From the Court to the Cubicle: Part 1

I recently started an internship with EYA, a real estate development company that specializes in urban development in the Washington, D.C area. Real estate development has always been an interest of mine; being a native Washingtonian and seeing how neighborhoods are constantly changing for the better.

A few developments that sparked my interest were located in Columbia Heights, the H Street Corridor, the Southwest Waterfront and more recently over in Brookland.

Brookland is a neighborhood that EYA has invested in by bringing Chancellor�s Row, a new townhome community just minutes away from Brookland�s metro station and ABDO�s new retail town center. That may have sounded like a shameless plug, but to a point it was. I have really bought into what this company aims to do, which is to bring sustainable, high quality living to urban areas that encourages smart growth in convenient locations. Their motto �life within walking distance�, attests to the company�s desire to be in locations where residents can easily access public transportation, retail, and other amenities.

Long gone are the days where people want to start a family and move to the suburbs. Instead the suburbs have now come to the city.

Now this transition �From the Court to the Cubicle�, surprisingly, has not been the easiest. Mind you, I�ve had to make many transitions in my life. Whether it was the transition from college to the WNBA or from the WNBA to living in a foreign country, I have been put in some very trying situations. But none as trying as figuring out how to use a copy machine or do a mail merger. God forbid they ask me to send a fax! A mail merger? What in the world is that?

I was given the task of creating a mail merger and printing the addresses on envelopes. Sounds pretty simple, doesn�t it? Now factor in loading envelopes into a copy machine and instructing the copy machine to print those addresses on them. Who even knew that was possible! Long story short, I went back and forth from my cube to the copy room about 6 times trying to get it right. I actually laughed at myself while all of this was going on and it was very entertaining.

Our human resources administrator Nancy said, �You�re familiar with Outlook right?" With a look of confusion I hesitantly respond saying �um not really!� Gmail, Yahoo, and even AOL, I have that down. I can send an email, reply to emails, the whole nine, but using Outlook, checking and setting up a calendar, in which I must say has its share of meetings scheduled, accepting and approving things are all foreign to me. I can definitely say that I already have a greater appreciation for those who do administrative work. It�s not as simple as it looks.

For now, I�ll stick to making baskets instead of making copies. Either way, this experience has been nothing but amazing to say the least. Already, I�ve sat in on city council hearings, been in meetings with executives, and learned different marketing approaches. Bob Youngentob has given me a great opportunity and I only hope to continue to learn more about the business of real estate development. In my short time here, I want to gain a better sense of exactly what I�d like to do after my basketball career. To be working with some of the best in the business, I am certain that I will come out with a better understanding of what it takes to be the best in a field entirely different from the one I�m coming from. Better yet, next week maybe I�ll learn how to answer the phones.