Field Work Reflection

For Field Work Term this year, I went to New York City to work for I’m From Driftwood, a nonprofit LGBTQ storytelling archive. Primarily, I chose this internship because of the Huffington Post articles that I would be responsible for, which I did find worthwhile. I knew ahead of time that I’m From Driftwood was a small operation: consisting of its founder and board members that would scramble to find new opportunities and contacts to use for their events. There was no office space for the company, so most people worked from home or various other spaces around the city. So for the most part the internship consisted of me living alone in an apartment, while waiting for an assignment each day to do for my supervisor, the founder of the company. …show more content…
I was invited to attend the I’m From Driftwood Board Meeting at the New York Life Building, which gave me insight as to how the nonprofit was functioning financially. I also learned how to crop card stock paper, get party food, and use printing services in public places. The most difficult part of that day was that I did not want to ask for help. As a result, I made several mistakes when I was trying to crop card stock paper, print out nametags, and buy party snacks. At least it was my own money, because the consequences for screwing up on company time would be harder for me to deal with. Eventually, I did consult my supervisor when it came to individual items that were not present at Whole Foods, but I pride myself on being an independent worker that doesn’t need outside assistance to figure out how to solve a problem. I find myself often avoiding an easier path because it requires asking for assistance, whether that’s in FedEx cutting card stock, or buying the wrong nametag paper. At the end of that day, I got everything that was asked for me, arrived on time, and got to meet I’m From Driftwood’s Board of Directors, which was an interesting