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Last week's meeting was a joint club meeting between Werribee and Laverton Point Cook at the Waterstone Cafe in Sanctuary Lakes.
Our guest speaker was Jodie Willmer. Jodie was familiar with the workings of Rotary because she was an exchange student in 1991. She had a choice of going to Japan, South Africa or West Germany (as it was still called then). After much deliberation, she chose Germany. She described her German venture as one of the highlights of her life to date and she is very grateful to Rotary for selecting her to go.
She is now a consultant to the not-for-profit sector and various social enterprises and she still uses the experience that she gained as an exchange student in her work today. There are three key things that she learned during her 12 months away that have stayed with her ever since. The exchange program taught her:
- Resilience - An example of this was that, during her early days in Germany she got homesick. Initially, she made a few calls to her parents in Melbourne but they were expensive trunk calls. Then she decided just to embrace her new surroundings and learn as much as possible about German history and their way of life. Not only did this remove her homesickness but it also made her independently stronger.
- Open-mindedness - She found that the Germans were very direct in what they had to say. There was no ifs, buts and maybes. If you say you're going to do something, then you do it. This has held her in good stead to this day as she works and consults with organisations.
- Governance - In Germany, she was asked to speak at many Rotary clubs. It taught her to be prepared and organised, especially if people are relying on you. It also made her face up to challenges and, if people are not pulling their weight, she is capable of engaging in courageous and honest conversations. It also taught her to not only develop good strategic plans but also to successfully execute those plans. One of the keys to this is to break large activities or projects into smaller discrete tasks that are clearly-defined and achievable with a set beginning and end time.