Hi there, thanks for reading! My name is Marina and I study Mechanical Engineering at Oklahoma Christian University in Edmond. This summer, my internship is with the Rotating Equipment Group at the Williams’ headquarter office in Tulsa, my hometown.
Everyone knows the exhilaration of taking a plunge, trying new things, or tackling new challenges. If you’re like me, you also know that mid-semester feeling of wonder: How did I commit to so many things? A great day for me starts early and bustles with classes, meetings and activities. Even better is finishing homework in time to bake cookies to share with hall mates. But on the tough days, class work is a struggle and that long to-do list looks pretty discouraging.
My extracurricular activities range from tutoring, writing, and organizing an annual triathlon to taking meeting minutes for the Honors Advisory Council. When pressured for time I wonder, “Are all these extracurricular activities worthwhile? Should I drop some commitments and focus on schoolwork?” I’d hate to do that, because they mean a lot to me.
How fulfilling to discover that my extracurricular activities, and not just schoolwork, have helped with my internship!
During my first week, an engineer in my group asked me to edit his technical report. I helped write a charter for a multi-million dollar project to send to the project sponsor and vice president. When it came time to apply for return internships, I helped a fellow intern polish his résumé.
I haven’t organized any triathlons so far, but I did get to play on the Williams indoor soccer team and participated in the 5K/10K Bedlam Run. The leader of that multi-million dollar project asked me to take minutes during a two-hour conference call with field operations supervisors and vendor representatives. He was thrilled with the minutes; I was grateful for the opportunity to practice careful note-taking!
Every day at work, I read a note I stuck to my monitor: “What will you find in your opportunity box today?” It’s a reminder that every task and project is like a box. Eagerly exploring every box that comes my way means finding unexpected adventures and never missing a learning experience.