My Last Blog
Today is April 29th 2013, my last day as an intern for The Jackson Group Interactive. While my ride at JGI might be over and my larger journey just beginning, my time at JGI will always be remembered as fondly as any. The people here at JGI have been absolutely wonderful to me and I have learned so much in the process. From the first step I took in the building to interview for the internship until my last step out today, my semester working at JGI has been absolutely wonderful. My bosses have given me responsibilities which I hope I have fulfilled. I always took every assignment as seriously as I could. I heard a saying once, it goes, “show me an intern that only triples your work and I’ll give him or her a kiss.” I hope that was not the case with me. I worked as hard as I could to try to make as great of work as I possibly could have while I was here. The tough part is balancing learning (which I have done a heck of a lot of) with production. I don’t think I could’ve gotten such an experience elsewhere. Whether it was working on a video projects for clients like Williams-Sonoma, or Catawba Valley Community College, or getting to sit in on a meeting discussing projects for clients. Seeing how true professionals go about their work has been such an amazing opportunity and learning experience. I know that there is no possible way that I could give everyone at JGI as much as they gave me.
The lessons I have learned have been beyond description. The most important lesson I have learned though, is how to make videos for other people. Before I came to JGI, I made videos for myself. Whether it was for school, or outside projects, I had one person to satisfy, me. I say this because if I was satisfied with a video, then everyone around me was too. Making videos for others means you are not looking to satisfy yourself. You want to make someone else’s vision come true. Making videos for other people is a new style entirely. I learned that although I might be satisfied with how something looks, it might not be what a client is going for in that particular video. And as an aspiring filmmaker, that is very important. Recording podcasts was always a highlight of my day-to-day work at JGI. From Chick Chat, to Footcandle Films, to CAHPS Cast to News Mesh, I thoroughly enjoyed every recording session. Seeing the highly skilled people at JGI, and how much they enjoy their work has been an affirmation. The spirit at JGI is contagious. I’ve never worked with such generous people before. My bosses inspired me to work harder than I ever have, because they inspired me to try to make any projects worthy of the JGI name. To see a video through a different pair of eyes. To make sure the cut was in the right place on a video. They have shown the patience of saints as they explained their world to me. And even more patience as I fumbled around trying to figure out which microphone number was which. But most importantly of all, I have learned to love what I do. JGI gets ahead because the people I work with love what they’re doing. They make it easy to work hard, and to push myself harder. The spirit is contagious.
I don’t know what the future holds. But I do know that I will always look back on my time at JGI with a very warm fondness. The countless lessons I have learned have given me a base of experience to work off of. No matter where life takes me in the future, I will be the best prepared person in the room because of how closely I got to work with JGI and The MESH.
Nick