Nicky's thoughts, passions and adventures!

posted by Nicky @ 4:49 PM 1 Comments  

Sometimes its the simple pleasures that make all the difference...

So today was a typical weekend day for me. Get up at 6:30am, get ready for work, go to work, come home from work, turn laptop on, do some AIESEC work, etc etc etc.

Yes yes, seems monotonous, doesn't it? I'm even getting bored just ready it myself, and i am actually living this reality :P

Yet, today was different.

I decided to leave the laptop. yes, i know..whats this CRAZY talk huh!

I went outside and just sat in the yard for a while. There's this really nice area my dad made in the backyard overlooking the pool, with some grape vines that have grown over a lattice over a seating area. So when you sit down, you have all these pretty vines overhead, you are looking over the pool.

It was so relaxing. So...peaceful. Everything was so green from the rains we have been having. The sky was so blue and the breeze was really light and floaty. I just felt spiritually enriched.

I went and got a book i have been meaning to read of a while but haven't - Ishmael. Interesting philosophical stuff. Mmm... it was just such a wonderfully spiritually enriching moment.

You know, I have been working so hard lately with everything, that i have been feeling terrible. I feel so mentally, spiritually and physically weak. I don't do enough exercise, i haven't been eating properly, i haven't been reading widely or simply being satisfied with just 'being'. Instead, I have been feeling a need for constant 'doing'.

Yet i realised today, I can not sustain that mentality. If this year is going to work, I am going to have to aim for a balance in my life.

Hence my new life philosophy - nourishing the mind, the body and the spirit. So from here on in, I will aim to at least once a week do something for my mind, my body and my spirit. So, playing the piano, or drawing for my spirit, going for a run, tennis game, a massage for my body, reading a good book, or going to a talk for my mind.

Its time to start looking after myself :)

posted by Nicky @ 8:36 PM 1 Comments  

The UNSW@ Army are coming...

Today I can gladly report the rise of UNSW. Things have been happening in the past month that have exceeded any of my expectations.

Can you believe that two months ago, UNSW was, me. Yes. I was the representative for UNSW. I am not even a student of UNSW. Now two months on, UNSW has 194 financial members, plus 250 interested sign ups, plus 4 active members already, plus constant emails of interest and summer recruits.

I can't tell you how exciting it is to see this thing I have visioned in my mind coming to life. This was the first test for me as an expansion co-ordinator. Yes, it will only get harder and more complex. Yet, to get this one under my wing. AWESOME feeling.

Boy - what a fabulous team of people behind me. To my current LC team- Vinay, Sam and Agnes - you all have impressed me so much. Your passion and commitment levels have been so high. I see before me, three TOP talented individuals and I am very excited to say that you are part of my team and can't wait for this year to get under way.

To my beloved region, especially Susu, Manny, Kara and Jem - thank you so much for helping me man stalls and really creating such a great vibe at o-week!

To my AWESOME RB team, I feel we have really come together over recruitment as a great team. I thank you both for being there to help me at the stalls. You two are so great and I really do rely on you both for encouragement, for expertise and advice. I feel that our team is going to be another wonderful team experience for me in this organisation and something that we will all treasure.

Special kudos to you too Jakey. You have been my rock and have really really helped me so much so far. We have worked so closely together since joining AIESEC, and being on the same team in one form or another. I really treasure the bond that we have - even though you remind me of a really annoying little brother at times :P. i look forward to our third working year together :)

Finally, to mt star sellers - Pricilla and MelMel. Pricilla, you were AMAZING during o-week. Babe, your LC is lucky to have someone as devoted, as talented and as loving as you. You always put a smile on my face. Thank you for coming to Sydney and giving me another reason to go to China.

To MelMel, it has been awesome having you on the ground at the stalls of UNSW. You bring so much energy to your work and definitely to the stalls. thanks for lifting my spirits being there to guide and help me. thanks for being a wonderful friend too.

Anyhoo, just watch this space because i will update it with all my news of UNSW. Let me just end by saying that UNSW is starting to build its manpower - give us a few months and we will be back- bigger and better than ever before.

hugs

posted by Nicky @ 11:42 PM 3 Comments  

The power of the storm...

Tonight I witnessed something truely amazing- one of the biggest power storms i have ever seen. It was so remarkable. You think something like that would be so alarming to see. Yet i found it kind of calming.

Theres something so splendid seeing nature at work. I mean, I find myself so busy these days that I often don't make time for myself to sit down and just be still, be silent, and just embrace the wonders of the world.

