What does it mean to be a StudioLab consultant?

I hate it when people ask me where I work. Not because I do not love my job – I do – but because there is no easy way to explain the wonderful world that is the StudioLab or the challenging but rewarding job of being a consultant.

For me, the StudioLab is more than Furman’s writing and multimedia center where students can get help with video projects or papers. (Although, this is typically how I explain my job to those who ask what I do.) The SL is a place of comfort and imagination. You can run through our doors scared, frantic and looking for a savior or you could come in excited and ready to tackle a new task and stretch some creative muscle. That being said, my job is about more than being able to edit a paper or instruct someone on navigating an Adobe program. It is also about having the ability to be comforting but direct, creative but focused, organized but open to the chaos exploration of new territory can bring. What’s more, is that it is a job where the employee gets just as much out of the interaction as the client.

So, in a nutshell, my job cannot be explained in a nutshell. It is something that must be experienced in order to get the full effect. The first time I experienced the magnitude of the power and influence being a StudioLab consultant can bring, I was leading a class demonstration.

Now, there are two things you must know about me in order to share in this overwhelming experience. The first is that at times I can be painfully shy or anxious. Such times include being asked to speak in front of a room full of people. The second piece of information you need to know is that I am very much a people pleaser/perfectionist. When someone comes down to the StudioLab, I do my best to ensure they get the help they need (even if that means sitting through an hour and a half long writing consultation). It pains me to think I would have to send someone away with a half-done paper or a lost video. This puts more pressure on me as a consultant, but the payoff of happy, excited, and return clients and a boost in self-confidence is worth it.

OK, back to the story.

It was sophomore year and my first semester as a StudioLab consultant. We were, perhaps, 6 weeks into the semester and up until this point all the new consultants had been tag teaming clients with senior consultants. This particular morning, however, I was scheduled to give a class a multimedia tutorial on my own. (We were either working with Premiere Pro or the Furman Wiki. Time has clouded my knowledge of which of the two it was.) I felt nervous, overwhelmed and wholly unprepared. Diane, who is the champion of all things positive and energetic, was MY champion that day and assured me things would be alright; I just needed to calm down and have faith in my abilities. So I did. I channeled all my anxiety into my desire to give the class the tools they needed to navigate the program, and the end result was success. I felt empowered and the class felt prepared. Both client and consultant benefitted from the interaction. THIS is what makes my job so special. That I can be enriched while at the same time enriching someone else’s work (or day) is wonderful. It is  even more amazing when I consider the fact that my own faults and insecurities can aid me in my work as it can drive me to do my best for others and also enable me to relate to my peers, eliminating a power dynamic that could be discouraging to potential clients.

In light of all this, the life of the SL consultant seems to be the best of both worlds. We are professional and equipped enough to be looked to for help and guidance, but casual and free enough to be relatable and comforting. Perhaps, it is a fine line to walk, but I enjoy doing so.