I promised some internship tips and advice...

Before I started my internship at NBC10 I emailed one of my professors Christine Farney who I had for a journalistic writing course. I told her about the internship and I asked her for any advice she could give me so that I might be more prepared. So, I wanted to rewrite the email she sent me so that her guidance may help others.

"Hello again,

Most of the advice I could offer falls into the 'soft skills' category because, quite honestly, anything they want you to know they will teach you so they mold you the way that suits them best. They just want to make sure you have the basics covered. And, soft skills are what make working with other people either a great experience or a miserable one. Most of what I'm going to say is common sense that, unfortunately, isn't all that common among intern who I have seen in actions. So just be aware of these things:

• Show up a few minutes early every day
• Make sure you say 'hello' and 'goodbye' to people in the morning and afternoon...You want to be seen.
• Strike a nice balance- be friendly in the office, but do not spend too much time talking
• Never be the first to leave (leave when the people you look up to do)
• Ever if your 'job' isn't paid, still treat it like a priority--don't...switch your schedule, change your hours, leave early etc.
• Dress better than the other interns(...Dress for the job you want, not for the job you have
• Even if the language/dress is casual, always be/act/speak professionally
• Show initiative
• Listen
• Observe the culture around you- find out what is important to your boss and mimic that (what does he do? stay late?...does he prefer email to voicemail when it comes to questions?)
• Never, ever badmouth anyone...
• Don't be an assignment-hog and compete against other interns...
• Offer to stretch your skills by taking on additional responsibilities
• Ask your boss how you're doing, if there's any room for improvement
• Don't come back late from lunch
• Ask employees/bosses about their experiences, their background, their advice...
• Be humble. Know that you don't know everything yet...
• Don't be afraid to ask questions
• Don't putz around on the Internet visiting sites like Myspace and Facebook..."
  

Professor Farney says that if interns follow these guidelines they can build credibility and trust with their supervisors. And, she says with credibility and trust, a person can go anywhere in life.

Try these out...

These tips seemed to work well for me!