Challenges

Challenges and obstacles need to be embraced - welcomed with open arms. It is in these moments that people go through some of the best experiences. It is also a time for one to discover things about themselves. It is interesting really, the way that these challenges play out.

As a media student it is important to be able to throw yourself in new situations. Being shy and afraid of any possible difficulties is not a characteristic media students should have. If it is there then it is about time to start working to get over things.

The Media are the center of almost everything. But it did not start off that way. The world did not always revolve around the media. It does not revolve around it now, but it seems like it. What he media does is shove itself in the middle of everything. It gets involved in almost every possible crack.

Journalists, for example, have to know where to strategically position themselves to be able to gain as much information as possible. They also have to master the art of approaching people. It is a whole other mission when it comes to asking questions and actually getting answers.

Photographers also have to be able to position themselves strategically to be able to place themselves in the best possible area. From there they will be able to get the best possible shot.

There are many situations media students might find themselves faced with a challenge. It could be a presentation, a speech, assisting at a conference, interacting with people in general. But to be able to make something of yourself you have to overcome those fears and just go for it.

Personally, I recently went through a series of new challenges. I was an assistant for one of my professors – also the chairman of a forum, which was a part of an international conference. The conference itself was a mind-blowing experience, and I was able to be a part of it in more than one way. Not only was I her assistant, but I was also a speaker for one of the seminars given.

The conference is the Marlog 4, a maritime and logistics conference held by the Arab Academy for Science Technology and Maritime Transport. The forum was a women’s convention – the Mena and Africa International Women’s Maritime Forum. There were women who came from multiple countries of the Mena region!

I met people from Tunisia, Morocco, Iraq, Yemen, Sudan, South Sudan, Jordan, and Jordan – Aqaba. There was also a great group of participants from different areas of Egypt. It was an amazing experience to be able to work with these inspiring women.

Each and every one of the women who participated in the forum had something different to offer. They all were already aiding the world with their contributions to their communities and internationally. It was so inspiring to be able to meet and get to know each of these individuals. I hope to be as inspirational as they are and hopefully contribute to the world as well.

My experience being an assistant was also eye opening. I was set with tasks that I have never experienced before. It was one challenge after the next, but thankfully I was able to manage each situation thrown my way.

The general atmosphere of the conference was extremely fast paced for the people working, and I am so happy to say that I was able to keep up with the hype.

Regarding the forum, there were lectures on various maritime topics as well as interesting topics related to women empowerment. Dr. Noha Naeim gave a lecture on Women Wellbeing. Dr. Hanan Zinal also joined us, by giving a lecture on Energy Healing. Her energy was awe-inspiring. The way that she was able to engage the entire room and keep the spirits high was amazing!

But I was definitely blessed to also be able to participated in the forum as a speaker. The TEDxYouth@Alexandria group were given an hour to speak at the seminar. We decided to use our hour as a simulation of a TEDx conference. But the best part was that we were working with Kaizen Egypt and Aiesec Alexandria. The cooperation between three different entities taught me so much. On how it does not matter that there are different organizations, they can work together. We discovered that Aiesec, Kaizen, and TED all have the same “why” but all have different “hows”. Each entity works on developing individuals and bettering the community.

Personally, I spoke on behalf of TEDxYouth@Alexandria. My goal was to express who we are to the people, and what we do. I was given the opportunity to work with amazing individuals throughout the process of preparing for that hour alone. As a result the people were impressed with the three different youth groups and the fact that there is a group of youth who are determined and actively working towards a better future.

I never would have imagined being a part of any of these experiences. And I would not have if I were not up to the challenge. So I encourage you all to embrace challenges with open arms.