Dan's story

Summary:

Dan's story tracks his journey through CYN from a volunteer at Y4Y to now having his own event management company and being a CYN Trustee - truly inspirational.

"CYN has allowed me to excel as a young person, meeting new people, learning new skills, invaluable experiences and gaining direction in my future career."  Dan

How Dan got involved:

Dan initially got involved with Youth For Youth as a photographer back in 2008.  He heard about the Main Event happening in his area and came down to photograph the stage going up and the event over 4 days.  From then he was hooked.  He’d always had an interest in stage and event management and was part of the technical crew at his school (John Cabot Academy). But, Youth For Youth gave him the opportunity to take his interest a step further.  The Main Event was bigger, more technically challenging and higher profile than anything he’d done before. Most importantly, the project was youth led, which gave Dan the opportunity to develop his skills in a way that school simply couldn’t do.  

What Dan did at CYN:

Dan’s talents lie in the technical and procedural elements of event management and he soon made sure all the health and safety procedures, event management and volunteer induction were up to scratch.  He wrote a 30 page event manual and worked with CYN staff to ensure all aspects of the event were compliant.  This was no easy task as most of the other young people in the group were more interested in the performance and showcase the event provided and were resistant to the important messages about organisation.

Dan worked on 3 Main Event festivals and the subsequent PREMIX monthly music events and led the group for over a year.

What Dan achieved:

Dan talked about what he learned from Youth For Youth, particularly gaining in confidence, being calm under pressure and dealing with crises when they arose.  He has learned more about teamwork and team management too.

As important, he gained real insight into how event industry works and the skills needed.  Particularly planning and process and budgeting but also gaining contacts and a network that has led to paid work in the events industry.

Dan’s future:

Dan became clearer about his career path.  Youth for Youth broadened his ideas and opened up a range of possibilities he had not encountered before.  He has gone on to complete a university course in event management and now has paid work in the industry.  He is also a Trustee of the Creative Youth Network.

Find out more about Youth For Youth