Luke’s Las Vegas adventure

Hello everyone,

 

Do you recall a challenging, but rewarding and invaluable experience that you’ve had in your life time? For me, one such experience happened just this past week.

 

I must say going on the business trip as a crew for five days last week was an opportunity that I would never have had the chance to do if I was in Japan.

 

Today, I am going to share some experiences I had and the things I learned from the trip.

 

1. Preparation

 

As I mentioned to you in my previous blog, my supervisor, Daniel, needed my help to organize this very crucial event for Football BC. As a result, I had an opportunity to work longer even after I finished my contract, which made me extremely happy. But at the same time, it caused me a lot of pressure because everybody sees me as a crew, not an intern. However, I always keep it in mind as long as I prepare thoroughly I am sure that I would make up for any lack of language problem with perseverance and hard work. In addition, Daniel describes me as someone who is on the ball, whose skill is critical to the success of our trip. So, I had my heart set on accepting the challenging but rewarding offer.

 

One of the things I did to help Daniel prepare before the trip was to research great restaurants to accommodate over 100 people including players and coaches, and organize and compile the rooming list and flight information. Thanks to these tasks, I was able to get the picture of what’s going on and who would be participating in the High Roller Football Showdown in Las Vegas in advance. In the end, I felt like I was an indispensable team member as I stayed top of all the information and itinerary. To sum up, preparation is the key to succeed before anything else.

 

2. Responsibility

 

Having huge responsibilities might make some people stressed out and even get sick. In my case, taking responsibility makes me grow as an individual and learn new things I did not know before. Moreover, I feel like I am contributing to Football BC and being expected to complete all my tasks and I really wanted to live up to their expectations. I went into this with a positive attitude about undertaking these challenging tasks.

 

During the trip, I had a lot of duties to deal with such as taking pictures of players, shooting and cutting videos and helping Daniel with the meal set-up for all the players and coaches. When it comes to taking pictures, I felt it was a huge part of everything because I can see afterwards that thousands of people went to look at the pictures of players I took and some of them might set the pictures on display of their cell phone and post them on Facebook. At the time, I was very focused on our Team BC games and was careful not to miss any important players like touchdowns or interceptions. My biggest responsibility was to cut videos quickly and attractively.

If you are interested in watching them, please check out Official Football BC Channel.

 

 

When I played soccer in high school, I wanted to watch my great performances as soon as possible and show them to my friends and family in order to explain how great a game I had. So, I felt it was really important that we could deliver the post-game videos as quickly as possible. I am not sure everyone is satisfied with these videos I cut, but, I hope I could convey their great performances to viewers. I realized that taking responsibility is the price of greatness and for my own happiness.

 

 

3. Cooperation

 

I learned how essential cooperation is to succeed in everything. Throughout the trip, I was overwhelmed again by Daniel’s leadership and diligence. He told Sara, Michiko, and myself the daily schedule accurately and clearly the day before the games. Even better, he repeated our duties right before the games, which reminded us of what we had to do as well as praised and encouraged us to work smoothly. I really admire him and want to catch up with him in the future.

 

Concerning Team BC players, I was so impressed because they showed us extremely amazing games even though they just practiced together one day. I felt as if they played football on the same team for years. The biggest reason why they built strong teamwork for a short period is, needless to say, thanks to seasoned and reliable coaches. I watched each game next to the coaches. It seemed that each coach had an incredibly strong passion to want the players to be able to deliver great performances and win each game. At the same time, each player tried to live up to their expectation and follow their direction. As a result, U 16 and U 18 team was able to record wins over very tough American teams. What I learned from the trip is that great achievements are never just a single effort. They are done by a team of people who see the same direction.

 

4. Appreciation

 

I would really like to say thank you to everybody who accepted and supported me warmly even though I had a different background from everyone. Without their great help, I would not have been so satisfied with this trip.

 

Team BC players

 

Some of the players knew me from the blog or my previous interview videos with Masaki Kawanami and Michael Calvert and called out to me by name (Luke) or in greeting, which made me happy. I appreciate it.

Thanks for entertaining me with such exciting games. I won’t forget the Team BC games I watched in Las Vegas.

 

 

 

 

Team BC coaches

 

I must say I am a very lucky person to get to meet and work with well-known coaches including previous and current BC Lions players. Each coach is very kind to me and praised my performance greatly and asked me about Japanese culture. Thanks to them, I was able to feel like a real contributor to Team BC. Thank you very much for all of your kindness.

