#and now i have two jobs 4 clubs and an interview for a summer internship program

[vyeoh]

I'm genuinely suffering from success

[tropiyas]

my year in review: TAP IN to read about me absolutely RANT about my LIFE and get a parasocial view into my last 12 months in the format of the tried and true W/L ratio:

LOSSES:

- Miserable sendoff with my old roommates, I was just avoiding them in an insane person way, essentially timing bathroom trips to avoid them, or sneaking out my window instead of taking the front door! I literally wasn't even on bad terms with them or fighting with them, they just had their own isolated friend groups and I felt really debilitatingly awkward running into them because I was just in a no good mood

- Fall 2020 and Spring 2021 were the worst two semesters I've had, both academically speaking and also in terms of extracurricular -- I had to step down as president of a club because I had no idea how to get new members via Zoom meetings.

- Ran into some TERRIBLE burnout during the summer, I worked probably a net 60 hours a week between an internship and a Dunkin Donuts job, also spent weekends playing in a weekly Valorant tournament (+3-4 hours for those). I had so little time free time, but my excuse was "eh covid is still a thing, prob wasn't gonna do anything with my time anyways" but DUH even if I wasn't hanging out or doing exciting things I could have been relaxing or chilling at home !

- Broke my phone in the last week of 2022. It's been so boring that I'm writing essays out here, send help

WINS:

- Graduating college early. I was burning out anyways and don't think I could handle one last semester during the Spring

- Interviewing for + landing a job in my last semester. I honestly had a good feeling about finding work because of how much I liked the work in my summer internship (in spite of burning myself out), but I pretty much saw myself continuing the internship and working from home as a contractor. I did not expect to get such an EXCITING job offer as a full time employee AND I get to move across the U.S. to boot!

- Met some great new friends in my new living situation, 5 wonderful super fun roommates who were very inclusive of bringing me into their friend group in August despite them all being friends already. They literally taught me how to have fun like an actual College Student, and the one time I had a College-level fuckup they took the best care of me and I don't think I'll ever forget it lmfao.

- Got closer with a bunch of existing friends, just feeling a lot better about life because of the amount of Talking and Knowledge and Fun that I've shared with them! They all gave me great advice throughout life shit, and I always enjoy hearing about their story updates, and if we're getting awkwardly philosophical here it makes me feel like I exist/am alive whenever I have these 1-on-1 experiences w/ people

NEUTRAL / MISC:

- Discovered way more things about life and what I want in the future, and also now that I've graduated it's a mix of feelings -- how tf do I navigate a world bigger than College Campus, I had enough trouble with that? but also: there's so much shit I can do now and also I'm gonna be getting paid for some of the stuff I'll be doing 😎

- Got to enjoy some good content this year (neither a win or a loss because I'm not basing my PERSONAL VALUE of the year off of stuff I consume) - Halo Infinite, Metroid Dread, Valorant, No Way Home, JJBA, DUNGEON MESHI, all good shit

Overall? 7/10 year, started off meh, really brought it back in the back half

[purplesurveys]

937

Tell us something that made you happy yesterday. My dad made these amazing burritos that came with dips that were just as crazy good. It really felt like being at my favorite Mexican restaurants.

What were you up to at 8 am earlier today? I was driving to the office of the company where I had my interview in.

What were you doing 15 minutes ago? I was hanging out in the living room with my family. But soon enough I felt like being by myself, so now I’m back in my room.

The last thing you said out loud. “Oh shit, new episode” I keep forgetting GMM releases a new episode every 6 PM, and I just remembered like 4 minutes ago so I exclaimed said quote to myself and now I have their most recent ep playing alongside this survey.

The last thing someone said to you. “Goodnight, love you” from my mom.

What have you been drinking today? The first thing I drank was a bottle of C2 that I was given by the company I had my interview in this morning :) After that I had water, then when I ran an errand for my dad he got me my favorite drink from Starbucks as a thanks so now I’m drinking iced caramel macchiato all night tonight.

What was the last thing you ate? My dad made nilaga for dinner, but he knows I don’t like it so he made a burrito just for me to get me to eat haha

What was the last thing you bought? Haven’t bought anything for myself in a really long time, but the last thing I paid for period was Cooper’s vaccinations last Thursday. Poor guy, he’s started to recognize when we’re at the vet clinic and automatically starts squirming and crying once I hand him over to the vet assistants :(

What's the color of your front door? All our doors are brown.

What's the weather like outside?: COLDER. I am a happy, satisfied bean. It’s cold enough that I turn off the electric fan for a few hours at night now. Currently, the temperature is at 27ºC. 

Your favorite ice cream flavor. Cookies and cream, but recently I got to try Ben & Jerry’s chocolate chip cookie dough for the first time and that has quickly become my favorite too. Those cookie dough chunks are stupid good.

Who was the last person to call you? My dad.

Who was the last person you called? Gabie.

Do you believe in love at first sight? It’s probably possible for some and I certainly wouldn’t invalidate any testimony talking about falling in love at first sight, but it wouldn’t happen with me. I can’t make such a deep decision so quickly.

