I AM INTERN

This is a guest post from my current Fall Intern & Campus Ambassador, Chandra Robrock. Chandra attends Florida State University and runs the blog, http://fsufashiongirl.com/. Ironically, I also attended Florida State University! Take a moment to read Chandra’s blog and then leave your thoughts on the subject.

{Beep…beep…beep} Your ears perk up. {Beep…beep…beep} you try andgnore it.  {Beep…beep…beep} but your curiosity gets the best of you. You take your hands off of the steering wheel and reach for you cell phone. The taunting glow from the screen reads “1 NEW MESSAGE.”

Texting while driving has proven to be a major issue for Gen X and Gen Y. According to KGB, the average teen sends 80 texts a day so that’s 560 texts per week and 29,120 texts per year. I send approximately 20-40 text messages per day.

Just a few years ago, the word “texting” wasn’t even a part of people’s regular vocabulary. Now it is nearly impossible to escape the term. Everywhere you go, you see someone, man, woman, or child, texting. It has become an important part of today’s culture.

Texting, although very convenient, can be very dangerous when done behind
the wheel of a car. Whether you have just started texting and need to constantly look at the screen while you are typing, or you are a texting pro and could text in yoursleep, any texting causes a major distraction.

Accidents related to the use of cell phones happen all of the time which is why thirty states have already made texting while driving illegal. I’m sure in the future, the rest will follow suit. Don’t think this should be a law in your state? Next time you are riding in a car, take a look & see how many people around you are texting or talking on their phone while driving – the results might scare you.

At my high school, we lost several outstanding students in car accidents due to texting while driving yet people still seem to do it. Wouldn’t it just be easier to ignore your phone until later?

Before you text and drive, ask yourself “Is this worth losing my life over? Is it worth the life of someone else – a stranger, a friend?” Chances are that if a text message IS that important, you should invest in a hands free headset & discuss the matter over the phone, if necessary.

The only time I text while I drive  is at a stop light or when I am stuck in traffic on the interstate, otherwise you will never catch me on my cell phone while driving.

If a friend is going to text and drive, I will offer to answer their texts for them and they will either have me text back for them or stop texting behind the wheel.

If you can’t stop texting, either turn your phone on silent so you don’t hear it, have the passenger (if you have one) answer the text message for you, or put the phone in your purse or out of reach so you aren’t tempted to text. Also, if it’s important, you can purchase a hands-free device & discuss the matter over the phone.

I want to hear your thoughts! Have you ever texted while driving? Have you ever ridden in the car with someone who was texting behind the wheel? Do you think every state should pass a law forbidding texting while driving?

Every student should have a target list or dream list of employers they want to work for. Normally, I coach students and have them put together these lists when they are actively applying fo rinternships, but you should have one all year round – if you are applying or not. You must constantly be reminded of your future goals and keep yourself informed and up-to-date on the company of your dreams.

Brands and employers are spending TONS of money to make sure they have a social media presence. They are doing this because they WANT to engage you, they WANT to start a conversation, they WANT to hear what you think. Go to the website of each of your “dream employers” and try to find the Facebook or Twitter logo. You can also google “company X on Twitter” and find their profiles. Again, the majority of employers do have these profiles set up.

Following these brands will help you identify with the company culture, tone, and stay in the loop of their programs, career opportunities, and news feed. I would also encourage you to comment & tweet. Get yourself involved with the conversation. Send your questions, they pay someone to answer them! Communicate directly with the employer of your dreams – it doesn’t get much better than that.

One more note to add is that last night during #internchat, I was asked about employers following students back on Twitter and potentially seeing negative things or inappropriate things. No matter what your age – student or not-social networks are not a place for negativity or inappropriate content (pictures or posts). Make sure that before you start following employers, you clean up your pages and make sure that your page is a representation of your personality (the best side of your personality). Delete anything that you might have questions about – it’s probably not okay.

Every other Tuesday night at 7PM EST/4PM PST, myself and Heather Huhman (@heatherhuhman) conduct #internchat on Twitter. Tonight, is #internchat and we hope to see many of you there. Here are a few tips to help you navigate #internchat on Twitter.