I mean, I really am a creative person at heart. I love art, I love arty movies at the Dendy cinemas in Newtown and i love seeing spectacular things. It was like an artwork lighting up in the sky.

i think it is important to take some time, a moment is all it takes to look around, and notice the small wonders of the world...a nice walk through the park perhaps..or a power storm on a very quiet sunday evening.

And now that the thunder and lightening have stopped, i can't help but feel a wonderful sense of calm and ease. What a nice feeling after the craziness of the past month.

Silence.

Stillness.

Calm.

Bliss.

posted by Nicky @ 11:15 PM 0 Comments  

Nicky is back...

Hey hey - sowwie it has been so long! I found myself too busy, or too tired to update this blog for so long. So I'll try to commit to updating it weekly from now on.

So what's been happening?...

1. AWESOME 2006
2. Nostalgia...
3. Next steps with UNSW...


1. AWESOME 2006

This weekend just passed, my dream of running a splendid EB transition and member professional skills education conference was realised.

It was so challenging setting up this conference, learning about all the ins and outs of running a conference, problems with unexpected delegates numbers, writing agendas, organising facis and organisational logistics, running sessions, keeping the time and energy of the conference in tact, etc etc.

Yet, what a great feeling in the end, when it all came together and worked relatively well!

For me, personally, the most challenging and rewarding was improving my confidence and skill in facilitation and presentation of sessions. It will be my most treasured part of the conference. For the first time, I felt exceptionally energised and comfortable in running a session, and trust me when I say I ran I mammoth 6 hour simulation session - pretty much day 3 of the conference :)

What a learning curve! I have discovered one of my passions and ideas for what I would love to do in the future is training. I would LOVE to do training and leadership development sessions as a potential career in the future. There is something so scary, so exposing about getting up and presenting a session. You have no where to hide, no where to turn...It is only you, your audience and your voice ( and if you are an AIESECer, a powerpoint).

Yet, beyond this scariness, there is also an element of liberation. To be able to facilitate a session with minor nerves ( especially when I used to be petrified!) shows personal development, shows that I have developed my self-confidence, that I am perhaps more at ease with myself.

And beyond this liberation, there is satisfaction. Satisfaction because others have taken a lot of learning and happiness out of a session I ran, is truly amazing. To receive sugarcubes with people thanking you for your session, and its impact on those people, is just an awesome feeling. Makes the scariness of the event seem even a little less daunting.


2. Nostalgia
So, in the aftermath of AWESOME, I sit here feeling satisfied...but also a little sad, a little nostalgic. As the year 2006 draws to a close, it has just dawned on me that this great year is nearly gone, over, and I am mourning its passing already.

This year has been a major life-changing year for me - I have developed and grown so much over this time, have matured, have developed greater self-confidence, and have pushed myself in many different ways.

I have found out that I am really passionate about HR, about training, and about empowerment and thus, have seen a future clear direction for me in my working life, have found out what I love and what I want to do :)

I have worked with an amazing group of people in my EB team, under a wonderful leader of Lucy in AIESEC Sydney. Yet, am feeling sad at the loss of our working together.

I have worked with an amazing PD team and have felt so much pride about the people in it and the team itself. I have developed so much in terms of leadership capacity and have learnt more about my personal strengths and needed improvements.

I have grown.

I have developed.

I have achieved a heightened sense of self - of self-awareness, of self-confidence.

I have been challenged.

I have been rewarded with great team experiences.

I have experienced internationalism with my AP conference in March and with all the amazing intern arrivals and learnings since the year began.

Yet, it it is all about to end - well actually has ended. No longer the PD director of AIESEC Sydney, no longer an EB director of AIESEC Sydney, no longer a member of AIESEC sydney - No longer AIESEC Sydney.

Strange feeling - no longer AIESEC Sydney. Sounds silly, doesn't it... that I am caught up on 2 little words, well...one an acronym...AIESEC Sydney. hmm..

Yet, those 2 words in the past 2 years have actually meant: fun, challenge, great people, team experiences, development, personal growth, international experiences, pride, team leader, EB director, interns, HR, learning, engagement, impact, experiences, life-changing, facilitation skills, identity, happiness, passion.

Passion and happiness. What a great year!

So, perhaps that it is then - no longer AIESEC Sydney -that is the source of my nostalgia. AIESEC Sydney is the place where my passion and drive for AIESEC was creater, the culture that suported this, the people that inspired this, the LC that framed this passion.

