Skate Blog Intern Blog

Well things are getting harder and easier at the same time. I am really starting to get familiar and comfortable with the regular weekly things we have due as well as the proper way to fill out everything( mps, wrap up, Skype, blog etc). The other interns and myself have really stepped up our communication as it has been lacking previously. we have a text conference open between just us and we have collaborated to come into the office on the same day to make sure we get the most out of everything. Doing the sales alone is a little bit daunting but I hit up the previous intern Gavin who killed it last class and he gave me a lot of insight and made things seem much more attainable now. I haven’t attended any events however I am stoked for the upcoming stuff this summer! Geoff and Mark have really harped on communication, time management and pushing ourselves constantly throughout the internship because it is a one time opportunity and you really have to stand out in these times. I think the first three weeks were a challenging learning period but beginning week 4 I feel pretty comfortable with achieving my committments as well as keeping up with my hook it kids( although they can be tough to get a hold of at times). My first day in the office is tomorrow and I think that will push things to the next level and really give me a killer insight on everything. Until next time, Nick.

Scholarly Journal

It’s pretty remarkable to think I was just introduced as the newest intern member of Class 13 only about a week ago. In recall the sensation of being utterly mystified as I gazed at the tasks put before me. My usual volubility was muted by the fact I felt rather incongruous to this environment—a feeling I hadn’t experienced before. Perhaps like interns before me, doubt had paid an unexpected visit. My only thoughts were, “….what have I gotten myself into?”.

Now only 8 days later, I can honestly say this week went tremendously better—not smoother—but better. I can attribute this improvement not to a flawless performance (my journey was fraught with mistakes) or good time management (I’ll sleep when I’m dead), but receiving tremendous support, guidance and advice via Skype from mentors and past/present interns. I cannot emphasize how intrinsic this was to my week’s success.

These people were generous enough to take time away from their busy schedules to further my familiarity with sites, give lucid instructions on main commitments and priorities, and most importantly, offer sound advice. This was probably the most potent elixir (amelioration, here I come!). I was able to complete my tasks in a timely manner (without too much panic), correct the previous mistakes I made, and learn how to produce better time management for week 4.

I noticed that although we are members of the same intern class, it is difficult not to feel disconnected due to the divisions in our respective areas and commitments. I know last week I had mentioned reaching out to others, but this week I learned even further that a willingness to connect to those around you only expedites the learning process and in turn, productivity. Why, oh why didn’t I do this sooner?!

Next week most of us are going to meet each other in the office personally, rather than digitally, to truly work together in accomplishing all of our goals. It’s gonna be RAD.

-Virva

Week 2 is underway and what else can I say except that this summer is going to be a challenge! From the first day I walked into the office on orientation day, I knew BambooSK8 was going to push my limits, and that is just what I was looking for.

A little bit about myself- I grew up in the small town of Sebastian on the east coast of Florida (Sebastian Inlet for all you surfers out there). From the time I was capable, I was playing baseball. Week in and week out it was baseball, baseball, baseball. But when I was 11 years old in the 6th grade, the city of Sebastian decided to build a public skate park just minutes from my house. From there on out it was game over, skateboarding had taken over. If I got my schoolwork finished and there were no waves (living in Florida there is a good chance of this), you could find me at the skate park. After high school, I decided to move north to Jacksonville to attend the University of North Florida. After 4 years in Jacksonville, I finally finished with classes, and came across this amazing opportunity with BambooSk8. So I packed my bags and headed for the west coast.

As for the internship, I’m stoked to get involved more with the hookit kids this next week and to get a better sense of how to use the site more efficiently by talking with prior intern David via Skype. This past weekend, I took some time designing some graphics for the Long Board Design Contest. I’m excited to see what kind of submissions we get, there are some talented people out there. Can’t wait to see what the summer has in store for us!

Cheers!
-Travis

It’s week 2, and unfortunately for my story, it’s been a rough start. Finishing up on finals and starting up this amazing program was a lot harder than I anticipated. Today was a long and overwhelming day playing catch up with my duties and assignments. I had my mentor meeting with Geoff who essentially enlightened me in time of need. He reassured me that this internship is tough and this system is tough, but it works. Ultimately, that’s all that matters, that these efforts will not go un noticed. Everything that is put into this program will surely reciprocate back.

I’ve learned so much already from this program and the interns i’ve skyped with, (shout out to the PR team)! Today, we had the pleasure of skyping with Geoff in which he alleviated our concerns, answered our questions, and dropped knowledge about himself and the journey to the Bamboo road. For that, I greatly appreciate his time as well as Paris’ and Virva’s, the other PR interns. I also want to thank Alissa, a past intern from the previous class, for showing me the ropes with Hookit.

I started out today confused and overwhelmed, but I’ll be ending tonight enlightened and with higher hopes. Don’t give up.

It’s the end of week 2 and I already feel like I’ve learned so much. Sometimes I feel like I’m almost learning a bit too much. For these first couple weeks it’s been an overwhelming amount of information about sales, marketing, social media, and about everything else needed to run a business. It’s overwhelming but also invaluable. I’ve learned so much already about HookIt, Twitter, Facebook and how it all works together to create an image and reputation for Bamboo SK8. I know, once I wrap my head around everything, I’ll be able to work more efficiently and with ease.

