Carl Rivera ’13 – Wouldn’t it be cool to have a job where every morning you wake up knowing you are going to make a new friend from a different state, country or even continent? Well that’s my job…for the summer at least. Thanks to the Small Business Internship Fund, this summer I am interning for Jason Bridges ’98 at Nantucket Bike Tours in Nantucket, Massachusetts. When I told my friends in the great state of Indiana this exciting news, I received two responses: 1.  “You’re spending the summer on Nantucket Island? That’s awesome! How did you get that?” or 2. “Where’s that?” For those of you who know of Nantucket, need I say more? For those of you who don’t know of this beautiful Island, do some research or take a tour!

Working with Jason has being nothing short of spectacular.  Jason’s enthusiasm and passion for his business has increased my desire to start my own business. Every day we look at QuickBooks to see how we can increase revenue and decrease costs. We are constantly looking for new marketing techniques to increase our visibility from improving the website or our t-shirts to posting a photo on Facebook or creating new rack cards. As a small business, we are constantly brainstorming ways in which NBT can expand. During this internship, Riley Floyd ’13 and I have had the opportunity to work with Jason and Courtney in creating a new segment of NBT, Nantucket Running Tours.

One thing I have learned from Jason is whether it’s posting a comment on Facebook or walking downtown to grab an iced coffee, we are constantly branding ourselves. In a small community like Nantucket or Crawfordsville, it is hard to not be visible. Lending a helping hand or even giving a stranger a smile can go a long way. Throughout the internship, I have been reading Dale Carnegie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” Jason and I have daily discussions about our past experiences with what Carnegie presents and also how we can practice these tools in our tours. Every tour is different. That means, as a guide, we must be aware of facial expressions, body language, and different clues on how the person is feeling and what interests them. Some clients are huge history buffs and want all the information I can give them while some love taking pictures and just want to enjoy some company. Our goal as a guide is to give each client the best experience he/she can have on Nantucket and that experience is different for everyone.

This internship has given me a great opportunity to learn how to properly run a small business, network, and adapt to different people. Every day, I increase my knowledge of business, meet new enthusiastic people, and ride my bike…all on Nantucket Island. Not bad for a summer internship, huh?

Carl Rivera ‘13