Hi, I'm Ella Lindrea. I am 16 and undertook work experience at YO Bendigo. I went in knowing I had an interest in community service and that I wanted to help the community in some aspect, especially young people. I quickly became interested in the media aspect, event promotion and found it very easy to engage in the work with the staff, as the team at YO Bendigo is truly incredible. They are so welcoming, friendly, and passionate about what they do.

During the week I learnt how to use Mailchimp and certain rules and guidelines that need to be followed when using logos on posters. I wrote articles and did some planning for socials before I went out to La Trobe University for a pride market and flag raising, which was amazing to be a part of. Unfortunately, I was not in the office on Wednesday, instead I was privileged enough to go see the new law courts but got back into the swing of it on Thursday of which I wrote articles for Ambedo and did some work for socials. On Friday I learnt how to publish articles and fixed up my resume.

My takeaway from this experience is knowing a little bit more about myself and my interests for my career pathway. Even if you do have an interest or a hobby that you really enjoy there’s always a way you can incorporate that into the job you do. If you want something bad enough and you are willing to put in the work, then anything is possible and can be achieved.

My advice to anyone who is unsure about the future and what it may look like for them or even what work experience is like; is don’t stress about it, focus on the present, the future is still unknown, and nothing is promised and or guaranteed yet. Most likely you are still in school, you do not need to have your entire life planned out while you are still a teenager or a young person, you've got plenty of time to figure it all out.

I believe work experience is a great opportunity to observe and learn more about a career and industry but also yourself. You should put yourself out there even if you are unsure. You could either find something you are passionate about and want to explore more of or realise that it's not actually the pathway for you, which is completely normal too. It is all a learning experience, a bit of trial and error, but in the long run it will help you with your career pathway and more importantly teach you more about yourself.