The making of a New Yorker.

In “The Making of a New Yorker” author John Steinbeck writes something that encompasses a lot of my summer experience in New York City…

ew York is an ugly city, a dirty city. Its climate is a scandal, its politics are used to frighten children, its traffic is madness, its competition is murderous. But there is one thing about it-once you have lived in New York and it has become your home, no place else is good enough. All of everything is concentrated here, population, theatre, art, writing, publishing, importing, business, murder, mugging, luxury, poverty. It is all of everything. It goes all right. It is tireless and its air is charged with energy. I can work longer and harder without weariness in New York than anyplace else…

via A Society Story

Drop cap artwork from www.dailydropcap.com

Legal larceny.

Look at them Apples - my very first class in college. Enough Apples and journalism nerds in the room to scare anyone away.

I figured out why companies want interns. They want to steal our ideas.

That may sound mean, but it’s true – it’s legal larceny.

This week I participated in a discussion group about SI.com. A group of interns and I sat around and took questions from SI.com staff. We talked about online use, twitter accounts, video content, page design, mobile applications, and social media identity – pretty much everything any journalism nerd skips class to sit around RJI to debate.

And the discussion was a perfect setting for me – I like to talk, I like having opinions, and I really like talking about my opinions on online/social media. Plus they threw in sports. Screw volunteering for this, I would have PAID to be part of the group.

The beauty of it all was that everyone in the room was exactly like me. Nerd haven. They gave us one question to start the discussion – what do you think of our facebook page – and off we went. The simple lunch discussion turned into two hours of complete brand evaluation. The best part was that our group was the perfect mix. Interns have a facilitating combination of journalism knowledge, millennial generation ideology, understanding of a company’s capabilities, and ambitious attitudes willing to suggest ideas outside the box.

Before you knew it we had redeveloped SI.com (okay, not really – but we did have some worthwhile comments).

SI.com got a lot out of our discussion. I think we confirmed and contradicted some of their decisions – giving them ideas to grow and recreate. But, how about us interns? We had our ideas willingly stolen. Besides that, what did we get out of it?

More than you may think.

We realized that, yes, sometimes we do know more than the bosses. We can see from an outsider’s perspective, but with an insider’s understanding. Yes, we are valuable. They listened to our opinions and genuinely wanted to understand our thoughts. What we said can create change. Yes, we can contribute. Interns can be more than fact checkers, sometimes those little ideas you come up with sitting in your cubicle can actually be put in effect. So, overall, yes – we are earning our pay (at least for today).

If there is another intern discussion in the next few weeks, count me in. I like to talk, but, more importantly, I like what I get out of it.

Young, educated, and working for nada.

ount me out of compaining about the supposed slave labor of internships – I love my current intern position and, not only do I get a paycheck every two weeks, but I also get housing (in NYC that is worth more than anything). I can, however, sympathize with my unpaid intern pals. These are the friends who forgo eating real meals, and instead make friends with the hotdog vendors on the streets so they can get a dog at discount. They are having a rough summer trying to get the full experience of a good internship and the ultimate adventure of life in The City. A few days ago Huffington Post College posted a short documentary by Jett Wells all about their frustration…

This is a problem getting more and more media attention lately. I have a simple solution for companies who want interns, but will be slapped with labor violations because they simply can’t afford to pay them like real employees (yeah, I’m looking at you journalism) - why not offer scholarships?

Screw trying to compete with the salaries accounting, finance, and marketing interns make ($20 plus dollars/hr… gasp – they can really “make it rain” in the intern world), just offer us a $1,000 bonus at the end of the summer if interns complete their job to a satisfactory level. Sure $1,000 isn’t enough to compensate for an intern’s summer or rent, utilities, food, and travel expenses, but it is something. I’ve worked unpaid nternships while simultaneously working paid jobs – it’s the only way for me to make it through the year without starving, call me guilty. If I had a little money incentive, maybe I would have spent more time in the newsroom and less time working for tips at the local golf course while serving old men beer. Who knows, maybe companies could get more out of their interns and interns wouldn’t be crying at the end of the summer when assessing their drained bank accounts.

(Drop cap art from www.dailydropcap.com)

iLike the iPad.

The whole video and application was made without ever seeing more than a few minutes of an iPad demo – skill.

