The whole point of interning is to eventually get a "real" job. And in my case, a real job that ends once a week with a nice paycheck. But interning alone doesn't get you that job, and I'm finding I have to work even harder just to be considered for a job as I did when I was interning. I've really had to step my game up.
Last week I went to a career services counselor on campus at my school. Not because I thought they would tell me something I didn't know, but just so no one could tell me I didn't get a job because I never went to these people. The counselor was really nice, very encouraging, and told me a bunch of stuff I already knew. She did, however, reinforce to me that I am on the right track in all my preparatory work.
So what prep work have I been doing you ask?
Step 1? I've been a Facebook lurker lately. Checking people's statuses, checking their work info, and looking for any small reason to send them a message or write on their wall. Just to remind them that I'm still here, and will continue to be here, looking for a job. Some of them I get to ask things like "How did you get to where you're at in the industry now?" They eat that up with a spoon because who doesn't love to talk about themselves? Sometimes all I can get out of them is a "how's school?" and I turn that into a "Well, I'm graduating in a few months and I'm just really eager to get back to NY once I find a job." I'm sending e-mails and reconnecting with old bosses wherever I can contact them for the same reasons.
Step 2? I've stepped my Linkedin profile game up, making sure all the information on there is current and that I add all my contacts. I can't say I believe whole heartedly that this will work but like the career services counselor, I don't want anyone telling me what I should have done when its 6 months from now and I'm still jobless.
Step 3? I'm a big time nerd, but I've even stepped my nerd game up. I'm constantly reading industry news, Hip-Hop news, trade magazines; anything I can get my hands on that will make me more knowledgeable than the next person. Once a week I buy the newest issue of Billboard magazine and read it cover to cover, even jotting down some of the chart positions so that I'll remember them. You have to be well rounded, so not only that, but I've been watching CNN whenever I can think to do so. I do this just in case some type of current event topic comes up with a prospective employer, I can offer something to the conversation.
Step 4? I'm becoming a better me. I'm eating better, I'm exercising more (ever since my break-up with the gym, its been tough!), and I'm trying to be open to new ideas and people. So I'm still not so good with the whole "I love sleep" thing, but I'm trying! I've accepted the fact that I am, and always will be, a work in progress.
Step 5? I haven't gotten to step 5 yet, but I've gathered a list of, what I hope will be great, websites for creative jobs and ones of jobs in the entertainment field. Its a little too early to start applying to jobs just yet, but when I do start using them, I'll be sure to post the good ones here.
And there you have it, 5 ways I've been stepping my game up so that I can become a member of somebody's team and not be waiting on the sidelines the rest of my life.
Hov said it best: "Game. Tight."
Guest Intern is a post written on Intern Chick once a month featuring a different intern sharing their experiences. This month's Guest Intern is Jillian, an intern in the pharmaceuticals industry.
If you have questions about Jillian's experience, you can e-mail internchick.guest@gmail.com or leave a comment on the blog.
I'm a firm believer in "everything happens for a reason." Even when the
most horrible awful things happen, you can still learn from them and
take away some sort of wisdom. I took that mentality in getting my
first and second internships and looking back, it worked out pretty
well.
My freshman year, representatives from a well known pharmaceutical
company came to give an overview to my chemistry class of what chemists
in the pharmaceutical industry actually do day-to-day. I was star
struck even though I had never before given any thought to making
pharmaceuticals. They gave us little first aid kits with the company's
logo to thank us for coming to their talks. I carried mine around with
me for months before displaying it on my dresser at home as a reminder
to work harder than everyone else so that I could maybe work for that
company some day. When I was neck deep in work, staying in on Saturday
nights and missing fun events to write ten page lab reports, it was
hard to not give up, cop out and go have fun. Having that little
reminder to work extra hard for something I really wanted was sometimes
all the push I needed to give that extra ten percent.
I took my first internship honestly because it was the first good
interview I had. Previous interviews were train wrecks of me sputtering
and studdering over my lack of experience and uncertainty of what I
wanted for a career. Hours after my interview, I was offered a position
in the research and development group making can sealant compounds.
