It’s time. My Swift Kick internship journey has come to an end. This was a 6-month endeavor that involved the challenging and informative processes of how a small company in New York can have such an impact on the culture of so many communities.
Here is what I learned, how I used it, and what I will do in the future.
What I have learned
Accountability systems
Swift Kick uses a complicated and effective system of accountability. We have a meeting every day, every week, and a personalized 1 on 1 meeting every week. At first, I found it excessive. As time went on, I saw the impact that accountability can have on a company.
Now, I am obsessed with accountability and how it ties into the culture of a company or organization.
Culture will create itself
Tom said in a SKTV episode, “You will have a culture whether you try to create one or not.” If we are not actively creating a culture that we are proud of, we can potentially create a culture that can bring harm to our organization.
What I have done
Small acts have a huge effect
Saying hi to strangers in the hall and asking people genuine questions creates culture. Before my Swift Kick internship, I had no idea that I had so much power to create this culture. Almost everything I do can have an impact.
In every organization I am in, I have taken steps to shape its culture. I ask people about their goals, share interesting articles, play lively music, dance to that music, teach, learn, and most importantly, encourage others to do the same.
Each one teach one
Swift Kick has taught me so much about culture, accountability, meetings, business leadership, and much more. So, I took all my knowledge and spat it out. I began to teach everyone about what I have been learning – how this experience has opened my eyes to the impact an individual has on a community and how I was doing my part. I only want to teach others how much power they have to impact their own communities.
What I will do
Implement a culture of accountability
I am involved in several clubs and organizations at the University of Delaware. Two of which are very new and susceptible to a rapid cultivation of culture. I joined a newly colonized fraternity and a newly founded club. Both organizations have a clear goal, but I am afraid that the goal is only shared at the top. The executive board might be clear on the goals of the organization, but the communication might be a little off with the rest of the organization.
Since both are very new, they are still creating a culture. This is where I have jumped into their operations. In the fraternity, our slogan is, “Creating men of principle for a principled life.” It’s cool, right? But, sometimes our operations lose sight of the individual pursuit of a principled life and focuses on the fraternity’s principled life. That is why I am in the pursuit of implementing a culture and system of accountability that focuses on the individual’s goals. We are dedicated to helping our members develop into better men.
In Friends 4 Friends, a mental health awareness club that was just founded, I came in as an outsider. They are less than a year old, with over 90 members, me being one of the last. The executive board has a clear vision, but their vision is getting lost in the communication because of the high number of members. They are growing too fast and can face implosion. That is why I am implementing organizational systems, which will change the communication and ultimately save the culture from imploding. I am looking into using systems like Slack for team communication and Asana for project management.
Awake to Be Great
I am currently a rising junior at the University of Delaware. I’m pursuing a degree in Interpersonal Effectiveness in Leadership. The end goal is to have a thriving life coaching and public speaking business called Awake to Be Great. I already have a blog, but I have yet to build it out into a business. Now that my Swift Kick internship has ended, I can dedicate more time to my brand.
It’s funny. For the past couple of days, I have been staying up and waking up early to work on ATBG. I am bursting with motivation, and I think it is all because of my Swift Kick journey over.
I have learned a lot here at my Swift Kick internship and I can implement everything into my daily life, my organizations, and my business. But, of everything I have gained, the biggest impact has been on my drive. I am full of energy, focus, and determination that I didn’t have six months ago. Swift Kick has set me off into a heck of a journey that is nowhere near ending, but I definitely have enough fuel to keep my engines running for a long time.
