Positive Reflection
‘Amal’ is the Urdu word used to describe action. Before action comes intention, but having the intention to get things done is simply not enough. You need to start acting upon your intentions too! Otherwise, the goals you set simply become dreams if there is no action plan present. But I did not sit down to explain to you what you should or should not do to get what you desire, rather I would like to take you on the journey I have been through over the past three months while exploring the values of the Amal Academy fellowship.
It has been a rollercoaster ride, when I look back at the time I spent in this fellowship, the people I met, the instructors I learned from and the projects I worked on. At the start of the program, we were asked to “find our why’s” by making a table and listing our personal and professional goals separately and later on we were asked to refine those goals by turning them into SMART goals. The process of digging for the reasons why I upheld certain goals, helped me realize what I had been looking for all my life and the person I hoped to become. Spending time trying to discover those reasons helped me take baby steps towards my personal growth.
When I went on a scavenger hunt to find my personal and professional goals, it made me realize that, just like Amal Academy, I too have certain values that I wish to embody. My professional goals showed that I wanted to be financially stable and create an impact through the work in my field in a sustainable manner. Whereas, my personal goals painted an image of a healthier lifestyle and the freedom to make choices that would suit my needs by becoming majorly self-reliant. Achieving these goals would help me feel emotionally secure and stable enough to help and uplift others around me to reach a similar state at some point in their lives.
A big part of this realization was also based on how some fellows and instructors inspired me to develop further on a personal level. Getting positive feedback and encouragement from my fellow fellows gave me hope that I would someday get to where my goals table described. Another eye-opening experience for me was when my Program Manager suggested that my self doubt may be stopping me from achieving my full potential and maintaining it. That is when I tried to start focusing more on believing more in what I could do rather than spending time worrying about what I could not do.
A different version of myself may have spent more time planning, organising and implementing tasks rather than forgetting the motivation behind embarking on such a beautiful journey in the first place. Procrastination may be an allergic reaction to tons of assignments but I’ve promised myself to wake up to my “panic monster” earlier from now on!
