Motivation (English)

How it all began in 2007….

About me and my Motivation

I’m Michael and was born on February 15th, 1985 in Emmendingen, Germany. In no doubt, as a son of a pastor I was educated in a Christianity way of life. My conception of religion is respect to every human being, no matter to religious conviction, skin colour or different opinions. But I don’t attend church on Sunday. I try to treat people right, as much as I can. But reality looks different and I am not always the person I like to be. Sometimes life’s ruled by hatred, anger and people’s selfishness. I attempt to minimise situations like these, with the effort of understanding different points of view and not taking issues as an attack on my person. Critic should be taken as a piece of advice to work on me. I like it, in job and private, to plan my operating cycle by myself or in small group. The workflow is much more efficient when I think first about my project instead of acting without a detailed plan. But it is fun as well and interesting, to improvise when problems pop up and solutions are needed. To communicate and to interact with people is exciting and enjoyment for me. Friends and colleagues mentioned attributes like jolly and happiness, reliable, industrious, calmness and scrupulous but with a twinkle in their eyes sometimes a bit too confident and cheeky.

Throughout globalization I have been constantly influenced by other cultures and meet people from foreign countries. Some of my friends have immigration background, too. Due to travelling, I get contact to different people and cultures as well. But it’s not my ambition to meet a large amount of people. I like to know those better and make friends.

Two ingenious girls and I had that great experience to cope a group at our local YMCA together. The boys and girls were at the age from five to seven. We did activities like painting, cooking, cultural program for kids or just fooling around. Attributable to rush in business I quitted this engagement.

I graduated high school in summer 2001 and going ahead vocational school/trainee to become a Laboratory Chemist. After final exam in 2004, I applied for a job in the same company and worked in research. My task has been the chemical and pharmaceutical exploration of several plants. As a result of bad economic reasons, I had to transfer to different division. I got an offer from analytical development in one of our subsidiaries. Since then it’s my mission to develop analytical methods, to do stability testing’s and to draw up the results for registration at authority and to commit the best before date to our pharmaceutical products.

To balance myself after working day, I play football or have a good time with workout. PC’s and other related technical devices are fascinating for me. Reading keeps me calm. On weekends I go out, watch movies or just hang out. My great passion is travelling.

The Civilian Service Abroad is the remarkable opportunity for young Germans, who disagree with the rules and regulations in law of serving a year in military. Voluntary work, in disparity to military service, funds to me occupation for society, nature and development in the entire living sector without or less money than in an ordinary job. It’s preferred work out of my free will. Voluntary work is needed in each and every country on this planet, even in western communities like Germany. But if I take a look out of my country, I realize that aid is much more needed somewhere else.

My love to foreign countries and the piece of evidence of helping and to learn more about their culture is my main cause. The base of my assessment is certainly my social education, which I gained from my parents in my childhood. They taught me to help poorer, disabled, aged, weaker or wide-ranging everyone who need assistance in live. It’s my part to hand back influences of the society, the positive as well as negative, with love and compassion. I’m constantly searching for a deeper meaning in people’s stories and the tasks which live offers me.

I’ve seen outrageous situations while travelling throughout Southeast Asia. I can’t close the eyes to the beautiful but lacking environment, the hopeless feral cities and the poverty. It’s the insufficient infrastructure that let children take a half day march to their schools, even though those have the possibility for education. Lots of people suffer under civilian diseases. Suggest itself by substandard living conditions and omitted hygiene coaching by government to the underprivileged inhabitants. I could go on and on about civil wars, corrupt regimes, prostitution of girls and children, drug abuse…but I think all of you who read this paragraph know about the struggle I am talking about. Michael, stop talking and get going to take action.

It’s a tempting outlook to grant my encouragement to the needy. But it’ll be wrong to pronounce it as a service devoid of a personal benefit to myself. I’m confident to learn more about a different culture. The more I travelled, the less I assumed to be familiar with it. There are numerous questions waiting to be answered. As a tourist, even how hard I tried, I never had the time to understand the customs and people in precisely the right way.

I expect to learn a different point of view to my previous life and the German heritage. I wish for understanding the different language and especially culture better. It is a chance to find new friends and to change through to my acting some ones life or the opportunity of live in general. One year of challenges in an international team will hopefully present me a different understanding of work and/or dissimilar opinions about how to solve problems in project employment.

I wish to go to Vietnam. This country has affected me in travelling most. The rich culture and the sublime beauty of the country’s natural setting are overwhelming. The contrast of fast economic growth and traditional charm is thrilling. Friendly people made voyage pretty easy and humorous. Nevertheless it lacks in scores of belongings. I’ve seen dreadful incidents and got appalling impressions, therefore I came up with the idea for contribution in Vietnam.

I’d like to work with children/youth. An employment in orphanages, kindergardens or primary schools shall be very fastidious to me. It’s a chance to take a positive influence in the progress of the kids and inform them about valuable skills in live. It’ll be pleasurable to teach, furthermore tough work, to encourage by innovative games. A friend of mine called them “little angels”. I absolutely consent with her. Ok, from time to time I use expressions like “little devils” but who can resist a child’s smile? It’s their down-to-earth, maybe foolish view that I like and I encourage myself to live this attitude once in a while.

Moreover, I can imagine to be occupied in a social project, street work, campaigns for health prevention etc. anything is possible in that manner but I also like nature and technical work. People describe me as a conscious individual. My strength is to be conscious of something but never to loose the easiness, friendliness and happiness. Laughing and harmony is the essential base for effective, successful work.

Above and beyond, I desire to be placed in a project in urban environment. I do need the pulse of a breathing city and periodically the detachment of locality in assignment. I’ve heard that “Volunteers for Peace Vietnam” expanding it’s program in HCM and runs some projects around. Maybe I get the option to participate close by. I prefer to stay in a host family than in dormitory. To get in touch with locals, what I really yearn for, is easier and more warm-hearted if I select the host family option. I’m convinced to have a great affiliation with the majority of volunteers, even if we do not reside the same place.

ICYE Germany requested two references. I enquired my colleagues for support and they put pen to paper for it. Till that moment I considered to be adaptable to any kind of job. But they opened my eyes and gave some pieces of advice. They mentioned that an office job could be too boring to me. I have the same opinion because I need contact to the people. I have nothing against occasionally office work, but 8 hours a day will be too much.

I have been in profession for more than six years already. I am happy and satisfied with my vocation. My colleagues are nice and my tasks are sophisticated. But throughout my travelling I have learned more about different cultures and altered points of view. I can’t change the system but to do a little for society is a great image in my mind. Consequently is a year abroad a life-size opportunity for me to check my abilities in a comprehensive poles apart division.

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