This has been a wild summer! After the Powwow things really sped up here in Cody. First, there was the Cody Stampede and Fourth of July busyness and then I was up in Montana for a concert and then I was packing for Canada and just like that the summer is over! Sorry for the horrific run-on sentence 🙂 but really where did the days go? I have this theory that time goes faster as you get older. When you’re little everything takes forever! ‘Are we there yet?’ and then we grow up…’Seriously we’re already here?!’
I’ve tried to keep up a little on my Family by Faith blog but that’s even been spotty. (You can find a quick update on vacation here)! School is back and I’m determined to get some consistency back in my life! The good news is, I have a whole summer worth of adventures to share with you 🙂
The first adventure I want to share with you is my time as an intern at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West.
Being an intern wasn’t quite what I expected, it was more like an entry-level job. I was responsible for social media posts, immersing myself in various activities at the Center, updating local businesses about our events, and writing blogs! My final project for the summer was to write an in-depth evaluation of the Center’s online presence. Ever the overachiever, I wrote the evaluation, a strategy proposal, and an ethics policy proposal for the Center’s online presence and then co-led a meeting updating the Curators and other staff who are also responsible for little niches of that presence. Apparently, they were pleased because they are now keeping me until the end of the year! I don’t get a pay raise or anything but I did get promoted from Public Relations Intern to Social Media Specialist! My job description will change a little bit but it has already opened so many other opportunities 🙂
As an intern, I’ve gotten to look at the deep, ugly, underbelly of one of my favorite places in the world. In every place, you’re ever going to work this is going to happen. As the new kid you see the peachy wonderful side of where you work and then you become an accepted member of the team…and people start whining in front of you! It also becomes apparent the total lack of work ethic that some of your co-workers seem to have. For me, this is when it gets harder to get out of bed in the morning and continue going in day after day. I’m not sure how I hit that point as an intern but it did lead to the broadening of my final project and several lessons.
1. Don’t get sucked into the whining, find something positive to say!
2.Come to work with a smile, even if you don’t particularly feel like it!
3. Be kind to everyone, listen to their dispute even if it hurts.
4. Take your complaint directly to the person you’re having an issue with, face to face talk it through and come to a solution if possible.
5. Pay your dues, when you’re the new kid on the totem pole if your business asks for volunteers, you be the first in line.
6. Participate, have fun doing your job, hanging out with your coworkers, and doing those extra tasks. People notice a good attitude!
7. See a need, fill a need. If you see an area where your organization could use your help, don’t be afraid to start asking those questions and do something about it!
8. Make yourself an essential part of the team, your coworkers and your employers should notice that things aren’t quite at their best when you’re not around.
9. Take responsibility for your mistakes.
10. Dream big, you probably won’t be in this job forever, what do you want your dream job to be able to hear when they call this one as a reference?
Growing up, adults always told me that you better find something you will love getting up in the morning to do. I think that’s still true, but I don’t think that’s what makes you happy in your work.
I’ve worked under good bosses and bad bosses, with awful coworkers and with wonderful people who’ve become my best friends. There are only two things that keep me getting up to do what I love in the morning: God has called me to be there and I have chosen to be joyful in Him whatever my day may present. Believe me, I still have off days where everything seems to tick me off, but you can ask anyone at my work about it and they wouldn’t know what you’re talking about!
“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”
Thomas Edison
How did your work week go? What are the most important lessons you’ve learned on the job? Are you happy in the job you’re in right now?
image originated here
Thank you, fellow adventurers! You can follow The Montana Bear Paw page on Facebook and Instagram @littlemissbearpaw, and on Twitter @lilmissbearpaw for sneak peeks into upcoming posts and my adventures. This will also be a great place to share your own adventures!
Comments