I heard this line from Sam Walton today on the radio.

We hear alot nowadays about how “needy” these millennials are. How they feel so entitled, deserving, and “all that.” I’m sure those kids are out there, and I have no doubt there are plenty of them to go around.

Thankfully, I don’t think I have any working for me. Or ever really had.

I’ve had an intern working for C2IT for the last half a year or so and have had nothing but a good experience. Sure, it’s well-priced labor, but it comes at the cost of limited experience on both the technical and professional side. But that’s OK – there’s not a lot of “untraining” to do, and I like it.

Today my intern, Andrew, showed me his almost-final-copy of a web app he’s been building for our business. A few weeks ago, he was quite concerned about being able to get it done, about the complexities, and even about having the “opportunity” to continue his college career beyond his original plans. We’ve talked about whether writing code is his thing, and while I’m not pulling one way or another, I’ve seen sparks of many other qualities in this guy that I really like. Today topped the cake. The software works well, the changes left to be made not only made sense to him but were somewhat even suggested by him, and I’m rather proud of what product he’s produced myself.

Building a strong team has been a top priority of mine for years, but I’ll admit, it’s not one I’m all that great at. Thing is, though, it’s important. It needs to be done.

Good job, Andrew. You’ve done well. I’m proud of what you’ve made for us, and of you.

SamWalton-1936

 

Photo Credit: By Grey Wanderer at en.wikipedia (Transferred from en.wikipedia (Original Image)) [Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons