Vidar president Nayomi Latulola: ‘A night with the girls is a perfect night out’

Slacking off is not something Human Resources student Nayomi Latulola is good at. She was Miss Beauty Drenthe, organizer of Miss Beauty Limburg and competitive rower. Last year she was a student assessor and now she is at the helm of student rowing club Vidar as the new president.

1. What did you want to be when you were a kid?

“Schoolteacher. I enjoyed teaching people things. I’ve also had some inspiring teachers. When I was very little, I always thought the teacher was a kind of extra mother who also taught me things.’

2. What are you most proud of?

‘That I moved to the city as an ignorant student from the far north and quite quickly felt like a fish in water here. I had been dreading coming here very much. Suddenly living on my own? I found it all very exciting. Now this is my own town, with my own friends and networks. In my heart of hearts, Tilburg is just it, I really want to stay here.’

3. What do you daydream about?

‘I often catch myself daydreaming about the future. As a result, I sometimes forget to live in the now. But yes, I’m often thinking about what’s going to happen tomorrow, or in ten years’ time. That also works as a motive, I think.’

4. What is your biggest fear?

‘I would hate for people to forget me. That I’m not meaningful. I try to counteract that a bit by giving a compliment every now and then or by doing something for people. I don’t want to blend in with the crowd, so to speak.’

5. What is a perfect night out for you?

‘A perfect night out? That’s going out with the girls. Dressing up nicely, doing our hair, and then having a nice dinner together. That’s where it should start, where we end up doesn’t matter to me’

“I’m very, very optimistic. Without dreams, you have nothing to run for’

“The girls are from my sorority, Luna. They have supported me from the beginning with the presidency. About choices, for example: should I do it, or not? You take them along a bit, because they know you so well by now. It’s also nice to see how a sorority eventually unites around you, it really gives such a boost.’

6. What music can’t you get enough of?

‘I think my fellow board members think it’s super boring, but I really love old soul music. My favorite artist is Otis Redding. He is one of the greats. I can listen to him for hours, you can put hin on repeat, I don’t mind that at all.’

7. What do few people know about you?

‘That I am a hopeless romantic. I leave notes on my board members’ laptops with ‘have a nice day’ or notes among their things with ‘you are beautiful.’ Really very cheesy, but yes, I am in favor of people not forgetting that. A lot of people won’t know that I am like this. From the outside, I may look like a badass, but in the meantime, I only have a small heart, you know.’

8. What gives you a short fuse?

‘People who are very pessimistic, that really gives me chills down my spine. I really, really hate that, they can’t do much with me either. Realism and pessimism are close to each other, so are optimism and ambition, I think. Personally, I am very, very optimistic. Without dreams, you don’t have anything to run for.’

9. What really needs to change at the university?

‘Good steps have been taken in listening to the voice of the student. However, I believe that there is still room for improvement. Many students who rise to board positions are active students. As a result, everything is very much focused on the active student, making the non-active student feel as if he has to do the same.

‘Of course, it’s totally okay to focus on your studies and not do anything on the side’

‘We like to see active students, but it shouldn’t be a must. Because it’s completely okay to focus on your studies and not do anything on the side, of course. I think the university should think about an even broader way to reach the rest of the students as well.’

10. What should you actually do (more)?

‘Slowing down from time to time. Enjoying what’s happening here and now, instead of always running or flying. This also has to do with being ambitious, daydreaming and looking to the future. I think sometimes it’s better to do nothing for a while. Scheduling moments of rest.’

11. What do you do during the holidays?

‘It may sound very strange now, but when I’m on holiday, I really like sun, sea and sand. I don’t go into the sea much, just to cool off. It’s mostly sunbathing and a lot of reading. It’s not a vacation if I haven’t read at least five books.

‘This summer, I went to the Ardennes. I told myself: you’re definitely going to take a break. It was an active holiday. I hiked and also went paragliding. It’s a bit symbolic, leave all your worries behind you and just go. That’s how I found myself in the air with a parachute at an altitude of two kilometers. Daredevil me, I didn’t expect it myself. You can still surprise yourself at the age of 25.’

12. Netflix or reading?

‘Very easy for me: reading. I’m a real book nerd, you could say. I devour one book after the other. Reading feels like escaping reality for me. I read all kinds of books. From autobiographies to fantasy, from novels to thrillers and everything in between. It really depends on how I feel, actually.’

13. Shopping or online shopping?

‘Definitely shopping. I am a real people person and enjoy chatting while shopping. You can easily sell me things if you do it right. I don’t care for online shopping. I really don’t think it’s good for the environment.”

‘So I’d much rather go to the store, where I can try stuff on immediately. This way it’s never a bad buy and I don’t have to return anything. It is also more fun, you often grab a cup of coffee or decide to go for lunch.’

_Advertentie.