Why Interning is the Best Thing You Can Do
Just the other day, the office staff joked about how we were having a sort of “internship reunion” since all the employees in the room were at one point or another interns for Groff NetWorks. That got me thinking…internships are incredibly valuable. It is a foot in the door at least and at most it’s the first step in your career. Nearly every single person in this office that day started out as an intern here. Some of those internships began ten years ago. I myself was recently an intern. As I went through college I made it my goal to have as many internships as I could before I graduated, so I’m a bit of an expert on the matter. In my expert opinion, I say there’s nothing better in starting your career than an internship, especially when you’re just trying to learn or aren’t sure what to do.
From my personal experiences I can say that you not only learn about the fundamentals of the job, you learn about the culture of a business. You learn the way people interact in the workplace, the social norms of your peers and supervisors. You also find out about yourself and what you like and want in a job. Sometimes you’ll be working at an internship and realize you don’t like the situation you’re in. Maybe your boss is too strict for your liking, or maybe they don’t give you enough information and you’re often confused. It’s a test-trial to see if you and the company are a match for each other. Fitting into the social norms at a company is a major indicator of job satisfaction. You won’t be happy at work if you don’t like the workplace itself.
During college I worked at a place where I felt like I wasn’t given enough guidance and the work had a figure-it-out-as-you-go kind of organization to it. To some, this might be something you can thrive in. But to me personally, I did not like it. I like more structure, and to plan out my week so I can do my work diligently. So I left that job, not because my boss was a jerk or the work was meaningless, but the “glove” didn’t fit. At Groff NetWorks, I felt like I fit in. Not only did the organization of the company better suit my skill set, but I also felt at home with the company culture. Groff NetWorks doesn’t care so much about having as many clients as they can, they care about the quality of the relationships with their clients. They care about people, both their clients and the general population as well. They want you to succeed first and foremost and will be there for you at a moment’s notice. The people are friendly and easy to talk to. A genuine good group of people that want the best for people, which is something I can get behind.
Another employee was talking about how much she has learned from her internship as opposed to in the classroom. With our staff of experts she was able to learn exponentially quicker in the office than what she had at school. You can’t beat real world experience! So with the great work culture and team of experts, it’s no wonder people who intern here want to stay.