Although it seemed like a job so far from anything I would want to do,
I jumped at the chance to accept a job out of fear of not finding
another. Days later I had calls from other, more reputable companies
inviting me to interview which I had to politely decline. After I
finished my first internship, I felt that I had learned not much more
than how to fill out my time sheet and make a tasty cup of coffee, and
that the position would not help advance my career at all. Although I
had a fun six months where worked with awesome people and was rarely
without some work to do, I seriously regretted taking that internship
so quickly.
When it came time to find my second internship, I promised myself to
not settle. I was picky about where I applied to, and accepted
interviews with. As time was running out and all my friends were
accepting positions, it was nerve racking. I wanted to just settle and
work at yet another internship I wasn't entirely in to when I got a
call from my first aid kit dream company to interview. I interviewed
for two separate jobs and was nervous beyond belief for both of them. I
wore a blue shirt (so not my favorite) because I read somewhere that it
made you look more professional, I was shaking probably the whole time
and concentrating so much on the proper place to put my hands or way to
sit in my chair, that I can't even tell you what my interviewers were
talking about. I thought I did a miserable job, but maybe enough to get
by so I was blown away when I received a job offer. Although I thought
it was not the job I that was a good fit for me and there were stronger
candidates, I figured whatever, it's the best internship I could have
imagined! I was on cloud nine and celebrated for about three hours.
Then I got a call from HR to knock me back down to earth. They
basically said, we made a mistake, we meant to hire someone else, very
sorry. I was destroyed. It felt like someone ripped my dreams out of my
hands and I couldn't believe it. Shell shocked, it was hard to stick to
my mantra that there was a reason this would happen to me. However, a
couple days later I received a call to come interview for a third
position at the same company. I almost didn't want to even bother, I
was still a little bitter, but luckily I have great friends that talked
me into going in for the third interview. I was only up against one
other candidate, so that made me feel better about my chances. I went
into my final interview more relaxed, wearing my favorite pink shirt,
listening to the interviewers instead of fidgeting and freaking out.
Oddly enough, having the first job offer taken back gave me a weird
confidence. I ended up getting the internship mainly because it
involved a lot of the work I did at the first internship, what are the
chances? I thought that experience would never come in handy but it
turned out a small part of what I did there is what I now focus on at
my second internship. So that six months of goofing around in a lab
that I though would be no help to my resume was actually the boost to
put me miles ahead of the competition, I guess you never can know.
So after two completed internships, as lame as it is, I really
completely believe now more than ever that everything happens for a
reason and that if you work your butt off you can really do anything
you want. Now I see that little first aid kit on my dresser at home and
think about how when I received it I thought it would be the hardest
thing in the world to get an internship at that company. Although I
went a little bit of a round about way, I ended up making that small
dream come true. Now it's on to the big time.
I'm taking an Artist Management class, once a week, 3 hours on a Monday night. Needless to say, its hard to pay attention most nights. But in our last class we talked about an artist staying loyal to a manager throughout their career, even if they can make better money elsewhere. I'm not here to say which is the best choice, but it got me thinking about loyalty in the record industry. How many people actually remain loyal, and how many people run after whatever will make them the most money? This whole thing brought me back to the first person who gave me my first internship, we'll call her Eva*.
I always talk about networking and meeting new people to help you move forward in your career. To me, its equally important to stay loyal to those who've helped you get to where you are. When I came into my interview for what would eventually become my first internship, I was a nervous wreck. My palms were sweaty, my legs were shaking, and I couldn't catch my breath. Eva interviewed me and eventually hired me--I was thrilled, obviously, and remember throwing myself a party that same night. On my first day, Eva left the company and although I never got to know her, I was always thankful for that first meeting and kept her in my heart.
A year later, I got a message from Eva telling me she needed an intern. She told me that she'd heard I did good work at the 1st internship and wanted to bring me on to intern at her new job. I gladly accepted and this time, I actually got to work for her. On my first day she brought me around the entire company, introducing me to everyone and showing me how each department worked. She taught me everything I needed to know and eventually ended up giving me a place to live. I learned so much and met so many people on that internship because of her willingness to teach me. It is, to date, the best experience of my life. When it came time to find my final internship, she helped me as much as she could, asking people she knew if they needed an intern and giving me great recommendations along the way. I ended up finding one first, but she took me on in what eventually became "Internship #2" and paid me out of her own pocket. Something she didn't have to do and something I didn't ask of her, but something I appreciated immensely.
