You may be wondering who I am and why I am writing a blog? My name is Coco Ramnarain. I’m 15 years old and in grade 10 in High School. I worked with Energy Matters and GoodWe for one week for work experience. I appreciate the art of writing and love English literature, which I will be having as a subject as of next year in Year 11. That, along with Math Methods, Psychology, Biology, Modern History, and Visual Arts. I’m interested in a pathway consisting of Criminology, Law, Psychology, Media and Journalism. With such a large variety, the biggest goal of work experience is to do tasks associated with all these different career paths. During work experience, I took on the role of an “EcoSmart Kids Reporter”. This job included me interviewing multiple people.
My schedule for the week went like this:
MONDAY
I got started on the GoodWe EcoSmartKids scripts for animation videos. These videos are usually presented to Primary schools for a workshop.
TUESDAY
Day 2 saw me continue to work on the script before sending it off for feedback, along with planning for all my later interviews. That same afternoon, I had a face-to-face interview with Leigh Storr (Manager and Director of Resinc Solar & Batteries), and got to ask him some funny questions. I’ll admit, I was very nervous given this was my first interview of the week and I was under the impression it would be on screen instead of face-to-face as well!
WEDNESDAY
The schedule for day 3 was very exciting because that’s when we flew to Adelaide! We arrived in the afternoon, and my dad and I unpacked our suitcases and headed downstairs to this fancy lounge area next to the lobby to have a Google meeting with Dean Williamson (GoodWe Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand). I had an amazing chat with Dean and loved hearing his opinions and ideas on the questions I asked him. Then I interviewed my dad – one of my funnier interviews and a good laugh. I then had an interview with John Wright, who I’ve worked beside before, same time last year. Afterwards, the team (Yes, I’m lucky enough to call Nicole Stegmann, John Wright and Roshan Ramnarain my team this week!!) packed up, got dressed and went out to dinner in the hotel’s restaurant and had a delicious dinner over funny conversations.
THURSDAY
Day 4 was 100% more packed than the days beforehand, but I had an absolute blast with it. Many interviews took up the day’s schedule. My first interview was with Dean Miller (Managing Director of the Forever Reef Project). Dean was a blast to talk to, and he breezed through every single question. It went quite swimmingly! Hahaha. After that, the team and I made our way to the Little Sunshine Pledge headquarters, where we met Krystian and Peter. Their project is so eye-opening; helping an orphanage in Cambodia and making sure the kids can get opportunities for something as simple as a trip to the dentist. You can truly just see how invested these two men are, and their entire team working behind the scenes as well.
My final meeting scheduled was with Lauren from Six Star Plus – a company that is predominantly female-led – over a Google Meet, and I had a fantastic time talking with her. She had such a bright, bubbly attitude, and it was so exciting getting to talk to a woman in the industry who even comes from a construction-based background! She also has a passion to help those in need, specifically the problem regarding homelessness. It was such a fun day.
FRIDAY
The final day was packed and the longest. My dad and I got up in the morning quite early, got breakfast, and then got ready for the exciting day ahead. Then our team made our way to Alex Carey’s house, who is a famous Australian cricketer, with all our equipment and started the process of watching Alex do some voice-over lines. I took some behind-the-scenes videos and photos, and I got to watch Dad (Roshan) in action, doing an interview with Alex himself! Not so long after, I had my own interview with Alex, and that went amazingly; he answered everything well, and I even had a laugh myself. And I got to learn what a run is! And a century! A little bit of advice to anyone who wants to learn… find out what a run is before a century; it will make much more sense.
Afterwards, we made our way to the field to do some filming, and I met Joanne (CEO of Cricket for Climate) and Andrew (Managing Director for SACA), and was able to do a double interview with the two, touching on some interesting points and figuring out what both company’s/businesses focus on. After that, I had finished all my interviews, which was exciting!!
What I learned
In the end, this was a fantastic experience and such an exciting thing to be a part of. I’m truly grateful to everyone who took me on and taught me different skills throughout the week. Especially Nicole, who taught me some camera tricks and explained some parts that I didn’t know about. And John for showing me what true work ethic looks like. But the biggest person I learned from truly was my dad, Roshan Ramnarain, who has taught me to only do a job you have a passion for and what fun working can look like if you invest in it and enjoy it truly. Everyone I talked to was so inspirational and truly welcoming to talk to. They all took me seriously, which is something I am grateful for and treated me like part of the team without pressure or doubt. I’m still not 100% sure what I’d like to do when I’m older but the most important thing I know for when I am deciding in a few year’s time is that I will have a passion, I will love it and I will do it because when I wake up in the morning I’m have a smile on my face and an excitement fuelling my want to get out the door.
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