Internship Post – Working For Your Idols.

Internship Post – Working For Your Idols.

If you have a dream of becoming a professional anything, you need to learn from the best and if that’s what you’re after, I salute you. I think hardships and hard work are absolutely necessary to make it to the top in any sport or profession. Thus the reason for interning, it’s the best way possible to gain that experience.
Im sure different types of internships come with their own unique set of challenges but I’m gonna talk about my experience, working for barrel racing/horse trainers.
When you have any sort of employment, there are times you are working for them, which to mean measn working on your own tasks. Then on the flip side, you can work WITH someone. As an internship situation, working with them is what you’re after. It is only a small word, but it totally changes that statement. In case you’ve missed it, interning with someone is a lot better than working for them.
I have interned at a few different places in the span of four months. It is quite a lot of moving around but some of these internships weren’t very long. However, I still learned a lot during my time working for every each professional.

How to Get Started

Just a heads up, most of these positions you need to travel. When relocated and put in a very vulnerable position, you give up a lot of your independence. You are there to work and do what your boss says, no question. From the first placement, it felt like I was just dropped off on a farm and unable to choose anything. You don’t choose your hours or your work, where you sleep, or even when to eat for that matter. All you think you can say is “yes and I’ll do it.”

The Work

I’m assuming most of you are horse people and you already know what it takes to own a horse, take care of a horse, ride a horse etc.  You know it’s not easy to schedule a play by play of what you’re doing, how long it’ll take, when you’ll be done and you know you’re done when the job is done. As for me, I totally get that! I spend my summer nights after my 9-5 job in the barn riding, washing, mucking and just making sure my horses stay alive for another day and I don’t mind it at all. However, in that sense, I am working with myself (which is glorious). When you begin interning, in my experience you start working for someone and it changes that willingness to be doing what you love because you love it. Keep that in mind and never let someone make you hate something you love.
So with that being said, proceed with caution. I have heard many horror stories from other women that have gone through some pretty dehumanizing shit while working for people. Interns have always been the bottom of the totem pole and there’s no changing that. Just accept its where you’re at and move along your journey with you’re head held high. Like I said before, sometimes working your butt off is necessary to grow.
Through all the shit that you’re probably going to have to shovel, all the saddles you’re gonna have to throw, all the horses you’re going to warm up, hose off and walk around, you WILL be learning. You don’t know what it is right away but put in that position, you definitely will. Then you can look back on this and be like “oh ya, now I know what that weirdo online was talking about”.
Learning is a great thing to strive to do daily and there are so many forms of it.  Through my experience, other then the actial training horses part, i learnt the things I dont like and you know what girl? You take that and you can still apply it your life.
I said that so much while I was away, “hey I don’t like this person, I’m never going to act like that guy”. We all have said that! There’s always another side though. The flip side is you might learn things that you like and you want to do! You have the ability to take that knowledge and apply it to any aspect of your life. Yay for life experience.
For me, I honestly think I learn just as much about people and living somewhere foreign then I did about my actual riding skills. Which is totally ok.
I think to begin that journey of self-improvement by internship will be very beneficial , but you need to start with an open mind. You have no clue what these professionals are like; you know, in real life. And unfortunately for you, the only way you figure it out is when you 100% commit to work for them and move to their place!
They at least give you a warning by saying in their job description “need to have the ability to go with the flow” and they’re not joking. If that is a skill that you don’t think you have, being able to take things as they come is going to help you in your riding and just in life; so it’s something you should work on.
A few tips that I could give to you through my own internship experience
If you don’t want to feel totally stuck, like who really does? Take a vehicle with you! Reason being, I flew to Oklahoma at first, clearly didn’t have my own vehicle and it was really hard to adjust. All of a sudden your needs that you could easily go into town or take care of on your own are gone. You now have to rely on other people that you just met and unless they’re amazing, chances are your needs don’t get met the same way.
Another thing I learned early on is it OK to say no. Right off the bat, I was asked to do something with a horse that I wasn’t super comfortable with. The horse was hardly halter broke and I was supposed to start working with it without anyone else around. That was not part of our agreement and I was just plain worried for my safety. I said, “uhm, this seems dangerous to do alone, the horse wasy crazy so I’ll wait for you to show me.” I wasn’t actually rude about it but still, I said no.
It would’ve been different if that whole “working with or working for” someone came into play. I wouldn’t have had a problem if I was working alongside Ms.Bosslady and learning from their professional expertise. That was not the case and I said I’m not doing that. To me, it wasn’t safe and wasn’t worth me getting hurt and doing it all for no pay. Ya, I don’t think so.
As I just said, very few places will actually pay you! The agreement is for you to be housed for free, learn and be taken care of in exchange to work. For some weird reason, food was a big problem! My first month I swear I ate as much as I would in a week. I understand when you’re working you don’t just stop to eat, but at times the Hanger was real and it was a real problem. So if you have a car, problem solved. Go into town, buy yourself simple food that you would probably bring to a horse show weekend and snack on that when you can. And I only speak from my experience. I did not have a car, therefore, I could not provide the food I needed and wanted that would be easy to ease the hanger.

