Blog Question #1
My first week at Swallow Hill Music was a bit hectic. Right off the bat I started working intensively tracking concert reports and sending donations. The general ambiance of the workplace was very laid back and casual, but my supervisor was clear on emphasizing the importance of self-guidance and responsibility. Apart from receiving very important responsibilities from the beginning, I was aware of the type of people I was going to be working with and the kind of things they expected from me. I met a lot of interesting people in just the first week, I could tell right away that they loved doing their jobs and I took that as incentive to try my best and complete what was expected of me. At first I was a bit confused on some of the things I was supposed to do and what order I had to do them in. Luckily, I figured out that I had a lot of freedom to do my tasks in whatever order I needed. Apart from Hanna; my supervisor, I met Lindsey, our marketing director. I found her job really interesting because she is the one in charge of talking to our graphic designer and getting through the whole idea of what Swallow Hill Music is. This first week was a little hard on me since I am barely getting used to my packed schedule, but I am hopeful that I will soon learn how to time manage successfully in order to be a good intern and a good student.
February 2, 2015 Blog Question #2
My overall experience at Swallow Hill so far has been very pleasant. Even though my days have been drawn long, I thoroughly enjoy interning here. I believe Friday was one of our busiest nights, and therefore, I had to stay in really late. This was a good experience for me because I learned quite a bit on how concerts are run here and how multiple concerts at once are handled. I was alongside my supervisor the whole night helping get the concert goers into their designated venues. This meant taking in tickets, giving tickets, and offering help throughout the night. Even though I played a small role in this, I observed how some difficult situations where handled. Not only will this help me deal with situations inside the work place, but also outside, since I took them as life lessons. One of my co-workers talked to me a lot about learning how to deal with frustrating people and not “losing your cool”. Apart from this, I also experienced working with talented artists and helping them get allocated in our venue. These experiences made me see the kind of talent everyone that works at Swallow Hill Music has. I feel like, when I finally have all the tools necessary to work alongside other people in the professional world, I want people to look at me with the same kind of admiration I give everyone that works here. I’ve learned so far to not stress about the little things, to be diligent on my work, and that i’ll never know what kinds of different and interesting people I’ll meet throughout my life.
February 19, 2015 Blog #3
So far, working at Swallow Hill Music has been something I look forward to every week. My actions have mild effects on everyone else in the workplace; partly because everyone is so laid back and understanding. I would like to believe that my actions; such as helping out with easy or quick tasks, helps my co-workers focus on more important things. Since everyone here enjoys what they do, the overall mood of the workplace is welcoming and helps me do my job better. Generally, doing my tasks in a comfortable place, aids in providing better material and outcomes. Most of what I do here has positive effects on everyone else, so I’d like to believe my co-workers enjoy having me around as an intern. All of the people who have helped me at Swallow Hill Music are understanding and patient with me, so their actions always have positive effects on my work and I. I’ve learned that by having a positive attitude everyday, even if you’re tired and done with the day; have ripple effects on everyone else. I’ve had days where I come in and I’m too tired to even look at my computer screen properly, but seeing the amount of work and passion everyone puts into their jobs makes me put on my game face and do the absolute best that I can. Day one, I have felt so welcome here and I will keep doing everything that I can to provide quality work so that, if there happens to be a day someone at the workplace isn’t having a great day, my enthusiasm for my work even after a long day of school; will lift their spirits up even a little bit so they can get through the day.
February 25, 2015 Blog#4
All of my responsibilities at Swallow Hill usually have to do with the development and relations we work hard to keep. For the most part, I am in charge of sending out donations to other non-profits, along with schools for fundraising events. On Saturdays, I am responsible for making sure our venues are ready for the patrons and performers. Occasionally, I will file artist contracts and save them alphabetically, but before I do this, I have to make sure their files have not already been made. This task is extremely tiring, but the end results are usually very satisfying and fulfilling. One of my other jobs is entering data reports of the amount of people that come in to our café performances. I’d say this is one of my easiest jobs since its only entering information into an Excel template. Everything I do at Swallow Hill is important; therefore, I believe that everything I do at my internship is meaningful for everyone else. So far though, learning how to write contracts for the performers that come into our café has been a very important task that I am still getting the hang of. Writing these contracts is a very important job where I have to really stay on top of proofreading documents and entering the correct information. I personally believe that my main contribution to my internship is making everyone’s job a little easier, at least I hope. Having to do all these tasks has taught me and given me an introductory experience into what I could and would possibly do if I entered the music industry.
March 3, 2015 Blog #5
So far, my experience at Swallow Hill Music has been a huge learning experience that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed. No day is quite the same and there’s always something to do. The feedback I’ve received from my sponsors has been very uplifting in regards to the work that I produce here. I think the relationships I’m forming with my co-workers are very positive and I have a feeling they will only continue to get better through time. Since everything has been going more than well for me, I can only expect these relationships to improve. I am always amazed at how understanding the people that work at Swallow Hill are, everyone is very down to earth and I am always learning something new. Most things that I am learning here I hope to be able to use in the future since the information is very useful. Here, I felt like I have become part of a very special and unique community, people who get to enjoy music for a living every day. Regarding what I could do to improve my experience, I believe the only real problem I have is the amount of energy I come into the workplace with; it’s almost non-existent. One of the real reasons I enjoy Saturdays at Swallow Hill is because I come into the workplace with full energy, weekdays I start to lose a lot of it during school activities. I still have to think of ways to replenish my energy after school since coffee isn’t doing the trick anymore. It’s all a learning experience preparing me for an active adulthood which I hope to spring into ready and more than prepared.
