Doing what you love

Vivek Ramanarayanan shares his experience of his time at Pro Sport Development.

Having just finished my undergraduate studies, I was spoiled for choices. With so many career opportunities in front of me, one thing was always clear in my mind and that was to work in the sports industry in India.

This prompted me to look for career opportunities in sport, which led me to Pro Sport Development (PSD). With a sense of excitement and nervousness, I came to Odisha to be a part of an organisation that is making change in developing rural sports.

I was hired as a social media and communications intern as part of the Khel Vikas project. My work involved developing strategies along this line and presenting information about all activities in the project according to the programme’s vision and values.

This involved writing articles, social media management and documenting work about our programmes. I also coached the girls’ volleyball team, which was a rewarding experience.

One thing which stood out was the children’s eagerness to learn and their desire to succeed. The amount of commitment shown both by them and the staff was profound. The six months I spent working on the project with colleagues sharing the same energy and drive in sync with the athletes enthusiasm, made it a one of a kind experience.

Apart from developing my skills and experiences, I had the opportunity to learn things that one would not learn in a big city. Landing my first job and being away from home for the first time, it was a great learning curve for me.

It enabled me to handle different tasks, manage them efficiently and achieve goals effectively. I thank all the PSD staff for giving me the platform to be part of such an incredible journey. Being part of developing sports in rural communities was always one of my goals and now I can proudly say that I have done this with PSD.