Progress Review 1 - Complete!

Last night was the first of two progress reviews for my business internship with CCEW (Center for the Creation of Economic Wealth). It was the chance for my team to make a super-elaborate slideshow, talk about our project in front of all the other teams (and a few alumni of the program, etc), and get feedback. Overall, I think it went pretty well-- though there was still a lot of confusion as to exactly what we are making, so that's not good at all. We'll have to work on that.

I'm just glad it's over. The time I spent preparing for the slideshow (with research and practice) was basically the same amount of time that I'd spend studying for a mid-term. But then add in a bunch more stress because I was talking in front of a large group of people, not just filling in bubbles and writing short paragraph answers.

For me, one of the things about the slideshow that took so long was getting familiar with "business speak." I've come to realize that there is this whole other language required of business people in order to sound intelligent, and without it, you really don't seem like you know what you're talking about. You have to be able to throw around words like "value proposition," "differentiate," "market segmentation," and "early adapters" like they're in your colloquial vocabulary.

In fact, that'll probably be one of the most valuable things to come out of my internship with CCEW. Over the course of the semester, I guess the goal is to acquire a business vocabulary (and basic business smarts) so I can appear competent to potential future employers or, if I go into film production, impress potential investors.

And large stressful presentations aside, I'm really enjoying the internship so far. Our team has an awesome idea for a software company, and I can't wait to tell you all about it (once it's ready for market-- I guess I can't spill the beans about our secret operation just yet). So stay tuned!