5,5 weeks on AIESEC International - doesn't time fly?

I have been in Rotterdam for almost 6 weeks, and it was gone by very fast. My suspicion is, time will speed up even more, so I thought I better get some thoughts down on paper.

Since I came here on May 1, I have had individual transition within Financial and Legal management for around 4 weeks. By the time the common team transition started 1,5 weeks ago, I already had a number of tasks and projects up and running. I like that, cause it makes me feel accomplished.

Getting everyone else here was really nice. Especially as finally I felt there were people I could talk to, about impressions, thoughts, feelings. I had M. as my roommate for two weeks - truly awesome, and have been living with D. for the last two. Both of them have given me loads of thinking and thoughts, which I really like. The strange thing about everyone else arriving, is both the reality and the perception.

Reality: My stage of discovery is different at any given point of time, as I have been here longer. (3-4 times as long as most).

Perception: Clearly, I am harder to connect to because of this. I "know" some stuff, (which also has to do with my role), which means that others even treat me as if I have been around for ages. They call me Papa Rolf.

It's interesting, and it's not necessarily uncomfortable. However, I realise that I have to make some choices myself to construct the life, as well as network I need, in order to feel good here.

AI life:

People ask: What's it like to be on AI? Answer: It's pretty normal life so far. You get up in the morning, have breakfast and coffee, go to the office. There, you work with loads of cool people on projects varying from the mundane to the super-strategic. Depending on the day it's super-challenging or confusing. AI serves the network. And they key question for me everyday is - how is what I am doing today serving the network. It resembles MC alot in terms of activities and responsibilities. The key difference is that 90% + of the organization you are leading you don't know. Because you never worked in that LC. Because you never were in that MC. Because you are not from that country. Because you didn't live there. Because when you interact with it and visit it, you are blinded by your own perceptions and interpretations.

I once said on this blog that you don't reach any conclusions if you don't jump to them at some point. The challenge of jumping increases, however, when you don't know how far the jump is before you make the leap.

Can you see the bottom? Can you see the other side?

I like it. I am challenged. And I am a bit alone. And I think that's perhaps good for me.