Over the past year, I feel like I have been on a whirlwind. I have moved to New York City and back, twice. The first time, I worked in the Empire State Building, with one of the largest fashion companies in the world. The second time, however, I worked for a company that had 40 employees total. These two experiences both helped to shape my career in the ways I never expected.
I had high expectations in the first job, both for the company and for myself. I wanted to work hard and to prove to the company that I was a person worth investing in. However, on my first day of work, I noticed a red flag. The creative director came to me and said, “I don’t normally do this, but can you go downstairs and buy me a coffee.” I was a little irate, especially because in my initial interview, they said “we don’t make our interns get coffee, because they are here to do actual work.” But I didn’t want to be difficult, so I agreed. Maybe it was just a one-time thing, right?
Slowly they started asking me to do it more and more, and multiple people would ask me. Then it progressed to asking me to pick up their lunches. But what could I say? I had done it up to that point, so how was I supposed to make them stop? I had to stand up for myself. That is something that I have always struggled with both in professional settings, and personal ones. But I have come to realize over the past year that standing up for myself doesn’t make me a bad person. People might be mad at me at first, but ultimately it created more respect for me, and how people viewed me.
This lesson came to serve me again at my other NYC co-op, at a small company called Nili Lotan. I went into the job knowing that it would be a lot of errands. But it wasn’t until I arrived at my first day that I realized what I was lacking. They had no desk for me, not even a place for me to hang my winter coat. I had to almost immediately start running errands. As the weeks progressed into the job, they kept piling errands onto me, sometimes having to carry up to 70 pounds of garments and fabric on the subway. This time, however, I was not going let it slide. I respectfully asked my boss for a meeting and told her that the loads were too much for one person to handle, and that I could not continue to do it by myself. She completely agreed and said to always tell her when something is too much, and she would understand.
That conversation has completely changed how I view myself and my worth in a professional setting. I am going to use this lesson going forward in all aspects of my life. I will always make sure to have my voice heard, and to not let someone else’s views determine my self-worth. Over the next year, with completing a Research EEP and completing my capstone, I look forward to my new control over myself and my actions.
I had high expectations in the first job, both for the company and for myself. I wanted to work hard and to prove to the company that I was a person worth investing in. However, on my first day of work, I noticed a red flag. The creative director came to me and said, “I don’t normally do this, but can you go downstairs and buy me a coffee.” I was a little irate, especially because in my initial interview, they said “we don’t make our interns get coffee, because they are here to do actual work.” But I didn’t want to be difficult, so I agreed. Maybe it was just a one-time thing, right?
Slowly they started asking me to do it more and more, and multiple people would ask me. Then it progressed to asking me to pick up their lunches. But what could I say? I had done it up to that point, so how was I supposed to make them stop? I had to stand up for myself. That is something that I have always struggled with both in professional settings, and personal ones. But I have come to realize over the past year that standing up for myself doesn’t make me a bad person. People might be mad at me at first, but ultimately it created more respect for me, and how people viewed me.
This lesson came to serve me again at my other NYC co-op, at a small company called Nili Lotan. I went into the job knowing that it would be a lot of errands. But it wasn’t until I arrived at my first day that I realized what I was lacking. They had no desk for me, not even a place for me to hang my winter coat. I had to almost immediately start running errands. As the weeks progressed into the job, they kept piling errands onto me, sometimes having to carry up to 70 pounds of garments and fabric on the subway. This time, however, I was not going let it slide. I respectfully asked my boss for a meeting and told her that the loads were too much for one person to handle, and that I could not continue to do it by myself. She completely agreed and said to always tell her when something is too much, and she would understand.
That conversation has completely changed how I view myself and my worth in a professional setting. I am going to use this lesson going forward in all aspects of my life. I will always make sure to have my voice heard, and to not let someone else’s views determine my self-worth. Over the next year, with completing a Research EEP and completing my capstone, I look forward to my new control over myself and my actions.
