FIXING STUFF AROUND YOURSELF
INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND:
I just moved from the dormitory (shared by 4 students) to a cube (shared by 1 or 2 students.) with my friend Ali. As it was our last year in university and life as we knew it would just be over in a year and we had to do lots of work on our thesis and research publications, so we decided to move to the cube, away from all the distractions and niceties of the world.
When we first arrived in our new room, it was as complete as it can be seen in the picture below. We decided to renovate it, a complete overhaul was required and we were already well above over time in our room prior to this so, we had to move as soon as possible but Ali went to his home to spend the week (to solve some problems) and I was alone and had to move so I decided to do the work and gave him (Ali) a surprise.
I was in my hostel’s room when I read about Amal’s activity and it was clear from the start that I had to do it, doesn’t matter if it was in the activity or not. First, I bought the necessary things like gift papers, nails, glue, etc. I gave away the carpet for a complete wash then cleaned the floor, cabin, and walls, (before leaving Ali had already done the electricity (wiring) work as he had the expertise for it.). I decided to renovate the cabin and safe first, I cleaned them with water-soap and then turned on the fan for some time then glued the gift papers with the wall and wooden box for decoration and made excess space out of it.
There were a cabin and a safe area for space and other stuff. Everything was a total mess. It was old, dirty and some nuts were loosed. Then the room was pretty dull looked nothing on the walls made it more skewed but we wanted to live in a healthy and peaceful environment where we could focus on our studies. I decided to renovate the cabin and safe. I first cleaned them with water-soap and then turned on the fan for some time. After it was dry enough, I glued the gift papers with and put some nuts in it to hang small things like key chains etc. I decided to put some maps and personality posters on the wall and surprise Ali (student of Geography) as he is fond of these things.
When I completed the task, I felt at peace like the responsibility of getting it done in time and giving it a complete overhaul was difficult but when done I felt at ease. This activity relates to leadership like no one was there for me, no one to tell me what to do, how to do it. I had to figure it out myself, do it myself. These are little things you learn when you are away from home like at first, I didn’t even know how to iron my clothes, hang them, polish my shoes, etc. These are small acts of leadership that we do every day ignoring it not realizing the potential of doing such tasks we just move forward. It gives us a sense of responsibility, triggers our long-sleeping monkey, and boosts us to cope with daily pressure.
