When you have succeeded in landing an internship, it’s normal to feel overwhelmed with everything that you have to do. Not only do you have to work unpaid, you are given all the grunt work – the bits and pieces that no one else wants to get on with. However, the positives lay in the fact that you can be in a better position to come out of the other side of the internship with a job offer and a future.
While you’re stuffing envelopes and you’re running coffee to everyone, you should consider the possibility that you might not get a job – someone else may get it in your place. When this happens, you’re going to have worked your butt off for someone who isn’t going to invest in you, which really won’t do if you’re looking to improve your future prospects. So, you want to do all that you can to ensure that you stand out, and for that to happen, we’ve got five things that you can do during your internship to be 100% sure that you will stand out from the crowd!
- Get to work on time. Every single day, be at your position on time. Every time you have a break, take your allocated time and no more. Don’t be that person people are impatiently waiting for. Being late is icky; it shows the employer that you don’t value the time they’re spending on you. You are not in a position to be showing up late for work, so don’t.
- Find things to do. There will always be work for an intern to get done but if you efficiently get through your usual task list then go and find more! Ask your employer for more work and go and make sure that you are continuing to learn. Ask to sit in on meetings and ask to shadow the top dogs; you’ll learn more and get a better reference!
- Be positive. As an intern, you’re at the bottom of the workplace food chain and yet you have the potential to climb that ladder with all the experience that you’re gaining. Make sure that you stay positive in your role – don’t be afraid to seek out recognition, but do more to ensure that people know who you are because of how happy and motivated you are to be there.
- Put your phone away. Smartphones are addictive and apps are even worse. Put the darn phone down during working hours. You need to pretend the outside world doesn’t exist, and you really don’t need to know what Facebook is up to at this time – so leave it alone!
- Network as much as you can. While you’re an intern, you need to get on a first name basis with every manager so that they know exactly who you are and how dedicated you are to getting your job done. Networking isn’t just about being pleasant; it’s about asking questions and learning the roles of the business so that you can learn more.
