Development years project
You can find on this page the two and half years of personal development that I did in Americas, the project and the experiences.
The idea to do a big travel was already in my mind but that's during my engineering school that I decided to do it. I heard about gap year in my school "ESTIA", to grow personally or even to learn or improve a language.
I wouldn't stop one year and come back to study, so I decided to wait to get my diploma and to do it just after.
The idea is simple, diploma in my hands, I will start a big and beautiful adventure in Americas.
Purpose : The goal of these two and half years of personal development is to manage to evolve in various environments and with different languages, to be more confident in that I can do, to get an organisation more complete and effective, but also to get a cultural and linguistic enrichment.
The project
Organic Farm
The Experiences
That I learnt
To learn on myself
This kind of personal experience is a good way to learn on yourself. During two years and half I had lot of experiences of work, in different places and with different kind of cultures. Furthermore, I had lot of stressful situation, of doubt and of distrust where I had to adapt myself. And thanks to these experiences and events I could learn more about myself and about all that I can do.
- Learn on my qualities and a drawbacks,
- Keep my calm in a stressful situation,
- Be diplomat, strategist and flexible.
Improve my self-confidence
Learning about yourself allows you to gain more confidence and to be able to manage away from home, from your comforting cocoon, in totally unknown places and with different languages; that's allow you to believe in your capacities, possibilities of adaptation and evolution.
So, I was able to change my own perspective about myself and about all that I can undertake and succeed but as well about my shortcomings.
- Faculty to acquire new knowledge,
- Ability to defender mine own qualities and drawbacks,
- Humility and adaptation.
Apprenticeship of foreign languages
I had the opportunity during my travel, to develop my skills for languages. Indeed, in continuity of my training in ESTIA, I improved my English (Canada, USA and tourism experience in central America) and my Spanish (Central America). Today, I can say that I can live and work in a foreign country.
During this travel, I had also the opportunity and the chance to develop some skills in other languages. Chinese language, during two months in Colorado, I did some babysitting. The mother (Chinese origin), called her mother from China to help her with the kids and the house. The grandma couldn't speak English or French, so to speak or work with her I had to learn some Mandarin.
I also learnt some Hebrew (travels with Israelite people) some German (travels with German people) and indigenous languages like Maya.
- Open mind and about other cultures,
- Mobility.
Efficient and quick organization
To undertake this great adventure and to manage it with lot of time and distance, I had to prepare, organize and budget it ... and that, before and during the whole journey. Thanks to that long experience, I was able to strengthen some of my qualities and to develop others:
- Adaptation,
- Efficiency and seriousness,
- Organisation.
How to evolve in a new environment
That trip is a very good way to adapt yourself to different environments. So, during this journey, I realized that I could evolve in totally foreign places and quickly bounce back in various situations, with different rules of life, customs and personalities.
- Adaptation,
- Take initiative,
- Responsibility.
Christian organisation
Camping - Palapa & "Campers"
Organic farm & Refuge
Hostel
"Fungi Academy"
Hotel Servazul
Baby-sitting and selling
During two months I helped a family in the Colorado to manage the house, to sell furniture (of this house) and with baby-sitting. They wanted to move to Europe and that's why the father was in France to prepare everything. So I helped them to prepare the moving on but also with the kids and the house (The mother is working in a big company with a high position, so with lot of work). The mother (from China) called her mother to help her with kids and the house, she cannot speaks any English or French so I started to learn some Mandarin, to speak and to work with her.
My missions were :
- Baby-sitting (Autonomy and team),
- Make a furniture inventory (Autonomy),
- Sale furniture unwanted by the family (Aut),
- Research to find the most economical way to move furniture to Europe (Aut),
- Gardening and housekeeping (Aut).
This experience gave me a lot :
- Knowledge with baby-sitting and housekeeping,
- Knowledge with the Mandarin language and the Chinese culture,
- Responsibility, diplomacy, adaptation and taking initiative.
During two months I worked in an organic and animal farm. It was my first volunteer program and English experience. The farm was located south of Peterborough in Ontario (Canada). The animals of the farm were chicken, turkey, sheep, lambs, pigs, cows, lamas and dogs.
