again went to India as the agenda manager for a regional leadership conference-also at this point cherishing every minute that i had during this period of time thinking that- "well, next stop- Heading for the future, of course!" and then, after an amazing experience during that conference, i once again decided to embark on another route that i knew if i got the opportunity to be on- that it would be definitely a journey that would changed a lot of big decisions and my future plans in life, but definitely a journey that i was looking forward to!
And so, yeap by the end of APXLDS 2007 in Hyderabad, i decided to JUST DO IT again, and apply for AIESEC International 2007/2008!!! ( Crazy but incredibly amazing!)

The Application
So in 4 days i did everything i could ( after working hours of course!) to get my endorsements, do some research, write my application,pray and talk to my team mates for motivation and guidance!

Please note that at this point of time, i had not told anyone from my family yet about my decision as i wasnt sure of how they would react if i told them about my decision. I knew that it would be a big thing for them as they had different plans and expectations of what i was going to be doing next after my Presidency ( well so did i actually!) but at this point of time, while filling up the application i just wanted to go through it without any extra stress of having to convince my parents about my drastic decision. At that point of time, whether or not i get the position was another thing, but going through this experience of applying and going through the selection was something that i was looking forward to!

Telling my parents
Anyways, a few hours before the deadline, i sent in my application and went home. The next morning i called my mum and told her that i sent in my application for AIESEC International, but not to worry because i knew there would be many people applying also, and my chances of getting is probably quite low :) . However, my mum took it quite well as she had talked to 3 generations of the AI Directors ( Liv Flores, Chris Zhao, and Ryan Sheppard) who all stayed in my house and have had conversations with my mum about what is AIESEC International and how can this experience add value to your future career path! :)
At that point of time, besides my parents and my team mates, no one else knew i was applying for AI- it's just my personality, i dont like to say anything till its over.

The Interview
So anyway, i passed the first selection... waited with anticipation for my interview which lasted almost 1 hour and 20 minutes ( it was the longest 1 hour and 20 minutes of my life). Every time Petr said "next question" i would just take a deep breath and drink a sip of water and start sweating!!! Hehehe... At the end of the interview, i was soo relieved that it was over, and even though Petr was saying something about when they would announce the results, i just couldnt listen anymore,at that point of time- it really didnt matter and i just was glad and proud for going through that couple of days. I would like to thank all those people who stayed with me through out this time- giving me a lot of courage and confidence to go through this process!!!

The Announcement
So after a great weekend with my family ( totally forgetting about my interview and not knowing when the results will be announced:)) celebrating the Hindu new year and all, i returned to office on Monday and since we had our 10 HIV/AIDS intern team complete- we decided to have our reception dinner that night. It was really great since Ryan was also around at that time. At just after dinner, i saw my phone and noticed that i got a miss call from an international number and at that point of time, i knew that the results are going to be announced soon. And suddenly, i felt really nervous again!

I tried to calm myself down saying that " well, if i dont get...life is not over and that i can continue with my plans and stuff... " but deep inside me, i knew i really wanted to get this position. There were a lot of reasons why i decided to apply but one of them was because i wanted to prove to my Malaysian members that MCP is not the highest one can be in AIESEC and that we can go further as long as we take that challenge to "JUST DO IT!"!

Anyway, coming back to the announcement, as we were about to pay i got a call again...and it took me one second to realize that it was no other call.. but THE CALL itself!
Me: Hello?
Rishabh: Hello lah....
Me: Oh Hello......... ( very nervous but trying to stay calm)
Rishabh: How was your weekend.......... + many other questions................)
( After like 10 minutes)..............
Rishabh: Well anyway, i am very sorry to inform you about this over the phone, but ermm... i just wanted to inform you that ermm....you will be joining AIESEC International in ROtterdam this year!!!
Me: Means i got it? ( duh?!)
Rishabh: Yeap, thats right! Congratulations!!!!!
Me: Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh Thank you ....Thank you... Thank you... Thank you!!!! ( YAY!!!!!)

The conversation ended 5 minutes later after Rishabh also told me who else made it to the team ( MINDYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY yay!!!!)

