(Moodboard made in Canva)
Questions about my future
Hi there.
This year I finished my role in a 3 year project for the Suriname Red Cross Society. I was one of the faces of Red Cross in communities/villages doing research, holding community meetings and facilitating trainings.
I am thankful for the experience. Especially for the community members that supported me throughout this process. Community work is impossible without cooperation from locals.
I was getting known as a field officer of the Suriname Red Cross Society but that role ended. So that's when the questions started. Most people asked what I would do now, they know me as the Red Cross guy.
Well they weren't alone. I saw myself as the Red Cross guy at that point. My initial plans were to explore my opportunities at the Red Cross to the fullest, but the project was over and they did not offer me another position at the time.
It broke my heart. I rarely worked alone. Support was given by colleagues, volunteers, community members and many others. So I was saying goodbye to a lot of people who had become part of my daily life.
The questions remained for myself:
What now?
What do I want?
What can I do?
How will I do it?
Answers within
So naturally I did a lot of reflecting in this period. Technically a process that never stops. I reflected on what I loved about my job and what makes me happy. It was not the position that made me happy, it was the journey and the people.
The work I have done in the past has always been built on transparency and trust. If you ever find yourself talking to community leaders, be upfront and honest when looking for solutions.
So I had part of the answer. I want to continue working subjects and projects that are trustworthy, create trust, love and adventure. For clarification a 6 hours meeting with village leaders I also consider an adventure. A day spent playing games about mangroves with children is also an adventure.
I aspire to learn more, travel more and gain new experiences in life. My dream job probably does not exist. I mean the job is not the end goal for me. Being able to do the job correctly and the benefits it provides me are more important.
Having said that, my niche is more in community and environmental projects. Once long ago I thought I was going to specialize in forestry. Did not work out as of yet.
My outlook on my professional career is broad. From being very involved in forestry research, to doing community projects to mangrove education. I have gone through many different roles in the past. My biggest takeaway being that I am flexible and I will have to stay that way to survive. I look forward to new projects with similar themes and even ones that are very different.
One of my endeavors is starting an internship at Ineffable N.V. a social media marketing company. Some of my friends say it is so out of place for me. I'm the serious guy that talks about environmental issues. Not the guy making tiktoks. They're wrong. Nothing has changed. I am just challenging myself to learn new things. Without the internship I would not have ever heard of HIVE for instance. If you were wondering yes I am also new to tiktok(It's a public profile where I'll mostly be posting myself being silly).
Where do I see myself in 5 years?
- Adapting and learning for new projects
- Having a loving support system(You guys I mean keeping the friends I have, making new ones and keeping the family love alive)
- I would love to do a masters (have not picked a particular subject I want to study as of yet)
- Being able to travel more(I do love a good road trip)
- Being more content with myself(I can be pretty hard on myself at times)
I am thankful for the love and lessons. Grateful to be #alive