Change is often scary.

It is sad to let go at times.

This is what I am feeling a little now.

No matter what I do in AIESEC in the future, I will always, first and foremost, be AIESEC Sydney - it has a special place in my heart and in my spirit .

Yet, sometimes, we need to let the things we hold dear go, so that we can have an impact on something else.

Such is the situation I now find myself....


3. UNSW

So, in 2007, I will be heading up an expansion project into UNSW for AIESEC. This scares me and excites me at the same time. Scary because it is such a challenging quest and I will be deeply affected and involved with this every step of the way.

Yet it is also exciting.

Exciting because I have a chance to make a legacy. I have the opportunity to rebuild AIESEC in a place it simply has to be.

Exciting because I have the chance to build the right culture, the right attitude, the best group of people and the most challenging and personally gratifying environment for myself and my future UNSW members.

Exciting because I have the opportunity of sharing the amazing experiences of AIESEC with a whole campus and providing other students with the opportunity for a life-changing and challenging experience.

Exciting because I have the opportunity to not only expand AEISEC's reach throughout the region and thus contribute greatly to the NSW region, but also because I have the opportunity to contribute to the nation and to really help AIESEC reach its 2010 vision in Australia at least.

This venture will take every piece of me. I can see it happening. It may not be healthy - which is something I will have to watch.

So...I guess to summarise my state of being right now, I am feeling nostalgic for the closure of 2006, excited yet I guess even a bit cautious of the adventures to come in 2007.

Can I hit my goals, I wonder?
Will UNSW be back with a vengeance by the close of 2007?
Will I be able to lead UNSW towards such aims and greener pastures?
Can I do it?

Can I do it?

I'm not sure if I am the right person to do this massive task set out for me to do. I am often thinking they picked the wrong person for it.

Yet, now that I have this task to do, I am going to give everything I have to give to achieve this task, to rebuild UNSW AIESEC because I love the opportunities AIESEC has given me, and I want to share this with other young future leaders.

So, with this post, I bid farewell to AIESEC Sydney. I mean, yeah, I will be in the same city, I will still be in close contact with its members.We have had some great times, challenging times, sad times, empowering times, extraordinary times.

AIESEC Sydney, thank you for 2 great years. It has changed my life.

AIESEC Sydney - truly AMAZING!

Well, AIESEC UNSW, it is time to start the year ahead, I wonder what year we will have, what we will experience, and what we will see in the end.

It is time for me to create a legacy, and to leave something truly amazing for AIESEC New South Wales regionally for future years.

It is time for a legacy.

It is time to be inspired.

It is my time.

It is UNSW time.

UNSW is coming back :) Watch this space!

hugs Nicky
( cue inspirational music in the background and epic movie scene - aka. Nicky standing on a massive mountain, wind dancing through Nicky's hair, sun shimmering on face... the extraordinary can happen, if you just believe) :P

posted by Nicky @ 10:59 PM 6 Comments  

Too busy to think...

Ok...so I realise that its been AGES since I last posted. Its terrible.

Yes, I have been too busy.

Too busy, it seems, to relax, to reflect, to sleep, to party, to think. Too busy.

Do you ever feel like sometimes you are soo busy trying to be someone, to do something great, to achieve, yet, as a result kind of loose touch with yourself, your hobbies, your passions?

Too busy trying to be someone that you stop being yourself...

I feel like this today ( as my lack of blogging activity clearly reveals).

I was having dinner with friends and viewing an exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney, and instead of thoroughly enjoying the time out, I half felt guilty for not going home and working on uni stuff. Later, the conversation turned to how I used to go to live gigs, was up to date with awesome music, trends, cool stuff , art etc.

Yet, I have lost touch with many of those areas that I used to love doing.

Is this normal, I thought?

Is it natural to suddenly be too busy to do these things I loved to do?

I think I've been trying so hard with uni assessments, with @ work, with my job...that these three areas of my life have consumed me. Spare time never seems to exist - always something to do, someone to email, some strategy to work on, some uni assessment to complete.

I have stopped exercising, eating well, playing piano, making artworks, going to galleries, meeting up with friends etc.

The problem with this semester is that i haven't delegated "me" time. I don't have a whole day where i can practice any of my hobbies. Every day is uni/work/ travelling.

constantly....going and going and going and going.

Sometimes we need to stop. think. review. adjust.

Stop being busy.
Think about who we are.
Review what we are doing and what we want to do.
Adjust our everday activities to get there.