After the call
Well, during the period of the phone call, what i had totally forgotten is the fact that 50 metres away, i had left 12 interns ( + Amel and Daniel), Ryan, Daryl, Sook Theng, Chee Kek and Sandy waiting curiously for the call to end. Most of the interns were quite confused, but those who knew what was going on helped to "educate" the rest of the interns about why everyone had stopped talking and focus their attention on me... hehehe...

So anyway Rishabh hung up and i walked slowly towards the gang and as i jumping inside, i saw Sandy walk towards me and when she reached me, i just shook my head ( sign of dissapointment) and she just gave me a hug and said " its okay..its okay lah" and as i hugged her i just said in a very sad voice to her
Me: I'm sorry Sandy.... but i wont be with you guys next year.....
Sandy: It's okay.....( still comforting me)
Me: because i will be going to Rotterdam in June!!!
Sandy: AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

And we just hugged and laughed for about 5 minutes and of course it didnt take even one second for Ryan to understand what had happened there !!! hehehehe....
As Sandy and I walked back to the rest of the team... i felt like i was in a dream! I just couldnt believe it!

I DID IT!!!!! :) only cuz i decided to JUST DO IT!

Note: All major decisions that i made in life happened in India- who knows what will happen if i go there again, huh? What decision will i make next?????

I LOVE MY TEAM!

Hyderabad... here i Come!!!!

Yes!!!! Hyderabad it is!!!

I was agenda manager for APXLDS 2007 that was held in Hyderabad in March- yeap my last travel, if not, my team mates are gonna kill me for travelling so much from January till march! Hehehe.. but anyways, the most amazing conference for me was this one of course because few things happened during this conference:

1) I saw the true potential of AP
2) I saw how much power and energy these future leaders had!- Which truly inspired me
3) It challenged my ability to create an agenda/conference that is adaptable to all levels of members in the most diverse region- AP!
4) I met Abhinav and Jeanne, the 2 people that changed my decision to "head for the future" after my MCP term ( I love you guys sooo much!)
5) I had the GREATEST ever FACILITATOR Team! ( 6 guys and 6 girls!!!!) Woo hoo... it was soo much fun learning and working with them through out the conference- definitely the best!
6) I got to meet Huilin- was extremely happy to see her and see how she is doing in India. We stayed with her during pre-meet as we were hosted by ISB during that time. Huilin was really a dear and helped arrange everything! I just love her la!
7) The delegates of this conference truly inspired me and changed my direction in life forever! These individuals made me feel that i had so much more to give the people of this organisation and that my time was not over.... They made me realize how much i love this organisation and the people and made me realize how much i would miss all of this after my MCP term- they made me realize that there was something else i had to do... and if i had to do it, it had to be NOW! :)

APXLDS 2007, for me was extraordinary- so many great memories that i will never forget, i have been the chair or facilitator for many international conferences now, but to have this bunch of diverse delegates alll at one place-reminding you of why You were in AIESEC, was simply very touching for me.
Few moments i will never forget:
1) During one of the suprise sessions, when i sang "Tong Hua", as soon as i finished singing, all the delegates rushed up to me and gave me hugs that were so genuine and sincere. I couldnt hold back my tears, as i heard them chant my name- at that point of time, i just felt an over flow of love for these people...It was my most amazing moment this conference!
2) After Night Stalk- the first time ever bringing night stalk to APXLDS- was kinda scary. I had to convince Abhinav to allow me to run this event, after which much doubt he gave me the green light. ( Thank you for the confidence Abhinav!) and after that, on top of the agenda, i started to create the script and story and stuff, and wished that people would get the point of the game and would enjoy it of course. And of course, after night stalk, i couldnt hear anything else but only how much everyone loved the game and wanted to bring it back to their countries! That again, was a powerful moment for me. I know it may not be such a big deal for many, but for me it was- and to see them enjoy and have so much fun and learn together at the same time ( just what i envisioned the conference to be, ) was simply amazing!

Anyways, APXLDS is over,i met many people who changed my life and inspired me to go on further, i met people who challenged me and in that process taught me many things about myself, about life and about possibilities!

And because of this APXLDS, i decided to go on challenge myself further- something that i never thought i would do... but it was a challenge i was willing to make after everything that i went through during this conference- and i owe everything to these individuals that made a difference in my life...

For everything my dear delegates and facilitators of APXLDS 2007, Hyderabad- THANK YOU!