#intern diary

A dream that came through by a simple toy

I always told my mom that when I grew up I wanted to be a mechanic, especially when I saw the the first Fast and Furious movie in theaters. As usual, my mother thought it was absurd on the idea of me being a mechanic, especially when I had a clear interest in more science-based things.

Well, I somewhat fulfilled my dream this week during my internship while working on creating social media content for one of our clients. With the Discovery Channel Store Automobile Engineer set, I was able to create various types of cars while learning the simple basics of engineering principles. On top of that, I was able to play with imovie and make a small DIY on how to build the models in the book.

The process itself was a challenge in itself. Angling the camera correctly, making sure you are doing the right steps and showing them, as well as making sure the video itself is clear and able to explain itself.

Though I never really play with video content, I am very excited to work with imovie and who knows I may also be able to work with other video editing software such as Final Cut Pro or Dreamweaver.

Until Next Time…

Interns are routinely asked to sit in on meetings which presents an excellent opportunity to show off what they know and bounce ideas off of the senior staff. Like it or not, when you enter a meeting you will be judge based on your body language or lack of perceived enthusiasm. Whether your shy or out going I have a few tips that I think could help boost your confidence in any meeting. Do Your Research— Be sure to go over all necessary information related to the topic or topics that will be covered in the meeting. If for example, the meeting is about a client be ready to clearly articulate your pitching efforts for the week as well as the responses you have received. Also, it’s great to have a few ideas in mind of how you plan to move forward in the following week. Have the Right Attitude — It’s easy to let stress get the best of you but if you seem sullen or upset at a meeting you could totally give the wrong message to your boss. If your shy, make an effort to smile, lean in, and nod your head in agreement every so often to give the impression that your alert and want to be there. Avoid “Like” — We’re all guilty of over using “um” “like” and other fillers but you definitely want to avoid them at a meeting. Practice delivering your ideas in a eloquent manner before the meeting. Notes — Here at Media Maison, we NEVER enter a meeting without a notepad or note taking device of some sort. When you enter a meeting, be prepared to jot down updates and any important insights that could help your pitching.

This week at Media Maison, we handled a press opening for one of our clients. Although I love working events and feeling in my element, I had to learn how to balance office tasks and event tasks. The challenge included keeping track of invites, RSVP's, making sure everything was set for the day of, and still pitch, follow up, and researching information for clients. Although a tough week, the feeling of satisfaction after getting everything done was well worth it. It was also an opportunity to include another client on our roster as a liquor sponsor, and kill two birds with one stone. This worked out in our favor because both brands have similar aesthetics and visions, making the pair a perfect fit. 

My lesson this week was basically the importance of planning and preparing. If I had not planned out as much as I did, nothing would have gotten done correctly. Also, there was definitely room from improvement on my end. For example, I realized that if I had a list ready with potential invite contacts from the last event, I would have saved myself so much time! I know now for the future to have my sturdy contact lists for events ready.

Every day is a lesson and a challenge, but at the end of the day, very fulfilling!

Most people think job hunting is difficult but what may be even more stressful is transitioning into a new position once you’ve been hired. It can be difficult to understand office culture but you shouldn’t let that get to your head. We all want to be liked and to know we are a valuable part of the team. Hopefully with my tips you can get adjusted faster and avoid overstepping boundaries. It’s much easier to present your best self when you are feeling happy and confident. Where your favorite (appropriate!) outfit to the office, this way your comfortable with how you look. However, take note of the office dress code. Do people generally dress casually or conservative? You want to communicate to your new colleagues that optimistic and excited to be there. Smile, say "good morning," or ask your colleagues about their weekend. Small talk can go a long way in making new friends. You want to be sensitive to how things are done. Observe how people communicate. Are people using Gchat, email or doing in-person meetings? Take note of whether people are going out for lunch or ordering in. Finally, do not compare yourself to anyone and remember it takes time to get adjusted so don’t be so hard on yourself.

We spend a lot of time at our desks scanning news and crafting pitches. During the course of the day my desk becomes a lunch table or disheveled mess overflowing with notes and random papers. I find that disorder and chaos does not help with my state of mind when I’m trying to write a pitch. Sometimes simply leaving your desk disorderly can contribute to feeling drained and overwhelmed. Since we spend so much time at our desk why not make it a fabulous! Here are few tips for making your desk your sanctuary: Organize, Categorize, Glamify— File documents in cute organization folders. You can color coordinate according to category or personalize your folders with fun stickers. Collect Mugs—Sip coffee or herbal tea in style. Decorate your desk with a chic mug that has a pretty design or snappy saying. My favorite are mugs that have the “But First…Coffee” saying on it. Add a personal touch—Some people like to keep photos of family, friends or a pet on their desk. Another way to sass up your desk is to print your favorite quote and frame it. Bring in the Peace—PR can be crazy, decorate your desk with something that reminds you to stay zen. I love mini statues of Buddha and crystals. 