She's always taken care of me and I will always remain loyal to her. Its truly rare to develop a relationship like that within the music industry, and when you do, you have to hold on to it. Tight. I would work for her over anybody else, any day of the week, not because I feel that I am indebted to her, but because she helps me be a better worker. From the very beginning, her generosity has amazed me but I'm grateful all the same. Yes, its true the entertainment business can be a cold and lonely place, but there is good to be found and for that, loyalty will always be high on my list of priorities.
So I moved outta New York, celebrated a few holidays and a birthday, and before I knew it, I was unloading my things into my on-campus apartment. Oh, how I love/hate school. Learning about all kinds of things I will never actually use? Reading textbooks for no reason? Taking notes I'll never study with? Love it. Group projects? Three hour long classes? Students who think they know better than you and the professor? Random, pointless, guest speakers? Hate it. But like I've said again and again, there are always going to be things you don't want to do.
I'm graduating in May. It's going to come quicker than I know it, and though I'm not yet scared, I sure as hell am not counting down the days either. This is the start of my last semester. In August I started this blog at the start of my last internship. I feel like all these chapters in my life are ending and nothing new is starting. Its been a really long time since I've been at the point where one book is closing and another is just being written. Its a really scary place to be.
I used to play this game when I was little called Thin Ice. In the game, you put wet marbles on a tissue using tongs; eventually the tissue gets too damp and if the marbles fall through while the tongs are in your hand, you lose. That's kind of how I feel right about now--that at any minute, the bottom is going to drop out and I'm going to lose. Lose at what? I don't know. Could be anything, maybe even something I want to lose at.
Don't get me wrong, I'm in love with the excitement of the whole thing. I kind of feel like when you spend all day at the boardwalk in the arcades and finally get to cash in all your tokens and tickets for the biggest prize there is. All these years of hard work are redeemable for one, big prize. I'm just a little worried I'm going to take the prize home and realize its not all it was cracked up to be.
These are just my thoughts as a college girl 4 months away from walking out of here with my diploma in one hand and my resume in the other. I think I'll always be an intern at heart.
I once called myself an expert packer. Usually I am...if you think about my track record (I've moved every 6 month, out of one place and into another, for the past three years) I've done really well for myself.
Except this last time. I left something in New York and I'm so angry at myself. Not because it was something that was irreplaceable, it was only the plug for my sub woofer and speakers, but because I like to look at moving as a challenge. Can I fit everything into my mom's Taurus? Can I remember to pack everything I'll need? Can everything get there in once piece? Will I remember where I put things so I won't have to search for them?
Usually, I do just fine, and its like a little game my mom and I play. So I was really upset when I moved back into college and realized I didn't have this cord with me. I was feeling really good about the whole moving out of New York thing too, because it went so smoothly. My mom and I would fill up a bin with all my stuff, roll it over to the parking garage where her car was, unload it, and I would take the bin back up to my room and reload.
I spent my entire break (if you could call it that) with all my things packed up and I knew where most of the stuff was when I needed to get to it. Only an expert could do that! And now, here I am, listening to Robbie Nova on my crappy laptop speakers because I couldn't remember that one plug.
What really irks me about the whole thing? I remember staring at the plug and thinking that must have been the plug to the TV or the internet, because it didn't look familiar to me. Yea...some expert I am.
Come visit me on Myspace! I've just posted an exclusive blog on my Myspace page that I won't be posting here about my last night in New York.
You'll have to go there to check it out, and you won't want to miss it!
Or visit me at www.myspace.com/internchick and add me as your friend.
Love,
Intern Chick
I always get really reflective on the last day of something--whether thats work, school, vacation, etc. I generally like to look where I'm going and not where I've come from, but every so often, you have to collect your thoughts and let it all make sense in your head. I didn't do this with Internship #3 because I was, and still am, pissed off. I thought only briefly about Internship #2 because I did this same job last year for a different artist. So that left me with extra time to think about Internship #1, which is precisely what I did on my train ride home to CT after my last day.
