To my wonderful Learning & Development team, to the amazing HR department, and Make-A-Wish as a whole, thank you so much for the wonderful opportunity I have been given this semester as an intern at the national office!
I have learned so much in these short sixteen weeks and the knowledge and skills that I have learned and acquired through this internship will no doubt help me in my future as I look forward to graduation, and seeking out a full time job and a career! This internship has taught me to be curious and ask questions, to challenge myself and take on new responsibilities, and to embrace the work culture that I am in, and learn how to adapt to the diverseness of different work places.
I want to especially thank my immediate supervisor, Vicki McKee for being so incredibly encouraging and supportive of me throughout this internship! You have really encouraged me to develop my skill set and to challenge myself and think creatively and in an innovative way. Thank you for trusting me, and giving me responsibility and ownership in the projects I worked on. Thank you for being such an amazing supervisor, one who I can be open and honest with, and know that you will always have my back!
Also, thank you to my amazing team members who I got to work with on a daily basis! Doug, Denton, and Nanda, you all are SO amazing and certainly do not receive as much credit as you should for all the incredible work that you do! It's all the behind the scenes work that keeps things running, and the three of you are incredible at making sure all the behind the scenes work gets done so the work that people do see happening runs smoothly.
Finally, I want to thank my awesome Intern Manager, Meg Luther! You have such an incredible way of interacting with everyone in the office--you have such a light about you, and the joy that you bring to the office and the people you interact with everyday is so amazing! It has been such a joy getting to work with you, and I am so thankful that I have been able to learn from you how to have difficult conversations, how to get people excited about participating in something work related, and how to throw a bomb-diggity ice cream social :)
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Sunday, April 19, 2015
The Most Important Things...
During my session as an intern at Make-A-Wish I learned a lot of things about nonprofit organizations, about different work cultures, and about the different interactions between different departments and different levels of leadership. Looking back at my initial goals that I made at the beginning of the semester, I think I have made great strides in meeting most of these goals.
1. Learn the ins and outs of the behind the scenes operations in a nonprofit organization (or at least in the Learning & Development department of the organization). I want to learn what keeps the organization running.
Throughout my time at Make-A-Wish, I certainly have been given quite an insight into the behind the scenes operations of a nonprofit organization. I learned that often times, things can appear to be working quite smoothly to the public eye, but on the inside, there is a lot of work that needs to be done, a lot of updating and reform.
2. Start and finish a project that will help the Learning & Development department to grow and expand in a way that will benefit it in the future. I want to create a process that is efficient and that can be replicated by others in the future to produce quality work.
I have been able to fulfill this goal through a few different avenues. One of my projects as an intern was to streamline the process of hosting a Lunch 'n' Learn. Before I started at Make-A-Wish, the Learning and Development team held a lot of the responsibility of ensuring that Lunch 'n' Learns went off without a hitch. However, when other departments were the guest speakers, our team was still running around, trying to get everything prepared, while we were playing catch up on our daily tasks. So, I went through every step of the process, broke it down into the roles and responsibilities of the hosting department, our department, and the I.T. department. Once I did that, as soon as a Lunch 'n' Learn was scheduled on the calendar, I approached the hosting department, went over the process with them, and handed over all responsibility, thus streamlining the process.
3. Explore different areas of a nonprofit organization. I know I want to work in the nonprofit sector once I graduate, but there are so many different aspects of a nonprofit that it is difficult to know where exactly I want to be after graduation. I hope that through this internship, I will be able to explore different career avenues and learn more about myself as a contributor to the nonprofit sector and where my skill set will best fit in a nonprofit organization.
Over the course of the semester, every other week at our team meetings, each person on the team gets to choose a different "guest speaker" to bring in from another department. It has been really neat to hear about the work that is done across the office, and how diverse the work is that is done even on the same floor! Some departments work closely with the chapters, and granting the wishes themselves, while others (such as mine) focus more on training the volunteers, and getting knowledge and tools to staff members. It is incredible that such a diverse group of people all come together because they are all so devoted to the mission of Make-A-Wish.
1. Learn the ins and outs of the behind the scenes operations in a nonprofit organization (or at least in the Learning & Development department of the organization). I want to learn what keeps the organization running.
Throughout my time at Make-A-Wish, I certainly have been given quite an insight into the behind the scenes operations of a nonprofit organization. I learned that often times, things can appear to be working quite smoothly to the public eye, but on the inside, there is a lot of work that needs to be done, a lot of updating and reform.
2. Start and finish a project that will help the Learning & Development department to grow and expand in a way that will benefit it in the future. I want to create a process that is efficient and that can be replicated by others in the future to produce quality work.
