Risk and Reward

Hello again! Thank you from the bottom of my heart for being here. The support I received from the last post is truly immeasurable and makes clicking “Publish” this time around much easier. To be completely honest with you,?I am still a bit self-conscious about this whole concept, so?bear with me. I keep reminding myself that this is a 600-ish word weekly blog, not a letter to the queen. Anyways . . .??

Although it might be Monday when you are reading this, I am currently writing this on a beautiful Friday afternoon outside of a coffee shop in Brooklyn. Sipping on a watered-down vanilla latte while sitting in reflection is something?I am grateful for the chance to do, and also something that I am quite bad at. I feel like every time I try to sit and reflect, I actually just sit and freak out. But hey, I am working on it.??

This week marks the end of the first month of my summer internship here in New York! My experience so far has been nothing short of incredible, and I have the people I work with and the organization that I work for to thank for that.?

However, there are many others that I owe thanks to for even being here in the first place. ?

When I first received the call that I got this job, I was ecstatic, although I tried to play it cool on the phone (I am sure I did anything but “keep it cool”). I was proud of this accomplishment and confident in my abilities. Saying yes was the first step towards my dream job of working in community relations for a professional team.?

Although this seemed like the perfect opportunity, I must admit that it took me an entire week before officially saying yes! The idea of this internship was great, but all the what-ifs drove me crazy. I had the support of my parents (which I am SO grateful for), but I knew they would support me no matter what (again, so grateful). This decision to move away from my friends and family amidst the uncertainty was one that I had to make entirely on my own. ?

When thinking back to this time, a particular conversation with two of my friends/mentors stands out. ?

This convo started like most (with me storming into the office with a particular anxiety and having full faith in their answers). To summarize this talk, they told me that this is exactly the time in my life that I should be taking risks, building skills, and eagerly accepting experiences. In a positive way, I literally have no one that relies on me, so if I fail, so what! Their genuine belief in me, plus the support from my friends, gave me the push to say yes (Austin and Alyssa if you are reading this, you guys are the best).?

This leads me to my next quote of the week, which comes directly from a required book called The Startup of You from my internship class. Required readings have never exactly been my cup of tea (sorry!), but I have to admit, I enjoyed this one.

“The best way to ensure that lucky things happen is to make sure a lot of things happen”?- Bo Peabody

To me, this quote means exactly what it says: make sure a lot of things happen! It's about taking risks and never looking back. It’s about believing in accidental good fortune yet being alert to all potential opportunities. Community relations, especially in professional sports, is a challenging industry to break into, and I don’t want to look back with any regrets. While I am here, I want to say yes to everything I come across and make as many connections as possible. I know I might fail sometimes, and not every day will be the best day ever, but soon enough my experience and an opportunity will cross paths. ?

To switch gears and end this blog, I will leave you with my?song of the week (again, still working on the “conclusion” skill). There’s no deeper meaning to this song choice, and its theme does not string along?with the rest of this blog, but it is rather a celebration of summer. I encourage you to blast this in the car specifically as the sun sets and with all your windows down.?

That's Where I Am - Maggie Rogers

Thank you for reading, and all the best to you!!!?