Starting a summer experience presents a host of challenges. Building new relationships, understanding company procedures, figuring out your role in projects – usually these all contribute to a hectic first week. Throw in an ongoing pandemic forcing you to work remotely and you are left facing a stressful situation. However, after navigating through my first week of work at the Milwaukee Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), a community development financial institution, I would sum up my experience thus far as odd yet enjoyable.
I spent the majority of my first week learning web design – researching sites and learning how to define a virtual identity for a company. The intricacies and challenges of simply formatting a page were something I had not appreciated before and I was quickly humbled when I began building a new site. I also started to develop a more thorough understanding of what MEDC does for small businesses in Milwaukee and how I could contribute to ongoing projects.
Everyone has experienced an adjustment period resulting from virtual life. It is different at first – but everyday it becomes a little more normal. After 20 minutes in a Microsoft Teams Meetings, the virtual version is almost indiscernible from being in person. I still chat about my weekend with my supervisor yet now it is through a video camera. I feel like I am a small and growing member of the organization. My first week was not more stressful. It was not any less educational and impactful. Like everything these days, it was just different.