Going into an internship can be nerve-wracking, you don’t know if you’ll be tasked with real work that will aid in your job experience or if you’ll be the nameless coffee-runner that’s always getting the company bagel order wrong. Maybe I watched “The Devil Wears Prada” one too many times… Needless to say, I was not expecting much out of this internship when I received the “you got the internship” email. However, I quickly learned that PATTERN Magazine could not have been a better fit for me and my internship goals.
From the very beginning, the PATTERN team made it clear they want you to get as much knowledge and experience out of the internship as possible. I started the internship with no real professional job experience in the field I hope to pursue, but left feeling confident in my capabilities. PATTERN allows you to dabble in anything and everything from photography and styling to event planning (through the virtual speaker bureau management). You get as much out of this internship experience as you want, you just have to want the knowledge and experience and ask to try your hand at whatever interests you.
PATTERN not only allows you to experiment and express your creativity, it also connects you with a plethora of local creatives that are all working toward building a greater community for creatives in Indianapolis. Before this internship, I believed that the only way to succeed as a creative was to leave Indianapolis for a bigger, more fashion-forward city like Los Angeles or New York City. PATTERN has introduced me to the magic that is Indianapolis. There are so many interesting people and places in Indianapolis that not everyone knows about. I am forever grateful for PATTERN for showing me that Indianapolis can make my artistic dreams come true.
If I could give PATTERN’s future interns advice on how to succeed during their internship experience it would be this: Try new things and work hard at them, have faith in yourself and your abilities and you will go far. Savor every moment in this internship because it goes by fast and you will miss being surrounded by such talented and creative people every week.
