The 2 weeks I spent at Wellington College as part of the Global Social Leaders Programme were a life-changing experience. The programme helped me grow into a stronger, more confident person. It helped me work on my weaknesses as a leader, making me a better one.
The best part about GSL was the amazing and talented people I met and interacted with. They were from all from around the world, which made the cultural exchange extremely exciting and enriching. Throughout the programme, they maintained a comfortable atmosphere making me feel as though I were at home. Everyone was accepted for who they were in spite their flaws and weaknesses. All of us became so close that by the end it was hard to let go of each other because we had become family.
I think the highlight of the entire trip was the trust falls on the second day. The trust fall was especially hard for me because I am scared of heights and the thought of me falling from a wall into a bed of hands was scary! Even though it took me some time, I overcame my fear and did it! Then, I knew I could trust the people I was working with blindly and also learned that nothing is impossible if you can get passed the fear.
Throughout the programme, the ones who supported me the most were the staff members. Terrence, my group’s coach, always encouraged us to take initiative and speak up about anything we were passionate about. He was a great support and helped me improve my leadership skills. Even though the operations team was usually not present during sessions and activities, they introduced new interesting activities in our free time. They always balanced their time well between spending time with the participants and doing all the administrative work. I loved the fact that we got to interact the same amount with them and our coaches.
Like I mentioned before GSL has helped me grow into a better leader. Before this, I was always so anxious about speaking publicly. It was one of my greatest weaknesses. But through these 2 weeks I learned to overcome my fear. With the encouragement from my group members and staff members, I started volunteering to speak up and started taking a bigger role in more and more activities. By the end, I felt confident and inspired and now, these improvements have helped me a lot!
My experiences at GSL have helped me realise that I want to travel the world. Meeting so many people with different backgrounds, I have learned many interesting facts about various cultures, which I would love to explore further. In addition, the opportunity I relished, to plan a social action project has inspired me to lead more social projects; similar to the one we did at GSL.
I will never forget the inspiring people I’ve met and the crazy, memorable experiences I’ve had during these two weeks at Wellington College. GSL will always mean the world to me and be a huge part of my life. Thank you so much!