Credits: Tiffany Chan

The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potentialAIESEC

3EXECUTIVE BOARD PROFILE Featuring VP of Outgoing ExchangeMichael Fragiskatos

5EXCHANGE PARTICIPANT: ALISON CORNERJoie de Vivre 5Bemvenido ao Brasil 7

9EXCHANGE PARTICIPANT: MACKENZIE KINGCross Culturally Connected

11AS AN AIESECER, WHAT DO YOU STAND FOR?Testimonials from AIESEC Members

13THE LAUNCHING PAD FOR AN ADVENTURETestimonial from AIESEC AlumniFeaturing Richard Arthurs

15PERSONAL DEVELOPMENTSo YOU Want Change?

LIVINGDIVERSITY

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“We seek to learn from the different ways of life and opinions represented in our multicultural environment. We respect and actively encourage the contribution of every individual.”

- AIESEC International

http://aiesec.ca/laurier/en

http://aieseclaurier.wordpress.com/

https://www.facebook.com/AIESECLaurier

The international

11AS AN AIESECER, WHAT DO YOU STAND FOR?Testimonials from AIESEC Members

17LEARNING TO EMBRACE THE TENSION OF DIVERSITYAn Excerpt from Learn to Embrace the Tension of Diversity By Marshall Goldsmith

13THE LAUNCHING PAD FOR AN ADVENTURETestimonial from AIESEC AlumniFeaturing Richard Arthurs

15PERSONAL DEVELOPMENTSo YOU Want Change?

“We seek to learn from the different ways of life and opinions represented in our multicultural environment. We respect and actively encourage the contribution of every individual.”

- AIESEC International

https://www.facebook.com/AIESECLaurier

https://twitter.com/#!/AIESEC_Laurier

http://issuu.com/aieseclaurier

VP of CommunicationsChungsoon Haw

Editor-in-ChiefCatherine Tong

Design LeadVictoria Dam

Design ConsultantTiffany Chan

Design ConsultantCaroline Ip

“Cultural differences should not separate us from each other, but rather cultural diversity brings a collective strength that can benefit all of humanity.”

- Robert Alan

The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potentialAIESEC

Credits: Michael Fragiskatos3

My name is Michael Fragiskatos and I am currently the VP of Outgoing Exchange (OGX) at AIESEC Laurier. I am originally from London, Ontario, and am going into my fourth and final year at Laurier with a major in Global Studies, which fits in perfectly with AIESEC because both Global Studies and AIESEC have taught me to become extremely globally-minded.

OGX is the core of the AIESEC structure. Without it, the organization cannot operate. This portfolio is responsible for recruiting students interested in going on an exchange and helping them find a suitable internship, as well as supporting them from the moment they are matched to an internship to the day

they return from their international experience. As the VP of OGX, I manage and motivate a team responsible for facilitating the entire outgoing exchange process for students and recent graduates. I am responsible for managing outgoing preparation and re-integration activities for our exchange participants, managing international partnerships, running review boards, and creating support systems for raising, matching, realizing, and re-integrating exchange participants.

I joined AIESEC Laurier for the same reason as the majority of students who join: to work abroad. But first, I wanted to develop my own personal and professional skills by

getting involved within the organization and to learn more about it. It has paid off as I have discovered the many opportunities AIESEC has to offer not just in Canada, but all over the world! I have contributed in many areas in AIESEC since joining and have attended several conferences, which has helped build my network. And the journey continues for me, as I am finally embarking on my own AIESEC internship soon in Naples, Italy. Also, I am starting to expand myself to the global network by serving on the National Support Team for AIESEC Puerto Rico, which I recently started. I have no plans on slowing down and am looking forward to the next chapters of this adventure.

- Michael Fragiskatos

Vice President of Outgoing Exchange

MichaelFragiskatos

Credits: Michael Fragiskatos4

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I thought starting this blog off with a quote would be a good way to introduce how I feel about traveling, and how I got to where I am right now. I am extremely passionate about traveling, leaving the comfort of my home and truly exploring countries around the world. I know a lot of people don’t understand my drive to see the world, and I honestly believe you cannot and will not understand until you open your mind to adventures outside your comfort travel zone. It is the thrill that keeps me going—not knowing the local language, eating foods you could never find at home, sleeping under the same roof as people you just met, etc, etc. Over the past few years, I have been privileged to explore numerous countries around the world and by jumping into these adventures with an open mind and little restraint; I have learned way more about myself than I could ever have done at home. I wish I had kept up better

writing the traveling I have done in my life so I could reflect on how far I have really grown, but alas I am excited for this blog to keep up with the next 5 months of my life in Brazil. The next post will give you some more detailed information on how I actually got here, what I am doing and what I hope to accomplish here.You may be wondering why I have chosen a French expression as the title to this blog, but over the past year and a half, I have adopted ‘Joie de vivre’ as a sort of motto to live by. In general, it means the joy of life, and I can think of no better way to express my attraction to travel, culture, diversity and adventure. I feel extremely privileged to have experienced such things in just 22 years, but as you can probably expect, I am looking forward to lots more travel and adventures in my life.My bucket list is long, my passion strong and I don’t plan on slowing down anytime soon.

