Carl Wilkes

As a beginner in Outdoor instruction at Phasels Wood Activity Centre, I left my comfort zone by letting out and using my enthusiasm for outdoor activities to help school-aged children make lasting happy memories.

This was no doubt helped by my keenness to challenge myself to expand my experience and knowledge of outdoor activities, my friendliness to guests and staff, and my openness to take advice from and collaborate with my fellow instructors and superiors.

- For my final year at University, I studied at the Rikkyo University in Saitama, Japan. 

- In between studies, I was fortunate enough to visit many traditional Shinto (religious) shrines in the countryside, enjoy Karaoke for the first time on nights out, and watch the animated street festivals in Tokyo. These are really sweet memories I'm glad to have experienced. 

 - Learning about Japan's differing philosophy and outlook on life opened my eyes to new ways of thinking, and changed and improved how I dealt with my struggles in life. 

- For example, in Japan, it's important not to strive for excellence, and accept imperfection. This helped me to accept failure as a learning curve in my studies, rather than letting my frustration and anger distract me from focusing properly on problem-solving. 

- Going forward, I hope to have more challenging experiences that will help me to consider what truly makes me happy.