1. Make sure that everything you write (both questions and comments) are hashtags with #internchat.

2. We take questions in the order they are received, you can start sending in your #internchat questions any time this morning. Just make sure to hashtag!

3. Normally, Heather and I rotate questions, we don’t mind if you ask myself the question or Heather. We will both answer the questions that come in for us and both comment on each question to provide a well-rounded answer.

4. Remember, there is not a RIGHT answer to every single question. Heather and I might agree on things and we might not, the idea of #internchat is to provide advice and multiple perspectives.

5. As a student, engage the other students in the chat. Start following them on Twitter, ask them what they’ve experienced. You never know how a contact will be formed!

6. Ask questions! #internchat is for all of you! Please use this time to pick our brains as much as you want. We are here for you to guide you through this process!

See you tonight at 7PM EST on Twitter! And remember to follow @internqueen!

Thanks so a great idea from a friend, we are starting a new series called GUESS THE FAMOUS INTERN. Please include your answers/guesses in the comment section of the blog…Today we have two for you to guess…

What famous fashion-guru started as an intern at Mademoiselle Magazine?

What famous entertainment mogul started as an intern for a CBS affiliate in Nashville?

This guest blog is by Andrea Teggart

polishmycrown.wordpress.com Twitter: @luckyandi

Good morning world! I hope everyone had a relaxing weekend. Today is a day of transitions for me; my summer job ended this morning and my internship with the Intern Queen ended last Thursday. It feels very strange not rushing around doing work! During my last week interning, Lauren, the founder and CEO of Intern Queen Inc. encouraged the four interns to reach out to everyone we have been in contact with over the summer. This was definitely a push to clear out my e-mail Inbox, but I began the almost never-ending task. I sent e-mails to everyone I’ve worked with since June, whether I had helped the individual or company post an internship on the website, schedule a time to speak with Lauren or collaborate for an upcoming project, etc, etc.

In the e-mail, I explained that it was my last week working for Intern Queen Inc., that it was a pleasure helping them with whatever I did (obviously went into more detail), and asked to connect with them in the future. I included my personal e-mail account and my Twitter handle. In past internships, I hadn’t really reached out to people outside of the company after the internship was completed. I had always networked within the company and try to remain in touch with people I worked with, but never was encouraged to REACH OUT past the direct people I work with everyday. I didn’t have any response expectations from the people I sent e-mails to as my Intern Queen internship was finishing, but I trekked through my Inbox and sent them to everyone I’ve been in contact with.

I wasn’t really sure how my e-mail would be received, but never, ever expected the responses I did! Sonja from Katalyst Media, Virgilia from GenJuice, Sandy from Media Awaken completely blew me away with their positive responses. They asked what my future plans were and have interacted via Twitter and LinkedIn already. All three of these companies would be awesome internship opportunities for students this fall! I e-mailed different career services departments that I’ve worked with this summer and Christa from Cornell University and Syreeta from USC e-mailed me back promptly thanking me and offering to stay in touch. I’ve already been back-and-forth chatting with Simmy, a summer intern at Urbane Perspective Media + Lifestyle. I’ve corresponded with Emily before, who blogs here and she was so responsive to my e-mail and asked about my future plans and goals.

This was just a sample of responses I’ve had e-mailed back to me from my first e-mail reaching out to contacts through my internship with Intern Queen Inc. I was completely surprised how supportive and quick these individuals were to connect on different social media networks, ask about my future plans and offer job and internship advice. Thank you Lauren for pushing me to do this simple task and reach out to absolutely everyone I’ve been in touch with and thanks to all I’ve worked with and your positive feedback and responses.

Last night at 8:30PM I had an urge that I couldn’t fight to run to my favorite bookstore and read some new time management titles. A friend had mentioned David Allen’s, Getting Things Done, http://www.davidco.com/. I immediately grabbed that title along with Julie Morgenstern’s, Never Check Email in the Morning, http://www.amazon.com/Never-Check-E-Mail-Morning-Unexpected/dp/0743250885. These books gave me the pick-me-up and focus that I needed to start my week with a bang.

