Excel in Your Internship

I am ecstatic to have my first official internship with the Comcast-Spectacor Foundation working with the Philadelphia Flyers in the Spring of 2012. This is not an opportunity to be taken lightly as interns are first to hire within the company. Although I am exciting about this opportunity, I am also hesitant and anxious. Questions like,” Am I going to fit in?” “What’s appropriate language for the company?” ”How close can I get to other interns and staff?” Are constantly racing through my mind as I make this career move. Recently PR Daily sported an article “PR interns: 5 tips and tricks to excel at what you do,” has a great advice on getting the most out of your internship.

Ask Google

The article explains that when you don’t know the answer the solution might be as easy as a Google search. Also, using social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIN are not completely out of the question when looking for an answer.

This should not be an always go to but it’s an adequate solution to a simple answer and a resource that commonly gets overlooked.

There are no stupid questions

I had a second grade teacher that once told me, “There are no stupid questions, just stupid people.” As refreshing as that is at age eight, it still holds true to your internship. To avoid making a detrimental mistake that might cost your employee time and evitable money, ask questions

One of the most important questions you should ask yourself is, “How can I do more?” This will not only show your intuitive to be a more integral part of your temporary community, but also getting more of the most out of the requirements of your internship.

Each day is different

One of the biggest reasons I chose to go into the PR field was because no day would be the same. The thrill of going to work and having a new and different assignment is a true joy to me. This attitude should hold true to your internship as well. Never go in thinking you will be the same thing you did yesterday.

Frequently clients have unexpected tasks for the firm to do and more often than not you will an important part in making sure that it gets done.

Be prepared to go with flow and adapt quickly in a faced paced environment. Also, if this isn’t your style maybe this isn’t your industry, tough love.

“If you think something is taking too long to do, then it probably is”

I was once told, work smarter, not harder.” When you are taking long to do an assignment and you think to yourself, “There must be an easier way to do this.” Nine time out of ten, the answer is there probably is an easier way to do this. This is where asking questions can really come in handy. You are surrounded by professionals who have made a living at what you are attempting to do, the resources that are next to your cubical, (if you are lucky enough to have one) that you may not be taking advantage of.

Your aren’t trying to cure cancer

So unless you scored some kind of crazy medical PR internship, you’re not trying to cure cancer. I need to constantly remind myself in PRowl that I am not trying to save the world and it will most likely work itself out.  If you ask questions even ask for help it can get you a long way.