The last goodbye of JADE’s Executive Board 2019

(JADE, 2019)

Leading the European Junior Enterprise Network was one of the most rewarding experiences that I could ever had in my life. The fact that at such a young age, we are responsible for a Network of over thirty thousand Junior Entrepreneurs that are motivated to do more for themselves and their careers, that are committed to improve the high-education system through practical experiences, that are aiming for excellence in their own Junior Enterprises, is just incomparable. There are many things I take from this experience, many skills, knowledge and experiences. But if there is something I take as one of the most valuable things is, undoubtedly, all the people I had the opportunity to meet. I believe a big part of the good things we take from working experiences are the people, because all the memories you have, all the funny stories, all the projects you had to take on, you always remember about the people you got in touch in order to succeed. And you will never be able to forget about them and how they impacted your path. To the new Executive Board, I wish you an even better experience than mine. I wish you enjoy even more your year in JADE, I wish you get to know even more people, and I do wish you get to tell even more stories than me. And I do hope you succeed in everything you are aiming for.

‘’Being young today is very difficult, but it is the greatest asset’’, someone told me some time ago, and they were right. Youth is full of struggles and challenges, but if you decide to take them on and show the world what you can do, that will become one your biggest strengths. That is what I learnt through this journey. Youth granted me an open mindset, but the Junior Enterprise Network pushed me to take on challenges that I never thought I could have ever faced. It was not always happy moments, but even the darkest periods of this experience have thought me so much: how to be confident, how I CAN do things, and that if I cannot, that I CAN ask for help, because we are a network, and we always help each other out. Because ‘’asking is embarrassment of a second, but not asking, is regretting for a lifetime’’. To the incoming team, I hope you will push yourself and take on challenges. Some you will win, some you will not, but pick your battles and go for it. You will learn from both scenarios, because in the end, what I wish you the most, is growth.

Facing challenges by having the chance to grow, improve and learn it is definitely an experience that brings a lot of fulfilment. Together with this can you imagine waking up every morning excited to work and leave your mark? I can say the previous words perfectly describe my tenure of one year in JADE where I was Secretary General. This European challenge gave me the chance to work in an international, multidisciplinary and challenging environment, where every day was a different learning experience with new variables.  Heading a Network with more than 30 000 Junior Entrepreneurs in 14 countries while working in a team with several different nationalities contributed a lot to develop key competencies like problem-solving, communication, leadership and teamwork. To my successors, the future is in front of you, believe in yourself and in the impact you are generating.  JADE will be a life-changing experience but certainly will bring you more learnings, adventures and personal development than what you expect today. Consistency and continuity will be the keywords for the success of our network and I am sure you will drive our network towards the most important goals.

They do not tell you at the beginning that the hardest part of the JADE term is to end it. Because you must say goodbye to all the people you met, the experiences you had and the JADE Headquarters, where you spend one year of your life, one year that changes your life. Luckily you can bring home something. I am not talking about memories, postcards or souvenirs. I am talking about the huge skill toolkit that you will wear and use for the rest of your life. The soft skills you develop are countless and interconnected, so I will just mention the two that I believe are the most important. First is Time Management. You are just one person, with a minimum of three departments and a lot of things to do. If you do not want to work 12 hours a day you need to learn how to prioritize, how to schedule meetings effectively and to cut the time-wasting activities. On the other hand, you develop stress management. You shift from being responsible for yourself to be responsible for a network of more than thirty thousand students. Your actions have a magnitude you never experienced before, and you have to do things you never ever dreamt to do. But as you start, you just cannot stop and you find yourself able to do all the things you were afraid to do. To the new Executive Board, I will leave a simple message. Enjoy every single moment of your experience. Every moment of high workload where you think you will not make it through, it is just a moment of personal growth. Every weekend where you have an event to attend and you are tired, it is just a moment where you will meet amazing people who can help you in the future. Every bump in your road today is a skill you take home tomorrow.