While it took some time to get back into my internship, I have been able to salvage almost all of my opportunities remotely. Since nearly everyone is still staying at home, my conferences that I normally attend are now either Zoom calls or Facebook livestreams, both of which I can participate in from the US. Even better, the livestreams are recorded and posted so I can watch them after at a reasonable time.
This entire experience has definitely been a test of adaptability. There are lots of different ways a person can approach this situation, but there are really only 2 responses that will serve as a long-standing impact. Either one can do everything they can to make success for themselves, or let this virus take control of the situation and keep one from succeeding. It should go without saying that the latter will pose a problem in the future, but there are enough people who are opting for that choice that pushing for the former is something to be praised. Dr. Steve Nguyen in “Eight Common Problems Teams Encounter” would agree that a lack of communication and motive would creative a disrupt in accomplishing tasks. I could easily have not reached out to my supervisor to confirm that my internship was canceled since he told me in Prague that I would not be able to continue if I had to return to the US.
A simple email changed the fate of my semester. Things seem out of my control sometimes, but that does not mean I am going to entirely relinquish control to COVID-19. I am too stubborn for that. In looking for a summer position during this time, I reached out to my former employers to see if they had a spot for me. According to Jess Chen with ResumeGenius in “Job Search and Skill Strategies,” asking for help gets you farther than you might think. It is easy to say that life as we know has entirely changed and likely will forever feel the impact that the virus has had on our interpersonal relationships. However, if we take this hiatus from the world as something the hold disdain for, then we will not be able to make the changes in our lives that we may have been waiting for a break from life to make.
My physical Prague story and experience is very short, but I am lucky to continue a sort of Prague story from the United States. I am still able to work remotely and I am able to tune in to all but one of my classes. I feel like I am seeing and experiencing Prague through a screen. I am not going to pretend like I am not thoroughly disappointed by that. Yet I refuse to consider my experience ruined, even if that is how it appears to be. My experience was changed: that is an understatement. The word change is not enough to describe it, but a negative word like ruin does not capture the experience in its entirety. I would best say that the experience has been influenced. It may not be what I expected, but that does not mean that I have not found positivity and enjoyment in the experiences I have had. This again is brought back to the theme of this experience: adaptability. If I refuse to see the good in this experience, I will not truly learn everything I can during this experience.
The two seminar speakers have helped me remember that there are things to think about beyond the virus. There are things that need to be contemplated before things go back to normal: or at least begin the new normal. I have been able to review my LinkedIn, adjust my resume, and begin the narrowing down process of my interests for the future. This has definitely been influenced by my internship. I enjoy journalism, but more as a hobby. There is not much passion for what I am doing, except for when I see the end product. Journalism is not my end interest – I have shut that door. But a shut door is just as important, if not more important, than hundreds of open ones.
Kenadie's Internship Experience 