Though it may seem an obvious statement, there’s a considerable difference between learning on the books and learning by doing. Leaving the school environment and entering the one of work is certainly one of the main passageways to this new kind of education.
When I arrived here in Budapest for my internship I knew very little about social media and their management. Of course, as a digital native, I am an Instagram user and I like to share content and photos on Facebook, but managing an institutional profile is something completely different: there are rules on the kind of content to be posted and shared, on the timing, on the choice of the general tone of the page and so on. And even though there are loads on handbooks on the subject (quite a trend in the latest years, since is the new frontier for enterprises and organisations’ marketing), it’s a completely different story to put them into practice. This process is certainly not simple and you make a load of mistakes out of your inexperience but, in some way, these are useful, since they will help you with your future work.
The same goes for my work with the production of media content, such as photos, videos and articles. Without any background experience in the field, I found myself strolling down the Danube Promenade, trying to catch the perfect gleam of light to hit the buildings or the exact moment the tram passes by the Chain Bridge to take a poetical and inspiring photograph. Or, again, struggling with the cloudy weather and the grim light to portrait bridges and statues. Not to mention recording videos or interviews: this presupposes a whole new level of difficulty, given the fact that I have never used a camcorder nor I planned any kind of video activity – ranging from screenplay writing to actually recording. Despite this, I am enjoying this new creative process and I appreciate the fact that I am learning something new, which maybe will come useful in the future
Finally, another thing that accounts for my experience of “learning by doing” is the application of my – really poor – Hungarian skills at the marketplace, to buy fruits and vegetables mostly. That is also part of the whole experience: being a little bit stubborn and determinate to make it on your own (because, you know, you are a grown-up person) you end up in the market trying to speak Hungarian with uneven results. Personally, I consider it somehow an adventure and an opportunity to get something new from the environment I live in: starting from the most common and simple words and slowly expanding your vocabulary on almost a daily basis. Of course, I would also strongly recommend to take up a language course. 
Summing up everything, I would say that, though challenging it might be, this process of “learning by doing” is amazing: each day I am discovering new things and practices, and I am making a lot of effort to do my best and improve my skills. And I know that, over time, the results will come and that the effort will pay off.
This post was written by Silvia Buia
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