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Credits: Alison Corner

February 15, 2012

So, how did I end up with this internship? Due to my interest in adventuring abroad, I decided to join a student organization called AIESEC last March. The AIESEC approach, as they call it, is as follows: “AIESEC members live an integrated development experience. This involves leadership opportunities, international internships and interacting with a global network to support their development.”

As you can see, this was the perfect organization for me, and I really believe in what they are trying to achieve around the world. If you want more information on AIESEC, check out the international site: http://www.aiesec.org/. Since I was not intending on leaving for an internship until the fall, I started researching where I wanted to go and the type of internships I wanted to apply to. I finally started

applying to positions in August in hopes of being on the road again just after Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, things did not move as quickly as I had hoped... the process of sending out applications, actually hearing from other AIESEC members in various countries and then getting interviews took way longer than I expected. For the first couple of months, I was quite specific in the types of positions I was applying to and the countries I was willing to go to because I wanted the perfect internship for me. Before I knew it, December was upon us, and I knew I wouldn’t be going anywhere until the New Year. With that in mind, I started opening up to positions I originally would have ignored, and am now extremely happy I did so. One day I received an email from a girl named Jessica who works with AIESEC in Santa Cruz do Sul, Brazil about a position with a school called Herics Idiomas. I really didn’t want to work in a school because I was hoping to gain more experience in a “business-y” role, but I decided to take up her offer on an internview

with the school coordinator. They were interested in bringing an intern with a business background to the school to improve the English of adults who are actively trying to find a way to be more competitive in the workplace. I have already seen that this is very important here as many people who have been studying English for years are too shy to actually speak with a native speaker. I needed to find a way to show how important it is for them to improve, practice and gain confidence so they can be more successful in the future. At the time I was offered this position, I was also waiting to hear back about possible opportunities in Colombia and Spain, and since I was extremely interested in going to a Spanish-speaking country, I had some hesitations on actually accepting this one. However, after much debate—since this was a sure thing—I decided to take the internship. A mere three weeks later and I am in Brazil!

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February 16, 2012

with the school coordinator. They were interested in bringing an intern with a business background to the school to improve the English of adults who are actively trying to find a way to be more competitive in the workplace. I have already seen that this is very important here as many people who have been studying English for years are too shy to actually speak with a native speaker. I needed to find a way to show how important it is for them to improve, practice and gain confidence so they can be more successful in the future. At the time I was offered this position, I was also waiting to hear back about possible opportunities in Colombia and Spain, and since I was extremely interested in going to a Spanish-speaking country, I had some hesitations on actually accepting this one. However, after much debate—since this was a sure thing—I decided to take the internship. A mere three weeks later and I am in Brazil!

8Credits: Alison Corner

MACKENZIE KINGin AMSTERDAM

Follow Mackenzie’s Exploration of the Dutch Life at http://crossculturallyconnected.wordpress.com/9

“At bottom every man knows well enough that he is a unique being, only once on this earth; and by no extraordinary chance will such a marvelously picturesque piece of diversity in unity as he is, ever be put together a second time.”

- Friedrich Nietzsche

June 4, 2012

I’ve been in Amsterdam for four days now, figure it’s time to start my blog. Primarily, I’ll use this blogto write, post videos, and hopefully some mp3s of me talking (when I don’t feel like writing) about my experience living and working in the Netherlands.

I’ve signed a one-year contract with ING Bank which I begin on Wednesday and am super excited about.How did this opportunity come about for me? In my last semester of school at Wilfrid Laurier University I joined a student run organization called AIESEC. If anybody reading this blog would like to work abroad,definitely check out that website and get involved with your local committee. I learned about it from my Mom, an AIESEC alumnus—which speaks to length of which this organization has been around (no offence, Mom).

So now I’m here, after looking and pretty quickly finding a great opportunity for me. I’m living in a place called The Eenhoorn (The Unicorn), which is an apartment complex that is primarily rented to international interns and students. It also serves as proof that Unicorns do exist.