Being a Time Inc. intern has its perks. Somedays the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck (that’s not a joke) stops by the Time and Life building to give you free ice cream. Some days tourists take a picture of you leaving the office building because apparently you look like an “authentic working New Yorker” (guess I’m playing the part well). And some days you get to sit down with industry leaders.

Last week senior editors from Time and Time.com gave us interns a bit of insight into their departments, jobs, and thoughts on the field of journalism – it was truly a treat. While there was a wide array of topics covered and expert advice given, I was the most amazed by how much each of them focused on what they are doing with the iPad.

The iPad will be able to give mass audience a new way to get the news. I wasn’t a believer of this until it came straight from industry leaders’ mouths. Essentially every magazine will be able to produce two products – one for print and one for the iPad. A photo in print can lead into a video on the iPad – which can then lead into an interactive google map, which can lead into a restaurant location, which can lead into a menu, which can lead into… well you get the point. It is insane the number of possibilities the iPad presents. And it is even more insane the process a magazine like Time must go through to give their readers quality content and valuable “extras.”

And who is all of this good news for? Well, yes, readers of course. But more importantly, me!

Sitting at the presentation and hearing the type of content that is being generated and developed for the iPad gave me hope – multimedia journalism has places to expand to. Online publications are not the peak. Multimedia can continue to grow into new areas. As a journalist in the convergence field, I will be able to find a niche in these new areas.

So Time, when I am done with my internship (and one more year of school) – please come calling. I am on the iPad bandwagon and ready to go!

Get her to the Greek.

y secret talent: I can say the Greek alphabet in about five seconds. Yes, all 24 greek letters. And, yes, I can say it so that you can understand it. Don’t doubt.

But do you really understand me and my Greek Life affiliation? Probably not (see this post: Sorority Membership is for a Lifetime, Except at Work for my inspiration to this post discovered via re-tweet).

I learned to say the Greek alphabet as a part of my new member education for Delta Gamma sorority. At school, when I say I am a DG people get it (our student body is about 25% Greek and includes many student leaders, several professors and prominent alumni). But out in the “real world” people don’t. They say: ‘Wow, you must have been to some crazy parties’ or ‘how do you survive living in a house with so many girls?’ But there is so much more than that – the social life – to Greek Life…

Forget the “my sisters changed my life” and the “I became a better person” stories that fellow Greeks peddle when trying to convince people why their Greek membership is/was valuable. These stories are all true, I can attest to that. A Greek experience will help you develop skills in leadership, loyalty, sisterhood, character, respect and responsibility in a manner unlike any other organization. But someone in the “real world” where money matters and character doesn’t count as much as salesmanship skills doesn’t care about all that stuff.

So how do you sell your Greek life affiliation then? You tell people what really matters… you tell them you run a business (as the blog Newly Corporate attests to). Because that is what sororities and fraternities boil down to; big businesses.

For full disclosure I am the current president of my sorority and while you may say this gives me a biased view of Greek Life, I can tell you it also gives me and insider view, one that I look at with a very critical eye.

I am doing something very few college students can sayd they do. I am running a business. My sorority works with a budget three figures big. We have 230-ish members in my chapter. We have 147 international chapters. And we have millions of alumni. If you are hiring me you should care about this. And here is why…

As a chapter president (or really any member who holds a position) I run the business, I am CEO. I am in charge of a large amount of money and the budgeting, collecting, distributing, and investing of that money. I must choose where that money should go and decide when sacrifices and extravagances need to be had. I also have 230 members to manage. Talk about needing human resource skills. I must communicate with these members. I must develop and enforce a system of accountability for these members. I must also have a way to evaluate these members. Membership also extends to millions of alumni who must be informed and often reported to. The maturity and delicateness with which these jobs must be carried out with is complex. In the past year that I have held high leadership positions within my chapter I have seen my thought processes change. I ask myself two questions when making decisions; is this good for my chapter and is this good for the longevity of my chapter? These are things that those in the business world always weigh when making big decisions.

So in the “real world” when some people shy away from announcing their Greek affiliation, I have no problem broadcasting mine. Right now people don’t “get it” – but I plan on making them see. Being Greek isn’t about the letters on your chest, it is about running a business that has been around for over a hundred years (my chapter celebrated a centennial last year). That takes a strong, savy, and smart person. So don’t doubt us sorority girls. Hire us instead.

(Drop cap art from www.dailydropcap.com)

Life without GPAs.