I have been able to fulfill this goal through a few different avenues. One of my projects as an intern was to streamline the process of hosting a Lunch 'n' Learn. Before I started at Make-A-Wish, the Learning and Development team held a lot of the responsibility of ensuring that Lunch 'n' Learns went off without a hitch. However, when other departments were the guest speakers, our team was still running around, trying to get everything prepared, while we were playing catch up on our daily tasks. So, I went through every step of the process, broke it down into the roles and responsibilities of the hosting department, our department, and the I.T. department. Once I did that, as soon as a Lunch 'n' Learn was scheduled on the calendar, I approached the hosting department, went over the process with them, and handed over all responsibility, thus streamlining the process.
3. Explore different areas of a nonprofit organization. I know I want to work in the nonprofit sector once I graduate, but there are so many different aspects of a nonprofit that it is difficult to know where exactly I want to be after graduation. I hope that through this internship, I will be able to explore different career avenues and learn more about myself as a contributor to the nonprofit sector and where my skill set will best fit in a nonprofit organization.
Over the course of the semester, every other week at our team meetings, each person on the team gets to choose a different "guest speaker" to bring in from another department. It has been really neat to hear about the work that is done across the office, and how diverse the work is that is done even on the same floor! Some departments work closely with the chapters, and granting the wishes themselves, while others (such as mine) focus more on training the volunteers, and getting knowledge and tools to staff members. It is incredible that such a diverse group of people all come together because they are all so devoted to the mission of Make-A-Wish.
Sunday, April 12, 2015
Career Services: How to Write A Winning Resume
For my second career services post, I chose to watch a webinar titled "How to Write a Winning Resume". In this webinar, a lot of interesting points were made about building a "winning resume." I learned several things, including:
1. The top half of your resume is considered the "hot zone" and needs to grab the attention of the recruiter. It should include your contact info, education, and experience.
2. Your resume typically should be no longer than one page.
3. Employers are looking for skills such as communication, detail oriented, organized, problem solving, and computer skills when they are recruiting to fill a position.
It was pretty interesting to listen to this webinar because the co-worker who I share a cubicle with at my internship, Lauren, is the HR Recruitment intern. I have seen her look through hundreds of resumes, and she has shown me really awesome resumes that are incredibly impressive, and then there are others that honestly, are quite sad. It definitely is true though that recruiters take about 15 to 40 seconds to look over a resume and determine if that candidate is moving on or not. When you think about having to market yourself in that little amount of time, it really puts into perspective just how important writing your resume, and tailoring it to each job is.
1. The top half of your resume is considered the "hot zone" and needs to grab the attention of the recruiter. It should include your contact info, education, and experience.
2. Your resume typically should be no longer than one page.
3. Employers are looking for skills such as communication, detail oriented, organized, problem solving, and computer skills when they are recruiting to fill a position.
It was pretty interesting to listen to this webinar because the co-worker who I share a cubicle with at my internship, Lauren, is the HR Recruitment intern. I have seen her look through hundreds of resumes, and she has shown me really awesome resumes that are incredibly impressive, and then there are others that honestly, are quite sad. It definitely is true though that recruiters take about 15 to 40 seconds to look over a resume and determine if that candidate is moving on or not. When you think about having to market yourself in that little amount of time, it really puts into perspective just how important writing your resume, and tailoring it to each job is.
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
Motivation and Working Out
I'll be honest -- never in a million years did I think I would be one of "those" people who worked their schedule around going to the gym, or sacrificed sleeping in or going to bed early to make sure I fit in a workout that day. But, I think I am slowly becoming one of "those" gym junkies! Who would have thought it?!
Although I am not a hardcore body builder, or anything like that, I really do enjoy working out (okay, not the sweaty part of it, or when it's super crowded at the gym). It's true that exercising does produce endorphins which make your mind happy. Even though I am usually exhausted when I come home from the gym, overall, I can definitely tell that I have more energy now than I did before I started working out a couple months ago.
Motivation is a HUGE component of working out. Without motivation, I would still be sitting on my butt at home instead of taking an hour out of my day to go work out. It is super helpful that one of my best friends works out with me, so she is constantly pushing me to lift more weights, increase my reps, and push myself until I finish--not just until it starts hurting. Working out has taught me a lot about motivation and pushing my limits. It is amazing to see just how much stronger I have gotten within eight weeks, and although I am nowhere near where I want to be in my workouts, I am encouraged that I am seeing progress, and that there are visible results.
So cheers, my peers, as I will be getting up early tomorrow to fit in a workout before the craziness of the next few days ensue!