 

 

 

 

Team BC staff

 

I spent most of the time supporting players with Team BC staff. So, I really appreciate them helping me out and accepting my opinions even though I asked for clarification many times because of my language problem. Sometimes, I feel frustrated that I cannot make myself understood in English. But, thanks to you guys, I did not feel that way on this trip. I cannot thank you enough.

 

 

Finally, there is one thing I have to tell you.

I have made up my mind to go back to Japan to pursue my dream job in the near future. So, this might be my final posting to this blog. I really appreciate you reading my blog all the time and giving me some positive feedback. Throughout the blog, I was able to express my feeling about football clearly as well as improve my writing skills. I want to thank Daniel for giving me this great opportunity. If you have a chance to come to Japan, please let me know so that I can guide you, which is a small token of my appreciation. Please do not forget my quote “All your efforts will pay off as long as you do your best without giving up.” Thank you so much up to today. I wish you all the best in the future. Have a wonderful day!!

 

 

Luke came back

Hello everyone!

 

Happy New Year!

 

I hope you had a memorable celebration with your family and friends. I’d love to hear about your New Year’s resolutions!

 

Let me tell you my New Year’s resolutions because I figure if I announce my resolutions to everyone, I will have to stick to them. So anyways, here goes.

 

1.      Be proud of myself, and not ashamed of how others see me.

 

Until last year, I tended to compare myself to others which made me feel miserable because I felt other people had a brighter life than mine in Japan. But, thanks to the experience I had in Football BC, I realized what I have been doing is exactly right on track. Therefore, I will believe in myself this year.

 

2.      Take initiative and challenge myself to make my dreams come true.

 

This is one of most difficult things for everybody to do because people do not want to take any risks, make mistakes and get involved in difficult situations and they try to find an easier way. But, I will try to take on challenges positively and not always look for someone’s approval or consent. That’s because I learned that trying something is better than not trying even if I don’t get the results I want.

 

3.      Get over 950 out of 990 on TOEIC

(An English language test designed specifically to measure the everyday English skills of people working in an international environment)

 

This examination is highly respected in recruiting and promoting by international companies located in Japan. If I get the score I want, I can prove to them the efforts I have put in as well as my strong English skills because the percentage of people who get over 950 is less than five percent. I understand it’s easier said than done but I swear I will put my money where my mouth is.

 

So, at this point, you must be wondering why I am writing a new blog. I want to announce that I am delighted to come back to Football BC as a special assistant for this month. So, officially, I am not intern Luke anymore. Maybe I need a new title. Any thoughts?

 

The biggest reason I have this change to work here again even after I finished my contract is because I feel I demonstrated my passion and skills to my supervisor, Daniel. Some people might give up living out their dreams because they don’t feel they are properly rewarded or learn enough even though they work hard. In my opinion, as long as you do your best, someone will definitely notice your efforts sooner or later and this is how you get opportunities. So, please keep it in mind “The only way to fail is to give up.”

 

One important difference between a job and an internship is that an internship is mainly focused on learning the professional skills and experience necessary to work in a specific role that will prepare you for full-time employment at a future company. In addition, the intern experience is all about learning and training under the supervision of professionals in the field, receiving feedback and constructive criticism along the way. On the other hand, a job may offer a short training period but will typically require you to work independently and to meet deadlines while avoiding mistakes. If you cannot do so, you may be terminated. So, I need to go the extra mile and make efforts above and behind the call of duty because I have more responsibilities than before. However, I am extremely excited to enhance not only my English skills, but also my business skills to be a competent individual.

 

I really appreciate Football BC being interested in bringing me back and evaluating my skills. I would like to show my appreciation by living up to their expectations while keeping in mind that I learned a lot from it when I was an intern. I believe with my skills and drive, I will be an indispensable team member at Football BC.

 

I will be a staff member at the 2016 High Roller Football Showdown in Las Vegas next week as a crew to support TEAM BC members. So, I look forward to sharing the experience with you. I hope you continue to read my blog from now. Have a wonderful day.

 

 

Into the end zone

I can’t believe it. This is my final blog as an intern. I never pictured this day coming when I started three months ago.

 

First of all, I want to express my thanks to everyone who read my blog so far. Without you, I would not have felt so motivated to write this blog and to make it enjoyable to read.

 

As this is my last blog, I thought this would be a good time to do some reflection. I would like to look back and describe the five most memorable experiences I have had since I joined Football BC.

