Internship Series
5 Tips for Internship Success
November 17, 2016
By: Alex Maryuen, post-graduate student in Sport and Event Marketing at George Brown College
Internships are are one of the best ways to get hands-on experience, make meaningful connections and learn as much as possible. They are also a great opportunity to learn what career path you want to pursue, or what specific areas of the industry intrigue you most.
Fresh off my 4-month internship with XMC Sponsorship and Experiential Marketing Agency; this opportunity provided me with tremendous value. No experience is the same, however there are some rules-of-thumb across the board that can help you make the most of your internship. Here are five key elements that helped me make the most out of my internship:
1. Networking Internally and Externally (Relationship Building)
“Networking shouldn’t be an event. It’s an ongoing organic process of building relationships with people. It’s a life-long process of meeting new friends that you can contribute to.” — Marie Farleo
I was very fortunate enough to work with an extremely understanding team that were empathetic to my stage of my career. As someone starting out a career in sports, the team I worked with allowed me to take time to actively network inside and outside the office. One of the greatest pieces of advice I received was to “Network with substance and meet as many people in the industry as I can.”
What this means is having the core focus and drive to build genuine and authentic professional relationships; this in return will boost your personal and career development. When networking internally I met some industry titans who had a plethora of knowledge and expertise in the industry. Asking people for a cup of coffee, lunch or just a few minutes of their day can make a world of change for your internship experience and translate into helping you develop your communication skills.
When networking externally I managed to meet numerous professionals from all areas of the industry. Networking externally allows you to meet individuals who have diverse backgrounds and career paths who may offer new and inspiring pieces of advice.
2. Be a Sponge (Immersion)
“Be like a sponge when it comes to each new experience. If you want to be able to express it well, you must first be able to absorb it well.” — Jim Rohn
Quite possibly the best piece of advice I received from an employee at Sponsorship Canada was to “absorb as much as possible throughout your internship.” Being a sponge means that you need to become an active learner, as opposed to a passive one. This is achieved by fully immersing yourself in all projects, asking and absorbing the feedback, and showing initiative.
Internships are learning platforms where you should actively absorb as much as possible, working beyond the scope of assigned tasks. This means observing the work culture, learning the key cogs in the machine, participating in brainstorming, and getting involved. Above all else this means fully immersing yourself (proactively doing so) in the entirety of the internship.
3. Take Initiative
“Your success is your responsibility. Take the initiative, do the work, and persist to the end.” — Lorii Myers
Taking initiative is one of the core-competencies of being a great intern. From the start of my internship I was involved almost immediately. Recognizing all these projects; both big and small, as opportunities to go above and beyond. Every opportunity I had I would do my best to excel beyond what was assigned by conceptualizing new ideas, brainstorming new strategies and executing creative proposals. Pairing initiative with effort equates to intellectual independence and competence. More importantly this shows that you have a genuine interest in learning more, resulting in more projects and experience on your lap.
4. Hustle
“Vision is everything. It is utterly indispensable. Why? Because vision leads you. It paints the target. It sparks and fuels the fire within, and draws you forward. Show me a leader without a vision, and I’ll show you someone who isn’t going anywhere. At best, they are travelling in circles.” — John C. Maxwell
Hustle is a required skill to break into any industry or career path. Without it there is no promise of making a lasting impression on anyone. This is a general concept that goes beyond the scope of grit and hard work. It’s so much more than that and a far-encompassing skill.
Hustle means having a vision. It means doing everything in your control to get you closer to that vision. It coincides with sacrifice, dedication, discipline, persistence and resilience. Exemplifying hustle and relentless hard work showcases your respect for your role in the industry and respect for the work that you have to put in.
5. Ask For Feedback
“We can’t just sit back and wait for feedback to be offered. If we want feedback to take root in the culture, we need to explicitly ask for it.” — Ed Batista
During my internship I had the good fortune of being surrounded by supportive colleagues and supervisors that got me involved in the process right away. I was given ample opportunity to schedule meetings with my supervisors who were more than willing to give me time to evaluate my performance on a monthly basis. Not all internships will be as such. For that reason, you need to be an enterprising employee by asking for feedback on your own accord.
This creates a win-win scenario. It’s a win for you because the people you will be working with (hopefully) will have a lot of experience under their belt and know what it takes to be a great intern. Chances are, they’ve been in the similar position as you, so their evaluation and honest feedback can help in terms of: preventative measures, business etiquette, industry knowledge etc. This is also a win for the industry because it shows that they invested their time well and allocated a resource that is willing to make the adjustment to succeed in their given role.