Although I am not a hardcore body builder, or anything like that, I really do enjoy working out (okay, not the sweaty part of it, or when it's super crowded at the gym). It's true that exercising does produce endorphins which make your mind happy. Even though I am usually exhausted when I come home from the gym, overall, I can definitely tell that I have more energy now than I did before I started working out a couple months ago.
Motivation is a HUGE component of working out. Without motivation, I would still be sitting on my butt at home instead of taking an hour out of my day to go work out. It is super helpful that one of my best friends works out with me, so she is constantly pushing me to lift more weights, increase my reps, and push myself until I finish--not just until it starts hurting. Working out has taught me a lot about motivation and pushing my limits. It is amazing to see just how much stronger I have gotten within eight weeks, and although I am nowhere near where I want to be in my workouts, I am encouraged that I am seeing progress, and that there are visible results.
So cheers, my peers, as I will be getting up early tomorrow to fit in a workout before the craziness of the next few days ensue!
Sunday, April 5, 2015
La Familia
With today being a holiday, I am reminded again of the preciousness and frailty of family. It is really hard to be so far away from my sweet baby niece and nephew, especially on holidays, but knowing that we can at least connect with them via Skype is a bit comforting. My niece and nephew are the absolute joys of my life, and every time we get to Skype, I sign off smiling from ear to ear.
Ethan, who is almost 3 (I can't believe my little man is so big already!) is such a goof. Whenever we Skype, he hauls out all his trucks and cars and races them in front of the computer screen so we can bet on who is going to win the race. He tells us that it is still snowing outside, and when he sees his sister walk in the room he gets SO excited! He has such a gentle spirit and loves his little sister to the moon and back.
Ellie, my spunky little niece is a riot! Her giggle is the cutest thing ever, and while we were Skyping today, she was constantly blowing kisses to us, and had a HUGE grin on her face! She is starting to talk now, and when she showed us a pop up book with a bunny and she said "bunny" we all squealed and clapped and she was so proud that she did something good! It was adorable.
Although it is extremely difficult to be so far away from these little ones, it just makes it that more exciting when they get to come and visit us! I have a lot of nicknames, and a lot of different hats that I wear, but my favorite one so far has got to be "auntie". :)
Ethan, who is almost 3 (I can't believe my little man is so big already!) is such a goof. Whenever we Skype, he hauls out all his trucks and cars and races them in front of the computer screen so we can bet on who is going to win the race. He tells us that it is still snowing outside, and when he sees his sister walk in the room he gets SO excited! He has such a gentle spirit and loves his little sister to the moon and back.
Ellie, my spunky little niece is a riot! Her giggle is the cutest thing ever, and while we were Skyping today, she was constantly blowing kisses to us, and had a HUGE grin on her face! She is starting to talk now, and when she showed us a pop up book with a bunny and she said "bunny" we all squealed and clapped and she was so proud that she did something good! It was adorable.
Although it is extremely difficult to be so far away from these little ones, it just makes it that more exciting when they get to come and visit us! I have a lot of nicknames, and a lot of different hats that I wear, but my favorite one so far has got to be "auntie". :)
Thursday, April 2, 2015
Strengths of Make-A-Wish
Make-A-Wish has many many strengths as an organization, especially as a nonprofit organization! In my previous experiences with working with other nonprofit organizations, it has become apparent that many are quite unorganized and lack a central method of organizing and scheduling activities and events. However, Make-A-Wish is very cognizant of everything that is going on, and ensures that processes are implemented to promote and show all the moving parts. Since there are so many moving parts to everything that we do, we are constantly looking for better and more efficient ways to do things, until we are positive that we have found our best practices that will be enforced from here on out.
Another strength of Make-A-Wish is that their mission as an organization is truly at the heart of everything everyone does at the organization. We are all there for the wish kids, they are the reason that Make-A-Wish even exists! Although sometimes we get caught up in the business and craziness of work, we are often reminded of the reason why we are there--those huge smiles of the wish kids when they get their one true wish granted. It is super awesome too, because all around the office, there are huge pictures of different wish kids getting their wishes granted, and it is absolutely evident how much joy and hope we as an organization are able to give them, so it puts everything back into perspective again, and makes even the hardest days at work not so bad.
Another strength of Make-A-Wish is that their mission as an organization is truly at the heart of everything everyone does at the organization. We are all there for the wish kids, they are the reason that Make-A-Wish even exists! Although sometimes we get caught up in the business and craziness of work, we are often reminded of the reason why we are there--those huge smiles of the wish kids when they get their one true wish granted. It is super awesome too, because all around the office, there are huge pictures of different wish kids getting their wishes granted, and it is absolutely evident how much joy and hope we as an organization are able to give them, so it puts everything back into perspective again, and makes even the hardest days at work not so bad.
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