Intern’s Diary: Speaking Of First Impressions, My Time So Far At HumAngle
As narrated by multimedia and reporting intern Rolake Ogunfeitimi, who on LinkedIn describes herself as “an ardent creative and content writer with a biased interest in the field of Communications” and on Instagram brags about smiling for a living.
I read somewhere that the first day of work in a new organisation is usually one of the most awkward moments in a person’s life — the new faces, new environment, and you have to introduce yourself to everybody. These can be scary.
I am not going to lie that my first day at HumAngle was void of that awkwardness. Heck, it wasn’t. But before I give you the full rundown, let’s retrace our steps real quick.
Hi, my name is Rolake Ogunfeitimi, one of the new interns at HumAngle Media.
Now that I have made your acquaintance, it’s only ideal to begin my story. Before my employment date, I had visited the old office twice. And just like yesterday, I remember my first encounter with the Managing Editor, Ms Hauwa Shaffii Nuhu. She received me like she had known me before. The kindness in her tone was palpable, and right there, I knew this was home.
“We run a hybrid work culture here at HumAngle. All employees are required to be at the office three days a week, Mondays and Wednesdays being compulsory, and work remotely twice a week,” she informed me.
Well, guess what? Mandatory work from the office has recently been limited to two days, because of concerns regarding the hike in fuel and transportation prices. Can any working environment get healthier than this?
I will not fail to mention the healthy relationship HumAngle has with African Literature. The creatively structured bookshelf [read more about that here] caught my eye as I walked towards one of the offices for documentation. My eyes caught the titles of my favourite authors: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Ayobami Adebayo, and Chinua Achebe. I couldn’t stop telling my close friends how excited I was to work where I would simultaneously learn and indulge in my hobby of reading.
Foreshadowing my first week at work, I was invited to join the book club. That’s not all, I didn’t have a copy of the book of the month, but Ms Hauwa lent me hers to read. Tell me, what can be better than this? (I’m waiting.)
Prior to my first day, I received a message that HumAngle had moved to a new location. While struggling to locate the office, I stumbled on Mr Akila Jibrin.
“Are you going to HumAngle?” he asked me.
“How would you have guessed, sir?” I responded.
“You look like someone that would work at HumAngle,” he shrugged. “Come with me; I’ll show you the way.”
I arrived at the office and I was in awe of the beauty that I beheld. For a minute, I felt like I was sucked into a tornado of astonishing ambience. The old office was beautiful, but it was nothing compared to this new place. The choice of colour, designs, structure, and everything seemed to have been thoughtfully planned.
While the staff welcomed themselves into the new place, I took time to embrace the environment and mentally calculate the resources that must have been invested towards this project.
I met Ms Hauwa, who gladly introduced me to some employees, and I was in constant awe of how accommodating they were. I have worked in a corporate space before, but things are pleasantly different at HumAngle.
I met Khadijat Ibrahim, the head of Human Resources and Admin, that week. She walked up to me, calling my name, and I instantly felt seen. That was my first contact with her, and for her to have recognised me without introducing myself showed me how valued I am at HumAngle.
Also, I was given a welcome package — a goody bag that contained some branded HumAngle items. I won’t tell you its content because I am now a journalist, and I must keep things private. 😉
The following week, Khadijat facilitated an orientation programme for new interns, to educate us on employee conduct. This was where I realised that at HumAngle, they take work seriously, but also prioritise the welfare of staff — this speaks a lot about the name and vision of the company.
I got acquainted with fellow new interns, especially Halima, who has easily become my work buddy, and Samir, who has kindly offered to teach me Hausa for free.
“When I say Ina Kwana, you should reply with Lafia or Ina Lafia,” Samir said in my Hausa 101 class.
I am writing this article in my third week, and I am still awed by the conducive working environment. I am actively learning from the staff here, especially from Ms Hauwa — who takes her precious time to supervise and direct me on tasks; Tony and Seun — who run the multimedia department and always carry me along in video production; Akila — who greets me every day with a warm smile and a hot cup of chocolate; and Usman Abba Zanna — who keeps reminding me of the great potential he sees in me, reassuring me that HumAngle provides the best opportunity to feed that potential.
Flashback to my first few working hours at HumAngle. Yes, it felt very awkward. But it vanished the moment I realised that I made the best choice to intern here.
HumAngle is home.
Edited by: ‘Kunle Adebajo & Hauwa Shaffii Nuhu.