Had I helped to make the publishing department run smoother than it had my first day there? I like to think so. I helped Vin get organized, I recreated their myspace page, I cleaned up the awful producer/songwriter binder mess, and most importantly, I made Vin feel comfortable trusting me with work he didn't have time for.
Did I leave a lasting impression? Honestly, for a long time, I didn't think so. As you all know, this was not my favorite internship, and thats okay, it happens sometimes. But as a result, I didn't apply myself as much as I could have, and although I was extremely conscious of it, I just couldn't get myself to do anything about it. I started to have a lot of regrets in early December but by that time, there was even less work to be done than before.
Vin started interviewing new interns around this time. It wasn't until then that I found out there was another intern that came in on Mondays and Fridays (it happened like this: one day Vin said I didn't have to do an errand and he'd just ask Albert to do it and before I could even think about what I was saying, the words "Who the f*ck is Albert?" jumped out of my mouth, and he answered with a chuckle and said, "the other intern"). I couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy, was he a better intern than me? Then Vin said he didn't want to bring him back next semester and he started interviewing potential interns. I realized then that I did leave a lasting impression. Every time Vin would come out of an interview, I would say, "How did it go?" and he would always shrug his shoulders and say, "I don't know, I didn't really like them." He would make up weird excuses as to why they weren't qualified, things like--she doesn't like music enough, he is too much into gossip, he's a songwriter, she's too shy.
The more we talked about it the more evident he made it that he couldn't find a new intern because he didn't think anyone would do as good as I did. Eventually he outright said it, and then added that his other intern, Albert, wasn't "a good intern" like me (his words, not mine). So I guess I did leave a lasting impression, and one that I'm proud of. When I left Internship #1, he had yet to find an intern to replace me.
When I got in the cab after my last day at that internship, I sent him a text message and said, "I'm leaving now, just wanted to thank you for the opportunity to work here, have a happy holiday." He wrote back and said, "Thanks Internchick! I really appreciate everything you've done for us. Let me know if there's anything you need in the future."
So I accomplished what I came to do. And that was to leave my mark on my bosses and have them wondering how they ever got along without me. Most importantly, to have them appreciate what I brought to the table.
Case (and internship) closed.
Obviously, because of the (way too short) break between the end of my internship and the start of classes, I'm behind on my posts. So I'm backtracking here. My last day at Internship #3 was December 22nd (the day they gave me the bad evaluation) and December 23rd at Internship #1.
Originally I told Vin my last day would be the 18th and I stuck to my guns until he told me he was in a tight spot and that no one would be around to cover the phones on the Monday and Tuesday before Christmas Eve. If he couldn't find anyone, he was going to have to cancel his flight home and stay in New York. I felt bad and said I could work Tuesday, but had already told Internship #3 I would work that Monday. He really seemed to appreciate it and in my book, the whole point of being an intern is to make your boss' life easier. So if that means shortening your break so they can enjoy theirs, than so be it. Don't think I didn't complain to my friends about having to work though.
Your "last day" is always nice and you don't even have to do anything except tell everyone its your last day. Mine was particularly weird though because I was the only one in my department that was there...no Vin, no Big Boss, just me, the phones, and a new book. It was really slow at the office, not much was really going to happen the day before Christmas Eve, but Big Boss insisted someone be there anyway. I did save the day for one of our producers though, when a royalty check came for him and I went and deposited it into his bank account. It felt good to be able to handle the whole thing on my own and knowing that my bosses I'd be able to get it done. The phones probably rang three times the whole day. The third call was the Big Boss. She was calling to check in and ask if anyone had called. No one had really called with anything important so I said no, and she said...do yourself a favor, lock up in an hour and have yourself a merry Christmas. I said thank you and said it was nice working for her, you know, all the usual courtesies and hung up. I looked at the clock and realized it was 5:30. That meant I could leave at 6:30, a whole half an hour early.
Wow, Big Boss, you shouldn't have!
At 6:30 exactly, I collected my final stipend, closed my computer and cleared off my desk for the last time and walked out the door. It took me about 20 minutes to hail a cab for Grand Central and I settled in for a long ride home of reflecting and reminiscing.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
