by Sydney Santos, LiveGirl Marketing Intern, Sacred Heart University ‘20
In-tern-ship noun- the position of a student or trainee who works in an organization, sometimes without pay, in order to gain work experience or satisfy requirements for a qualification. The definition doesn’t really give the experience justice. I had the opportunity of having two internships my college career which were polar opposites, but both taught me so much about the industry I want to work in, and I learned a lot about myself. Interning at LiveGirl the past six months could not have been placed during a better time in my life. I had the opportunity to come into the office the first two months of the year, I worked under amazing people who were so confident and in love with what they do every day. It truly inspired me to want to be that happy in whatever career I landed in post grad. Even when I had to move home due to COVID-19 and continued to work remotely, I was still supported through all of the uncertainty. Sheri, Alison, and Chelsea did more than assign me with busy work; they provided me with opportunities, helped me network, and look for future opportunities. That is how I define internship.
I remember not having the slightest clue what I wanted to do with my life during the first half of my college career. A lot of my family members questioned why I would “waste” money on an education when I didn’t have a crystal clear image of what my end goal was supposed to be. My goals often aligned with characters I loved in TV shows or movies; but all in all, I was able to sit down and write a list of things I knew I didn’t want to be.
My freshman year, I was placed in a random sociology class (I went to a liberal arts college), and I ended up absolutely loving it. I learned a lot about societal norms, dating, and different cultures. But the one take away I got from the course was not something I learned from a textbook, it was a story my professor told us about her husband. She said her husband was a high school dropout, but gained admission to college without standardize testing or a form application. He went straight to his Universities admissions office, interviewed and explained how he wanted to make a life for himself. He got into college, with a scholarship by showing up and telling his story to a complete stranger and sealed the deal with a handshake. I never thought I would have the courage to do that, but hey the pandemic has changed my outlook on life.
Mid-June, Westchester, New York was in phase 3 of reopening, and I was already tired of sitting home and doing nothing. I worked four years for a degree, I can’t continue to sit home and spend hours on Tik Tok. I knew I would have to put my dreams of working in Manhattan on hold due to the lack of entry level PR jobs there right now, and start looking in Westchester. So I literally randomly Googled PR firms near me, and two popped up within a mile from my house. I called the first PR firm scared of being rejected (which I was- but only because the women solely operates the entire business on her own), and we ended up having a 35-minute conversation on how she believes the field of PR is changing now. Despite the doubt she put in my mind about everything I studied the past four years, she commended me on putting myself out there, and told me if I continued with my work ethic I would be the right person at the right time for someone who is in need of everything I have to offer. So after a quick little crying sesh, I decide to email the next PR firm I found on Google, which was less than a mile away from my home. I get a response the next day from a lovely woman which I can summarize as “Hey, I actually sold all my PR clients to my friend and now run my own Yoga Studio and company, but I am actually in need of someone to help me with run the PR and marketing for my business!”.
Is this where I pictured myself being post-grad? HELL NO - but if I took what I learned from my sociology professor’s husband, put myself out there and explained everything I had to offer and an opportunity came my way. I am actually getting to use the skills I learned in undergrad, and PR skills I learned at LiveGirl and apply them to this new business adventure!
The three main take aways I got out of working for LiveGirl is as follows:
Learn to ask questions.
Embrace uncertainties (like a global pandemic).
Adapt content to current events.
I have learned that although having a plan is always good, there's only so much we can actually rely on. Going with the flow is something I haven’t always been good at, I like structure and certainty. But 2020 has taught me to live in the moment and take each situation day by day, prepare for the future- but if an expectation isn’t met it’s not the end all be all. After all, I’m 22, this is my time to learn and experience everything I can. Here’s to the last four months of 2020, and whatever learning opportunities come our way.
