Looking back at how life has turned out ever since I joined AIESEC as a delegate in their NLDS in 2006, participating briefly with the MNC&NLDS 07 shortly after returning from exchange in 2007, becoming an Organizing Committee Member for MyLDS in 2008, and now the return to MyLDS 2010 as an external speaker to encourage entrepreneurship among AIESEC members.
Title: Building the Entrepreneur Within - A true story from an AIESECer - Harish Jayaram Hariraj
Venue: AIESEC Malaysian Leadership Development Seminar
(MyLDS) 2010, UTM Johor
Date: 15th December 2010, 12pm
The following is written by me after returning from my exchange, in appreciation to the many contributions made by the local committee of AIESEC in Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). You can read it below: (Btw LC UPM won the top gun LC award for that year)
Dated 29th August 2007:
A month has passed since I had returned from the land of my forefathers, the holy and sacred land called India; where I spent the best times of my life on an AIESEC development traineeship. My AIESEC experience cannot be described in a few hundred lines, not even a thousand words. The good times I enjoyed and hard times I had to endure along with the challenges I faced during that stint now seemed just a distant piece of a past. This undoubtedly reminds me that life is a long journey and every wonderful experience one gains fits in like a tiny piece of a jigsaw puzzle that sums up our existence in this world. In conclusion, it was nothing short of a life-changing experience.
The Life Changing Chapter of my Life
Tracing back the time to more than a year ago, a quiet evening in the month of July along the corridors of the library of University Tenaga Nasional, to a time where I suddenly stumbled upon AIESEC, just like that. Blame fate, or perhaps coincidence. It was inevitable for me to miss the sharing night organized by the exchange team of (AIESEC Local Committee of University Putra Malaysia) LC UPM, ignoring the fact that I was actually exploiting their reception table by accident. As a stranger, I knew nothing much about AIESEC and was mainly drawn into the hall out of curiosity due to the presence of many people around. However what attracted me after that was the sheer determination showed by the organizing team in portraying the benefits of an exchange, and their never-say-die attitude in the attempts to brainwash the non- AIESECer’s present especially during the Question and Answer sessions. Inspired by their presentations and after witnessing the first jives of my life, I took the initiative to be a part of this newfound AIESEC culture. My night ended with the purchase of a simple form, a form which would change my life forever.
Over the months, we kept in touch with simple phone calls. The exchange team kept me updated regularly on the many conventions and seminars organized by LC UPM, for instance the Local Leadership Development Seminar (LLDS) and also the National Leadership Development Seminar (NLDS) held in December 2006, which I attended as a delegate representing LC UPM. As a non AIESECer with one eye on an exchange, I had to endure many stages of planning with the exchange team. Firstly, I was gradually inducted into the mainstream of AIESEC agenda at the pre-NLDS held by LC UPM and was further involved at the NLDS. By January, I was facing interview sessions and was told to prepare resumes and essays to convince them why I wanted to go for an exchange. And in late February, the biggest headache of the lot - matching session began. To be honest, I was finally matched thanks to the perseverance and the determination of my SN manager (who also happen to be the then VP of Outgoing Exchange). Being tagged “like a fussy husband in search of his true love”, she endured many frustrating times with me throughout the matching process. As a matter of fact she even inquired to the numerous TN forms I highlighted even though I showed very little interest in them apart from one. This sort of attitude cannot be simply appreciated without some form of recognition, and when I was told about this awards night, I just couldn’t resist the temptation of writing a testimonial on behalf of LC UPM.
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My field trip to a village in Rajasthan - taking care of Indian children
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Distribution of food to the underprivileged kids..
The opportunity of going for an AIESEC traineeship as a non-AIESECer is one in a million. Believe me from the personal account of mine. From being a complete stranger 12 months ago to AIESEC and even LC UPM, I am now finding myself writing this little note of recommendation for LC UPM with much gratitude and with much eagerness for the nomination of Highest Performing Exchange Team for the year 2006/2007 in conjunction with the awards night held annually. I believe without the determination and the efforts carried out by LC UPM throughout the entire stages of my pre internship planning and preparations, my exchange experience wouldn’t have turned out as successful as it had been. It has indeed changed my life forever.
With Best Compliments,
Harish.J.Hariraj
AIESEC EXCHANGE PARTICIPANT 2007 (JAIPUR, INDIA)
University Tenaga Nasional
HJH
