Saying Goodbye to FormAssembly, and How Being a Remote Intern Prepared Me for the Real World

For eight of the past 12 months, I’ve worked as a Digital Marketing Intern for FormAssembly, a SaaS company that specializes in powerful and highly customizable web forms. While my time as an intern for FormAssembly has come to an end and I’ll be moving on to focus on other academic and professional projects, I’ve been able to gain invaluable experience in a very short amount of time.

To name just a few accomplishments, I’ve worked on business development projects, designed form templates, and written blog posts on a wide array of topics. I did all this while simultaneously being a full-time student, working another job, and running several on-campus organizations.

How did I do all this, you may be asking? Well, while Hermione’s Time-Turner would’ve been useful some days, I still haven’t been able to get my hands on one (if you’re not a Harry Potter fan, you may be very confused at this point). Rather, I achieved this level of productivity through the freedom and flexibility of working for a remote startup and with the support of an incredible distributed team.

While I’m excited for the next chapter of my life, I’m even more grateful for all I’ve gained working for FormAssembly. I’ve become a firm believer that remote startup experience (especially in college if you can manage it) will make you more well-rounded, more productive, and more prepared to tackle the demands of the “real world.”

Here’s why:

Entrepreneurial Experience is Always Relevant

Whether you plan to stay in the startup world forever or ultimately hope to work for a multinational corporation, entrepreneurial experience will make you a strong candidate for any job. Working for a startup teaches you to think on your feet and how to deal with ambiguous situations in a very fast-paced environment. You learn how to take advantage of the resources you have (no matter how limited they may be) and use them to your and your company’s benefit.

In a large corporation, every new product or additional service offering can be treated like a new company. Knowing how to brand, sell, promote, etc. during those early stages are all highly coveted skills that are gained from working for a startup and are easily transferrable to any organization.

My favorite part of working for a startup has been the endless opportunities to learn. Whether it’s through your work or the people around you, you have direct access to a pool of knowledge that is hard to find anywhere else.

And while some people may get scared off by the typically small size of startups, truth is, you don’t need a large team to have a significant impact if your company is made up of passionate individuals dedicated to the growth of the organization.

Most importantly, startups breed innovators and that, my friends, is priceless.

Everyone Should Know How to Maximize Their Productivity (And Hold Themselves Accountable)

Being able to effectively manage your time is no easy feat, especially for college students. Not only do you have to find the time to finish everything on your seemingly endless to-do list (and 24 hours are truly never enough), but you also have to combat the powerful distractions that both friends and technology present.

Luckily, there’s nothing like a remote job to teach you how to be productive. It didn’t take long for my to-do list and color-coded calendar to become my best friends. I knew that when I blocked off a certain period of time for FormAssembly, I had to eliminate all other distractions and buckle down if I wanted to get my work done on time. At the same time, no one was physically there to watch over me and make sure I was being productive. In a sense, I had to be my own remote boss (although my actual boss is great too — shout out to Ashley) and hold myself accountable at all times. Fortunately, since I now know how to manage myself, I also feel a lot more confident in my ability to manage others.

Because of my remote work experience, I’ve become especially adept at prioritizing tasks, which has in turn helped develop a knack for juggling multiple large projects at the same time. This skill is undoubtedly going to stay with me far beyond my time in college as I continue my professional career.

Communicating Effectively is a True Gift

Communicating can be a challenge when you’re in the same room, never mind when you’re hundred of miles away. For all the articles about how my generation is inept when it comes to communicating, I think that couldn’t be farther from the truth.

As a whole, we excel when it comes to adapting to different methods of communication. Find me one job out there where you’ll solely communicate through one platform. If you work for a large corporation, the chances are even higher that you’ll have to learn how to communicate with coworkers and clients spread out across the world.

In my opinion, working remotely is the ultimate boot camp for developing your ability to communicate with others. You have no choice but to learn how to collaborate virtually because that’s usually your only option. You also quickly become more flexible and forward-thinking when it comes to trying out new collaborative technology (and much more patient with technological difficulties…not).

You may even be surprised at your ability to build strong connections with your coworkers. It’s easy to take people for granted when they’re always there, but when your sole interactions are weekly one-to-one meetings on Google Hangouts or ongoing chats through a messaging platform, connecting with your team becomes even more of a priority.

Work-Life Balance is an Attainable Goal

While we constantly are bombarded with the phrase “work-life balance,” that doesn’t make it any less meaningful. In fact, a recent study conducted by Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business (go Hoosiers!) found that those who work in high-stress jobs with little control may die sooner than those who have more control over and balance in their work.

Yes, you read that right, work-life balance is literally a matter of life and death. Enter remote jobs: while there is probably no better way to achieve a work-life balance, working for a remote startup at any point in your life can teach you how to make this idea a reality regardless of where your career ends up.

The eight months I’ve spent with FormAssembly have taught me how important having control over my work is. I’ve been able to combine my personal priorities with my professional goals and have been surrounded (albeit virtually) by like-minded individuals who are doing the exact same thing.

If any part of this blog post has resonated with you, I advise you to keep an open-mind and look for remote work opportunities with startups. Don’t let the commitment scare you, because I can promise you that all the rewards will far outweigh the negatives.

Oh and guess what? FormAssembly is hiring.

Written by Shira Beder