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| # 2 and #8 never really happened - everything else seems like common sense! |
My internship is OVER! I spend 12 long weeks working full time at a small federal government agency this summer. It is my third and last summer working here and it is safe to say, I have learned a LOT.
Things I have learned:
1. The federal government and old people are slow. VERY slow. Enough said.
2. Every office has it's own culture. Learn it. Love it. Embrace it.
- What I mean by that is, every organization and divisions within that organization have certain ways of doing things.
- Some collaborate together, others work by themselves on everything. Some divisions are more casual when they interact, others are very formal and never break their "professional" facade.
- So learn the way your people in your division work and be adaptable to it!
3. Know who to be friends with - Network
- Your direct supervisor is not the only person you should get to like you!
- Support people - very important to you, they can get you what you need and if you know them personally, they can get it to you faster. This includes IT people, secretaries/administrative people, custodial staff, mail room people, etc.
- higher ups - many people won't get the opportunity, but I was fortunate enough to be able to meet many. I was even more fortunate to be able to be noticed by and get close to one of them. These connections will not only provide you with awesome recommendations but connections.
- How to: Talk to people, get to know them! People love talking about their kids and grandchildren. You may not have any but ask about theirs', show that you care. Ask what they are doing or inquire about their weekend, people love talking about themselves in general.
- Just be genuine and nice to everyone! You never know who can help you out in the office.
4. Work. Work Work.
- Do things fast and efficiently! Do it WELL!
- Be adaptable - do any task assigned to you even if it's not in your job descriptions. As an intern you have to pay your dues.. I know in my first internship I made coffee, in my second shredded 30 bags of paper, and in my third indexed over a thousand files.
- Show initiative - even if you have down time ask around and see if anyone has work or something to take off their hands. It will get you noticed!
- Be positive - no matter how much you hate your boss or what you are doing - do NOT show it in the office. A positive attitude will take you far, keep you positive and even get you noticed.
- Look busy, even if you arn't - always try and seem like you are doing something. As an intern you will find a LOT of down time, try and act like you are typing something on the computer or look focused on the screen.
- Set an everyday goal - have an objective to finish a certain amount of work everyday. Keep it high enough that it is an achievement but low enough that you can actually accomplish it.
5. Dress to Impress.
- I received a good piece of advice while at a career training during my internship:
- "Dress for the job you want, not the job you have."
- A nice nice clean cut wardrobe goes a long way. You may not think it but if there is one thing I have learned in my major (Communication Studies) it is that you are always communicating.
- Look clean and sharp. By dressing for the job you want, you are communicated/giving off the impression that you are serious, you want to go places.
Accomplishments:
- I have also received a few awards. My second summer I was awarded with two "On the Spot" awards cash cards for my hard work with the HR department.
- This summer, I could smell the award coming my way. But I never thought I would receive an award so large! I received a "Manager's Level Award" which came with a beautiful certificate and monetary award $$$.
- The biggest thing I have taken from this internship is confidence in myself as a career woman. People were always complimenting me and telling me what a great job I was doing and how much they appreciated my help!
I now know that as long as I work hard at what I do, I can make something of myself and go far.
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