Do you sleep deeply? Very much. I can sleep through earthquakes, typhoons, and occasionally even alarms. At the same time, I’m also able to sleep very lightly whenever I need to be on alert or if I need to be up super early the next day. I guess I just have excellent control of my sleep lol.

Do you have nightmares? Sometimes. They come in much more frequently these days because I’ve been in a slump, so...not really having a good time in my sleep recently. Do you like your job? I think I just got accepted as an intern in my dream PR agency, and I’m over the moon about it <3 I feel really bad for putting in a lot of time with the other agency I applied to and visited this morning, and I might have to turn them down if they ever come to me with a job offer but...I’m choosing my dreams, man. Haha.

Your favorite outfit? I haven’t been regularly outside for a while so I’ve stopped having favorites.

Your favorite song at the moment? Lose by Niki. Gut-wrenching, but still a good listen especially if I need an emotional release, heh.

Who was the last person to sleep in your bed?: I don’t let anyone sleep in my bed other than my dogs, who both don’t like beds anyway.

What do you see when you turn your head to the right? I turned my bedroom upside down this morning trying to look for a notebook just in case I needed to write things down during my job interview, and I haven’t cleaned up said mess so there’s still a bit of a pile on my right.

What are you planning to do next? Another survey or maybe just marathon GMM entirely.

Are you right or left handed? Right.

Current mood: Thrilled about my new work, dejected about everything else.

Favorite candy: Does Reese’s count as candy? It’s my favorite chocolate snack ever.

Clothes you wear at the moment: T-shirt and shorts, my usual pairing at home.

Summer plans: That’s over now, but during that time I finished my thesis, helped in planning and managing our online college graduation, and graduated.

How many pillows do you sleep with? Two. One to lay my head on, and another to snuggle. If I’m missing one or have more than two, I will 100% have a hard time falling asleep. I’m very particular when it comes to my sleeping arrangements ha.

Cozy evening in or a night out at the club? Cozy evenings are nice on weekends but drinking/partying is really fun on Fridays and gives me a chance to unwind and treat myself.

Do you play any instrument? No. I don’t count the recorder because almost everyone can play that lol.

Are you a morning or a night person? Night. I’ve always liked staying up.

What's most important for you? My career and future, and making sure I work wherever I’m most happy and can grow the most in.

Are you ticklish? Yep, everywhere.

Do you snore? Occasionally I do this one loud snore and I’m aware of that fact because I always end up waking myself up HAHA. It’s always just that one snore though and I’m usually able to sleep silently right after.

Zodiac sign: Taurus.

The creepiest, most disgusting insect in the world is: Fucking cockroaches, man.

Messy or tidy: I’m messy tidy. Sometimes things will just end up too hectic and I fail to catch up and I make a mess in my room, but I always know where everything is.

What are you looking forward to right now? For my internship to start and to binge-watch GMM.

[microshiner]

Ska, craft spirits, and Colorado's real drinking town

The hangover bell rings loud and clear in my head as I lift a 70 pound guitar cabinet into the back of a white 2000 Ford Econoline XL. Rain falls lightly. I am running on only a few slovenly hours of sleep but despite the pounding head, my mood is jovial. My band mates and I recount the night before over and over. In the world of ska music, there are few bands more respected than Hepcat, and few bands more infamous than Mephiskapheles, and we just shared the stage with both in one night. It was also the kick off to the second leg of our spring and summer run- this morning we hit the road out of Denver and head for Durango, Colorado, where we’ll spend a week in the studio and follow it up with two shows in the area including a performance at the legendary Ska Brewing Company.

Alright.

Personally, I am excited for more than one reason. I went to school in Durango, but it’s been six years since I’ve lived there and from what I can tell, the drinking scene has only gotten better. A new craft distillery just opened up, and the number of breweries has jumped from 4 to 6 (All this in a town of 17,000. Fort Collins gets the glory, but at over 150,000 residents, are their 14 breweries and 3 distilleries that impressive? Which is the real drinking town?)

I contemplate this and other pressing issues to pass the time on a 7 hour haul over the Rocky Mountains. As we climb in elevation, my mood levels off. It always does when passing time in the van. Whether I am headed somewhere new or somewhere I’ve been many times, as long as it’s light outside touring has always had a bit of a weird vibe to me. The late nights, the shows, the people, the free drink tickets - that is what it’s all about and what makes it worth it. The rush of playing a good show is matched by no drug or other experience I’ve ever had. But during the day, driving through the middle of nowhere to the next town while getting further and further away from your personal life back home, the anxiety creeps in.

Maybe it’s because I’ve never been in a band at a level where touring was our income. I’ve always had to hurry back home after each run and get to work in order to keep the bills paid. Right now, it’s about 9:30 on Monday morning. Everyone I know (except the three guys sitting here with me) is at work, or walking the dog, or heading to the bank, something normal.

Don’t get me wrong, there is certainly a level of awesome to all this. I’m never going to be a ‘company man.’ I knew that by the time I hit high school. I take a lot of pride in what I do for a living and for a hobby. But the older I get, the harder I find it to relate the stories of the road and the stories of the pen and the stories of so many nights passed in rock clubs to people who are my age but haven’t had a night out in months. The word ‘baby’ means something entirely different to them.

As Vonnegut would say - So it goes. We pull into town just in time for happy hour but unfortunately the liquor store will have to suffice for tonight; we’ve got to get to the studio. Tomorrow I will have the opportunity to experience some of the actual culture of this town I’ve missed so much.

Tuesday morning I am walking down Main Avenue bright and early in a leisurely search for a cup of coffee and a paper. Part of me feels like a Texan, stopping to gaze into each store window as I pass by and then actually purchasing, after looking around to make sure no one I know is in sight then ducking quickly into the storefront, a “Durango” t-shirt. I’ll have to bury this down in my backpack so my bandmates never see it. I justify the window shopping and eventual purchase as a mere way to pass some time before my scheduled meeting with some real locals, the owners of Durango Craft Spirits, at 10 o’clock.

I walk into the tasting room to meet owners Michael and Amy McCardell. Immediately I can tell that the duo lives by their motto and are ‘Inspired by the true spirit of Durango’ - It is only 10 am but the room is full of bluegrass music and the McCardell’s beckoning call for a drink. Michael handles the distilling of what is currently their sole offering - Soiled Dove Vodka, made from a mash of 60% native grown, non-GMO white corn they get directly from the Ute Mountain Tribe of Ute in Towaoc, Colorado (just a little over an hour from Durango). His soft voice, with a bit of a country tinge, makes even a short sentence sound well-rehearsed and wise. Perfect for telling stories, and I’m guessing he has a lot of them.

Lucky for me, Michael is not at all shy about telling the story of Durango Craft Spirits, his pride and joy.

It is, I learn quickly, Durango’s first post-prohibition, grain-to-glass distillery. “We’ve got a couple friends over at Ska, Dave (Thibodeau) and Bill (Graham), that opened Peach Street Distillery, in Grand Junction) years ago and one day I met the old distiller and Bill brought in one of their first bottles of gin, along with a bottle of Bombay Sapphire,” Michael says. “It was just unbelievably so much better. That first opened my eyes to craft distilling.”

This was over ten years ago, and until that day Michael had no plans at all of going into the distilling business. “A couple years later, I’m hiking around a piece of property up north with the county assessor, and he said ‘I gotta tell you this story. There’s a buddy of mine who thought he found some ancient Anasazi ruins on his property and he wanted me to come check them out. They hiked up there on a cliff to an Anasazi looking wall and there was an old still sitting back there.’”

He decided to do some research and try to figure out what kind of distilling was done in the area. “I started reading a few books about distilling in the area, and there was quite a bit done,” Michael says. “Especially turn of the last century when the silver market took a crash. A lot of the miners took to cooking booze in the mines.”

With his interest piqued, Michael attended three distilling schools and landed himself an internship at Wood’s High Mountain Distillery in Salida, CO, with the intention of opening his own show in Durango once he learned about the operational side. Both Michael and Amy had spent years in the local hospitality industry managing hotels and a golf club.

As their current jobs came to end due to sell offs, the decision was made to go full-steam with the distillery concept. Step one, securing a location. Where They landed right on the corner of 11th and Main, in the heart of downtown, and opened in January of this year.

Their setup is pretty simple - tasting room in the front, still setup and work area in the back (visible to guests), and office off to the side. Nice and cozy. “We go grain to glass right in the building with all regional grains,” Michael says. “We’re real proud to mash, distill, and bottle right in house.” I had been sold on their concept already, but at this point I could not continue the interview without trying some of their product.

Amy, generally in charge of the tasting room and PR, hands me a pour from behind the bar. I stir, smell, and sip. Then I gasp.

I am not a vodka drinker. My taste for the stuff was ruined by too much Smirnoff as a teenager. But this morning I am happy to make an exception. This stuff is good. Smooth, one of those spirits that you know would be perfect in a cocktail but it almost seems like a sin to dilute it, like a fine scotch. Until you realize that a vodka of such high quality could finally allow you to drink those plastic-bottle vodka infused party concoctions you swore off in your mid-twenties because you can’t stand the headaches any more, minus the headache. “I use a pretty strange recipe for the vodka compared to other distilleries, and it gives it a pretty unique flavor.” That, I agree, is easy to notice.

“The product is tied to Durango’s history,” Michael informs me as empty my glass. “Soiled doves being a Victorian term for the prostitutes of the town. They operated into the 1960s in Durango and were fined heavily, with the fines helping to cover the cost of the schools, the police department, and the fire department.”

The McCardells pay homage to these lovely financiers on the back of their bottle. The cocktails served in the tasting room are also related to the town’s history, an effort that has most certainly allowed the curious tourist to feel more accomplished in his imbibing. The distillery looks to release an unaged whiskey this fall, with barreling scheduled to begin this month. The vodka is currently only sold within 150 miles of Durango. “We are being (probably) too cautious about our growth,” Michael says. They do, however, plan to expand further across Colorado. Not bad for a true mom-and-pop and operation.

I like to think that my band is a mom-and-pop operation. I guess it would be a quadruple-pop operation. Like Michael and Amy, we have grown our small company from nothing into nothing less than an amazing life experience, with no real guidance other learned experience. We have made plenty of mistakes over the last eight years but have slowly made progress come from each of them. We’ve dealt with marriages, jobs, mortgages, kids, operational disagreements, and an old van catching on fire on the road, and as life has happened, we have found a way to happen with it. Back in the early days, circa 2007-2010, I put all of my eggs in that basket. I was willing to work crappy kitchen jobs and live in dilapidated apartments so that I would in turn have the flexibility to leave town when I needed to and be able to keep my financial overhead at a bare minimum in order to play music multiple nights a week. I cared about nothing other than making the band succeed. I lost relationships and friends.

The other guys, at least the two I started the group with, did the same. And then, in the fall of 2010, we crashed and burned hard. So hard, in fact, that over the next two years we did next to nothing with the group. We had no money, our leases were up, and we had nowhere left to go. For a while, we went our separate ways. Our biggest lesson, and one of the most important things I have ever gotten out of life, is that you have to have options - you have to have more than one card to play. As we’ve grown up since then, we have found ways to have other priorities in life while still being able to come back and execute with the band when it’s time.

While the band was on ‘unofficial hiatus’, I filled the musical craving in another group, but I was also able to take the experiences I had with the band, mix them with my college degree, and create some kind of shit show career path based on music business and journalism. Five years later I feel I can see it blossoming. To me, the craft lifestyle embodies that same spirit - live life, take what you’ve got, mix in a heavy dose of passion, and throw it to wind. It takes awhile, but when it finally comes full circle, it tastes so damn good.

[lifeatucr]

Flash Back Friday

As seniors we often reflect on the years we spent earning our degree. Whether it’s class, work, clubs, research or etc, we reminisce those good ol’ days. Today I wanted to share my actual memories with you all, but this time with throwback photos. I chose a few moments of college that were captured on camera that were meaningful to my college experience. It’s bittersweet to reflect on these memories but I hope it inspires current or prospective students to make the most out of their college years.

Let’s start with where it all began. Freshman orientation. It was a very hot weekend in the summer of 2014 but I was having a blast. I made new friends in orientation (who I am still friends with today) and I experienced college life in those two days. It was a day full of ice breakers, tons of information, and long walks around campus. I cringe when I look back at myself because I know that 4 years ago, I was so lost. That girl in this photo would be so proud of where I am today and what the next 4 years hold.

Lets jump to my second year of college.  Here I am standing at the tidal basin at Jefferson Memorial in Washington DC. My second year of college, Spring Quarter 2016 to be accurate, I participated in the UCDC program and spent 3 months interning and studying in DC. This moment was special to me because I pretty much chose to go in the spring to see the beautiful cherry blossoms in bloom. I knew that these cherry blossoms were a gift from Japan and I just had to see them (hinting future FBF photo). Washington changed the direction of my life. I finally knew what I wanted to do and gave me professional experience. The friendships were incredible and the city is still one of my favorites. Plus it was my first time away from home (I’m a commuter, first generation, have strict parents, you get the point).

Here I am nervously posing for a photo on my first day as an intern in Washington DC. This was a huge moment for me! I was a second year student in the capital of the country who was starting her first day as a professional intern in the city. That sounds intimidating. Also, the Human Rights Campaign was my dream internship and I got it! I did not want to disappoint. However, this was my first time working in a large organization and I had very little experience.  This organization helped me realize I value helping others and I met crazy inspirational people. I’m still in awe.

While I was in DC I was actually applying for jobs so that I could start working immediately after returning. I was hired at Undergraduate Admissions to help manage Life at UCR and I still feel incredibly lucky. This photo was taken at one of our end of the year banquets and I feel so grateful to have been able to work with an amazing team. This job has been another big event in my 4 years because it's given me incredible experience and allowed me to connect with even MORE inspirational people. Now it has been almost 2 years since I joined the team.

As soon as I came back from DC, I started applying for study abroad in Japan. It was the place of my dreams and everyday that went by I would imagine what it would be like to stand in the streets of Tokyo. Not only did I stand on those streets but I ended up 3776 meters above Japan after climbing Mt. Fuji. I spent 8 hours climbing Fuji and looking at the sunrise pictured above was a moment I will never forget. I had come a long way in my life and at this point I knew I could get through anything if I was persistent enough. I spent 4 months in Japan and I can write 10,000 blogs about it (check out my blog actually).  Japan stole my heart and changed the way I see others and myself (I’m getting emotional just by writing this!)

These are the biggest events with my time at UCR. Although they were all memorable and pleasant, I definitely struggled throughout the process. Not pictured is all the times I had to study for hours and hours, tons of application processes for study abroad and UCDC, the struggles of me applying and interviewing for dozens of jobs and more. It doesn’t all happen so easily. I wish I could include more memories like the time I got my first internship after freshman year, meeting my host family abroad, standing in front of the White House, and attending big concerts on campus with access to the pit! These years have been incredible.

If you want to learn more about these programs or my experiences, let us know in the ask box!

Thanks for reading.

[livinginlavender]

Monsieur Rock, meet Mademoiselle Hard Place

Have you ever heard the expression, “Stuck between a rock and a hard place?” Generally, it means that you’re caught between two options that both suck, or maybe two options that you don’t like. You end up feeling like you have to choose between the lesser of two evils, trying to figure out which one is going to end up being less detrimental in the long-run.

I graduated from college in May of 2017 with a B.S. in Marketing, as I’ve mentioned on this blog before. I had (stupidly) decided not to follow in my sister’s footsteps in regards to applying for jobs long before I graduated because… I guess I didn’t think I needed to. It was so easy for her to find a job, why should it be any different for me?

It was different. Very different.

She graduated with a double-major in Marketing and Supply Chain Management, and the latter degree was what got her a job right out of school. I hadn’t given myself that option, deciding to focus on marketing because I was good at it and it came easily to me. What I was really doing, however unknowingly, was limiting my options.

So I graduated and eagerly entered the job hunt, sure that someone would see my resume, call me in for an interview, experience my sharp wit and bubbly personality, and decide to hire me soon thereafter. After all, I have the degree, some experience, and I’ll quickly pick up the rest, right?

Rose-tinted glasses don’t suit me very well, I’ve found.

I searched and searched all summer, applying for any and every job I could. I continually modified my resume, tailored my cover letter, trying to find somewhere that would hire me and allow me to use my sparkling new degree. A couple companies talked with me, but it ultimately came down to one thing: they wanted a candidate with more experience.

How am I supposed to get experience if no one will hire me?

I spread out my search even more. I started applying for temporary positions and internships, even ones that didn’t pay very well. Most of the temp positions never even got back to me, and the internships didn’t want to bring on non-students, which I now was. The rose-tinted glasses faded to clear, and I felt myself begin to panic.

I temporarily moved in with some friends in Michigan in hopes that being in the state would help me more easily find a job. I’d be closer to interview or apply in person, I thought, but I never made it past the resume screenings.

As I mentioned in a previous post, my mom spontaneously got me a job at a Curves in Michigan. It was loosely marketing-based, but I only worked for maybe 20 hours a week. The job challenged me, but not in a way that would help me grow; I began to deeply doubt my abilities and self-worth. I was severely depressed, but I stuck it out for four months before deciding it would be more detrimental if I stayed, and so I left.

I moved back home. My dad started reaching out to his connections. I realized I didn’t really have any, which was a huge part of my problem. I kept applying for jobs, gaining and losing hope a lot more quickly than I did before. And that’s mostly what has led to my current rock-and-hard-place situation.

It’s like a deadline has been slowly approaching and the last year of my life has been wasted; there will be oceans of new graduates in the next month-and-a-half to two months, and I’ll be left in the dust. Who wants a college graduate with only four months of working in the entire year since they graduated? Who wants to hire someone who looks to have been sitting on their butt doing nothing, despite all of their unsuccessful efforts to get a job in that time?

It boils down to this: my rock (the need to get a job before new students graduate) and my hard place (going back to school once this month and a half is up) have the potential to be very positive depending on how I view them.

If I go with the rock (which is my personal preference), I’ll have a job, be gaining experience, and be working with people. But that, of course, is assuming there’s someone out there willing to take a chance on me; just because I know who I am and what I’m capable of doesn’t mean that anyone else can see it by looking at a piece of paper detailing my achievements.

If I go with the hard place, I’ll be furthering my education (which I planned to do anyway), and I’ll potentially set myself up for a great job in the future. But my parents saved up and paid for my undergraduate degree with the agreement that any further education I’d want would be out of my own pocket. Without a job that has a reimbursement program, I have no way to pay for furthering my education without taking out loans, and…well. With it getting harder for students to pay back loans (hello, interest rates), and the cost of higher education inexplicably increasing year by year, it may not be my most plausible option, even if it’s all I have.

I always expected that life was like a flow chart: if you do A, it takes you to B. If you do B1, you’ll get to box C. If you do B2, you’ll get to box D. But sometimes, you do A, and magically pop up at box Q. Or you skip A, but somehow find your way to D. There isn’t one way to go through life, or be successful, or get to where you ultimately want to go.

That can be frustrating for a structure-loving planner.

So here I am, caught between two options with entirely different sets of pros and cons, wobbling back and forth in an attempt to decide which to fully commit to. There’s technically no right or wrong answer, but the pressure to make the “correct” choice is weighing me down like a ton of bricks. Or feathers. Really, just a ton of any solid object that seems to be subtly suffocating me with the way gravity is pulling on it.

If you’re a current college student, or even if you’re currently advising college students, this is what I hope you take away from my experience: I spent a great deal of time in college focusing on classes and grades, which is good. But the four most important factors to getting a job after college are these:

1. Do internships. Do as many internships as you can. I don’t care if your university tells you that one is enough, or if they don’t require an internship at all; take any opportunity you can to get formal experience.

2. Make connections. Stay in touch with the people you intern with, join clubs on campus, join organizations off campus, whatever. Get in contact with people, stay in contact with people, and utilize those peoples’ connections to expand your network.

3. Get some “leadership” experience. That doesn’t mean, “Go be the president of six different clubs!” You can head fundraising and event committees. Be an intramural sport team captain. Be the treasurer for a club on campus. Get that informal experience!

4. Keep a portfolio of ALL of your work, good and bad. You can always weed through it later, but you can only weed through the work you decided to keep, so keep all of it!

If you’re currently in a similar situation to mine, I have something to say to you too: keep your chin up. It’s incredibly easy to put yourself down and beat yourself up over the extra mile you could have gone, or the decision you “should” have made. Channel your inner Elsa and let it go; THE PAST IS IN THE PAAAAAAST!

But seriously. Chin up. Eyes forward. You can’t change your past decisions, but the future is in your hands. Start a blog (like me!), make an Etsy shop (also...like me…), or get into freelancing (which...I’m trying to do, I guess?). It’s easy to sit on your butt and apply for jobs day in and day out. In the meantime, work on yourself, personally and professionally. Find your focus, hunker down, and hone your skills.

We’ll get there. We always do.

[laptrance]

July 28, 2020

it’s been over two years since my last entry. so much has changed. to update March 8 2018 me:

you give up on job searching atm until 4/24/18. that’s when you start reaching out to all the promotion companies from kucr. planetary was the other promotion company you remembered besides terrorbird. cirstina was super nice and chill and said they just wrapped internships for the summer but to inquire again for the fall. 

you wait those months while still working at mcdonalds. you get good at it and things are second nature to you. you still have moments where you storm out, but you get better at controlling your temper. 

you check back in august and cristina says there are positions open in the fall. it was pretty easy as they accepted you right away. you do this bat shit crazy thing where you try to balance the two. planetary internship Tuesday Thursday Friday and McDonald’s the rest of the days. you even do opening shift during the weekends (4am-12pm).

you’re mostly quiet during your internship. you participate in riyl’s. you mainly talk to cristina while mailing. you don’t open up much until hayoung joins in november i think. mcdonalds is the same as usual, but your sleep schedule’s FUKED UP.

you hear in december that maria (who worked in publicity) is quitting. cristina encourages you to apply. you talk with adam and the interview tbh goes horribly. not like you didn’t have anything to say, but everything you said was wrong LOL. you also talk to george and ben and they lay out what press does but you dont catch any of that.

christmas office party happens and you drink a lot. you open up a lot to EVERYONE, iNCLUDING BEN about your love life (embarrassing) you’re obviously too drunk to drive home, but you stay over the night with nik and alison (goth bless their souls)

you check in with adam on the position occasionally until feb. 2019 when he breaks the bad news. the position’s filled. like how can you be surprised? but you’re still upset. you’re able to turn this as a positive to use your experiences to boost your resume.

you continue to work at mcdonalds and interview at places until you get a random email from adam exactly one year after you first emailed cristina about the internship. adam offers you the job. ofc you accept. you quit mcdonalds and start with planetary on may 1.

learning publicity is one hell of a learning curve. heck, you’re still learning how to do shit even now. but you’re thrown on the deep end with Luna. not your fault. not totally kristen’s fault. but that was a crazy client. 

anyways, your sleep schedule’s still fucked up because of your commute. but at least you have free weekends now! 

some highlights of 2019: you finally get a macbook! but you have a galaxy s9 as a phone lmfao. placements in The Line of Best Fit and Paste! you get absolutely entranced with warehouse raves. you literally go to at least once a month. falling in love with queen of jeans and linking up with their publicist Jamie Coletta (she’s super cool and the best at the game), going on two (2) dates with a really nice girl named sara. you got in your head and probably fucked that up. but it really wasn’t the time. christmas party 2019. same shenanigans but this time you don’t drink as much. you really look for places to move out to with ryan and he finds a house that angeli and linda live. two people are moving out and the rooms go for $500 and $600. you get the $500 room and are set to move in on Feb 16 2020. news of a disease called coronavirus is first detected in china. this will be important later.

oh 2020. what a shite year. if i told myself the things i’ll write down below i would not believe it. but here it is. everything that has happened so far in 2020:

first cases of coronavirus appear in washington on january. you’re not too concerned about it. 

you’re working this country artist aminah hughes and land a placement in american songwriter for January 31 (1st time!). there are some issues and they post it one day later, but you weren’t as attentive as you should’ve been over the weekend.

adam talks to you about it the following monday (2/3) in a really calm matter but you beat yourself up over it. so much so that on your way home, you totally don’t notice a pedestrian crossing galloping hills and eucalyptus and run them over. everything feels like a blur, but you’re able to talk to the police, karen, and kimberly (state farm) about it. you take tuesday-thursday off.

you move in (night before you saw bored lord and octo octa until 3am wtf). you don’t have a car (for obvious reasons), but you’re able to commute to work via bus/subway (which you would’ve done anyway cause you love public transportation lol)

you’re able to return to normal life mostly until middle march. cases of the newly named COVID-19 have spread throughout the united states and you hear of workspaces transitioning over to work from home operations. planetary soon follows suit. our last day in the office is march 13.

literally the week after you start wfh animal crossing new horizons comes out. that keeps you busy for like two, three months tops. it’s also a nice way to keep in touch with friends. 

your first therapy session happens on march 31. you’re able to talk about the accident, but it’s quickly directed to self-esteem. it’s an ongoing process, but you’re slowly advancing. it’s not linear, but it’s better than doing nothing.