March 9, 2015 Blog #6
One of my main contributions to the work site are the contracts I write and the donations I send out. The donations I send out are important because they help Swallow Hill Music keep connections to outside organizations that support us when we need it. Apart from these, mainly I just make everyone’s job easier. I’ve experienced so far putting in a lot of data from our volunteers into our online database. This has been one of my biggest projects so far since there are a lot of members; therefore a lot of information to type in. By doing this I believe I saved my supervisor a lot of time, so I cant help but feeling useful to everyone above me. I’ve also learned a new skill that I believe can be applied to other workplaces quite often. This skill is none other than making the signs for our show/concert announcer that’s located outside of our venue. This job is quite interesting because you have to be very hand/eye coordinated to not mess up too often. I have been told many horror stories about interns before me that have hurt themselves pulling down the box that contains all the plastic words for the announcer. Personally, I have had no problems with this box of terror, which I’m grateful for. All of my contributions have been helpful because I do all my tasks the best that I can. I have not had the misfortune of letting down my supervisor, and I hope this never happens. So yes, I am proud of my contributions, no matter how small they seem. As long as the work I do here helps someone else even a little bit; I will be proud of the things I do.
Blog #7
The people at my work always treat me with respect, and sometimes I feel like I’ve been working there for longer than I actually have. Everyone is really warm and friendly towards me (I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before), almost to the point where I feel like I’ve grown on them and I really hope that’s the case. My supervisor, Hanna, is one of the greatest mentors I’ve ever had and probably will have. If I ever get the chance to mentor anyone in the future, I want to make sure I’ll treat them with respect just like Hanna has done so with me. Not only will I make it my goal to treat my interns with respect, I will also make them feel comfortable and at ease by offering real world advice and treating them as equals. Since I’ve always felt comfortable in my internship, it’s easier for me to ask clarifying questions without the fear of being looked down on. So of course, I’m excited to have interns in the future; I want to pass down all the information I’ve gained here to them. There is a lot to learn from just watching and observing how people do their jobs and handle situations. So what I want to pass down to my future interns is the experience of working independently and efficiently. By then, I hope to have most of the good attributes and qualities that make a good mentor and supervisor. This internship for me has worked as a step into the music industry and how it actually works, and I know that the skills I’m learning here will be transferable into any other job.
Blog #8
There is a huge difference between working on personal art projects and working in a creative business; one of them being time constraints. For example, working on school projects is much like working in a creative business. The projects you work on won’t always be something you necessarily enjoy doing, but you can always add your own type of flair. Instead of creating something for personal enjoyment, in a creative business you do the things that you enjoy for a grade or a job. Time limits also play a huge roll, you can take all the time you want and need to create something you love, leaving time and space for you to let your mind over-think and re-think every last detail to precision. Projects for a creative business all have time limits and deadlines, not to mention a subject you may have to follow strictly. I learned that working in a creative business, by observation, requires doing things that you may not be stoked or pumped about doing. We have to continue doing things we don’t enjoy to get to work on projects we actually like. This, I believe, is a default standard, a rule of the universe. Though, working and finishing any type of project brings a feeling of pride and accomplishment, and you’re always glad at the end of it for pulling through. Even at the end, working on projects I don’t like and watching this music industry have its ups and downs hasn’t done the job of discouraging me from pursuing a career in this field.
Blog #9
I think the strongest impression this internship has left on me is deciding what to do for a career. I debated a long time whether I wanted to go into music performance for a living, and thinking that that was the only option if I really wanted to spend my life involved with music. This internship made me see that there are a ton of other career options involving music. So as far as my artistic career is concerned, all I know for sure now is that it would be nearly impossible for me not to pursue a career involving the music business. Whether my future job is producing the music or managing the artists that make it, I know that I would be successful doing it.
I kept discussing my future plans with my music teacher, and whether I would really be happy doing a job that didn’t necessarily involve music, but was economically satisfying. Though I do wish to see my hard work pay off economically, the undying artist in me argues that unhappiness is not worth the profit. So, the question I’m left with is; will I ever be able to find a job that lets me travel and explore the music of the world? And if so, will it be economically fulfilling? I hope I find the answer to this question soon, because right now, as a junior in high school, much of what will affect me in the future is being decided now. For now, I will keep aiming towards a career in International Business or a music industry related business.
Blog #10
I wonder if rewarding is the right word to describe this internship. Was it rewarding? Of course. I loved every minute of it. But more than anything I’d say this internship was eye opening. My views on what I thought meant “the music industry” have completely changed, and I don’t know if it was just because Swallow Hill is mainly an indie and folk concert venue. This place has changed a great deal of who I thought I wanted to be and how I wanted to get there. These last two months were extremely busy for me, and it saddens me that I didn’t get to talk with my co-workers way more often. I almost want to ask if I could continue the internship for the summer, but I know that Hanna would be extremely busy during this time and I would be too.
And even though I don’t plan on visiting Swallow Hill often after I finish my internship (I was surprised at how little I actually knew about folk music) I do plan to look back some days and reflect on all the good things that happened to me there. All I can say is that I will be extremely jealous of whomever internships at Swallow Hill next. There’s nothing specific I’d like to give them as advice either, only go with an open mind and a positive demeanor, if you’re having a bad day, I can almost guarantee you that coming here will put you in a good mood.
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