#ic2012

I don't even have words to describe my love for USY.

Pre-Con with Hagalil and Providence was INCREDIBLE! I met SO many people, and we couldn't have pre-conned with a better region and chapter! I love you ALL SOOO MUCH! International Convention itself was SO inspiring! "Get Excited, Get Inspired, Get Involved" ~Josh Ull. 6 words that describe my life. 6 words that describe a true USY-ers life. I don't think anyone could have put it better.  At Opening Ceremonies, the excitement of all the regions/USY-ers was intoxicating. I loved it! The feeling of knowing that there are others out there who are JUST like you, is the most incredible, inspiring feeling ever. All of the programs, were incredible, and a great way to meet new people, and learn new things. Thank you Adam Rosen and Daniella Levine for making ICBoston2012 one of the most incredible IC's ever!! You were such incredible co-chairs, and such incredible people! Thanks to you guys, and the time you took out of your everyday lives to plan the most important week of our lives, my life has changed, and i have been inspired.

Some may call it an obsession, some may call it crazy. But I like to call it my life. Without USY, i don't know what i would be doing. USY has changed my life, and USY has formed life into what it is today. Long story short, my life is USY - USY is my life. 'Nuff said!

I say the word "Inspired" just a few times (maybe a few too many), but when i say it, I mean it. The time in between USY conventions, I forget what its like to be a Jewish teenager. I go to public school and don't know many other Jewish teens, and i didn't grow up in a kosher/religious household. I don't live religiously, and i don't pray on a daily basis, and i don't keep kosher. But, when i go to a convention, I forget what it's like to not keep kosher and not be religious. i come home from Conventions with the feeling of wanting to improve my religion. "Wanting to improve my religion" thanks to USY. Does that not spell out "Inspiration" perfectly?! I came home from IC with the feeling of wanting to learn every prayer in the book, learn every kosher law, and involve myself in the Portland Jewish Community even more. IC/USY has inspired me to get involved chapter-wise, Regionaly, and now, Internationaly. USY is a true inspiration when you do it right.

Thank you Portland Rishonim (my Chapter), Thank you Pinwheel Region, Thank you REB, Thank you IEB, and Thank you USY. You have changed my life, you have inspired me, and I am SOO Lucky to have you in my life.

As Israel Berman, head of Hay Group in Europe, said in his opening remarks at this year’s Hay Group International Conference in Berlin, what differentiates the best companies from the rest is a powerful corporate culture that drives great performance, enabling teams and individuals to realise their strategy and their own potential.

Culture drives performance through three channels, explained Hay Group’s Jean-Marc Laouchez:

Shared purpose and values – the true heart of culture.

Organisational messages and reinforcements – role models, organisational design, management systems, brand language.

Actions and behaviours – clarity about desired behaviours, managing performance in line with these, reward programmes that reinforce them.

It is critical to have alignment between the organisation’s core values, the messages it sends to people and the behaviours it expects of them.

And alignment has proven results. Hay Group’s research finds that organisations with well-aligned cultures show consistently better results than other companies, with an average five-year return on investment that is twice as high and gross profit margins that are 27 per cent higher.

I actually started this post starting my 15h journey on the train from Moscow to Tallinn. I needed my emotions to sink in and reality to strike me hard and it wasn't til i read a post of a fellow AIESECer that i remembered my unfinished tale. Here is my finalized story. 

A week in the great city of Moscow was more than great. Every day taking the metro to MGIMO, midnight walks with people you don’t know, sleepless nights and pretending you don’t know the language.

Moscow for sure has a feeling to it and not to mention a lot of different feelings. For example Новый Арбат is the kind of place where you want to feel young with trendy names all around written in cyrillica, music playing, lights shinning and western brands all around. You see girls in mini-mini skirts and high-high heels and guys with expensive cars rolling around

When you can feel calmness of Чистые Пруды. I so wanted to visit that place because of one of my favorite books "Master and Margaret" by Dostojevski ("Мастер и Маргарита").  There is this part when respected editor and member of the board in a literary association Mikhail Alexandrovich Berlioz gets beheaded by a streetcar is exactly that place. I know it sounds morbid but before that happend in the book the author described that place and while reading that description i got a clear picture in my head of the place and i wanted to know if that would match with the reality. Actually being there the book came to my mind and when the tram was around the corner i got chills. Believe me or not by reading the book i had a feeling i have been here before. That is the first time that has happend to me.

One thing never change be it Helsinki, Berlin, Lisbon, NY or what ever - train station is the place where all the immigrants come together even though they have been apart of the society for sometime now. In a way it reminds them of the day they fled their homes being it a matter of choice or a matter of safety. Though at the same time it’s the place they started their “new” life if you can call it that way.

People who know me, know that i love my cigaretts and Russia is a place for me good ciggies for just 0.87€. If talking about my best snatch from Russia are the 100rub (~3€) GREEN headphones. Oh yes, please!

Enough about the city and the Moscow life, i would love to tell you about the IC2012 and Global Youth Voice Conference and unforgettable Global Youth 2 Business. You can only imagen being in the same room with people from 110 different countries and knowing that each and one of them is doing something significant in their communities at the same time contributing to the globaldevelopment. Well i can tell you from know on that the feeling you get from being with those people in the same room is just AWESOME in every meaning of that word. I was actually apart of Global Youth Voice Conference and you will never guess who was the chair of the conference ... it's the guys that i have wanted to listen taling for 4 monts now ... it's the guy who loves green a lot more than me ... it's the guy who loves and actually in the city of lovely Lisbon ... it's the guys who can and will inspire the shit out of you ... his name is Dey Dos. He is not your typical trainer or facilitator and you can never be prepared for his sessions and he is one of those people who believes what he is telling out there. It's really hard to describe the feeling you get after talking with him. Plus the thing that i have learned with time people either love him or hate him, there is no grey area. 

The best thing that i would like to share about the GYVC are the people. You get to feel the power of AIESEC when being abroad and sharing the same feeling with hundreds of other people. You meet them randomly while walking in the streets of a big city and you immediately have something to talk about and you will talk to them for hours and hours. You have stories to compare and share. Best of all you can make plans of meeting later in the future and there is a high chance that you will meet in the future. Most of them are willing to share their most intimate stories and listen to yours. Best of all they are willing to party with you no matter how long and no matter of the fact that you need to wake up at 6am next morning just because they know you will suffer with them the whole next day.