Another day, another busy time in Utrecht, though today I spent the beautiful sunshine walking around the Utrecht city center, speaking with businesses and art-studios to gauge their interest in hosting a simulcast of TEDxUtrechtUniversity. I met with the very nice and creative people at Seats 2 Meet, which is a collaborative working space near the Utrecht Central Train station. I also met with a South African artist who helps run Casco, which creates intriguing art projects that then travel around the Netherlands.
Beyond making TEDxUtrechtUniversity more accessible to the local public, I've especially appreciated being able to meet so many diverse and passionate people working in this city and around the province.
Outside of TEDxUtrechtUniversity, which takes up a large amount of my time, I'm working on providing more of a platform to students that can allow them to achieve their interests and fulfill their passions. Many different people like doing many different things, yet the path to getting a job is quite rigid. Utrecht University has so far been a great partner in providing students this platform, and I hope to see the trend continue!
11 March 2011
27 February 2011
Off to Brussels
On Sunday the TEDxUtrechtUniversity team finalizes its speakers for April 4th. On Monday I'm off to Brussels to meet with two Dutch members of the European Parliament to discuss ways to create effective and continuous student involvement in the challenge of decentralized renewable energy initiatives, which involves extensive community building, technological adaptation, and so on.
What I've realized is that you don't need a particularly "new idea" to be successful. Sure, things that are new and creative are always positive, but often times just taking something and being able to do it well makes all the different. Owning a restaurant or managing internships isn't exactly a creative idea, but it's fun and it's worthwhile and if you: do something like that extremely well then you're going to receive some major rewards. The point is to not wait until you have an idea that is absolutely astounding, but to do what you enjoy doing, to slowly focus and sharpen your skill-set, and to discern how you can simultaneously fulfill your passion while being paid for your very valuable work.
What I've realized is that you don't need a particularly "new idea" to be successful. Sure, things that are new and creative are always positive, but often times just taking something and being able to do it well makes all the different. Owning a restaurant or managing internships isn't exactly a creative idea, but it's fun and it's worthwhile and if you: do something like that extremely well then you're going to receive some major rewards. The point is to not wait until you have an idea that is absolutely astounding, but to do what you enjoy doing, to slowly focus and sharpen your skill-set, and to discern how you can simultaneously fulfill your passion while being paid for your very valuable work.
8 February 2011
Juggling
In the states we have a phrase about walking and chewing gum at the same time. This is not a particularly difficult feat to achieve; the meditative motions of one foot moving in front of the other, and then again, and again, combined with the simple vertical jaw movement of mastication, is about as difficult as watching TV while sipping a coke. The idea that clearing such a bar qualifies you as someone who can balance multiple tasks roughly at the same time is laughable, but that's how the New Yorkers (or whoever came up with the phrase) wanted to convey the point.
In this context, I often wonder what people do in their free time. We've all been guilty of wasting away on some internet site, or being out drinking too late, or maybe sleeping for 12 hours on a Saturday. On one level we rationalize that we need this. Our body needs the rest, or a tough week has necessitated long stretches of uninterrupted social time, or killing hours on the web with mindless 'social' facebook nonsense comes in tandem with being plugged in to a world that seems to incessantly move faster and faster.
Yet while I'm busy, I'm really not that busy. I have plenty of time to sleep, to spend with my brother, to see friends. I even have time to party and to occasionally surf mindlessly on facebook, engaging in the rare political argument or laughing about a photograph. I've met a significant amount of vibrant and passionate people while studying at UU, but still there remains countless others who seem totally disengaged—who feel that their participation begins and ends with class attendance or a workday. In a world with so many different opportunities to get involved in any passion, one in which information has never been easier to access and where collaboration can yield incredible results, there should be more people eying up packs of gum and some running shoes.
Take the plunge and see what you can do when you exert some effort towards something you care about; start chewing and go for a walk.
In this context, I often wonder what people do in their free time. We've all been guilty of wasting away on some internet site, or being out drinking too late, or maybe sleeping for 12 hours on a Saturday. On one level we rationalize that we need this. Our body needs the rest, or a tough week has necessitated long stretches of uninterrupted social time, or killing hours on the web with mindless 'social' facebook nonsense comes in tandem with being plugged in to a world that seems to incessantly move faster and faster.
Yet while I'm busy, I'm really not that busy. I have plenty of time to sleep, to spend with my brother, to see friends. I even have time to party and to occasionally surf mindlessly on facebook, engaging in the rare political argument or laughing about a photograph. I've met a significant amount of vibrant and passionate people while studying at UU, but still there remains countless others who seem totally disengaged—who feel that their participation begins and ends with class attendance or a workday. In a world with so many different opportunities to get involved in any passion, one in which information has never been easier to access and where collaboration can yield incredible results, there should be more people eying up packs of gum and some running shoes.
Take the plunge and see what you can do when you exert some effort towards something you care about; start chewing and go for a walk.
13 January 2011
Sprinting Forward
Back from the break immediately things went into high gear. I went home to the United States (New Jersey) over break. Although it was nice to see some family and friends, I genuinely missed the life back in Utrecht. Instead of biking 15 minutes into town, I drove half an hour. Instead of taking a 4 euro train to Amsterdam for a change of scenery, I had to pay $20 for a one-way ticket to New York City. Utrecht might not be the cheapest place in Europe, but it is surprisingly affordable to have fun here.
In any case, I missed being here and things have already gotten back to normal. Our TEDxUtrechtUniversity event, "Building a Sustainable Future" is set for April 4th, 2011, at the Louis Hartlooper Complex in Utrecht. The job gets bigger and bigger, but I'm working with a great team that is slowly building the capacity to work extremely well with each other, and it's a fantastic learning experience. The event will be live-casted on our website, TEDxUtrechtUniversity.com, which will launch hopefully in a few days.
In any case, I missed being here and things have already gotten back to normal. Our TEDxUtrechtUniversity event, "Building a Sustainable Future" is set for April 4th, 2011, at the Louis Hartlooper Complex in Utrecht. The job gets bigger and bigger, but I'm working with a great team that is slowly building the capacity to work extremely well with each other, and it's a fantastic learning experience. The event will be live-casted on our website, TEDxUtrechtUniversity.com, which will launch hopefully in a few days.
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