The Post-Internship Rules

Summer vacation is over, but it never really started if you had a PR/marketing/social media internship. Even before you packed up your dorm/apartment, you were already working at that internship.

Well, now it’s time to head back to campus and say goodbye your supervisor and co-workers from that agency, firm, or business where you (hopefully) had great learning experience. Wait, did I tell you to say goodbye? Don’t!

Now is THE MOST IMPORTANT TIME of your internship. Why? Because you need to effectively use these last days in helping you move forward for your career. Here are five things that should be part of a Post-Internship Checklist:

• Check with your internship supervisor regarding work you can use in your portfolio. You may have felt you did a bulk of the work, but review the projects you worked on with your superior(s). See if it is okay to use clients’ names, projects in a portfolio to show potential future employers or internships.

• Provide tangible results. You may have nailed a number of media placements or garnered new Facebook followers. Use statistics to show the before and after as well as the planning behind it. Potential employers love to see your planning and implementation skills.
  

  Miranda certainly remembered Andy, right?

• Ask for a letter of recommendation and to use as a reference NOW. Don’t wait until later when a supervisor MAY not remember who you are. You are on their minds now. Ask if you can call down the road and use them as a reference. Also important: Make sure that you let that reference know you are going to use them. Nothing is more embarrassing than a potential employer calling a reference and they are caught off guard.

• Update your LinkedIn profile (if you haven’t already). Much like adjusting your resume is number one, taking the time to update LinkedIn should be 1A. It also would be a good idea to take my third point and ask for a LinkedIn recommendation.

• Make ‘em Smile- I know… students don’t always have a ton of money. Dropping off muffins and coffee is something that isn’t going to break the bank. It also shows you appreciated the time you spent there. Yes, a simple “Thank You” note is also fine. Handwritten, of course.

Think your boss may remember you in a few months? Maybe. But, take the time to make sure they WILL NOT forget. Make certain your most-recent (or first) internship helps lead you to success after you get your degree.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

The Generation Gap Myth

Over the weekend, I was thinking about the supposed differences between Generation Y and other generations.  There is so much talk about how Gen Y is more independent and has greater personal demands.  I haven’t always believed the labels that have put on generations (aside from the Greatest Generation), but the Gen Y debate is something that continues to draw plenty of attention.

There was a recent post on Forbes.com that said “Gen Y Really is Different.” As I read it, one thing struck me: Generation Y isn’t that much different than my generation. We share many of the same ideas, want many of the same things.  There isn’t a day that passes where I don’t want to have the freedom to work on my own.

I grew up in the 1980′s; it was the “me” decade.  Gordon Gecko said, “Greed… is good.” We dreamed of being successful, making money and living by our own rules. Our parents didn’t put boundaries on us.  Is that really a change from what Gen Y wants now?

To me, the whole Gen Y label is bunk. Who wouldn’t want to run their own business, work from a coffee shop, and be able to have the freedom to be what they want? I’d love to have that now and maybe I still will.

When I started out in television, I was given this advice: By the time you are at one spot for six months, start looking for your next job.  It wasn’t because we would be fired, it was to get experience.  It was about me, not we. I seem to think this is something Gen Y gets criticized for a ton: Thinking about themselves and not the company.

I do want to clarify something. I’m not using this post to say you shouldn’t care about where you work.  I’m a big teamwork person and I think most of you who read my blog are the same way.  The issue, to me, is the generational labels placed upon all of us.

I know Gen Y has embraced the title and that’s good.  All I’m saying here is that Gen Y and Gen X aren’t that much different. And I think my fellow Gen Xers would tend to agree.

Let me know your feelings in the comments below.