Date: April 30, 2018 to May 4, 2018 Reflection: My final week at Life is Good was amazing. I entered the building Monday morning motivated to make this week the best week yet. I sat down at my desk and began to type the names and emails of those who entered the Life is Good "Go Places" Sweepstakes into a spread sheet. Though this task seems mundane, I felt accomplished every time I finished a stack of entries. I was able to listen to employees have contestations about how their weekends were and ask each other questions. With my family's refrigerator broken, I went to Whole Food before going to work and picked up some Sushi. Because I have been getting super tired at work around 3pm (and I can't sleep if I drink coffee after 2pm,) I decided to get not one, but two containers of Sushi. I ate one during lunch and one around 3pm, and it helped me to stay motivated and concentrated. I have now realized how detrimental it is to be hungry at work. My last day at the office was Wednesday. I went in a finished a few more stacks of entry forms and talked a lot to my coworkers. I am definitely going to miss so many employees at Life is Good, especially Lauren (pictured bellow,) for each and every one of them become role models and friends to me over the short few weeks. When 5pm rolled around, my mom came into the office to see what it looked like and meet the other employees. We walked around the office and took some photos. Lauren then let us pick out some merchandise to take home. I grabbed some gifts for all the people in my Capstone Cohort. There are definitely many perks to working at a clothing brand! As I grave back my badge and said my final goodbyes, I was sad to leave this incredibly positive place. As I walked through the office doors for the final time (during this internship at least,) I decided that Life is Good would be an amazing place for me to work at in the future. Photos:
Week 8
Date: April 23, 2018 to April 27, 2018 Reflection: After taking a week off from coming into the office for school vacation, I couldn't be more excited to be back! I realized that I had never mentioned Charles, the kind security man who sits behind the desk in the lobby, so I included a photo of him below. He always greets me with a smile when I enter the building. When I walked to my desk, many of my coworkers said "hi" to me and asked me "how my vacation was." I was happy that they cared about me and what I was doing. When I started to work, it felt like I had never left. During one of my breaks, I decided to say "hi" to some of the four-legged friends of the office. Most of the dogs are rescues and are very sweet and loyal to their owners. Two of the many dogs that come to the office are pictured below. By the end of the day, a few employees took orders for coffee. I thought it was funny that I gave them my order because going on coffee runs are typically a thing interns do. I felt lucky that they treated me as if I was a real employee. The coffee was from Cafe Nero in South Boston. It was super great and helped me stay up to do my homework that night. I can't believe next week is my last week at Life is Good. It feels like just yesterday that I started this internship experience. I have learned so much and know I will continue to learn in my final week. Photos:
Week 7
Date: April 9, 2018 to April 13, 2018 Reflection: This week at the office was really great! I am really starting to get the hang of driving to Boston. Though I am still a little nervous switching lanes and always have to look at directions, I am starting to feel more confident. I also found a parking lot super close to the office to park my car! On both Monday and Wednesday, I got to the office and continued to enter in data from the "Life is Good T-Shirt Contest." Looking through the entries really never gets old! There were so many funny entries that made me laugh and so many creative ones that amazed me. Everyday I am getting to know my the Life is Good employees better, especially those on the Marketing Team. I feel comfortable joining conversations and expressing my ideas. I often laugh and smile at the office because there is always something fun and/or funny happening. I really love working at Life is Good and can't wait to see what happens next week! I have also made some good progress on my mural! Go to the tab above titled "MURAL" to check it out! Photos:
Week 6
Date: April 2, 2018 to April 6, 2018 Reflection: My second week at the office was really great! Each day I meet friendly faces and feel more confident in my work. I have been sorting and putting in contact information for T-Shirt Contest entries. It is really fun to look at all the creative and funny things kids drew, My favorite so far is an eight year old who wrote "Life is Good with NO potholes...drive on!" We all laughed so much when we saw it. The stack is so large and no matter how many I enter, I feel like I am not even making a dent. Guess I'll just have to keeping coming in! On Monday, there was a giveaway of sample items. There were tons of shirts, hats, socks, mugs, and more. I grabbed a few items for my family. They were so happy to receive them. I wonder how many times a year they do this. It sure is a perk! On Wednesday, I got to scan old photos for their upcoming catalogue. As a huge fan of the company, it was amazing to get to look through all the photos of the company when it was just starting. It reminded me how far the company has come since the early 90s. Though the task of scanning may seem boring, when you pop in some headphones and get see amazing photos, it become awesome. This week I talked to way more people and really felt like I was breaking out of my shell. I am more confident in my ability to commute to work, work, and commute home. I am so happy to be working at Life is Good. Photos:
Week 5
Date: March 26, 2018 to March 30, 2018 Reflection: With no snow holding me back this week, I was finally able to go to the Life is Good Headquarters! On Monday morning, my mom and I got in the car and drove to Boston. As a new driver, I was grateful that she helped me to navigate the highway and streets of Boston. Once I got there, I was escorted up to their offices on the 9th floor. While in the elevator I could barely contain my excitement. Though I had been at their HQ more times that I can remember, this time was different, I was finally an "employee." Once inside, their receptionist lead me to a place I could wait for Lauren, my mentor for this phase of my internship. We had a great conversation and she gave me a tour of the office. she introduced me to each department and everyone gave me a warm smile. Lots of my questions about the norms of the office were answered: What do employees wear? Mostly Life is Good shirts and jeans. Are there cubicles? No, everyone is able to see and speak with each other. What is the "feel" of the office? Playful, yet Zen. Lauren showed me to my desk and explained how I should enter in the information they need off of the T-Shirt Contest Forms. I can't believe I was the person who filled out the "for internal use only" section! I then stayed for a few hours and went through about 40 forms. On Wednesday, I went back to the office and logged about 100 forms. It was fun to listen to the "office chitcatter" and meet new people. Later that night, I went to a Life is Good Kids Foundation event at Metro West Subaru. It was really exciting to see Steve Gross speak about the importance of the foundation and he even gave me a shoutout! I gained more inspiration for my future event and had a great time. On Friday, I traced my mural Life is Good Kids Foundation mural onto the wall at Newton North. I am so excited to work on it in the coming weeks. I am also extremely excited to have two guarantied days in the office a week. I think this was the best week yet! Photos:
Week 4
Date: March 19, 2018 to March 23, 2018 Reflection: This week, I learned that balancing a life at home and a life at work can be incredibly hard. On Monday, my mom broke her leg and I had to help her to move around all week. I started buying groceries on my own, driving my brother to lacrosse practice, and taking the dogs for walks. I struggled to complete all my schoolwork and had little could not even think of setting up a time to go into the office. In the midst of all the stress, I got an email from a woman working at Life is Good named Karen. Steve had given her my email because she was looking for someone to help with the organization and judging of the T-Shirt contest. I gladly agreed and we decided that I would come into the office on Monday of the following week. I was so incredibly excited and relieved to finally have a day scheduled. Though this week was tough at home, I was still able to manage my time and be my own boss. I working on my mural and event, despite constant distractions. I was able to help my mom get some much needed rest. Let me just say, it is very hard to manage a home life in high school and be an intern. Despite that, I feel I have been able and will continue to be able to make it work.
Week 3
Date: March 12, 2018 to March 16, 2018 Reflection: On Monday, I walked into school and passed my bulletin board spread for the Contest. I realized that there were a few late entries and promptly organized and mailed them. I went around the school and collected the flyers I had put up (and a few others for my mural) and took down my spread on the bulletin board. It was sad to preform these tasks, for I really enjoyed putting on the event. I was inspired to do something like it again, but on a bigger scale. I therefore started planning a silent and live auction event entitled "Life is Art: High School Edition." This event is something Steve and I have been brainstorming about since the very beginning of my internship. After the event last week, I felt more about hosting the event and created a "Who? What? Where?" document so I could brainstorm who would be at the event, what it would be, where it would be, and so much more. Steve and I went through and plan and he helped me to make edits. I am excited to continue to plan it for the next few week. There were Snow Days Tuesday and Wednesday. I found it really hard to work with so many distraction. Being such in a house with my family, especially my dogs, makes it very hard to get work done. The rest of the week, I continued to collect and organize paper for my mural and plan my event. After such a jam packed week last week, I was glad to have time to reflect and get motivated for future events and projects. I am excited
Date: March 5, 2018 to March 9, 2018 Reflection: After a weekend of anxiously planning, the day of the Life is Good T-Shirt Art Contest Work Party had finally come. Knowing flyers wouldn't be enough to draw a crowd, I made an announcements in every Art Major and Art Minor class throughout the day. This took a lot of courage, for putting myself out there in not always my strong suit. During the day, I went to CVS and bought food and beverages, knowing that my purchase would increase the amount of people who would come and how long they would stay. When I got back to school, I set up a large variety art supplies and spread entry forms around the room. I was extremely nervous that no one besides my close friends would come and all my hard work would be a waste. To my surprise a flood of people entered the room right after school and began to create. It was awesome to hear everyone laughing, eating, and drawing with their friends. By the end of the event I had collected around 30 entries (equaling $30 for the Life is Good Kids Foundation) and was so happy with what everyone was able to accomplish. After the event, I had a meeting with Steve Gross, my supervisor and mentor from Life is Good. We talked about the success of the work Party, along with future events I could host throughout my internship. He gave me some new tasks to complete and taught me more about the Foundation. I really valued the time I had with him and hope we are able to have a check in like that every week. The rest of the week, I sorted the entries that were created from the party, created a few of my own, and mailed them to the office. All in all, the week was really great and I was able to learn, grow, and thrive. Photos:
Week 1
Date: February 26, 2018 to March 2, 2018 Reflection: Adjusting to a new way of living can be difficult. For the past twelve years I have woken up, walked to school, and been told what to do and how to learn. This week, I have woken up and been my own boss. Monday, I struggled to tell the difference between work and play. With a quota of hours of work to fill weekly, I was terrified to log hours where I was not "truly" working. On Tuesday, I was able to visit my therapist and she helped me to understand that working consisted of organizing, thinking, planning, and taking well needed breaks. I realized that if a task or job lacked structure, I had to create structure for myself. With a new mindset, the rest of the week I created a list of what I needed to do and how long I was going to do it for. I advocated for myself, reaching out to an employee at Life is Good to give me more context about the Life is Good T-Shirt Art Contest and was able to create a spread on a bulletin board at Newton North about it and planned a Work Party for my friends and peers to create entries. I worked with middle schoolers at Temple Shalom in West Newton to fill entries with work they were proud of. Despite the rough start to the week, I was extremely proud of what I was able to accomplish in such a short amount of time and looked forward to what I would be able to accomplish in the future weeks. Photos: