Everybody Struggles

At some point throughout my internship with the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap (HOT), I was stomped when it came to executing some tasks.

Something I’ve struggled with in my Outreachy internship is not knowing where to start. I’m working as a UX Designer for HOT. I’m currently doing things I’ve never done before, so it can be a bit intimidating. HOT is a community build upon volunteer work from all around the globe for humanitarian efforts. As a UX Designer, I tend to talk to many different people. Bo, my mentor, gives me a lot of freedom to work on what I want how I want it. I’m learning a lot, but sometimes I feel like I need help.

Asking for help has always been an issue for me. I take on too much and overwork myself to the point of exhaustion. Why? I think it stems from a place of not knowing and being too hard on myself. I want to do the best at what I’m doing, and sometimes I feel like I should already KNOW everything I need to do. I forget this is all new to me, and that it’s okay that I don’t know some of the stuff. I’ve learned to ask for help whenever I find myself in this situation. I ask questions not only to my mentor but the entire HOT community. People are always willing to help, and I find that sometimes our limitations are brought on by ourselves.

We can achieve anything. The first person we have to convince is ourselves sometimes.