Starting an internship can be nerve-racking, but I’m here to tell you that it is worth it! An internship offers so much insight as to what your future will look like. You get exclusive access to the day-to-day functions of the company, the opportunity to connect and network with professionals in your field, work on projects that get your brain thinking differently from the typical academia style, and so much more! I’m here to share my experiences and stories from my internship at The Underground Chicago thus far and hope to relieve some of the stress you may be experiencing.

The first day of my internship was better than I anticipated! My supervisor and I had a Zoom meeting where she went over all the background history of the company and also provided a brief overview of my tasks. The following day I met her at Sunda, which is one of the company’s three venues. We went over my first project, which totally got me in the groove of things. Meeting in person offers a totally different experience than virtual does and I am sure we can all say the same after living through a pandemic. If you get the option of doing in-person rather than remote, I think in-person will be much more beneficial and will allow the experience to be THAT much better!

My first project was grassroots marketing. I was responsible for reaching out to local, luxury residential buildings and obtaining current contact information. This project was necessary in order for the company to update their database. It was frightening at first to pick up the phone and visit these places in person and sell my pitch. When I first started this project, I got many turn-downs, managers and concierges’ who did not want to provide me with any info. I knew I couldn’t give up. I had a task that needed to get done. In the end I experienced nothing but success and it was extremely rewarding! I encourage all interns to not give up! Ask questions, be proactive, and most importantly, don’t forget your thinking cap!