Been kicking around the idea of launching an internship to bring some kids under my wing and show them the ways of a master web developer ninja. OK lets not flatter ourselves too much - samurai - that's better. ;) But really, I had been thinking about what a great way it would be to find a really motivated kid and give him an opportunity to learn some of the amazing skills that I've gained in business, and that you can't gain any other way.
More and more these days I have a bias towards small business, entrepreneurship, and away from formal education. I feel like in a lot of ways it doesn't really work, and it would be exciting to be able to show someone another path that could be very beneficial to them. I noticed Seth's conference the other day and it actually got me thinking along these lines and reminded me of the plans that I had had about 6 months back in this area.
Then, today I noticed a follow-up post that he wrote related to the deposit that he requires for the internship. Basically, the internship is free but it requires a $1k deposit from the student in order to join. Actually when I noticed that it kind of popped out to me and immediately I thought it was a great idea. I kind of knew that some people would disagree with it or wonder if there were some more devious motivation for him charging the deposit. I immediately recognized that it was for the purpose of finding motivated and committed interns for the program. For someone with his degree of experience and success in his industry to invest time in a person, should require some effort and expense on their end.
So I applaud Seth on the idea for the conference and welcome any feedback on the topic. I think the faster that an individual can go from the semi-unrealistic state of a scholarly environment into a business environment where they see some of the critical factors and required skills that only come into play in a real-time environment, the better. And I think internships are an awesome way to bridge that gap.
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Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Bridging the Gap: Internships that Work
Been kicking around the idea of launching an internship to bring some kids under my wing and show them the ways of a master web developer ninja. OK lets not flatter ourselves too much - samurai - that's better. ;) But really, I had been thinking about what a great way it would be to find a really motivated kid and give him an opportunity to learn some of the amazing skills that I've gained in business, and that you can't gain any other way.
More and more these days I have a bias towards small business, entrepreneurship, and away from formal education. I feel like in a lot of ways it doesn't really work, and it would be exciting to be able to show someone another path that could be very beneficial to them. I noticed Seth's conference the other day and it actually got me thinking along these lines and reminded me of the plans that I had had about 6 months back in this area.
Then, today I noticed a follow-up post that he wrote related to the deposit that he requires for the internship. Basically, the internship is free but it requires a $1k deposit from the student in order to join. Actually when I noticed that it kind of popped out to me and immediately I thought it was a great idea. I kind of knew that some people would disagree with it or wonder if there were some more devious motivation for him charging the deposit. I immediately recognized that it was for the purpose of finding motivated and committed interns for the program. For someone with his degree of experience and success in his industry to invest time in a person, should require some effort and expense on their end.
So I applaud Seth on the idea for the conference and welcome any feedback on the topic. I think the faster that an individual can go from the semi-unrealistic state of a scholarly environment into a business environment where they see some of the critical factors and required skills that only come into play in a real-time environment, the better. And I think internships are an awesome way to bridge that gap.
More and more these days I have a bias towards small business, entrepreneurship, and away from formal education. I feel like in a lot of ways it doesn't really work, and it would be exciting to be able to show someone another path that could be very beneficial to them. I noticed Seth's conference the other day and it actually got me thinking along these lines and reminded me of the plans that I had had about 6 months back in this area.
Then, today I noticed a follow-up post that he wrote related to the deposit that he requires for the internship. Basically, the internship is free but it requires a $1k deposit from the student in order to join. Actually when I noticed that it kind of popped out to me and immediately I thought it was a great idea. I kind of knew that some people would disagree with it or wonder if there were some more devious motivation for him charging the deposit. I immediately recognized that it was for the purpose of finding motivated and committed interns for the program. For someone with his degree of experience and success in his industry to invest time in a person, should require some effort and expense on their end.
So I applaud Seth on the idea for the conference and welcome any feedback on the topic. I think the faster that an individual can go from the semi-unrealistic state of a scholarly environment into a business environment where they see some of the critical factors and required skills that only come into play in a real-time environment, the better. And I think internships are an awesome way to bridge that gap.
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Kalen Jordan provides advice, tools, tips and tricks for freelance designers, developers, and other tech professionals who are looking to grow their business. Feel free to 
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