Over the past few weeks I have met so many new people both socially and professionally. When they hear I am in-town for the summer or that I am the new intern in the department they all robotically resort to the same questions. Where are you from? Where did you go to school?

Hold up… where DID I go to school? I’m flattered you think I am older , maybe more mature than your average college kid – but, please, no crazy talk here!

I, thankfully, still have a year of college left in my undergraduate life. I am even avoiding a dreaded December graduation – somehow my parents fell for the whole “but my scholarships last through the entire year,” speech I gave them this summer so I could stick around campus for the full year. But lately I am starting to wonder how much my undergraduate education will really be valued at in the “real world.” If I am already in the position to convince people I am qualified for jobs now – what difference will 24 more credits and a GPA do?

I figured I wasn’t the only “pre-senior year student” worrying about this over the summer. Can we call it a quarter-life “moment” – a degree less severe than a quarter-life crisis? Life Without Pants proved someone else out there has been thinking about this too.

In a May post, the blog poses some great questions: “Does college matter after you graduate”? Does our hard work mean squat after we’ve walked across the stage? Is it more of a personal pride thing as opposed to a professional requirement? Does it vary from industry to industry?

I have said it before – classroom work is valuable, but internships and real field experiences are what set one candidate above the next (at least in journalism I think). Does my 3.9 GPA really matter when the guy with the 3.3 has a blog getting 10,000 hits a day and produces multimedia like a pro? Yes, as a student I should shoot for the best of both worlds, ace classes and get quality internships/experiences. But, in two years will I be talking about my favorite journalism class in college or the work I did with so-and-so company? I am pretty sure it will be the later.

Also check out this post on Ms. Career Girl about the value of self-education.

I’m drinking the intern Kool-Aid.

Time and Life Building at 1271 Rockefeller Plaza. It's all about "location, location, location" right?

I’m drinking the Time Inc. Kool-Aid and I’m not ashamed.

I love my internship and I love my company.

And how could I not? Time Inc. publications reach more than 115 million adults, that is over half of the United States population. The work the company produces dates back to Henry Luce and Time Magazine first published in 1923 – this is the stuff I have memorized for History of American Journalism 3000 tests all spring semester and now I am literally a part of the current history of the company (albeit in the subservient position of intern, but still…). The Time Inc. empire spreads among publications like Life, Time, Fortune, Sports Illustrated, Real Simple, People, and Essence and to other areas such as CNN, The CW, Time Warner and Warner Brothers.

The people I have met within Time Inc. are passionate about what they do and they are consciously committed to their interns and giving them opportunities and experiences.

And in case the 12-year-old inside of you was wondering – yes, every image for the Sports Illustrated for Kids Art Gallery that is mailed in is opened and considered by a SI Kids employee. No matter how good or bad your mom said your artwork was, it was given a fair chance to be published. I have the paper cuts to prove it.

New J-School Curriculum.

“New curriculum at the University of Missouri School of Journalism offers 23 degree options instead of the previous six.” (See the school’s explanation this statement is taken from HERE)

Umm hello? I’m confused.

Six to 23 is an extreme jump and I have some extremely conflicting views about today’s announcement. For the past few months I have been going through the “internship process.” I’ve explained countless times WHAT convergence journalism is and WHY it is unique/good/defines the Missouri Method. Well now I fell like I have been spouting some major BS…

I like to say convergence and the Missouri j-school/method, in general, are all about molding students into employable “one-man bands.” I am able to make this argument because since freshman year, I have been brain washed to think that this one-man band journalism ability is a good thing – MU grads are are great because we can be a true asset to all newsrooms; we are versatile, experienced, flexible and ahead of the curve – not only can I man the camera but I can also do the stand up too and then convert my work to online content (want to pay me for all three jobs?). Now with 25 extremely focused areas, can we really say we are being trained to be this type of journalist? And, more importantly, have we been brain washed to think highly of the one-man band journalist simply so we can be convinced way the J-School was organized was good?

Don’t think I’m jumping all over Brian Brooks like every other student loves to do (let’s face it, all of his e-mails, justifiable or not, come under fire). I’m not bashing the new curriculum… I just have some questions about the thought process behind it – questions not answered by the very PR explanation on the school’s website. I do see the good – it provides an entirely new strategy for students to mold exactly what type of journalist they want to become. The article says:

“The expanded number of options will allow students to take better advantage of the courses, hands-on opportunities in real-media labs and other resources available in their particular interest areas as well as create interdisciplinary and cross-platform learning opportunities tailored to their career goals.”

