I’ve lived downtown for 85 days now.  12 weeks, and 1 day of feeling like I’m living in a North Face add; “Never Stop Exploring” ringing in my ears as my motto.  As a Challenge Detroit fellow, I’ve been given an opportunity to “live, work, play, give, and lead” within the city of Detroit for one glorious year.  85 days in, I’m learning that said year passes more quickly than I could have ever imagined.

Sitting down to write my first blog post, it crossed my mind to write a review of one of the restaurants I’ve tasted so far (date night? take her to Seva and sit outside!  Catching a relaxing dinner and drinks with friends?  Green Dot Stables is your spot!  Parents coming to the city to take you to dinner?  Do yourself a favor, suggest Roast.  Go for a long run on the River Front on Sunday morning and need to satiate your undying hunger?  Rush over to Harmonie Gardens for brunch.), but then I realized I could never pick just one to feature.  It felt more important to me, however, to share a lesson I’ve learned.  Don’t get me wrong, I love food, and I adore trying new restaurants in the 48226, but anyone could help you find a good nosh.  Not everyone could share with you the incredible importance of humility.

Humility has remained a buzzword for me ever since the Challenge Detroit interview trip in May 2013.  During our group interview session, Shelley Danner, Challenger Detroit’s Program Director, sent a question my way that caught me off guard.  I don’t remember the exact phrasing, but it was something along the lines of “if you are chosen as a fellow, and you begin to be viewed as a leader within the community, how will you stay humble?”  Knees trembling, I repeatedly awkwardly tucked and re-tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear, I offered a weak smile, and an even weaker response.  I managed to string together promises of remembering the process of becoming a fellow, and remembering my path to success, with all its ups and downs, and remembering how nervous I was in that very moment.  My mediocre at best answer and the rest of the interview trip behind me, the idea of humility stuck in my mind.

Of course, I was chosen as a fellow.  I don’t believe I’m anywhere near being seen as a leader in the community, but still, I’ve already eaten a couple of shares of humble pie.  To begin, my job at my host company thus far has consisted of tasks I originally deemed monotonous and robotic.  I was charged with data entry, scheduling meetings, and other various to-do’s I considered menial and below me.  During a leadership Friday, Deirdre Greene Groves, the Executive Director of Challenge Detroit, shared with us a story about one of her first jobs.  Day in and day out she literally found herself locked inside of a construction trailer filing.  She lamented to her mother, and her mother said to her “no matter what task you are assigned, be the best at that task.  If you are a filer, be the best filer they’ve ever seen.  Even if they ask you to sweep the construction site, take the broom, and be the best sweeper they’ve ever seen.”  These words resonated with me; they were the kick in the pants I needed.  Humility popped into my mind once again.  Who cares if I was making spreadsheets?  I was going to make the best spreadsheets my company had ever seen.   As a brand new employee, it was up to me to toot my own horn.  I had to prove myself.  I had to show them what I was capable of.  I had to earn my keep, and I had to show them what I was made of.  I wanted to be known as a hard worker who oozed positivity, determination, and integrity.  My goal for this month: be the best data enterer, meeting scheduler, and menial task completer ANYONE has ever seen.

My second (heaping) serving of humble pie came while providing hands-on support for the Detroit Design Festival (DDF).  On Fridays, the fellows come together to work on “Challenges” within the community.  Normally our challenges are five weeks in duration, and typically they involve creative collaboration and brain-power.  For our warm-up challenge, however, we were rolling up our sleeves and helping with setup for the DDF.  Finding myself in an abandoned lot picking up trash, at first I was put off.  What was I doing there?  I was a young professional.  I had an office chair to occupy, lukewarm coffee to guzzle, as well as data to enter and meetings to schedule!  I should not be surrounded, literally, by this filth, I should be mindlessly typing into a spreadsheet!  I’m not sure exactly what shifted in my mind, but as I walked towards the dumpster to empty my hands and go back to grab another armful of debris, I looked around me, and there it was again, humility.  There were three other fellows cleaning out the lot with me, and there were 28 other fellows dispersed along Livernois working on other similar projects.  This is the stuff that will revitalize Detroit, and we are the people who will do it.  Detroit won’t rise again from the ashes if all of its young, bright, professionals are content with drinking their over-priced cups of mocha-choca-frappa-shoulda-donated-this-5dollars-and-drank-the-stuff-in-the-office.  Detroit needs us to roll up our sleeves and clean its lots.  It needs us to re-finish its store fronts, to mow its lawns, to scrub its sidewalks.  Detroit needs us, and it needs all of us.  It doesn’t just need our brain power, it needs our man power too.

Fellows beautifying Livernois!