The New Job: I'm Lovin' It.

I know it's been a month since I last blogged, but for good reason - I started my new job! From day one, it's been go, go, go, and I'm lovin' it.

As the newest intern on the Digital team at HRC, I'm a busy bee! Whether I'm checking spelling and grammar on a piece of writing for a colleague or doing research for someone else, or popping into a last minute brainer, I'm always kept on my toes.

Being new to any job, there's so much to learn and get used to. This job, however, is my first real "office" job, so learning the ins and outs of techie type stuff has been interesting as well. (working the printer was a big step for me. Don't even ask about sending a fax, that's too complicated right now.)

The people I work with are great - so much fun and always available to help a poor newbie like myself. No one hesitates to answer whenever I tentatively ask a question about something or other. We play while we work too, and can frequently be heard calling out random answers to riddles given by one of the Digital ladies. Our favourite answer these days? "Cars can't see dogs!"

I'm really looking forward to growing and learning more and more about the digital side of PR, and I know I'm at the best agency to do this. As always, wish me luck! I think I'm in for an excellent few months! :)

One Week Down...and Loving it So Far!

Last week was my first week at my second agency. A little confused? Let's do a recap:

I started my internship a few weeks ago at Agency #1. Things were amazing. Then, Agency #1 shut down. A huge bummer. I was sad, I was stressed, I was frustrated and worried about what I'd do and about my immediate future.

Then, about a week and a half ago, I received word that Agency #2 agreed to take me on and let me finish my internship with them. I got to keep working with my boss from Agency #1 who is wonderful and I didn't want to have to part with, AND I'd finish my internship here in St. John's, so I can begin a job in Toronto when I return next month.

So how was the first week at Agency #2?

Fabulous.

It's been busy, it's been eye-opening, and at times it's been a bit overwhelming, as I've been thrown right into huge projects and am trying to get my footing. I'm doing lots of different things, from writing bios to making phone calls on behalf of clients, to writing countless emails about this, that and the other thing.

To be honest, I was waiting for the internship to really judge how much I liked public relations, and so far, from the few weeks that I've been interning....I really love it. I was nervous that I wouldn't like it, and I'm sure there will be days when I don't, when I bang my head on my desk in frustration, and resort to upping my chocolate fix to 8am instead of 2pm, but for now...I love it.

I've begun week 2, and the days just seem to speed by at times. When 5pm comes, I'm actually disappointed sometimes, that I have to go home. That must be a sign that you love your job, right?

Until next week, have a happy week!

Changes...again.

The past couple of weeks have been pretty crazy.

I posted an entry almost two weeks ago, sharing my excitement over getting an internship here in St. John's. I was loving it; the people, the work I was doing...it was perfect.

Until I went in last Monday morning, and was told by my boss that the company was shutting down...immediately. As in: that same day.

Needless to say, I was shocked. And then nervous. And then a full-out wreck, because I had already turned down all my internship offers in Toronto, I'd already paid my first month's rent on my apartment in Toronto, and had already been looking for jobs...all in Toronto.

I kept going over and over in my mind what I'd do...I didn't want to have to go back to Toronto without having completed my internship because I want a job when I go back...a real one, not one "in a bookstore while I'm doing my internship" job. I need to be able to support myself while I'm up there, and not have to put everything on my credit card, or something like that.

So, after a week and a half of waiting...waiting...waiting....I finally got word yesterday morning: my boss at my old placement told me that I could come to the new company she's now working at and finish my internship there. To say I'm relieved is an understatement!!

Now, I can finally continue with my job hunt, my furniture hunt (anyone know where I can get a nice desk? Anyone?) and finally get on with my LIFE, now that I'm not stuck in limbo anymore.

Whew! I wonder if the famous Barrie Doyle would count this as a crisis....hmmmm....

The unexpected (but excited) Intern!

Being home in Newfoundland for the summer, I had originally decided to wait to do my internship in September, instead of starting in May like most of the other people in my Humber PR class. And while being home with family and friends in St. John's is great, I have to say, I felt a bit....bored. I'm working part time at the bookstore again, but barely getting any hours, so I decided I wanted to do a bit of volunteer work.

To be honest, I wanted to get some PR volunteer experience before I started my internship because I thought that after four months of being out of the world of PR, I was afraid I'd have forgotten how to write a simple press release. (I know, that's unlikely, but I still feared it!)

So at a family gathering, I cornered a cousin of mine who works in the marketing industry here in St. John's, and his wife works in PR. (I know, lucky me, family members who understand my line of work!) I told them about my wanting to volunteer, and they said they'd see if they could help set me up with something. The next day, I got an email from my cousin, saying he'd gotten in contact with a friend of his at an agency here in St. John's, and to forward some writing samples to her.

I've been at this agency for a few weeks now and I'm loving it. The things I've been able to work on are even better than I thought they would be, and I'm so grateful to have such a wonderful mentor! And since I haven't had much luck securing an internship up in Toronto for the fall, my time at the agency here is actually going to be my internship now, which I'm so pleased about! Agency work here in Newfoundland is not as fast-paced as it is up in Toronto, but this is suiting me just fine for now!

I'm still returning to Toronto this fall, but instead of looking for an internship, now I'm looking for a job. If anyone has any recommendations, or knows of any openings for entry-level public relations practitioners, I'm all ears!

Have a happy week!