Elevating Kindness and Compassion: The Savvy Intern

By Loretta Goodwin, Ph.D.
Educator, Yogi, and enthusiastic ETJ sojourner! *

Journeying alongside this ETJ community remains such an inspirational part of my life. And recently the weekly ETJ newsletter, and Kate Lemay’s explicit reminder, really resonated: “Don’t forget What You Said You Wanted.” The words that just would not let me go were: “giving your creativity a deadline and not letting yourself off the hook.”

That’s it, I thought. I know what I’ve been wanting to put out into the world, based on years of experience and more importantly, a deeply held conviction that I can help so many young people through simply sharing my wisdom. And so, buoyed by Kate as well as Christina Alexa’s reflections that, “what we focus on inevitably contributes to what we manifest,” I launched, on my LinkedIn account, The Savvy Intern. In these weekly Monday postings, I share tips aimed at helping interns get the most out of their work-based learning experience. Chapters to date focus on Preparing for the Internship, Showing Up Strong, and Effective Communication.

How do I know this is already resonating with my audience? At The George Washington University in Washington, DC, where I am adjunct faculty teaching Career Strategy courses, one of my student co-instructors shared how she is using my tips to gauge her own progress at her internship. And as Fall classes just started, a student in one of my classes asked whether I had any tips to share as she was about to start her internship this semester. What a joy to point her to my musings, and to hear her enthusiastic, “That’s exactly what I was looking for!”

For me, writing these weekly tips, which I hope you’ll share widely, is about being supportive to students through practical advice that is easily accessible to them. It’s about recognizing what they are struggling with and offering words of wisdom and encouragement. It’s about elevating kindness and compassion. In short, what it aligns with so well is Kate Lemay’s Heart chakra rumination: “When possible, practice true compassion in community, or Common Unity, for this strengthens and grounds our dreams in the much-needed support and co-creation process of working with others. Consciously connect and build deep Common Unity.” And let’s not forget the mantra that accompanies this reflection: “I love.”

Invitations
• Join Kate Lemay on a walk through clarity this week, in “Giving Yourself Permission to Create Space for Clarity”
• Journey with Christina Alexa through “Anahata, Satya & the Sacred Marriage: Crossing the Bridge from Ego to Source”.
• Join community in a FREE Sacred Sunday Yoga class, every week 8 – 8:40 am!
• The Maine Retreat is shaping up to be amazing. Join us in Maine!