An Initiative by Global Experts Foundation

Global Young Leaders

How do we create our life's path based on our own needs and passions while
being able to face real-world challenges? We took the life's experiences of 8 young people from around the world to find an answer to this question.
The result?
Our model with a step-by-step approach on how to do this.

A New Drive by Young People

There is a desire for young people to create their life in a different kind of way, one focused on their own needs and happiness! Yet, they often have to figure this out by themselves, making decisions about their study, work, place of living or relationships, while also facing challenges that come with these decisions. Even though many programs and work settings aim to guide them through this, their lessons and approaches are often too general or do not match with what we experience in real-life! Furthermore, young people feel they cannot always integrate their own passions, intuition and creativity. As a result, they do not always feel confident or satisfied in designing their life's path.

But what if there are relevant examples, solutions and tools that can come from our peers who are in the middle of those same decisions and challenges? By sharing and evaluating experiences and approaches from one young person to another, we can create a new resource on how to design our life's path. This is the basis of our model, 'the Decision-Growth Cycle', where eight young people translated their unique life's experiences into a general framework about all the processes and elements of decision-making, with tools and insight on creating our life's path.
The Global Young Leaders initiative's aim is to share 'the Decision-Growth Cycle' around the world and create a setting for young people to exchange their valuable and relatable experiences. The Global Young Leaders handbook, workshops and platform are resources through which young people can understand and guide themselves with confidence to create their path aligned with their needs and passions.

The Decision-Growth Cycle Take-Aways

Our model is about how we make decisions and the different processes that play a role. While built on completely unique and diverse experiences, we discovered that there were underlying similarities. By categorizing these, we could create the general framework of the model, allowing every individual to "plug-in" their unique life's experiences, go through the steps of the model, and find their own solutions.
Bigger-Picture
Understanding
of the Decision-Making Process
to shed light
on how we design
our life's path
Personalized
and
Practical
Steps
to approach and realize
our goals through
our decisions
Examples, Approaches
and Tools
from Our Peers
on how to manage,
deal with, and direct
this process
Insight into
How All
Decision-Making Leads to Growth
to give us confidence
and more enjoyment
when creating our life
"Coming from a business background, I was never really the biggest fan of generalised theoretical frameworks and their practical feasibility. I always found it hard to derive personal relevance in the approaches that were taught. Yet, the framework we collectively developed manages to capture our diverse individual backgrounds to lay the foundation for effective personal decision-making. I am very happy to have been part of this project and I believe that the outcome will help future generations build their path to personal success and happiness."
Fabian Middelmann, 25 years old, Germany

Our Unique Approach

From one young person to another
Since we were trying to find solutions and approaches that were relevant and applicable for young people, we decided to go directly to the source: young people themselves! The peer-to-peer exchange between young people gave understanding of applicable and relatable solutions and resulted in the creation of the model.
Based on real-world practical experiences
Everything in the model is based on the personal and professional 'real-world' experiences of young people, where circumstances are different than the theoretical setting. These practical experiences are key because they can provide us with the final clue of whether something works in daily life or not.
Find what works for you
The model does not promote a pre-determined path but underlines that we each need to design our own path. It is a framework giving each young person the structure to "plug-in" their own unique professional and personal context. The solutions and tools of the model become relevant once applied to you.
The right setting
Everyone faces important decisions and personal and professional challenges, yet the moments of sharing and reflecting on them is very limited. We create a setting where young people have the room and opportunity to benefit from exchanging and discussing their experiences and practical solutions with others.

Events around the World

These international Global Young Leaders have already connected and exchanged their personal and professional life's experiences using the model through our workshops and international events. Check out below where we've been!
Our Partners & Supporters
We are actively looking for partners of the Global Young Leaders initiative. We work with and are supported by organizations who seek to promote the personal and professional development of young people in a way that fits their needs and visions.
Connect, support or organize a workshop with us by sending an email to gyl@global-expertsfoundation.com!
Connect with our team
Marja Pronk
Founder & Managing Director
Rowena Caanen
Project & Communication Coordinator
Christiaan Caanen
Project & Workshop Coordinator