From the Chairman: Don't be scared to be unprepared

When I started my second year of TCS, I hadn’t even thought about becoming a board member, let alone becoming chairman. Yet here I am now, the 45th chairman of Inter-Actief. In this column I will share my experiences on becoming a board member of Inter-Actief, and how we as a board are looking to improve the association.

Deciding to become a board member is a journey different for everyone. Some people know from the start of their study that they will do a board year, others only think about it a week before the enrollment deadline. I myself was part of the latter. But even though the rest of the board was much more prepared for their job, we got along well and we quickly started our journey on becoming a board member. And before I knew it, I was just as involved as the rest of my board.

During the weeks of our candidate board time, we were introduced to what it means to be a part of the Inter-Actief board and what responsibilities you will have during the next year. Not only did this include taking care of the Inter-Actief room and its surroundings, but also attending three meetings a week, meeting fellow candidate boards, and getting oriented on all tasks and responsibilities for next year. All of this sounds very intense and tiring, and quite frankly, it is. Nevertheless, these weeks flew by and before we knew it, the summer holidays started and we had to write our policy plan.

Speaking from my experience, writing a policy is the most difficult task of a board. Not that we did not have any ideas for our policy. On the contrary, we came up with a whole laundry list of plans and visions for Inter-Actief. Here the difficult task arises: choosing the final points you want to execute. It is at this stage that my task as chairman was fully needed for the first time, and if I am being honest, it did not go well. But the more discussions about our policy we had, the more I learned and the better it went.

It is at that moment you realize have you have grown during your time as a candidate board member. From being unsure about becoming a part of the next board, to being able to confidently make plans about a study association of 1400 members.

Then, after the holidays, the moment is there: the change of the boards. Suddenly, it is your task to lead Inter-Actief. Luckily, there was no time to be stressed out, as the first few weeks of our board year are completely cramped with activities. We organized bowling evenings with the freshmen, a workshop about what it means to be an active member, and the committee market where you can find all committees Inter-Actief has to offer. It is at these moments where you get to meet members, and for them to meet you. And as we all know, knowing your members is one of the most important parts of being board.

After these first intense weeks, the time has come to fully focus on our plans for the upcoming academic year. You might have already seen our “How-to” flyers lying around, which we introduced this year. They are aimed to guide all students, and especially freshmen, during their time at Inter-Actief and the University of Twente. To further help students along their student journey, we are organizing project group meetings and active member trainings. However, these are not the only events you can participate in. During the year we will host study evenings, sporting activities, LAN parties, a prom, our famous Tuesday afternoon drinks, and much more! Nervous to sign up for such an event? So was I when I signed up to become chairman, yet I am here now with zero regrets. And if I can do it, I am 100% certain you can too!

Finally, if you want to know more about us and the study association, you can always stop by the Inter-Actief room! Here you can meet your fellow students, grab a snack from our cookie corner, work at one of the workstations, or take a moment to relax while playing on our Wii. Do you have any ideas or feedback for us? This too can be left at the association room, or you can send an email to goodidea@inter-actief.net.

See you soon at Inter-Actief!

About Twan

Twan was born 20 years ago, on the 24th of May in Haarlem. Here he graduated from Atheneum College Hageveld, and shortly afterwards moved to Enschede to follow his love for Computer Science. Having studied TCS at the UT for two years now, he has become quite active at Inter-Actief, having organized the international business course to Lissabon, and now he is the chairman of the 45th board. When not busy with being a chairman, you can find him at the Tuesday afternoon drinks, playing hockey at DHC Drienerlo, or enjoying a night out in the city center with friends or housemates.