This week the Interns were asked to reflect upon fears in entering the workplace and how they will work to overcome them. Here are a few of their responses.

Alana:

I am afraid of being so engulfed by a professionalised setting that I lose sight of those I had hoped to engage with in the ‘real world’ thus alienating any sense of human connection or genuine collaboration. I want my work to exist outside office walls as much as possible and to be driven by the real experiences: by the beliefs, passions, hardships, emotions and actions of the community!

Mona:

I am scared of feeling that that my life and time is being robbed of me….resenting the work I do and the fact that I need it to lead a comfortable life. Now, how will I push past these worries? I will  accept opportunities that inspire me…find an opportunity, or create an opportunity in which I can choose my path and feel fulfilled and confident with where I am headed.

Carol:

I really dislike complacency. I have a lot of friends that hate their jobs and miserably get through each day. They haven’t left their companies because now they’re used to their work and it provides them with a salary and benefits. I’m afraid of (1) getting stuck in a job that is soul-destroying & (2) believing that that’s as good as it gets. To prevent such things from happening I’ll just keep reminding myself that life is not work and work is not life. I need to promise myself that if I hate what I’m doing I’ll do something about it

Sobhi:

I am scared of quitting. I tend to be an all-or-nothing type of person when it comes to most things, and that influences how I deal with challenging times or difficult situations.
How do I deal with this fear?  By reminding myself everyday that this is not a linear path with a certain end point.  Social Impact doesn’t happen overnight, that I want to be in it for life. I remind myself that, sustaining my passion is as important as being passionate in the first place. 

I’m learning that in order to sustain my drive for working in the social sector, I need to focus on myself sometimes. Maybe that means – I know this sounds crazy – having fun in ways that have nothing to do with social impact!