(Via Operand on GIPHY)
There is not a single word that I can use to sum up this week. It taught me so many things, not only on the technical side but as a human in general. There were technology-related things I learned, like Audition, audiograms, and how to actually post a tweet. I also learned what alt text is, being given my mentor Mark Schreiner’s example of the account WeRateDogs on Twitter.
While these are all important bits of knowledge to have, I found the most impactful things I’ve learned are what I took away from just being in this environment. Being surrounded by and working with so many bright, talented people taught me unparalleled collaboration skills and patience and gave me a taste of what it’s like to work as a journalist. My experience with journalism coming into this workshop was very limited, so seeing professionals at work helped me paint a better picture of what my future could look like.
My favorite part about this experience was the interview. It was so fun being able to talk to Yuki Jackson and learn about her experience and life. In fact, the most difficult part for me was not getting too carried away with our conversation and straying from the project’s focus. Seeing the way Mark could jump in and follow up with the perfect questions really taught me the kinds of things I should be asking and how I can conduct an interview.
If I could have done things differently, I would have taken deep breaths to clear my mind before the interview. It went very well, but I would’ve liked to be out of my own head more. However, being able to go through it definitely gives me the experience to approach future interviews with confidence.