The ways of the Artist : More ways to grow

Growing as an artist from just starting out, and then applying my knowledge to my skills, I was lost in terms of the way I wanted to go about my art. Consuming art content and not knowing which way to go, stifled my energy as an artist. As the first person to do this career field within my family, it was difficult for me to find the energy to find the steps to succeed. But after successfully getting an offer for JGM Innovation for Summer 2025, it has taught me that being an artist is so much more about just producing art, it’s about building a community of marketers, social media, business, etc. Not only did this internship make me have more confidence in my abilities as an artist, but also taught me the skills of communication, work ethic, collaboration, and overall working under a company and how to build through your career. 

When I was offered a spot as an intern at JGM Innovation, the prospect of working under a 503 C Non-profit organization really sparked my interest. The position had arrived to my sight in April on the career platform, Handshake, and I didn’t think too much about applying. Once I had secured a spot for an interview, it was very much an exciting moment, as this was the first time I was going through the career process, thus resulting in the offer letter I had received shortly after. Once I had begun working, the community was very much welcoming towards me and I was now surrounded by like-minded interns who were from different backgrounds and universities, all in different roles. It gave me a motivation boost to be better by the minute. This is where communication came through, as communication was a massive role in terms of editing videos and getting through the process. Communication would show up through our weekly meetings maybe 2-3 times a week, showing my progress which also aligned with the Video Editing process. As an artist, I’ve learned it’s not so much about the end product, but it’s about the journey to get to the end result. Through communicating with my boss and another video editor on the team, and showing them the projects I’ve been creating, it gives a sense of communication from all ends of what could be fixed and what needs to be changed. Through this communication, I was able to collaborate with team members in an effective way.

Collaboration was evident throughout the internship, as not only did I collaborate through projects, but I also collaborated through team meetings and messages. Collaboration came through in ways where in our “town hall meetings” as my boss would call them, they would be meetings to check up on the team and also discuss what we’ve done so far. Collaboration would also arrive through in my personal video editing projects, the projects would need collaboration in terms of providing materials, such as pictures, videos, and any other multimedia formats. Through these meetings, I was also able to collaborate by asking and providing feedback to the other video editor on the team. This gave me an opportunity to show not only my leadership skills but also provide my newly adapted video editing process, such as showing the storyboard, editing, script writing. The internship had also provided collaboration in terms of my boss being hands-on through every meeting, even when he didn’t have time to stick around in the meeting for long. This then leads onto the work ethic I was able to demonstrate through my projects. 

The work ethic this internship has taught me really not only made me have a productive routine, but also allowed me to manage my time efficiently and step up to the plate. Through our meetings, I needed to provide something for the meetings otherwise it would look bad on my part, such as providing drafts and updates of what I have edited so far in each meeting, and also providing deadlines for my boss but also the other video editor. This links back to collaboration because through each video I was editing, I was getting better through my editing skills but also, work ethic showed up in the prospects such as knowing about social media marketing and how that tied into my deadlines. For example, each of the videos I was editing needed to be posted at a specific time on platforms such as Youtube, Instagram, and Facebook. That would provide some deadlines as the videos needed to be posted at the same time otherwise we would lose traction. The internship provides me with the skills of work ethic ties into my personal life as well, having many different tasks and completing them straight away, or the opposite would be dedicating each day to move forward with the task. This work ethic has given me a boost of confidence through my career but also the different avenues I can take to improve throughout my career as an artist. 

Working as an artist, it can be challenging to control the self-doubt and anxiety going through a constantly changing world, it can be daunting. But, through working for JGM Innovation, this internship has given me the willpower and determination to not stop, as before this internship, I was so lost. But one piece of my advice that my boss gave me while completing the course evaluation is, through his checking the rating scale of if I was a good intern, it was mostly 5’s across the board, and getting to receive that compliment from him was great to hear. I had also gotten the courage to let go of perfectionism as that was the determinant of my issues. Once I had let go of the mindset that projects need to be perfect, that’s when everything flowed more easily. Projects started to come out faster and I had challenged myself to work harder and make the next video even better. Through this, the feedback was tremendous and my boss had advised me to share my work with everyone, as he had stated I was talented. This encouraged me to pursue other avenues of being an artist, such as creating a shop for my services when it came to me being an artist, as well as going down the route of speaking eloquently and understanding what it is to work at a 503 C non-profit. Working for a non-profit company as opposed to another regular company was surprisingly welcoming, as non-profit work was more about the community and sharing through each other. Through my experiences with being a perfectionist and alleviating those challenging emotions, working at JGM Innovation has given me the encouragement that I needed to support myself through my future creative endeavors. 

Through work ethic, collaboration, team building, all of these fundamental skills are needed through working not just a non-profit organization, but other communities as well. My boss, Waldo Guevara, had given us many tools, tips, and tricks to survive through the corporate environment. For example, multiple times through the Internship, he would provide the tips of something called Agile, where the agile system is deliberately making sure tasks get done. This is through systems using technological tools and applications, such as Notion, a productivity tool that can be used for various tasks, including to-do lists, taking notes, and productivity management. With this, me and Waldo had prepared a list of to-do’s for each project, which was done by my skills and leadership. For example, the first step of the video editing process was ideation, which included storyboarding, a common factor used when building out a video or any other multimedia project. This storyboarding process included concept inspo, color palette, frame by frame sequences of understanding how the video was gonna start or end, etc. This framework of organization has not only helped me through the creation of videos in JGM Innovation, but it has also given me guidance through my personal endeavors, such as portfolio projects. These projects, while getting them out at strict deadlines, were actually beneficial as doing this process helped me to delegate tasks to each day, not just for myself but for the team. But most of all, the community behind a non-profit was exhilarating, as having input not only from Waldo, but another video editor named Charles, who was still improving through his video editing skills really allowed me to not only advise Charles on his projects, but he could learn something from mine as I have been editing videos for a little over five years. Through this constant knowledge and expertise of tools and feedback, I was able to be a stronger video editor and be more encouraged in my career than ever. 

Through going through the process of applying, then receiving an offer from JGM Innovation, and being in the space of like-minded people who all wanted JGM Innovation to succeed, being a part of this Summer 2025 Internship, has been an experience. The highs and lows when faced trying to figure out projects, to now showing them through multiple social media platforms while still building community through the company, this experience has truly been sensational in the aspects that I not only grew as a video editor, but grew as a person within my career field and was able to provide my expertise. I can be able to safely say that I am ready to take my career as an artist to the next level, and JGM Innovation has taught me the skills necessary in order to excel through my career.

Samanvita Cheemalapati

https://sammyc.myportfolio.com