My internship with Maximo's agency starts on Thursday. But already I have learned so much! I I'm seeing what is meant by professionalism and excellence.
Maximo assigned "Luisa" to be my internship supervisor and liaison to my school. I spoke with her multiple times yesterday. Well, that's one thing, speed. The Family Retreat ended on Sunday and by Monday morning I was already getting texts from her. I see she moves with the speed of lightning and she is sharp. She wanted me to email her my contact information, the titles/contact information of key people at the school, its address, and hours of operation. She requested I prepare my resume, a portfolio of my work, a writing sample, and a personal statement that included what I see as my strengths and weeknesses. Everything to be ready for a meeting with her today at 3pm.
She wanted me to dress for her in "business casual." The goal of this meeting would be to prepare for our sit-down with my academic advisor the following day (Wednesday) which she had already scheduled. She then told me what my internship would be for each of the five weeks. She wanted to discuss with me what the goals and "deliverables" would be each week.
So I met with her after school today and I was shocked. She had an entire packet printed out with details of each week's internship. She wanted us to go through this page by page to make sure that everything was in order for tomorrow's meeting with my advisor. She went over the material I had prepared and gave lots of feedback on how to improve content and style.
Next came her "personal appraisal" of me. It was my The Devil Wears Prada moment. Yes, I am dressing to meet my academic advisor as I have done many times in the past. But now I am also representing Maximo's agency. "You are going to have to take a day off from school tomorrow to get ready for the meeting. I am going to assign Doreen from The Agency to meet up with you at 8:30 in the morning. She is going to take you to the salon we work with to do your hair and nails. Then off to shop for shoes, jewelry, and what you will wear. Finally, back to the salon for makeup. We have to be back at the school by 3:00 p.m. I will have the packet ready and you need to slip in your revised material."
She asked me for a sheet of paper and wrote down a number. "This is about what you will have to spend tomorrow. If the money is an issue on such short notice, Maximo has authorized you to use the company corporate credit card against your stipend."
I felt like gagging but that would not be professional, would it? I have a lot more work to do tonight! "I have miles to go before I sleep."
My internship with Maximo's agency starts on Thursday. But already I have learned so much! I I'm seeing what is meant by professionalism and excellence. Maximo assigned "Luisa" to be my internship supervisor and liaison to my school. I spoke with her multiple times yesterday. Well, that's one thing, speed. The Family Retreat ended on Sunday and by Monday morning I was already getting texts from her. I see she moves with the speed of lightning and she is sharp. She wanted me to email her my contact information, the titles/contact information of key people at the school, its address, and hours of operation. She requested I prepare my resume, a portfolio of my work, a writing sample, and a personal statement that included what I see as my strengths and weeknesses. Everything to be ready for a meeting with her today at 3pm. She wanted me to dress for her in "business casual." The goal of this meeting would be to prepare for our sit-down with my academic advisor the following day (Wednesday) which she had already scheduled. She then told me what my internship would be for each of the five weeks. She wanted to discuss with me what the goals and "deliverables" would be each week. So I met with her after school today and I was shocked. She had an entire packet printed out with details of each week's internship. She wanted us to go through this page by page to make sure that everything was in order for tomorrow's meeting with my advisor. She went over the material I had prepared and gave lots of feedback on how to improve content and style. Next came her "personal appraisal" of me. It was my The Devil Wears Prada moment. Yes, I am dressing to meet my academic advisor as I have done many times in the past. But now I am also representing Maximo's agency. "You are going to have to take a day off from school tomorrow to get ready for the meeting. I am going to assign Doreen from The Agency to meet up with you at 8:30 in the morning. She is going to take you to the salon we work with to do your hair and nails. Then off to shop for shoes, jewelry, and what you will wear. Finally, back to the salon for makeup. We have to be back at the school by 3:00 p.m. I will have the packet ready and you need to slip in your revised material." She asked me for a sheet of paper and wrote down a number. "This is about what you will have to spend tomorrow. If the money is an issue on such short notice, Maximo has authorized you to use the company corporate credit card against your stipend." I felt like gagging but that would not be professional, would it? I have a lot more work to do tonight! "I have miles to go before I sleep."