Mentor interview
Me- “How did you get involved with Life Vest Inside?”
Nancy- “When I was in high school my best friend told me about their dance for kindness event and it was the first year we were having a worldwide event- a dance for kindness flash mob in time square, and my best friend was one of Orly’s students, so she brought me to the event and I had a great time. I connected with Orly and she gave me an act of kindness card and at the end of my senior year, I needed to complete a five week internship, so I connected with Orly again, and I found out that she needed a social media intern, and I thought that it was a great opportunity for me and I took it. I had a great interview with Orly, and the next thing I know I was in her office with my laptop writing up acts of kindness to post on our face book page. Here I am almost two year later, mentoring our new intern, Ellie.
Me- “How long do you intend to work for LVI?”
Nancy- “ Honestly I don’t know, everyday I think that I am going to stay for one more semester and then look for a photography related job to support my minor. But then I realize how much I love Life Vest Inside and it is really hard for me to leave somewhere that I have been comfortable in for such a long time. I will probably stay until the end of this summer.
Me- “How has Life Vest Inside affected your life on a personal level?”
Nancy- “It has definitely showed me to be more compassionate and to find the brighter side in situations, I used to be a negative person, and I still can be a negative person, but I think that’s more in the back of my mind now, when I find myself in an upsetting situation its easier for me to look at it in someone else’s perspective and I am able to forgive easier. I am also more respectful to the people around me and I say the word kind a lot more, but when I say it, it sounds weird because I have used it so many times, but I love it. I have learned a lot about myself since working at LVI.
Me- “How do you bring the mission of LVI in your daily life?”
Nancy- “There are bunches of ways I integrate the mission into my daily life. When I go to concerts I will give out acts of kindness cards, or when I go to a book signing or a celebrity event, I will try to get pictures with act of kindness cards, and I will tell them about the mission, and tell them to follow us on twitter and I always invite my friends and family to Life Vest Inside events. I have also found that it has become an instinct for me to perform an act of kindness just to simply open a door for someone or speak to my parents in a more respectful manner has become part of my life, and I don’t think about it the way I used to. In the beginning of my internship, when I opened a door for someone I would come in the next day and say ‘I opened the door for someone yesterday,’ and now I don’t really need to talk about it because now that is such a simple thing to me. One really cool thing that happened to me was the day of Dance for Kindness 2012 Orly gave me act of Kindness cards but I kept just one for myself and months later it was after my interview, but before my internship I found out that my grandpa passed away and it was very tough for me. My grandmother came to pick me up after school and was talking to me to take my mind off of things, and she asked me about my internship. I showed her my act of kindness card and was telling her about it and the act of kindness on the card said to spend more time with your grandparents. It was hard for me to read but it made me realize the significance of these acts of kindness, and it made me think about my actions in my daily life. Two years later I still keep the card with me, because I have continued to perform this act of Kindness, and I think about that card every day. It’s something that motivates me to do my best job here, because there are some days when it can be really frustrating and hard. But it gives me that last push to work even harder, to make the organization stronger, and connect with even more people. I think that is why I am so connected to life vest inside, because it really pulled at my heart.
Nancy- “When I was in high school my best friend told me about their dance for kindness event and it was the first year we were having a worldwide event- a dance for kindness flash mob in time square, and my best friend was one of Orly’s students, so she brought me to the event and I had a great time. I connected with Orly and she gave me an act of kindness card and at the end of my senior year, I needed to complete a five week internship, so I connected with Orly again, and I found out that she needed a social media intern, and I thought that it was a great opportunity for me and I took it. I had a great interview with Orly, and the next thing I know I was in her office with my laptop writing up acts of kindness to post on our face book page. Here I am almost two year later, mentoring our new intern, Ellie.
Me- “How long do you intend to work for LVI?”
Nancy- “ Honestly I don’t know, everyday I think that I am going to stay for one more semester and then look for a photography related job to support my minor. But then I realize how much I love Life Vest Inside and it is really hard for me to leave somewhere that I have been comfortable in for such a long time. I will probably stay until the end of this summer.
Me- “How has Life Vest Inside affected your life on a personal level?”
Nancy- “It has definitely showed me to be more compassionate and to find the brighter side in situations, I used to be a negative person, and I still can be a negative person, but I think that’s more in the back of my mind now, when I find myself in an upsetting situation its easier for me to look at it in someone else’s perspective and I am able to forgive easier. I am also more respectful to the people around me and I say the word kind a lot more, but when I say it, it sounds weird because I have used it so many times, but I love it. I have learned a lot about myself since working at LVI.
Me- “How do you bring the mission of LVI in your daily life?”
Nancy- “There are bunches of ways I integrate the mission into my daily life. When I go to concerts I will give out acts of kindness cards, or when I go to a book signing or a celebrity event, I will try to get pictures with act of kindness cards, and I will tell them about the mission, and tell them to follow us on twitter and I always invite my friends and family to Life Vest Inside events. I have also found that it has become an instinct for me to perform an act of kindness just to simply open a door for someone or speak to my parents in a more respectful manner has become part of my life, and I don’t think about it the way I used to. In the beginning of my internship, when I opened a door for someone I would come in the next day and say ‘I opened the door for someone yesterday,’ and now I don’t really need to talk about it because now that is such a simple thing to me. One really cool thing that happened to me was the day of Dance for Kindness 2012 Orly gave me act of Kindness cards but I kept just one for myself and months later it was after my interview, but before my internship I found out that my grandpa passed away and it was very tough for me. My grandmother came to pick me up after school and was talking to me to take my mind off of things, and she asked me about my internship. I showed her my act of kindness card and was telling her about it and the act of kindness on the card said to spend more time with your grandparents. It was hard for me to read but it made me realize the significance of these acts of kindness, and it made me think about my actions in my daily life. Two years later I still keep the card with me, because I have continued to perform this act of Kindness, and I think about that card every day. It’s something that motivates me to do my best job here, because there are some days when it can be really frustrating and hard. But it gives me that last push to work even harder, to make the organization stronger, and connect with even more people. I think that is why I am so connected to life vest inside, because it really pulled at my heart.