-: With the specific job that I have
and then the international development community,
it's all about your relationships.
It's all about your communication skills
and how you talk about what you do and who you talk to.
And so from the international development perspective,
it's a pretty small community.
It is global,
but once you start working in Washington,
you see that everybody has worked for everybody
and everybody knows everybody,
and you never wanna burn a bridge.
And so I think that's something
really important to remember,
especially when you're first starting off your career.
It can be frustrating when you come into entry level jobs
and you think, I wanna do more.
I wanna be successful.
And maybe you step on some toes.
Maybe you push too hard too quickly.
But don't forget that these people are always
gonna be in that community with you,
so keep that in mind.
I think the project management aspect
is something that a lot of students,
if you're looking into a career in global development,
is something that you don't think about.
That's not something that you teach.
You might have a theoretical understanding of development,
but really those hands-on technical skills,
that program management aspect is something
you really have to learn in the field
and really comes through working on these projects,
internships, volunteer opportunities abroad.
Finding a mentor.
This was something that I wish
someone had told me as a student,
as well, is find a mentor,
find somebody at work who will be your biggest advocate.
The only reason I got to travel to India
was because my mentor was running the project and she said,
"You know, I want Katrina to be here for this.
"I want her to be a part of this experience."
And unless you develop
those really critical relationships with mentors,
people who are more senior than you,
your relationship with your peers are very important,
but really finding mentors who will stick up for you,
who will make sure that you get
those professional opportunities,
if you work hard, that that's what's gonna
really enable you to be successful.