They say to write is difficult, to have written is pride. And since I graduated from college writing my own articles has been a mountain that I have always failed to climb. I always looked down on myself and never tried. When I joined Progressio Godwin repeatedly said that ICS is a learning process but still I remained doubtful.
But since the fruitful journey began the change in me has been tremendous, with help from loving and caring teammates I have managed to write and post two blogs and other two jointly with my counterpart Neima Aden. Not only have I managed to write articles but I’ve also developed other consequential skills such as facilitation and presentation skills. The confidence I have gained during the placement is indescribable, I facilitated at Chitatata CBCC on the fifth week of my placement which is something I could have never done before. I felt alive standing in front of a good audience and facilitating, it was like a dream but it wasn’t because I never woke up.
That is not all I’ve learnt, my communication skills and spoken English have also moved to greater heights. When the UK team arrived it was very hard to communicate with them because my English wasn’t great, it lacked finesse and eloquence. After working with the UKVS for a little while, they have helped me to improve my spoken English as well as written by correcting me where ever necessary. I have also received praise from friends and colleagues, for instance father Ryan (Ungweru founder) told me that my English is perfect after a rich conversation with him, it gave me great happiness to hear this and it encouraged me to practice the language even more.
Working with our UK counterparts has helped me to know and understand their way of living, it’s given me a greater awareness of other cultures and practices. Because of this any negative thoughts I had towards them have been washed away. They are not what I thought they were, they are amiable, caring and friendly. I believe in the future I will have no problems when working in a cross cultural environment with people of different nationalities.
I have also learnt how to manage conflicts in a team, now I know that conflicts will always be there but still you have to solve any matter that arise amicably, you have to remain united.
These are just some of the few things that I have learnt since my ICS journey began. I’m now a responsible and active global citizen. The memories, friends made and knowledge gained will always remain embedded in my mind. It has been a life journey. Thank you Progressio.