5. Kelowna trip

 

 

This was my first business trip far from Vancouver. Of course, I was excited to watch the Okanagan Sun become BCFC champions after a 54-0 shutout win over the Vancouver Island Raiders at the Apple Bowl on October 25. However, the reason why I consider this a top-five moment is because I felt it was a turning point in my internship. It allowed me to spend more time with my supervisor, Daniel, which gave me an opportunity to talk with him not only about work matters but also get his advice on how to be a professional working Canada. I also got to learn about his background and also make small talk. I must say the experience helped me build a great relationship with Daniel. I clearly remember my friends said if they were in my shoes, they might decline the business trip because it would be so challenging to communicate with a native English speaker for a long time because they might get frustrated at the language barrier. When I heard their opinion, I realized that I had a completely different thought process in terms of studying English because I was dying to going there with Daniel to challenge myself. From my experience, the best way to speak English efficiently is that we try not to speak our own language as much as we can and enjoy talking with native English speakers positively without being afraid of making mistakes. This attitude not only helps you persuade native English speakers to understand your great efforts, but also makes you different from other learners. I always keep that in mind. As a result, I have been improving my English little by little.

 

4. UBC games

 

 

As you know, UBC was to become the 2015 Vanier Cup Champion for the first time since 1997, which means UBC is the strongest team among all Canadian Universities. Before that outstanding achievement, I watched the UBC Thunderbirds’ games at UBC twice, which was an experience I treasured. It seemed that few people expected UBC to win the championship at that time because UBC’s record in the regular season was not so great compared to every team UBC beat throughout the playoffs. However, in the end, UBC was the best team. This is a great example of how the future is unpredictable.

 

When I made up my mind to become a firefighter, most of my friends did not expect me to pass the examination because of the highly competitive rate. But I did it. In addition, when I started to study English three years ago, I could not speak English at all. So, people assumed what I was doing at the time was a waste of time and money. But I can say I am getting to speak English much better than other Japanese people right now. From the UBC games, I learned that the future depends on what you do in the present. So, even if someone says to me it is impossible to achieve goals, I won’t give up.

 

3. BC Place

 

Thanks to Football BC, I was able to go to BC Place three times as a worker. This experience had a great influence on me because I felt like I contributed to Football BC as a photographer and grew as a business person due to the professional sports environment, which was exactly what I was looking for. In addition, I learned what an appropriate attitude was in order to work in a professional sports field like BC Place.

 

For example, everybody I met in BC Place was sophisticated and tried not to make even one mistake. Whenever I stepped onto the field, I was asked my title and position. If I had not learned how to communicate people tactfully from Daniel and Gastown Business College, I might have been denied access. I think I can work in any international sports management field with a professional approach because of this unforgettable opportunity.

 

2. Business trip to Kamloops

 

When I look back on the trip, I really appreciate Canadian people’s kindness. I met a lot of people who helped me to succeed in my business trip. In particular, I cannot say thank you enough to Brian Olthuis, a legendary football coach and a Football BC executive member because he not only invited me to stay in his home overnight but also introduced a lot of his friends to me which helped my work go smoothly. He also took me to my very first hockey game in Canada, which is something I will never forget. Thanks to this experience, I learned how to make a great first impression and how to break the ice in order to build a great relationship after that.

 

1.  Interviews with Michael Calvert and Masaki Kawanami

 

I am so honored that I was able to interview two skilled high school football players. When it comes to Michael, he is my favorite and the most skilled player I have encountered. He is also the most patient individual I have ever met among high school players. Without him and the experience from that first interview, I would not have had the confidence to interview Masaki later on. Thank you, Michael.

 

As for Masaki Kawanami, he overwhelmed me because he is not only an amazing football player chosen as an all-star member, but a tactful communicator in English even though he is still so young. I was able to be motivated to work hard and make his interview sound great thanks to his passion and enthusiasm. Even after we go back to Japan, I would like to keep in touch with him to know what the future holds for him. Thank you, Masaki.

 

Finally, I would like to say thank you to Football BC because of the very precious opportunity they gave me for three months. It was especially great to work with my previous coworker and former intern in Leo, a great Japanese interviewer and colleague in Michiko, and my role model, Daniel. (And of course everybody who gave me a hand throughout my practicum). I promise I will take full advantage of every skill I have learned to contribute to my future career. I believe I can do it as long as I keep in mind my motto “All my efforts will pay off as long as I do my best”. Thank you so much for reading my blog every day. I hope you all were able to gain something positive from doing so.

 

I wish you all the best in the future and I will keep my fingers crossed that I will hopefully be able to work with football again one day.