Visualizing means to show something. Considering this definition, it seemed a pretty tough job when I was asked to visualize my experience at the AMAL fellowship.
It is easy to visualize one thing through an object or scenery; it is tougher to articulate a few things, and it becomes almost impossible to find a thing that represents the numerous experiences and growth that I went through while doing this fellowship. I thought a lot about it and after a long time, I came across the perfect scene to represent my first two weeks at AMAL Academy.
This is the place where I spent most of my fellowship. Whether it was taking classes with this background, or working on weekly project works till late at night (notice the Project work in progress on the laptop screen), this working space was my solace.
Firstly, the books, art, and food represent my interests clearly, and secondly, these same books represent the things I learned at AMAL Academy. Just the way food and books cheer me up, AMAL fellowship was delightful for me the same way. The imperfect oil painting reminds me of how I was unpolished at the start of AMAL fellowship. It marks the beginning of my journey at AMAL Academy. Live sessions, online courses, and learning group meetings all carried the vibes of a growth culture, which is what I sought for myself.
Books have taught me many values, but in essence, it was at AMAL Academy where I explored my values in depth and solidified them. This journey of self-reflection took me to exciting ventures in my professional growth.
On the right of the picture, you can see the book “How to Win Friends and Influence People,” by Dale Carnegie, from where we had some chapters included into our syllabus. One thing I learned was Knowing the Name of the person we are networking with (a chapter from the aforementioned book and AMAL Online course). It taught me how it was important to make others feel important to effectively communicate with someone. Finally, the messy picture is a perfect metaphor for my starting days at AMAL when I was acclimating to the intense workload.
In a nutshell, the first two weeks hit me with a bang! Lots of excitement and new things to learn and many new friends to share experiences with. It was overall a humbling and motivating experience which I thoroughly enjoyed.