Bandcamp establishes “Bandcamp Day”, 24 hour periods in which the site’s share of profits go directly to artists/labels. Started in April, will continue through the end of 2020. All the money I would normally spend on concerts goes here now. That and I fall to the hands of food delivery apps (door dash wins)

your campaign with Atta Boy gets going. first track premieres at Atwood Magazine (2nd time! [1st time was with sophia st. helen, another awesome client]). band’s super happy about it (even mr. josh brolin himself gave a shout out [bias ofc]). by the end of may you land their second single on THE MOTHERFUCKING FADER (1ST TIME OBVIOUSLY). 

everything else is going surprisingly well for the most part (except for elp, but i don’t wanna talk about those fucking idiots) despite the ever-changing landscape of music journalism. huge blogs are letting people go while smaller sites are remaining mostly the same. 

On May 25, George Floyd is murdered by Minneapolis police which sparks the biggest wave of activity in the Black Lives Matter movement since Michael Brown’s death in 2014. organizing/activism is still going on to this day (7/28). 

For me personally, I’m making a conscious effort to highlight Black artists on my Bandcamp days and general sharing of music. I also joined a book club (6/18) and read “Are Prisons Obsolete” in its entirety. We’re currently reading a comic series called Bitch Planet. Deep and meaningful conversations.

the family hears news of Lola’s declining health. June 23rd (Manila time) is the day she passes away. We’re all able to say our last goodbyes via facebook video call. this is the first time i see my dad cry.

funeral takes place on june 27th. we’re able to partake in the ceremony via zoom. the first and only funeral i “attended” online (so far).

I start “fixing” myself physically. I went to physical therapy from 6/8-7/7. the exercises do wonders to my knees (ty dr. bailey!). also saw a dermatologist on 7/10. really quick appt. kinda felt rushed imo, but i was given a special sunscreen that works so far? also recommended otc meds like claritin.

ended campaign with atta boy. really sad to see them go. currently coordinating with their new managers on a possible podcast and press setup. 

and that’s pretty much it! it’s a lot of shit, i know, but it happened all within 2 years. overall i’d say we were pretty successful in finding a big-girl job and MOVING OUT, WHICH I THOUGHT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN LMFAO. as for the shit you were hung up on with angelica, you’re so much better now, but you think about the good memories from time to time. sometimes it gets you down, but you’re thankful for the memories (come through fallout boy LMFAO AHAHA FALLOUT AMIRIGHT) and you learned from your mistakes. maybe it will be another two years before i leave another update, might be less, might be more. 

but i’m extremely proud at how far i’ve come.

im proud of you, me.

[measuringlife]

Measuring Monday: Career Aspirations & Trajectory

The first job I said I wanted to have as a little kid (maybe 5 years old or so) “when I grew up” was a fashion designer. I remember this “fashion plates” toy I had where you could mix and match the plates of outfit tops and bottoms. Then pencil /charcoal rub across them onto paper so you could color in the outfit you created. I also had a light up sketch table for tracing that I remember I really liked. I got into playing Barbie and dressing them up however that dream didn’t last very long. In like 2nd grade I wanted to be a judge, perhaps because there were a lot of early-mid nighties high profile trials that sparked my interest. I soon learned that in order to become a judge you had to be a lawyer first, so that was my career ambition much to my mother’s delight for a few years.

In 7th grade, I started watching the Today Show on NBC before school and set my sights on broadcast journalism. I loved both the idea of anchoring the Today Show or being an MTV VJ. The more the 24-hour news cycle evolved the more I wanted to be a broadcaster, the round the clock coverage of Princess Diana's death was particularly memorable. While watching the Today Show I saw a commercial for Quinnipiac University (well at the time it was a College)’s new Ed McMahon School of Communications. Thus my love affair with Quinnipiac started.

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts I worked a lot in high school, plus my school was like 25 minutes away from home so I didn’t participate in extracurricular activities, even if I did there was a very limited “media” program - I think I only got a semester of “media” class in my junior year and I was never into print media so the newspaper wasn’t of interest either. However when it came time to start of Quinnipiac I started networking with the college radio station upperclassmen. I found myself doing the news for the daily morning show my first semester and then starting my second semester had my own weekly 2-hour radio show with a rotating cast of co-hosts over the years. I even did my internship at a top 40 station in New Haven. I was really torn when it came to graduation, but I took the safe route and got a free masters from the University of Connecticut in higher education and student affairs.