This is great – every student wants that flexibility to go between emphasis’s and have curriculum options. It also means the convergence classes about multimedia will be required for a lot more students (now maybe strat. comm. kids will have real reasons for being in the Future’s Lab). I’m on-board with all of this. I’m just questioning if making students target their education into one very specified direction will take something away for the overall abilities. Will focusing on Cultural Journalism (the vague name of a new emphasis) prevent me from also knowing how to be a journalist for other types of things and be able to stumble into other areas I might be unknowingly strong in?

This is the point in my post where I am supposed to conclude my thoughts and tie them all together – hate to break it to you, but I can’t. I don’t know how I feel about the new changes, I see the pros and I see the cons and I also see the faults in my beliefs about my own education and what I want from an education. I could argue my self in circles about the changes announced today and I also lack enough knowledge about the details of the change to produce arguments valid enough to stand alone. So until I know A LOT more or the first batch of kids goes through the Missouri School of Journalism under these new curriculum outlines (who knows which will actually come first), I won’t be able to give you a nice succinct train of thought – until then I look forward to reading the complaints/praises from all you current j-schoolers ready to whine about change.

Empire state of mind.

“In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
Theres nothing you can’t do. Now you’re in New York,
These streets will make you feel brand new,
The lights will inspire you.” (Jay-Z/Alicia Keys – Empire State Of Mind)

Chuck Bass I've been watching you too - Gossip Girl reruns are prepping me for NYC, because, we all know, the way things are on television are just like they are in real life.

In just a few weeks time I will be on a plane headed for the ‘concert jungle’ and for a summer in THE city, New York City – can’t wait!

So is the Jay-Z/Alicia Keys anthem the theme song for my summer? Too soon to decide, but it is a good lead-off song for the playlist. The motto for this playlist? Work hard, play hard…

Work hard:

I am so lucky to have the opportunity to be one of 50 editorial interns for Time Inc. and to work in the Sports Illustrated for Kids department. There is no opportunity in Missouri that can compare to this; I will get to work with experienced professionals, at a reputable publication, and in a professional atmosphere. I am excited for whatever journalistic opportunities I will be given this summer and I will jump to take on any project out there. The internship is my ticket to an amazing summer so I will make sure I do everything possible to earn it.

Play hard:

St. Louis to New York – culture shock right? With only three months to experience the greatest city on Earth, you can bet I will be busy. Dave Matthews says to “Stay up late and make some memories,” in his song So Right.

I don’t know if that quote actually is the best approach to take toward college, but it will be my approach for this summer. Sleep is not an option when you have a limited time in a city that never sleeps. I will never be younger and more full of life than I am right now – time to take advantage of it and take advantage of an experience I will not get again.

I will fake the Ivy Leage cred while living at a Columbia University dorm and I will walk the ‘working girl’ walk while slaving away in an office in Rockefeller Center – what more can I possibly ask for?

… Maybe a map for the subway, hmmm.

Going ‘Psycho’ Over Internships.

Ready for a strange connection – American Psycho and the internship process.

Umm what? It has to do with this scene…

Interns candidates are the business cards. There are a ton of us out there, each just as similar and yet just as different as the next. Potential employers can rank our resumes, hold interviews, and evaluate us as much as possible, but in the end what sets us apart may only be visible to their eyes.

I have been going through the internship process for over three months now. I filled out over 15 applications, wrote several personal statements, and spent way to many hours debating over what font to use for my resume. I have taken different companies assessments about everything from copyediting to how to write a proper business e-mail (yes there are very set rules apparently) and I have talked to more college recruiters on the phone than I can remember (if the area code is 212, leave class and take it – that’s New York calling).

I have told you everything I have done, but what has it all come to? So far – nothing!

And, believe it or not, I am okay with that. For the past three months I have honed my interview skills, learned how to pursue job opportunities without coming across like a stalker, and even got to talk to ESPN’s John Anderson on the phone. I don’t have any set internship offers yet, but that it okay because I really have learned a lot just by being involved in the whole process and playing the game.

Oh and I have learned how to have faith. I have faith one of my 15 applications will come through and once again I will be spending my summer working long hours for no pay – just the way I like it. Someone will choose my business card – Look at that subtle off-white coloring, the tasteful thickness of it, oh my God, it even has a watermark.