One point that really helped me was something that Julie mentioned in her book. She speaks (obviously) about not checking email in the morning, which is something I definitely do – purposely. This morning I decide to take Julie’s advice and get in control of my day instead of spending the morning answering other people’s requests. It’s now a little past 8AM and I feel extremely accomplished. I was able to not even open my email and turn my phone on silent (and flip it face down so I was tempted to look). I worked diligently for 90 minutes on a project. Julie was right when she said that if it’s urgent, they will call you and 90% of the time it’s not urgent.

I’m about to open my email, already a few hours into my day, and I feel focused and energized. How do you start your day? Are you willing to attempt not looking at your emails first thing?

Dear potential intern candidates,

I’m begging you to please stop blowing off internship interviews. I’ve heard from a number of employers  about students who apply to specific internships, respond to the employer, and then blow off the interview.  This is extremely unprofessional. You MUST communicate with the employer. If you cannot make the interview for whatever reason – just be honest and send them an email ASAP. Completely blowing off an interview is not acceptable and remember – everyone knows everyone. You have no idea who these employers know in their personal and professional networks. Make sure you don’t burn a bridge with anyone. If you are no longer available for the internship, don’t feel bad, just be honest and send a nice note declining the opportunity. From an employer’s point of view, they would much rather hear that you cannot do the internship before they bring you on board.

Please take this  note into consideration when/if you are contemplating blowing off an interview or employer’s correspondence.

You can do this and you can do this the professional way!

Best,

Your Intern Queen, Lauren Berger

Check out my 8 Tips for wrapping up an internship

http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/08/09/make-a-summer-internships-final-days-pay-off-the-intern-queens-8-tips/

If you are at your internship or job it’s important to bond with your fellow interns and/or co-workers. These relationships can stay with you for your entire career. Just to give you an idea of where some of my internship relationships have ended up – see below:

• Michael Menachem (my intern buddy from Backstage) is now a well-known music writer (http://twitter.com/menoxmusic)
• Alyson Campbell (my intern buddy from the NYU Summer Program) now runs her own PR Firm in NYC (http://twitter.com/alyamp3) Her internships are available on my site!
• Shannon Howard (my intern friend from Fox is now a fabulous comedy coordinator at ABC)
• Rob Forman (another Fox intern friend) is working on the new show Lonestar in Los Angeles.

We were all able to lock in our relationships and stay in touch beyond our internship summers. We are constantly resources for one another and the frienships we’ve created will last a lifetime. And we always have those summer to look back on.

This is your time to lock in your relationships. Hang out with your fellow interns or co-workers outside of the office. You never know when a contact will come in handy and if you can form a friendship out of it – even better!

If your office doesn’t do intern activities – be the one to create them. Put together after hours events where all of the interns can hang out in an environment outside of the office. Check out a baseball game or a hot local brunch spot. Make it happen – you won’t regret it. And as your internships come to an end in the coming weeks, make a note in your calendar to stay in touch with these people, friend them on facebook, keep them posted on what you are doing. I promise, many of them will end up in the same industry and location as you in the future.When I moved out to Los Angeles, the first two people I called were Shannon and Rob (from above). You never know….

Are you an Intern Queen Fanatic?  Do you catch yourself checking out new listings and internship tips on a daily basis? We’d love to hear from you and have you apply for our Intern Queen Campus Ambassador Program.

Our Campus Ambassador’s are responsible for testing new products, providing feedback, and helping us spread the Intern Queen message. Ambassador’s must volunteer at most 5 hours per month and must currently attend high school, community college, or a 4-year college/university.

To apply, please send one paragraph explaining why it’s important for your campus to understand the need for internships. Please send your applications along with your contact information, school you attend, and your year in school to alyssa@internqueen.com.

We will be selecting the Intern Queen Campus Ambassadors within 2 weeks. Good luck everyone!