I’m a five minute walk from the Metro, a 10 minute metro to the heart of downtown, and a stone’s throw from 22 other AIESEC interns in the exact same circumstance as me. Amsterdam life so far ispretty damn good.

I named this blog post Hamsterdam mostly because the obscure wordplay made me chuckle, but also upon attempting to justify the name I realized that this is truly a different experience for me… I’ve never been to Europe; I haven’t even been to a different country for more than two weeks. To a hamster a new place is terrifying; it makes you feel small and uneasy with your surroundings. But that doesn’t mean the hamster is not going to eat, to run on his little wheel, to look cute and get petted and stuff (okay, this analogy is losing its poise).

My point is that I’m up for the cultural challenge. I can’t wait to see what culture is like beyond Canada, to live it. This blog will be an extension of my cultural awe. It will be for the curious mind, for someone who wants to know more. If that’s you, if you want to travel, to learn, to work, to see things up close you’ve only ever seen in movies and television, join me.

Join me on this blog, and if that’s not enough join me on this continent—or find one of your own! I’ll take this last opportunity to plug AIESEC again because of how they opened my eyes to a world I had truly not thought possible six months ago.

Hope you’ve enjoyed my first post, there’s many more to come! If you’re on Twitter, I’ll be tweeting every time I write a new post, so follow me @MacKing.

Cheers!

Hamsterdam

Follow Mackenzie’s Exploration of the Dutch Life at http://crossculturallyconnected.wordpress.com/

Photo Credits: Mackenzie King

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I stand for always bettering yourself and those around you. Challenging the norms and going beyond your potential. The more you push yourself the more you can succeed and grow; the same

thing applies to challenging others.

Beth Saunders, AIESEC Memorial

Each exchange experience changes someone’s life, opening them up to new

cultures and lifestyles while teaching them to be more tolerant and accommodating. They become a little less discriminatory and little more equitable, and, through this process,

the world becomes a better place to live.

Ross Dickson, AIESEC Toronto

I stand for helping the youth fight the fear that comes with

exploring new places, learning to be independent and self realization.

Keerthana Pachalla, AIESEC Toronto

I stand for reaching beyond your limits and exploring areas out

of your comfort zone. Building a professional and social network while developing personal skills.

Nina Mak, AIESEC York

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I stand as an ambassador. Building a professional youth network in over 70 countries means sharing those contacts widely and connecting like-minded individuals around topics of world issues, leadership and management.

Carson Kolberg, AIESEC Laurier

I stand for delivering quality exchange and leadership experiences that we are proud to recommend to our families and our friends.

Sam Turner, AIESEC Edmonton

I stand for the numerous opportunities AIESEC offers to students from all around the world, opening new doors for them and helping them realize their potential

Aigerim Malataeva, AIESEC Toronto

I stand for the unlimited opportunities AIESEC provides to not only its members, but to all youths from around the world. The idea of a “global youth voice” is certainly getting louder. And similar to any other change that you wish to see, it all begins with you. Except you are not alone, AIESEC is indefinitely here to help you along the way.

Catherine Tong, AIESEC Laurier

I stand for the constant challenges that AIESEC continuously presents, which pushes you to step outside of your comfort zone.

Salman Rana, AIESEC Laurier

I had no idea how much AIESEC would motivate me to pursue a global life, a life I did not think was possible for a young kid from Halifax. AIESEC nurtured in me a passion for learning about international business which continues to influence my career path today. It was the launching pad for an adventure that has taken me to nearly fifty countries around the world. Because of AIESEC, my life is richer with insight, perspective and experience.

Even in high school, I loved showing my stripes as a leader, so it was not by chance that I joined AIESEC in my first week on campus at Dalhousie University. Not shy of risk, I took on progressively more demanding work with the local committee and became President in 1989. That year, our team won the award for the Most Improved Canadian local committee. AIESEC had me hooked, so the following year I flew across the country for the position of National Vice President, Finance and ADAPT. Living and working in

The Launching Pad for an AdventureRichard Arthurs: Senior Finance Manager, General Mills

“People may be said to resemble not the bricks of which a house is built, but the pieces of a picture puzzle, each differing in shape, but matching the rest, and thus bringing out the picture.”

- Felix Adler

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Montreal for a year with the incredible AIESEC Canada team was the beginning of a journey to experience the world. I went to Ecuador to design the former Leadership Development Training Visit (now named CEED), lived in Zimbabwe, Africa on an Executive Envoy and took two internships, one in Dublin, Ireland with Coopers & Lybrand and the other in Bangkok, Thailand with IBM.

