To be stagnant is to be trapped, unable to move forward but unable to turn back. It is to lie in your bed at night, and think to yourself, "I'm no better off right now than I was when I woke up this morning." It multiplies, indefinitely lasting. There is no higher learning in routine. There are no leaps of faith. We take no chances in doing what we know. We know this because it is branded on our mind, etched in from repetition and repetition and repetition.
One of my very favorite artists, Jason Mraz, blogged recently, "We are all beginners. We haven’t done this before. You haven’t been you on this day before. I haven’t been someone’s solid rock before. I haven’t been me at 33 before. Each day is new and we’re all allowed to fall down as often as we need to. It is through these mistakes and fumbles that we’ll likely get it right next time." I think this quote is something to live by. (If you want to read the full blog post, click. And I highly encourage that you read it.)
But, Jason, some days, though we have not been ourselves on this day before, we can make scarily accurate guesses as to how the day will start, what we'll do, who we'll see, what they'll say, what we'll eat, when we'll sleep, and where it all will get us in life. I am frightened at the prospect of becoming stagnant. I am confounded by complacence.
It is on that note that I say this internship at WeWork gives me the genuine feeling of progress. Every day is different. Every day, I'm meeting new people, and using new skills, and being presented with new challenges, all with a greater goal in mind that is dancing ever closer.
Today, I spent about three hours speaking about the economics of correlation with a man named Daniel, who sells hedge funds. He presented theories about a number of different subjects to me, and I felt a fascination similar to the experience of reading Freakonomics for the first time. Like, "wow, I would have never put that together, but that makes SO much sense!" Three hours of that. He came off as brilliant, and I learned a lot from him. He recommended some books to me, and reminded me of why I'm interning at WeWork in the first place. The networking, the variety. There's just everything and anything here.
I've also been working with a vibrant new intern, Emily. (Hey, Emily!) She is also posting on this blog, (see below) and has much more experience with the whole practice of blogging than I do, so I'll be studying what she writes closely! She's only 17, and still in high school, yet the girl talks about computers like a prodigy. If your computer is broken, bring it to her. She'll tell you all about how your motherboard blew a fuse or how your optical drive is broken or about how your hard drive is salvageable, but needs an encasing. I swear, the girl is brilliant. She also enjoys art and fashion as a hobby. (Hey, Emily, correct me if I'm wrong about any of this stuff!) She's a hard worker and it's great having her around to help.
After my three hour conversation with Daniel, I quickly ate lunch and ran down to begin my internship with TCG, the social media company. They taught me how to use some Twitter and Facebook account management software, I scheduled some tweets, and got to know the exciting and young group of people who work there. Six o'clock came before I knew it, it was quite the hectic day.
Wow, I wrote a lot. Sorry. I'll keep it brief next time. Thanks for reading, though!
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