November Reflection
The best skill I have learned during my internship experience so far is honestly how to interact within the business setting. Learning how to be personable, yet business casual is something that is going to help me throughout my life. I have also learned many different things relating to loans, which is going help me in the future whether I work at a bank or not. Eventually I will have a career where I talk to people, and being able to persuade is a great business tool/skill to have. Overall, just working through loans with my coworkers at Houghton State Bank has been the most enjoyable aspect of my internship. My coworkers/mentors have done an outstanding job explaining things, while also keeping me engaged and making me a part of the process. This experience has made me open up towards banking as a career path. I still really would like to do something in the investment world, but I am open to being a banker. Personally, I think that I could potentially do this as a job at some point in my career.
December Reflection
During this past month I have done a lot of inputting while also going out and socializing with customers. I have learned a lot about what goes into being a loan officer, and have learned skills I can use in a lot of jobs. Being able to fully understand simple things like tax returns or balance sheets is something that relates to your life regardless of if you work at a bank or not. During your life you will have to file taxes every year, while also maintaining a good balance sheet so you do not go bankrupt. Overall, the best skill I have learned is how to interact with coworkers in a work environment. This is something I will use no matter what job I pursue in my future. This is going to be especially helpful for my goal of starting my own business some day. Being able to talk/converse is a huge asset to have in my back pocket.
Towards the beginning of my experience I was honestly a little nervous because I did not know a whole lot about what actually goes into loans. Obviously, I knew what they were and how they worked, I just really did not know the logistics of loans. I have had great coworkers and mentors who have took time out of their own day to actually show me how to do loans multiple times, and now I have the confidence to do almost anything they ask me to do. I still don't know everything that goes into loans, but I have learned a lot in my three months at Houghton State Bank, and look forward to learning more.