My missions were :
- Feeding and caring animals of the farm (Autonomy and team),
- Food stock and farm management (Autonomy and team),
- Painting, repairing and maintenance in the farm (Autonomy and team),
- Build a chicken coop (Team),
- Make a website to do "e-commerce" for the farm (Team),
- Manage a team of three persons for the last month,
- Manage lambs and piglets from birth.
This experience gave me a lot :
- Knowledge with farm and animals,
- Knowledge with e-commerce,
- Confidence, solidarity and responsibility,
During two weeks I helped an organisation helping to send food for hungry and poor people (most of the time in Africa). This organisation receives each weeks, young volunteers (15-19 years) from churches. Most of the work is the dried peach program and dehydrated soup, but they also need help with the garden, the kitchen (to feet all the volunteers), missions with some churches and maintenance & repairs.
My missions were :
- Take care of the property and handiwork (Team),
- Handling (Team),
- Help in the church (Team),
- Maintenance and repairs (Team).
This experience gave me a lot :
- Knowledge with gardening and handiwork,
- Religious knowledge,
- Humility and adaptation.
During two weeks I helped a refuge and organic farm in the Maya jungle, close to "Playa del Carmen" in Mexico. We had to take care of the animals (chickens, ducks, gooses, seventeen dogs, birds and fishes) but also the place. I was with other volunteers and Maya persons. So I had the chance to learn some Maya.
My missions were :
- Feed and take care of the animals of the farm (Team),
- Food stock and farm management (Autonomy and team),
- Build a chicken coop (Team),
- Work with local person (Team).
This experience gave me a lot :
- Knowledge with the farm, animals and refuge,
- Knowledge with Mexican and Maya culture,
- Responsibility, humility and taking initiative.
During one month and half I worked in a hostel in "San Cristobal de las Casas" in Mexico. And I came back a second time, for two weeks to substitute the manager because he was opening a new hostel in another city. He known me and my qualities, he trusted me and left me in charge of the hostel.
My missions were :
- Hostel management, phone calls and emails (Autonomy and team),
- Repair, maintenance and construction (Autonomy and team),
- Take care of the customers (Autonomy and team),
- Manage the money and bills of the hostel (Autonomy).
This experience gave me a lot :
- Knowledge with hotels and customers,
- Knowledge with local culture,
- Responsibility, adaptation and taking initiative.
During two weeks I integrated a community named "Fungi Academy". They left USA with a school bus and on the road they were teaching about "how to grow mushrooms". Thanks to that they could go to "Atitlan" lake in Guatemala where I met them.
My missions were :
- Construction of a house with bamboo and mud (Team),
- Permaculture and gardening (Team),
- Construction of dry toilets (Team),
- Kitchen (Team).
This experience gave me a lot :
- Knowledge with natural construction and ecologic culture,
- Knowledge with Guatemala and Maya culture,
- Adaptability, humility and open mind.
During one month and half I worked in a hotel (Hotel Servazul) at the "Laguna Apoyo" in Nicaragua.
My missions were :
- Hotel management, phone calls and emails (Autonomy and team),
- Restaurant and bar service (Team),
- Take care of customers (Team).
This experience gave me a lot :
- Knowledge with hotel, restaurant and customers,
- Adaptation and taking initiative,
- Strategy and diplomacy.
During one month and half I worked in a renting place close to Cabo Pulmo in Baja California and close to the ocean. At the beginning, I was trained to take care of the rooms and sanitary. But after five days of work, the owner left me in charge of the place (alone) because he had to go to USA for a personal reason. So I managed the property during one month as the person in charge until the next volunteer arrival.
My missions were :
- Take care of the property, gardening and housekeeping (Autonomy and team),
- Repair, maintenance and construction (Autonomy and team),
- Property management, phone calls and emails (Autonomy),
- Take care of the customers (Autonomy and team),
- Volunteering for the conversation of the turtles (Team),
- Manage and take care of the solar panel.
This experience gave me a lot :
- Knowledge with hotels and customers,
- Knowledge with local fauna and flora,
- Responsibility, adaptation and taking initiative.