Pack Accordingly

Due to the events of moving around the country a little; and by a little I mean Oklahoma up to Wyoming. Very South to very North and there is a big weather difference. And me, living out of a suitcase thinking I was going to be in the hottest state possible all summer, I only brought summer clothes..like a romper? which was evidence I was way too optimistic about my trip. Needless to say, the romper did not make it home with me. When you’re not getting paid, which is fine and all, you just cannot deny you still will have expenses. Having to buy warm clothes or season appropriate clothing should not be one of them. So Take it from me, pack for all weather but if you have to, a thrift store is your best friend and will have perfect barn clothes you can destroy.

Last but not least

Take advantage of this incredible opportunity! Interning is usually only a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so fricken embrace it. This is your chance to meet like-minded people and learn about the culture of the sport. Again, this is only from my experience. I came from Canada and move to the USA. It is a whole different world! Through it all, I stayed focused and tried to stay positive by taking it all for what it was and not letting certain situations get me down.
Going into an internship was a blind move and you can only try to plan what’s going to happen, but chances are you’re wrong (sorry).  Your greatest tool will be your ability go with the flow and keep an mind open! Learn as much as you can by the people around you and walk away from it a more well-rounded person. It will probably suck at times but power through, I promise it will be worth it.
Have as much fun as you can and I wish you absolutely all the best in your adventures.
Why I Moved to The USA for a Summer

Why I Moved to The USA for a Summer

Growing up brings so many hard questions society asks us. Ultimately, what are we going to do with our life? Who honestly knows.. cause well, I’d actually really like to figure it out! My mom told me to get done school so I could “start my life” sorry mom to call you out on this, but I have been starting my life. My life has begun! 24 years ago to be exact and guess what happened? I did the normal college thing and I finished..Barely. I was not excited about my program and it showed. The people and experiences were great. The education, on the other hand, I didn’t grasp because the interest and passion were just not there. So I got all my credits, again barely and left school to get ma life all started up like I was told to do.

I was probably only told that once but it just resonated with me because I totally disagreed with that statement said to me many months ago. Anyways, I go home pretty well student broke as could be and start working at a family run business, ah I can finally put my education to work! Well, I believe it was 6 months later, I’m here learning how the operation goes and my role in the grand scheme of things. I think constantly, “is this what I’m going to do for the rest of my life? Is this what I would have chosen for a career if it wasn’t exposed to me throughout my whole life? Would I decide on this type of work any other way?” The answer was no. I have a “now or never” mentality to take action and though those 6 months, I decided now!

I’m sure some of you have been lucky to get an opportunity like mine and it be a field you truly are passionate about. Me, however, couldn’t imagine this being the end of my career journey. I felt no personal growth in those 6 months. I want to feel challenged and feel I am exposing myself to the unfamiliar in exchange to grow as a person of this planet.

I knew what my deepest passion was and I researched it, thinking of ideas; next steps for me to dip my toes into it. Of course, the focus was on horses, specifically becoming a better horsewoman and barrel racer. So naturally I abruptly, in a matter of 2 weeks got on an airplane to Oklahoma with no date of return. Just a gentle test of the waters, you know, nice and casual. Since I chose now, now I can say I have no regrets. However, during my time in the USA I thought I had some real ones. I moved around quite a bit and for some Canadian barrel racer dragging her poor 4-year-old futurity horse wherever she goes; we got through it pretty well. Throughout the early stages and several wake up calls. I managed to travel to 4 states and I was feeling very unsure of my choices.

Looking back I can’t say I regret anything, even if I felt it temporarily. I have met some freaking incredible people, (if you like to hear about someone’s story on meeting people to encourage you to do it even though it freaks you out a little, I agree! But I will talk about that later on here) every place has brought a little more light to my life journey and for that, the regrets are done to a low zero!

So, what do I want to do as this trip dwindles down to the last few weeks? I definitely have been reflecting a lot on this crazy thing I did and I’ve been stopping for a few moments to take it all in. I know my time is almost done and I noticed today as I stopped and looked at it all. Looking at where I  was, what I was doing. The beautiful black hills of South Dakota all around me and know soon enough this whole experience is about to be in the past.

It freaks me out knowing inevitably, all things come to an end. Everything does it and I bet you can’t think of one thing that won’t eventually come to an end in your life. The time flies and it’s such a short amount we are allowed to live through it all. We don’t even know how much time we get to waste here; it’s scary! Embrace all of life’s mess and questionable regrets as we go through this journey. Because it has started, officially!