Erovoutika has challenged me to step out of my comfort zone

Erovoutika has challenged me to step out of my comfort zone

My 200-hour internship experience at Erovoutika

A little bit about me

I am Ann Margaret Siquioco, a 4th year BS Computer Science student at Polytechnic University of the Philippines. I have been fond of computers since I was a little kid. I spent most of my childhood in front of the computer while my peers went outside to play. I discovered my passion for Web Development when I entered High School so when I got to college, I took a Computer Science program.

In my summer term, I was given the opportunity to be an intern at Erovoutika. I remember being so nervous because of the interviews that I had to pass in order to qualify as an intern. Luckily, I got in.

My first day as an intern was a memorable experience.

I can still recall the events like the back of my hand. On my first day, the department leader at that time called for a meeting in order to determine who would be the next department leader as he already was an outgoing intern. He listed our names on a website that would draw a name. My name was picked. I was the next department leader. Of course, I was surprised. It was my first day and I became the next Web Development Department Leader. I did not know what to say, at first, because I was still processing everything, but I accepted the role. I spent most of my college days just following orders in group work. I thought that this would be a great opportunity for me to finally learn and experience how to lead. I was excited and nervous at the same time.

waking up gif.gif Submitting the tasks required as a department leader was the easiest. Waking up early was not. As the department leader, I had to conduct daily meetings every 8:00 AM to check the daily attendance and record the rendered hours of each member. Waking up early became a habit for me and even when I finished my 200 hours of internship, I still wake up before the sun rises. Waking up early made me feel productive because I get to do a lot before the sun rises. I have Erovoutika to thank for that.

There were a lot of firsts in my 200-hours of internship experience. Another first for me was when I become the speaker for the UI/UX Webinar. I chose this topic as I thought that it is a good topic for developers who are interested in enhancing the aesthetic and user experience in using their websites and applications. Speaking was not my strong suit as I have always had low self-confidence, but this experience made me realize that I can do it too. I also learned how to record my screen while streaming, and edit videos and audio which is another set of firsts for me. During the live webinar, I was so overwhelmed with the amount of support I got from the people who watched. The webinar got a lot of stars and GCash donations.

I was the one who coded the products page for our group project: an E-Commerce Website. I realized that I like working with other people, and hearing their suggestions and comments about my work made me become not only a better programmer but also a great listener.

I was also the Sub Department Leader in the Awarding Committee wherein I learned how to use Canva because we were tasked to make an Awarding invitation. I also tracked the attendance and Trello points of the interns. I was also tasked by the department leader to conduct meetings to orient the new members on how to do our tasks. This time, I was not shy anymore. I learned how to speak confidently and conducting the meetings was finally easy. bejeweled gif.webp

I could not believe that I got to experience being a leader of a whole department and being a webinar speaker. I am no longer the quiet girl who just follows orders during group discussions. I can finally say that I definitely can lead and that I definitely can speak confidently in front of people. It may have just been 200 hours, but Erovoutika has challenged me to step out of my comfort zone, and with that, I am eternally grateful.