The whole purpose of interning is to gain enough experience to be able to either be hired by the company you are with or go out on your own into the field.  An important thing that any person attempting to succeed in this PR industry (or any industry for that matter) should be proper interview etiquette. Meaning all of the do's and dont's to nailing a job interview. A few simple tips that most people sometimes usually dismiss include:

Presentation is everything: From top to bottom make sure to dress in your business casual finest. No matter how small or large the company, treat them all with the same courtesy. Leave the ragged jeans and dirty sneakers at home.

Always bring your resume: Granted, in today’s world most of the time when you go in for an interview they will already have your resume, but it looks good on your part to always be prepared. So print that baby!

Timeliness: We always hear, arrive 15 mins before your interview and you should do just that. 10-15 mins is a good time frame to show up , not an hour before or 10 mins late because it just shows inconsideration for everyone's time or schedule.

Be yourself: Don’t ever go into an interview trying to impress or be someone that you aren’t. It is only going to work your nerves and psych yourself out or come off fake. Just stay calm and go in like you already have other options

These might sound repetitive but you'd be surprised how many people don't bother. I myself have made some of these same mistakes but hopefully it can be helpful!

This week was Apple's annual special event in San Francisco where they announce their new operating software, as well as all their new products that will be coming out in the upcoming months. Apple announced their new operating software IOS9, which will be launched on September 16th. Alongside IOS9, Apple is launching an updated operating system called WatchOS2 for Apple watch users. Besides updating the operating systems for iPhones and Apple watch, We were introduce to a few new products. Apple has wowed us again with the new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, new colors and designs for the Apple Watch, a new Apple TV and the new iPad pro.

The new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus will come in a new Rose gold color along with some new features that include: 3D Multi-Touch, live photos, A9 (The most advanced chip in a smartphone) and many more. For the Apple Watch, silver alumni, gold aluminum and rose gold aluminum are the new designs. The new iPad Pro will have a 12.9 Retina display and include 5.6 million megapixels and many other cool new features. Finally, the new Apple TV will bring watching television to the next level. It will include apps, games and even Siri.

During and after the event, social media was completely flooded with tons of opinions and thoughts about all these new upcoming Apple products. Twitter was filled with different trends and by the end of the event everyone was talking about the new iPhone, iPad Pro and Apple TV. PR is all about getting positive exposure and getting your products out in the media for everyone to talk about. Today, every news outlet whether it was digital or broadcasting had a topic just about Apple's event. From a PR's perspective this was extreme exposure in the media making this a success. Everyone from social media to broadcast media is talking about the new Apple products.

Apple has done it again and continues to show us why they are the leaders of innovation. Everyone is excited to get their hands on the new Apple gadgets including myself! The new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus will be available for pre-order on September 12th and be available September 24th. While the new Apple TV and iPad Pro will be available later in the Fall.

My name is Peter Lavergata and I recently graduated from Lehman College. I received my BA in Multimedia Studies with a focused area in Public Relations. Like every other recent graduate, there is so much pressure to find a job right after graduation. The fear is being that person who spent 4 years in school and not finding a job for a long time after that. Everyone wants to jumpstart their career as soon as they graduate, but that is not always what happens. Fortunately for me, I was given the opportunity to start working towards my career when I recently got hired as a PR intern here at Media Maison. I was extremely excited to to be given this opportunity because I want to get my career started and learn as much as I can to be the best PR I can possibly be. 

While interning at Media Maison I hope to learn all the tools I will need to be successful in this field. I hope to learn something new everyday and take these new experiences with me to advance further in my career. My hope is to become more confident in my career as a PR and to gain all the knowledge I could. My first week as an intern I learned a lot so far. I learned a lot of the responsibilities as an intern for around the office as well as how to use this website called Cision. Cision is basically a PR software website that helps you gather a lot of information when you are trying to put together a story or pitch. Also, I learned how to write a media pitch in a way that would catch an editor's attention. I’m excited for all the things I’m going to learn over my next few months as an intern!