On this particular Saturday, I woke up to a strange quiet. Perhaps it’s not strange to everyone, but after just 27 days in the city, quiet is strange to me. I travelled home for the 4th of July, taking advantage of the beautiful weather on the beaches of Cape Cod with friends and family. Despite the ocean and the sand, I already miss the subways and the sidewalks of the city. I never thought I would prefer waking up to honking horns and car breaks over birds and the footfalls of morning runners, but I do. When I went home I realized that, while it is nice to catch a break and relax, the pace of New York City is intoxicating and invigorating. Tuesday morning, I will be catching a 4am train back to the city; nothing like New York City’s rise and grind (if you don’t believe me, check New York City’s Snapchat geofilter from 5-9am). Yet, while it is a grind, I know waking up will be easy and I will be ready to return.
Looking back, it is amazing to see just how much we have accomplished through MSBA in only 27 days. We have heard from an astounding number of renowned speakers, traveled to the headquarters of companies such as NBC Sports, the NFL and Madison Square Garden and completed four weeks of demanding internships. Moreover, we have traveled to smaller companies such as Glideslope, Leverage Agency and other agencies that work tirelessly, behind the scenes, to shape the public perception of sports. Most importantly to me, by Day 27 I have also had the opportunity to individually meet with each member of my Mentorship Collective (Riche Leveille of Cogent Entertainment Marketing, David Picioski of FanDuel and Julia Cheney of CAA Sports). Each meeting took far longer than the 30 minutes I had blocked off in my schedule. The large field trips in combination with these small meetings have taught me invaluable lessons. What I could not pick up from a tour has been answered by a speaker. What I could not pick up from a speaker has been answered by my Mentorship Collective, all of whom are amazing and knowledgeable in their own field.
On top of all of this have come the friendships. You quickly become close to someone when you are literally squished together every morning for 20 minutes on the subway, or when you and your internship companion get lost and break the security gate on the first day of work (yes Ryan I am talking about you). Even aside from the people I have interned with, we have all grown close through brunches and dinners (typically post-work dinners when we all shove our faces with wings and burgers). These friendships are of the utmost importance, and as we continue down this career path I know most of us won’t drift too far from one another. For as long as we are in this industry, we will be surrounded by fellow MSBA participants and for that I will always be grateful. So thank you Lorne and Bailey for selecting such a cohesive group of individuals; it is not only my current class that I have grown close with, but the classes before me and hopefully the classes behind me as well. I know the friendships I am making with my MSBA 2016 classmates and my Mentorship Collective will last a lifetime.
Until Tuesday at 4am NYC,
Lexi Quirk