Feeling like a Small Fish in a Big Pond

Approaching the beginning of an internship is exciting, while also feeling overwhelming. It is easy to enter a team and feel like a tiny fish in a huge pond. Initially as an intern, I struggled to realize my importance within this new organization as an intern. Even through the interview processes of several internships, I knew how to sell that I really wanted the experience, but often struggled to explain how I could truly make a difference. Of course, I was hired for a purpose, and I wanted to exhibit my full potential, but the idea that I was new and young created a mental block that made me apprehensive. In my head, I was skeptical that anyone would truly benefit from my input or perspective. With time and support from my team, I eventually felt empowered enough to be confident in my participation, which taught me many lessons about importance of work at all levels that I will carry with me throughout my career.

For me, moving into the “real world” and beginning my career as a marketing professional is a stark contrast to finishing up my last year of college. I quickly rise to leadership roles in my group projects, feel a sense of seniority in making decisions, am comfortable going to my advisors and professors for help — but now I am preparing to move into a scenario that is quite the opposite. As a young professional reworking my way up. What I have learned, however, is not to hold back just because I may be young or in a youthful role. To have the mobility and opportunities you dream of, you must stand out. You can do so in many ways, but my favorite vehicle is through building relationships. What worked best for me was building a relationship with my manager to feel comfortable sharing my ideas with her. The more and more I shared, the more she was able to understand my capabilities and what I strive for in a career.

Even so, another piece of advice I would offer is to be transparent about your skills — and do not hold back. I remember being asked, even after accepting my position as an intern, how skilled I was at certain subjects. My first instinct was to play down my capabilities because I did not want to oversell or undersell my skills. I was one of the lucky ones — my manger still trusted me to do certain work even when I was not describing my full potential. She was able to see what skills I actually possessed, and consequently assigned me work that aligned with them. If I had not been lucky enough to have that trust, I would have never been able to unleash my full potential and receive the assignments I was passionate about doing. Be upfront about what you can do, and what you like to do, because you will see results through opportunities to do work that will help you grow.

Now that I have overcome this apprehension, I would like to offer a bit of advice to my younger self, who had not yet experienced the lovely internship I have.

1. Being realistic is different than demoting yourself. You have all the power to control how your work and capabilities are viewed. Remember to be authentic, but part of being authentic is being confident in what you know and how fast you can learn.
2. Finding your place may be hard. Just because you are young does not mean it has to be harder — a lot of times your age and position in life is what makes you a more valuable asset. Younger employees come in with fresh, relevant ideas that represent a whole new target market. Your desire to learn keeps you connected to your work and the company; your productivity is not just measured by the number of deliverables you benchmark per week, taking time to shadow and learn is just as valuable for the company as it is you.
3. Don’t hold back your perspective, it’s why you are where you are. Bringing in interns is a way to offer a new perspective on the industry and beyond. A new perspective is not a wrong one, it can be very beneficial to share a unique thought that might offer up something no one has considered yet.

Your youthful willingness to work hard and grow is helpful to everyone around you. Always be respectful to others, and yourself!

These are lessons I could have never learned on my own. A big thank you goes out to a wonderful team of supporters for our intern class that have taught us all to be lifelong learners in our work and beyond.