One skill you will always need to succeed is the ability to be flexible when dealing with unexpected circumstances. This became even more apparent when everyone had to adjust and adapt when the pandemic occurred. According to the World Economic Forum, “While countries are at different points in their COVID-19 infection rates, worldwide there are currently more than 1.2 billion children in 186 countries affected by school closures due to the pandemic” (Li.C and Lalani.F, 2020). Despite drastic changes, the benefits include learning how to deal with sudden situations in your work life that are completely unanticipated. Learning how to adjust and be flexible can take some time and can even be really stressful, but actively working on these skills early is important. One of our interns, Steven Li, a recent graduate of Walter Payton College Prep and one of our interns, spoke about his experience learning to be flexible during his senior year. “My senior year was essentially cut in half. It wasn’t the best outcome because of graduation, prom, (and) senior events being canceled in addition to not seeing my friends again... A lot of my senior year summer plans, like opportunities and internships, were canceled." However, Steven found a positive in this all. “This is a super rare opportunity to start new ventures and projects that require a lot of attention.”
"Employers today take into account how you operate and make decisions in addition to what you’ve delivered. In this fast-paced, increasingly unpredictable world, we’re sometimes faced with new or never-before-seen circumstances.” (Joseph S., 2018) Even the On The Money team had to learn how to adapt to make our goal as effective as possible. Our very own EAC Program Manager, Toiria Baker, said that she “just wanted to make a quality program for the youth.” And to remember that “everything new has a learning curve. If you stay with what you are used to you don’t experience better opportunities.” Everyone in the business world had to learn to adapt to the circumstances, because not to adapt meant failure. In this strange time, learning to be adaptable and flexible is key so that later on, when things return to normal, you can excel.