There is one AIESEC experience that will forever be entrenched in my soul because it is the perfect example of the greatest life lesson AIESEC taught me. While in Zimbabwe, I was asked to visit a local committee in the town of Gweru. I arrived to a welcome fit for royalty amidst extreme poverty. Minutes later, the AIESEC members began fighting and yelling in their native language of Ndebele. They had drawn names from a hat to determine whose house I would stay at that night and one woman was very upset that her name had not been chosen. Embarrassed, she explained

that she desperately wanted me to meet her parents so I could help her explain the value of being an AIESEC member. So I decided to stay an extra night to meet her family. They treated me to a lavish meal that they most definitely couldn’t afford and invited their entire extended family to meet me. In the morning, I was surprised to awake to an empty house. I soon spotted family members walking towards the house, carrying hot water back for me so I could have a bath in the middle of their backyard. With chickens running wild around me, I sat naked in a bathtub overlooking the beauty of the African countryside. At that moment, I consciously told myself never to take anyone or anything for granted and to always appreciate simple acts of kindness. I realized I must continuously approach life with a positive attitude and take every opportunity I can to pay this type of kindness forward, no matter what hardships lay ahead.

I have endeavored to live life to the fullest utilizing

this mindset and passion, especially with family, my wife Jen, whom I met through AIESEC, and our two children. I volunteer for Habit for Humanity and the Multiple Sclerosis Foundation. With gratitude for all that AIESEC did for me, I have supported AIESEC through the development of the National Alumni Association, which launched ten years ago with the 40th Anniversary Dinner. I have also been a past Member of the Board of Directors for AIESEC Canada as well as for the International Congress 2001 in Calgary. I was humbled to be inducted into the AIESEC International Alumni Hall of Fame at the AIESEC International conference in Edinburgh, Scotland in 2000.

AIESEC changed my life for the better. I look forward to the next adventure in store for my family and me, and I know that the global experience I gained from AIESEC will always be a part of everything I do in the future.

The Launching Pad for an AdventureRichard Arthurs: Senior Finance Manager, General Mills

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Change: a historic and continuous phenomenon. Naturally, any form of change is inevitable; nothing remains the same forever. Just as Hercalitus, a Greek philosopher once said, “You could never step twice into the same river; for other waters are ever flowing on to you”. That being said, it gives us hope that we too can change ourselves— for the better of course.

Where to start? No fret! We got you covered. Below are excerpts from Henrik Edberg’s article, 10 Simple Ways to Change Your Life in 2 Minutes a Day, which can be found on his site, the Positivity Blog.

1 Just start working for 2 minutes on your most important task.I use this one at least one day every week. On some days I simply don’t feel ike getting started with work. I’d much rather stay lazily on the sofa. So on such days I just start to work for 2 minutes on my most important task. That is the deal. The thing is: getting started is pret-ty much always the hardest part. After I have started moving and been at work for those 2 minutes it is usually pretty easy or simple to just continue working on that task.

Set a low bar for happiness for the day.Lately I have been telling myself this when I wake up in the morning: “Have a low bar for happiness today.” As I tell myself this and try to keep it in mind during the day I appreciate things more. The food, my work, the weather, the small events of the day becomes not everyday stuff but something I feel happy to have. The small or what may be something one takes for granted becomes something I now often pause for a moment or two to take in and appreciate. But if I become happier in my everyday life for the smaller things does that mean that I become unmotivated to keep working towards the bigger things? Nope. This way of looking at my life actually fuels me with more energy and inspiration and fun, life becomes lighter and I feel less inner resistance as I explore and work towards both small and bigger things.

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9Credits: MD Junction

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Excerpts from the Positivity Blog by Henrik Edberg

Credits: Checkers Entertainment

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Open up your senses to what is here now.Pull yourself out of the past where you relive an old conflict and drag yourself further down a depressing spiral. Pull yourself out of the future where you imagine a catastrophe at your next meeting, date or presentation. Place yourself and your attention on where you really are. Here now. Do so by sitting down for 2 minutes. See what is right in front of you. Listen to the birds and cars outside. Feel the spring sun shining in through the window onto your clothes and skin. Sense the small draft from one of the windows. Smell the flowers and trees that have started to bloom. Be here fully with all your senses for those 2 minutes. This will calm your mind and body down. Thinking will become easier and an optimistic viewpoint will feel more natural.

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Think for a minute and give someone a genuine compliment.Spend one minute coming up with something you really and genuinely appreciate about someone in your life and that is in the same room as you at some point during the day. Spend the other minute or less on telling him or her the compliment. She or he will be happy. You’ll feel good about yourself and probably get some positive feelings too from the now happy and complimented person. It’s a good and small way to build more positive relationships.

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Be interested instead of interesting.At the start of a conversation or to break the ice, spend two minutes on asking one or a couple of questions about someone you are talking to and his or her life. Pay attention and don’t just wait for your turn to talk again. The interest you give will most likely be returned and you can start to build not only a good conversation but also a giving and fulfilling relationship for the two of you no matter what kind of relationship it may be.

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Mix things up. Try the opposite. Have the vegetarian dish if you al- ways go for the meat. Walk away from a stupid conflict instead of making it worse. Let one thing go if you often cling to things. Say yes to something spontaneous if you often say no and stick within your daily routine. Take 2 minutes or less in one common or negative situation in your life today, pause for a brief reflection and then make a decision that is uncommon for you. Make a habit of mixing things up to have more fun, to grow your life in small or bigger ways, to add unexpected experiences, to make it easier and sim-pler to step out of your comfort zone in general when you really need to, and to feel alive.

- Complied by Catherine Tong

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How come all the even numbers are missing except for number 10? Interested to find out what else Edberg had to say? Check out his full blog post and read on!

http://www.positivityblog.com/ index.php/2012/05/31/2-minutes/

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Learning to Embrace the Tension of DiversityAn Excerpt from Learn to Embrace the Tension of Diversity by Marshall Goldsmith

Featuring yet another AIESEC value, this issue brings to you, “Living Diversity”. Often times we are encouraged to be open-minded individuals and to accept each others’ differences, however, “diversity tension” arises once in a while. Marshall Goldsmith, who is recognized as one of the world’s leading executive educators and coaches, addresses this term and how it should be dealt with. Below is an excerpt from Goldsmith’s article, Learn to Embrace the Tension of Diversity, featured on June 16, 2012 in the Harvard Business Review Blog Network:

As leaders, the rich diversity of culture and thought around the world is one of our greatest resources — if we use it as

such. Differences of ideas, methods, motivations, and competencies can be used to build great organizations. However, this wonderful resource can be a double-edge sword as cross-cultural exchanges present unlimited possibilities for misunderstandings and cultural blunders.

As companies grow and expand around the world, diversity in the workplace increases. Successful organizations identify, recruit, and train professionals from a diverse blend of backgrounds, cultures, styles, and motivations into positions of increasing power and responsibility.

In the midst of individual contributors with such diverse backgrounds, success calls for leaders

who are comfortable with diversity tension. Diversity tension is the stress and strain that accompanies mixtures of differences and similarities. The task of leaders working in the global business arena is not to minimize this tension, but rather to use it as a creative force for change, and, of course, to make quality decisions in the midst of identity differences, similarities, and pressures.

Leaders who prepare and empower their employees to understand others without judging, to be requirement-driven, and to be comfortable with diversity tension are more productive and successful. It just isn’t enough for leaders to possess these capabilities themselves; they must also develop them throughout the

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Learning to Embrace the Tension of DiversityAn Excerpt from Learn to Embrace the Tension of Diversity by Marshall Goldsmith

organization.

What are some good first steps to developing positive diversity tension in the workplace? Well, one is to not make any assumptions about the cultural base or outlook with whom you work or do business. Another is to understand the dynamics of diversity (through historical, political, and economic references), how it affects the workplace, worldviews, life and communication styles, ethics, and etiquette of co-workers.

Developing positive diversity tension takes an understanding of both the big things and the small things that form unique cultures, including leadership and work styles (for instance formal vs. informal); decision-making styles (e.g. intuitive vs.

analytical); information-sharing methods (do people prefer written, oral, face-to-face, text, email, video conference, etc.); and motivations (these could be power, achievement, affiliation, money, etc.). It’s not necessary to hold everyone’s views on these matters, but it is important to accept that there are many different methods, positions, and styles by which people can accomplish goals and directives.

Utilizing diversity tension in the workforce requires that leaders understand that differences in race, culture, and background are advantages — not deficits — for effective teamwork and problem solving.

Using tension of diversity as a positive, rather than viewing differences

as negative, a well-rounded diverse team will be able to produce valuable brainstorming sessions, imaginative problem-solving and decision making, unique perspectives on strategic planning, and inventive product development ideas. The benefits of such a diverse workforce will be felt throughout the organization and are key to competing successfully in the global marketplace.

- Compiled by Catherine Tong

Article Link: http://blogs.hbr.org/gold-smith/2010/06/learn_to_embrace_the_tension_o.html

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