What is Link?
Leading Internships for New Knowledge is a program at animas that connects students with local businesses that they are interested in for a 3 week 90 hour Internship. It helps students dive into their passions in the real world and if it is realistic for students to continue down them for a career path because not everything is as great as it seems.
My Link
I interned 90 hours at the Boarding House Skate shop since I have always liked skating and thought it would be good way to get more involved with more local skaters. skiers and snowboarders across Durango.
My Useful skills coming into Link
Being a outgoing person was a super helpful trade to have going into working at the boarding house, I always liked the retail aspect of the job and find it very easy to talk to interact with people who I have never met before. I had also worked hands on a lot of projects so that was useful for use of tools and setting up snowboards and skateboards.
Skills I Developed During Link
There is so much more that goes into any job then what appears on the surface, I think the biggest skill I developed is a larger awareness when working, even if you are doing one thing you have to think and be aware of other tasks as a whole. When working I would normally have constant tasks to complete throughout the day, putting up new inventory, going through new inventory, general cleaning, board setup and helping costumers that came into the store. Most of the time I would have to set aside what I was doing to help customers even if it wasn't convenient.
Shortcomings
I actually found my internship to go smoothly and I didn't have any direct challenges over the 90 hours. The hardest part for me was doing my internship in the summer when many of my friends where out hanging out I would have to go to my internship and often sit their well their wasn't a ton of business to get my hours done with, I think that just going and enjoying the time their as much as possible made it possible and go as smoothly as it did.
My Importance and Interns in the Future
I think the employees at the boarding house would have been perfectly fine without me, but having me there made their jobs easier and less stressful. Working with Jack and Autumn who I have good relationships with, I had no problem doing some of the less fun work for them, and they defiantly felt and appreciated the impact I left. The boarding House has had interns in the past and being a community based local business in durango I think they have all the reason to take more interns
Future
I think that working at a skate shop made me realize I don't want to work a job like that long term. I am not someone who wants to go into a store and sit there all day I just don't like it that much. I think that now I have expiernce and over college I might work a similar position but definitely not something I want to do long term. I think it will make me put a emphasis on my higher education so I don't end up having to work a job like that to survive.
My Projects
Over my time at the Boarding house I did lots of smaller projects for them. I did inventory for new orders of clothes and skateboards, witch consisted of up to 10 boxes at a time. I made a video for their social media with my friend who snowboards at a high level. The largest project of my time at the boarding house was helping introduce the new Super73s into the store. These were new electric powered bikes that we had to set up in store to display and sell.