I’ve had some issues learning the ropes with the different tasks, but I can already tell it’s getting easier. I know this internship is going to push me well beyond my comfort zone and abilities, and although I know it’s going to be super difficult at times, I plan to take full advantage of it. After all, this is what it’s like in the industry and if I want to be successful in it, I need the best training I can get. This internship is amazingly structured to the point where I know exactly where I stand. It’s quite an incredible program that will help me a lot not only in my career, but also on a personal level.

In my blog updates I want to include a little nugget of information. Just a little something I’ve learned that has influenced me in some way or form.

Today’s nugget: When pursuing a career, choose a company as much as a company is choosing you. Look at your passions, values, and priorities in your life and reflect them upon the company you want to work for. Do they match up? Will you be happy if you got a job working for this company, or are you settling? If you’re settling and you’re not going to be happy, maybe it’s not the company for you. That’s why I wanted to intern for Bamboo SK8. I want to pursue a career that’s not only in the active sports industry, but is also very environmentally conscious and helps society be a better place. This is what Bamboo SK8 is all about. They are part of the revolution to improve the world. There’s a quote I will always remember from the book, Tuesday’s with Morrie that says, “[People] trade their dreams for a bigger paycheck”. For me, one of my dreams is to work in the active sports industry, and I’m going to do what I can to achieve that.

Anyways, I’m incredibly stoked to be part of such an inspirational and successful company that creates some of the best boards in the industry. I’m really looking forward to these next months working with my intern team and the rest of BambooSK8 to grow the company and help get our name out there.

Long Live the BOO!

-Corey

Wow, what a day it has been! Having orientation and the tasks of week 1 and 2 all compiled into a day can be overwhelming. Having joined the intern team a little later in the game, I expected to have some catching up to do but was not quite prepared for what awaited me. Needless to say, I felt way in over my head with the amount of guidelines and SOPs I had to read and the tasks (which were completely new to me) I had to complete in 36 hours.

Luckily, BambooSK8 has a myriad of SOPs that seemed to be acutely designed for those of us foreign such tasks. I spent many hours today reading over the copious amounts of literature and trying to navigate my way through the tasks of social media giants like HookIt, Facebook and Twitter. I encountered a few bumps and errors, but learned a tremendous amount in the tedious hours I spent on an assignment—the beauty of the bell learning curve. WOO HOO!

Not only is the social media new territory for me (I enjoy exercising nomadic practices), but so too are the public relations and general marketing sectors. Having a fairly specialized background strictly in science, there is no arguing my skill level in these sectors (or lack thereof) pales in comparison to those of my peers and this environment I have chosen to surrounded myself in.

I came to BambooSK8 as an avid snowboard fan; eager to immerse myself in the world of action sports–specifically board sports. I had no idea what to expect, since I am only an enthusiast and know nothing of the inner workings of the industry; I was merely excited to be given the opportunity to learn about it. Today proved to be quite challenging and at times felt fairly daunting. However, it was comforting to know others have shared or are sharing similar feelings; that I wasn’t an outlier on the graph of intern adaptation trends. With this in mind, I am greatly anticipating the challenges that await me, and only hope to greet them as an opportunity for discovery. I wanted to learn, didn’t I?

Well week 2 is upon us and I can already tell you that this is by far the most organized and challenging internship I’ve been a part of. This is a good thing because I already know I’m really going to put myself to the test and find out what I’m really made of. After familiarizing myself with dropbox and google docs and all the different areas we have to maintain I feel pretty comfortable with everything. Working with Hook-it kids and getting them sponsored seems like one of the core focuses of the internship.  I’m pretty stoked to get started with my committments and get out there and network with riders, shop owners and get people pumped on bamboosk8.Geoff and Mark do a pretty great job at facilitating everything and making sure your on top of your stuff, but in the end it’s your own perseverance that will get you through this in a successful fashion.

Well what can I say apart from I am still really stoked to of been picked to take part in this internship. I am still trying to finish off my uni work at the moment for my up coming end of year design show so time management has been tricky to say the least.
Last week I was mainly getting to grips with all of the programmes used like dropbox etc following my Skype orientation. It was and still is a bit daunting being on the other side of the world from the other interns and everyone at Bamboosk8, but it hasn’t proven to be a problem yet at all. Everyone is really friendly and helpful and there are no stupid questions to be asked.
I am really looking forward to these next months and learning about the industry.
On another note the weather in Scotland is pretty strange right now and we have just had a lot more snow up in the hills so I may take a half day tomorrow and head up to Cairngorm for a slide. And its Mid May! And there is snow! Whats up with that?

So this is the beginning, we are kicking off week 2 and can already see there will be a great wealth of information to obtain. It was good to see the other interns during orientation whom I feel I will be getting to know pretty quickly. Figuring out Dropbox and other applications have had their bumps already but I’m feeling comfortable with them now. The structure of the internship is set up very well and I would be lying if I was to say I wasn’t a little intimated still, but who doesn’t enjoy a good challenge?
Starting next week I am going to swap out my skate deck for a Bamboo for at least the next 4 months and must say I’m really interested in riding one. It is also exciting to see that there is already an opportunity to take a shot at some graphics in the BambooSk8 Longboard Design Contest. Well, this is only the start of what I’m sure to be an intense but enjoyable journey…

Jacob

P.S. – This contest is for anyone and everyone!

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