So this is my learning...my realisation...my quest.

I had stopped, thought and reviewed.

Time to adjust - to honestly seek a work-life balance. what's the point in working if you aren't living wholeheartedly and passionately?

with that....i may go read a book :)

posted by Nicky @ 9:49 PM 5 Comments  

And then you have an epiphany...

In AIESEC, you are always told that people are developing, that you are developing, gaining new skills, competencies, blah blah..

You think to yourself...sure, I'm developing too! But, you're sometimes a little unsure, can't quite pinpoint how...

...and then...

...you have a moment, a flash, a realisation, an epiphany. I have developed...a WOW moment!!!

But what do i mean exactly?

Well, I have just returned from the NSW State conference and have learnt so much about myself. You see, this is the first major time i have ever been a faci, ran a session, helped run discussions, or been on the official faci team for a conference After only a year in the organisation, i can see how much i have grown as a person.

Its the first real time i have been able to get up in front of a plenary of people and speak in public WITHOUT being struck deeply with nerves! i actually enjoyed the experience!

I loved being at the forefront of discussion groups and driving those discussions!

I loved the experience of being a team leader for the first time and having an amazing group of people understanding the portfolio and motivated to achieve great things.

I loved developing a team vision and feeling instantly inspired and bonded with my team members.

I loved the fact that the whole delegation embranced line-dances and even requested their occurrence more frequently!

I loved the feeling of people looking to me to learn, to be inspired, to be involved.

I have learnt that in the course of the year I have so much more confidence in myself and my ability to lead. I feel more competent, less self-conscious and so motivated to build my new team.

I am proud of my fellow EB - Eileen, Jake, Susu, Qian, and of course the lovely LCP: Lucy and VP: Kana.!!!! They have all been absolutely incredible. We now at AIESEC Sydney have an LC with 30 fantastic and excited members all geared up to do some amazing work! It was so inspiring seeing my fellow EBers , who joined the same time as me, run sessions, faci discussions, create an awesome atmosphere at conference and really make an effore to connect with all the new guys! I am so proud!

All in all, I HAVE developed! I am just so proud of myself...and am so excited about the future and what i can say at state conference next year.

It brings chills up and down my spine.

posted by Nicky @ 2:30 PM 5 Comments  

OH....the joy of line-dances!

Why aren't line dances sweeping the world?

I mean, sure, a whole room full of people scarily dancing the same moves or rather, some odd sort of synchronised dancing might normally seem be expected in a 1950's musical than an international student leadership conference - or worse, a weird cultish ceremony before a sacrifice is chosen ( eeek! scary).

However, as I am sitting here listening to a CD of AIESEC songs, I find myself fighting the urge to get up and bust a move to Hip hip hooray..or green light!

Then I think, wow...I am becomming a "change agent"...before AIESEC, i don't think my dancing style ever would have resorted to odd gestures along an ordered line!

I feel the change! Yes....it is true!

Yet, i love it! I love linedancing. Just coming back from an AP, of all conferences ( where line-dancing is the best thing since sliced bread! hehe i've always wanted to say that), all i want to do is share the spirit of the linedance.

For what is a line dance really?

Behind the wacky moves, the even wackier songs and often the underlying naughty gestures, the line-dance is all about participation.

That is what I love about them. No matter what country you come from, there is still something that cuts across culture and language barriers, and thats dancing. The most amazing feeling at an international conference is to be in a room of " soon-to-be friends" and then, suddenly...

...a beat, a tune, and then a hall full of shining faces as some dancing korean stars hit the front of the plenary to begin their groove. After which, everyone, regardless of whether they know the dance or not, joins in - just for the sake of participation, for fun, for happiness, for being absolutely sill for no reason at all with people they don't even know.

Isn't that just wonderful?

People connecting without need to speak or strain to understand...the line-dance instantaneously means fun and connection.!

Being in a room with a bunch of people linedancing is amazing - the atmosphere is totally electric and you are engulfed with the feelings of joy and laughter.

Perhaps this is the secret weapon of the organisation.

Perhaps, if our politicians line-danced more, an environment of happiness and collective partipation will flood the world with sunshine!

And they say I'm an idealist! ( I don't get it! )

So to all you dancing critics out there...

... how funky is your chicken
How loose is your goose
So come on all you bloggers
shake your kaboose!

LINE-DANCES FOREVER!!!

posted by Nicky @ 10:25 AM 4 Comments