Global Ambassador Ade: Live the Dream!

Live the Dream!

Even though we understand that education is the key and Google is our friend, sometimes we are lost in translation when it comes to our bright future. It’s a long journey, but a fulfilling one.

Some people give up on their dreams. Some others are afraid to make it happen. Another percentage has accepted what they have, forgotten their dreams, and made peace with their life. A select few are willing to make their dreams come true but do not know how to make it happen! Which one are you?

Me? I am the last one. Three years of preparation later and now I am here at Maastricht School of Management enjoying my MBA program and everything that was worth fighting for.

Continuing my studies is my last item on my #ThingsBefore30 wish list, it is a life changing moment. Who would have guessed that a girl from a middle-class family and small village in Kuningan - West Java Indonesia could compete and study abroad in the Netherlands with students of at least 20 different nationalities? Yes, that is me! If I can do this then so can you.

Everyone who has known me since I was kid knows that I am ambitious but never thought that I could be here. They’ve been asking “HOW COULD SHE DO THAT?“

So many questions have been asked and answering them one-by-one takes a lot of time, but I am very happy to share my experiences and to share my journey because I know there are so many people out there like me.

People that want to continue studying but don’t know how; so many smart people who are willing to pursue their master’s degree but can’t afford the tuition fee; so many talented people giving up on their dreams because the process seems too complicated.

Sharing is caring- helping others turn their dreams into reality by continuing their studies will also help me to become a better version of myself. I will never say that it will be easy, but I will always say that the process is worth fighting for. No matter how old you are now, dream again, wake up and make it happen. It’s never too late.

#ThingsBefore30

Everyone has their own justifications for making their dream list, my #ThingsBefore30 is all about the things I want to achieve before turning 30 years old. Even if you have already turned 30, you can always create #ThingsBefore40 #ThingsBefore50 #ThingsBefore60 and so on.

With lists of what you want to achieve in your life, it makes you more focused and persistent with your goals. Most of the time we think about stopping or have no energy left to make our dreams come true, but my advice would be to never stop until you reach it. Then create new lists and make it happen again because life is like the wheel, we are driving our own fate and create our own destiny.

Here are my personal #ThingsBefore30:

1. Learn to love myself more: I start by being productive at work, knowing my physical limits, and juggling work-life balance (This is a very hard for me, because the job I did before was my dream job and I loved it so much.)
2. Treat myself better: I begin with a dare to say “NO” to whatever I don’t agree with. I also enjoy my weekend with “me time.”
3. Learn new skills: I took coffee class where I enjoyed learning about coffee such as how to brew and taste coffee at its best.
4. Improve culinary skills: I learned my culinary skill from several chefs in Indonesia.
5. Learn to save more: Women and saving? This is pretty hard but yes I try to save my money starting as a 27 year old with the purpose of continuing my studies.
6. Try to invest some money: Started my own business in clothing and coffee. My clothing business has been running smoothly but my coffee business has not worked as stated on paper, which I have learned a lot from.
7. Traveling solo: 21 Days, 15 Cities, 7 Countries = Europe trip
8. Explore the sea: Bali, Phuket, water sports and snorkeling
9. Adventure sports to feel the adrenaline rush: Parasailing! I have a little bit of a problem with my heart health so in this case the mission is to conquer my limiting beliefs and my fear.
10. Climb the mountain: Mount Titlis: not literally climbing, I am using a gondola to take me to the top of Mount Titlis in Switzerland.
11. Give love a chance: As a career woman with a good job and a good salary I sometimes forget about relationships. So simply giving love a chance.
12. Move to the new country
13. Study abroad
14. Learn new language
15. Read lots of books

Points 12 – 15 are all about my studies. It will happen when I am 30 but the preparations begin now. I made the list at 27 but not all accomplishments happened just within a year, it happens over time. The key is to trust the process, focus on your objectives, persistence towards your set goal, adjustment and compromise. 

The dreams will never stop even when I accomplish everything on my #ThingsBefore30 list; especially with items 12- 15, the real battle happens after studying starts. The competition is real, the challenge is real, the adjustments will be never ending. However, Master of Business Administrations students are commonly known as ambitious people and I am no exception.

Why am I studying abroad?

There are so many reasons and justifications to answer “why?”, and my simple answer would be “WHY NOT?” The sky is not the limit, our mind is. If you can get higher education with world class standards, good ranking, international exposure, great accreditation, better studying environments, you better do it!

In fact, invest all of your capabilities, ambition and money into higher education because studying abroad will always be an added value. Even the return of your investment will be back at least 2-3 years after you have finished your studies*. This lifetime investment will even change your life, your career, and your destiny.

I was working in my dream job for the last 12 years. In my previous position as an Associate Director of Marketing Communication, I had been working in a local and multinational advertising agency. Is it really worth to leave that job and start everything from scratch?

All of these questions came to my mind. In fact, after 12 years of working in the same field – advertising – I became bored with the job. I was in my comfort zone and that made my mind stop thinking creatively as life was as easy as the river flows.

Back then, I simply asked myself “what will I be in the next 5 to 10 years from now? (Another list of #ThingsBefore40?) Do I have all the capabilities to become what I want to be in the next 5 to 10 years?”

Then I realized, I have the capability, but I don’t have enough room to grow. I don’t have enough knowledge to understand. I can’t catch up with all the fast-moving technologies. So I decided to take a giant step towards starting something new with studying abroad for my master’s degree as the starting point.

Never stop dreaming, never stop believing, dream again and make it happen.