The Armchair Economist’s Apprenticeship is a weekly series documenting my progress throughout my journey in the apprenticeship module of the Praxis program. I’m currently a market research analyst apprentice for a non-profit (my position is subject to change depending on the needs of my employer). At the request of my boss, I’ll be keeping the details of my employer under wraps for the time being.
Week 9: June 29, 2020 – July 3, 2020
TL;DR Interesting tidbits about what my market research uncovered and true facts about pelicans.
What I’m Learning:
One cool thing I learned at work last week:
Last week I started interviewing candidates for a marketing research study and discovered several cool things.
Twitter is a surprising and excellent source to find mentors despite its notorious reputation for being one of the most toxic social media platforms.
Think about it, Twitter has produced mini cults of personality and not just bad ones either but inspiring entrepreneurs and well-read academics. It’s not just a platform for who can screech the loudest about their polarizing politics.
The key to turning Twitter into an intellectual and networking platform, like LinkedIn, is quite simple. Tailor and filter who you follow, meaning it’s time to unfollow those who don’t contribute to your growth and start following accounts that are actively giving advice or contributing constructively in some way.
I’m sorry to say that overconsumption of memes won’t do you much favor, it’s like eating too much junk food.
This new feed could be spiritual guidance, learning new recipes, learning your favorite academic subject from top professors around the world, etc.
If you’re looking for a business mentor or someone you want to model yourself after, find someone and don’t be afraid to reach out to them. Ask, “I’m in X situation/position, how do I get to where you are and what advice would you give me?”
One cool thing I learned outside of work last week:
I’m not sure if this would qualify as a cool thing but it’s rather terrifying and downright freaky.
Get some eye-bleach ready because if I had to see it so do you. It would be rather selfish of me to keep this knowledge to myself.
I came across this post, on Instagram, of a shoebill and pelicans seemingly vomiting their spines to cool themselves. You’re welcome.
But wait! This isn’t entirely true. These birds are actually yawning, not cooling themselves off.
This article from IFL Science! debunked the meme shown above.
“What these images are actually showing are some, still very freaky, yawns that force the birds’ lower, soft-tissue beak over their neck, giving the appearance of a spine due to the flesh color of the inner beak. Sometimes pelicans will also stretch their heads up and seemingly push their skulls through the same part of the beak.”
Rachel Funnel, writer for IFL Science!
I fact checked the scientist, Dr. Dani Rabaiotti, that the writer sourced and it checks out. Here is a video of a yawning pelican in action.
What I’m Creating:
One example of how I created value at work last week:
I’m continuing to make progress on my marketing research project by reaching out to experienced and inexperienced entrepreneurs. The purpose of the research is to hear their journey, needs, and how they became successful.
After each interview, I recorded my results into my work document that’s shared with my team.
What project I’m currently working on at my BP:
Marketing research and finding out the motivations, inspirations, needs, and wants of our core target.
What I’m doing to become a better version of myself overall:
I’m brainstorming ways to create value for my coworkers by talking to my Discover Praxis network and letting ideas simmer.
This will be a continuous self-improvement process, one that I recommend you try. Talk to people smarter than you and let their ideas sink into your brain. This helps form new ideas and can solve hurdles you’re facing at work. It also puts you into a creation mindset and with enough practice you can become a one-person idea machine that’s valuable to your peers.
Basically, this concept is similar to rubber duck debugging. It’s a process that programmers are familiar with when faced with a creative block. Programmers use a rubber ducky as a sounding board.