This is not the end but the start of a new journey.

Hello people,

Below is a little insight of my last week at work:

Reminiscing the weeks of work at Link to Life, I can proudly say that I made the right choice with regards to finding an internship in a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO).  Below is a picture of the locale of Link to Life, where it all started:

During the internship, I started quite slowly, but once the gears were launched, a number of projects were assigned to my person and I was happy to oblige since I felt part of the large family that makes up the “little” organisation.  Also, during the internship what I have learnt is the extent of my abilities as well as my limitations, which I had fun overcoming personally and of course with the help of my colleagues.  Below is a picture of the desk I shared with the assistant project coordinator, a very capable and pleasant person:

On a side note, the experience that I have had within the organisation, the interaction with the different individuals having different characters and abilities made me aware of the fact that communication is very important within an organisation but also in our everyday life.  Being able to communicate a thought effectively to the person you are conversing to, is very important for it might be interpreted differently. 

This is it for now folks and good luck to everyone for the forthcoming report.

Godspeed,

Swaraj Nunkoo.

Is a brand ambassador/spokesperson a manipulator?

Hello jolly people,

On the 2^nd, 3^rd and 4^th of May, Link to Life conducted a Flag Day throughout the island, in order to raise awareness on the goals and objectives of the organisation but also to raise funds to be able to continue to dispense the many a service that the organisation provides.   

On those particular dates, volunteers throughout the whole island gave a helping hand when it came to support the organisation and were assigned into different teams in strategic places targeted by the NGO. With the help of a few friends, who jumped on the occasion and who I am greatly thankful to, I was put in charge of the team targeting the Bagatelle Shopping Mall.   

Our objective was to raise a maximum of funds during those 3 days.  This was one very interesting experience, since I do not exactly approach people out of the blue and encumber their personal circle.  However, this is exactly what I had fun doing on that day.  Equipped with my little donation box (picture below), I embarked on one very insightful and enriching journey. 

On a side note, to be able to approach people and convince them to put money into the box, one has to have the ability to convince and use the right wordings with regards to the objectives that they have in mind. On those particular days, what I observed was that when people understood the goals and objectives of the organisation, they automatically felt concerned.  However, to make them understand the goal of the organisation, I had to approach and explain it to them. 

This is where I tried to formulate a particular set of words to convince them to put their money into the donation box as well.  Also, what I observed was that most of the women here were the most concerned when they heard the word “cancer”.  This raises quite a pertinent point in that, is a brand ambassador or a spokesperson, a manipulator embarked on a journey to put the maximum information with regards to his or her company he or she belongs to, into the head of people he or she is targeting?  This is one way of putting it, for a spokesperson is trained to come forward and represent a company with regards to the goals and obectives of the organisation. This is where having done the media relations activity the past semester came in handy as it helped me in representing the NGO and is also where the different PR, communication and marketing principles learnt throughout the year came in handy as well.

The approach used was a proactive one where I indulged into approaching people to make them be aware of our objectives as opposed to a rather conventional approach of standing in a corner while waiting for people to come towards you.

Below are some of the photos taken on the Flag Day:

  

 That's it for now folks.  Keep in touch for another post is to come describing a rather hearty and painful last week at work. Also, it is good to note that every donation box our little team dealt with was full by the end of the day.

Warm regards,
Swaraj Nunkoo.

What did you engage yourself into?

Hello jolly people,

The following is a post recalling the events of my first week at work.

Interview & First Impressions

After finally receiving a phone call from a much esteemed non-governmental organisation, Link to Life, I set out for the interview I was called upon.  Let me walk you through the different phases of the week.  I work only on Mondays, Tuesdays and Saturdays; this was negotiated and also due to the leniency of the staff of Link to Life, which produces a very interesting and enjoyable working environment.  However, an important point to be noted is that I wanted to indulge into a sector that made feel that I was contributing for the betterment of the lives of each and every one, hence the choice of searching for an internship in a Non-Governmental Organisation, hereinafter NGO, actively engaging themselves into social work.  Coming back to the point, when I arrived at the NGO, my first impression was that they are very open and joyful.  I was very warmly welcomed and satisfied with the going of the interview, since I scored the internship on the spot. 

More on the Organisation

Link to Life is a Non-Governmental Organisation actively engaging itself in the counselling and support of cancer patients as well as their families.  The organisation has been set up by a group of volunteers, some of them being cancer survivors themselves.  They also indulge into cancer awareness campaigns in community and social welfare centres as well as private companies.  The aim of the talks and awareness campaigns are to sensitise the public at large on the different types of cancers that exist as well as the different treatments that comes with it.

Work?

With this in mind, I got back home feeling satisfied with my day and wanted to actually start working as soon as possible.  The first day of work was quite hectic for I did not know what I had to do. However, with the help of a few colleagues which I am really close to now, I started to grasp the going of the organisation.  We started slowly with the update of their new website here and Facebook page here (Also do not forget to like the Facebook page and support the NGO on their journey to alleviate the pain of cancer patients).  However, I soon began to understand that a few things were missing to make the necessary impact online.  Equipped with a few tips and tricks learnt in my degree and having implemented it successfully, the number of person exposed to the NGO on their social network increased dramatically.

This is one of the few projects I have been assigned to work on.  Much more followed afterwards since then.  Keep in touch for more information is to come on the other projects I have been assigned to since.

Warm regards,

Swaraj Nunkoo