I start my post-college years working at UConn as a part-time hall director which meant free housing, free laundry, and a free meal plan plus a small stipend. It was a solid gig, but I definitely worked more than 20 hours a week. The summer between grad school years I did an internship in Alabama of all places at Auburn University. My goal was to move to California after grad school so I applied to 2 California schools, one in DC, FL, NC, and then Auburn almost as a joke, but I paper I really liked their program. After phone interviews with a number of schools, I also was shocked to realize that I really liked my interview with Auburn. Since I never studied abroad I thought why not spent 10 weeks in Alabama. Well, I loved it - much to my surprise!

When it came time to start job searching for my first full-time job out of grad school I had my eye on as I came to call it “the smile of the US” aka anything along a coast East, West or South. California was my top choice, but I knew I had to go where the jobs were. In addition to Cali, I was focused on warmer climates so the Southeast, particularly Florida were high on my list. I was also searching in North Texas since my Dad had just moved from south Florida to Dallas. I also kept my eye out for any openings at Auburn. I ended up having on-campus interviews at 2 schools in North Texas and one school in south Florida, plus an interview offer at a school in Savannah. I ended up choosing to work at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas. Which was about 2 hours north of Dallas and 10 miles south of the Oklahoma border. I really like the school, the job, and the prospect of being 2 hours away from my Dad. I did not, however, realize what a podunk town it was and what a fish out of water I was going to be. Thankfully I did find some friends and I really needed them after only 5 months of living in North Texas when my Dad died. After about 10 days out of the office, I came back to work and Texas which some folks didn’t think I would, but I quickly realized I couldn’t stand to stay there without him.

I started looking for jobs in spring while nursing my wounds back to health with a new puppy and watching season 7 of American Idol. I applied to one job in NYC thinking that maybe I should head home. However, I soon learned of a job opening back at Auburn in the office where I interned. I actually interviewed for the job on campus on my Dad’s birthday. It was comforting to interview with people who knew why I was leaving a job after less than a year and know my recent history. Auburn was a good “layover” of sorts. I loved my job and my office, but my social life left more to be desired. After a serious relationship started to bloom and I began to feel real pressure to put down roots in Alabama I knew it was time to leave. I needed to date in a city that I could live more long term.

My next stop was George Mason University in Fairfax, VA. Mason was actually one of the schools I was seriously considering for my grad school internship. Unfortunately, this office was saddled with issues from the beginning, staff turn over, vacancies not filled, lack of direction. I also had a combative relationship with my eventual supervisor. I’m convinced there was some ageism involved, she thought I was climbing the ranks too quickly and saw me as a kid. Keep in mind she never made any attempt to try and know me. All she saw were my flaws and she refused to ever give me any of her time unless I begged for it. In retrospect trying to get her to “like me” or “respect me” or “be proud of me” led in part to my workaholism because I felt rejected and abandoned by an authority figure (only in hindsight and after a lot of therapy can I piece that all together). It was a slow burn of trauma, but traumatic nonetheless. I had spent a solid 18 months searching jobs in southern California, where my heart was set to go and the guy I was seriously dating (spoiler alert he's now my fiance)  was also very interested in a Cali move, but the jobs weren’t right. I interviewed for three jobs out there and turned down the two I was offered. At this point, I couldn’t wait for California anymore. I was so burnt out that I started seriously applying for jobs outside of higher ed.

I found myself in a few interview processes in the DC Metro corporate sphere. I kept my eye on Director level jobs in higher ed in DC, but given my specialty area they were far and few between. Imagine my surprise that while I was in the middle of a lengthy interview process with one company, my dream titled job came up in DC. The process moved quickly and I got the "dream" job. Year one on the job started off with a steep learning curve. I was trying so hard to do it all, to impress everyone, to come off confident and self-assured that I was burning the wick at both ends. And this was BEFORE 50% of my staff left. Okay in all fairness I run a two-person office, so when my one staffer left (and I 100% understand why he did, he was given a bigger shit sandwich than I was handed and he had to eat it longer). I was alone 6 months into the job as I approached my work's peak season. It was hell, I was drowning, and stupid me didn’t realize it. After years of learning how to survive nightmare situations, your reflexes kick in. I was in survival mode and I was surviving at all cost. The biggest collateral damage was on my mental health and my sleep. I had never slept 2-4 hours a night for weeks at a time and it was taking its toll.

When I hired my new staff member in the midst of this I made it a point to reintroduce myself after the storm had passed. I even quoted Fight Club saying “you met me at a very strange time in my life.” Strange = horrific, but I wasn’t ready to acknowledge had bad it was and how much of it I let happen. Ultimately like most people in recovery, I felt like everything was happening TO ME, but I now know it was happening FOR ME. I needed to hit rock bottom particularly around my workaholism and lack of boundaries. The past year has been so much better for so many reasons, including a wonderful new supervisor who for the first time in a long time I know undoubtedly has my back. I don’t know how long I’ll stay where I am or in the field in general. I'm working all these side hustles and really digging into this project to see if I can achieve my dream of living a creative and connection-filled life on my own terms.

[ectopuppy]

Crash Chapter 3

[Chapter 1.1] [Chapter 1.2] [Chapter 2.1] [Chapter 2.2] 

On fanfiction.net!

Crash is off hiatus! This was a fun chapter to write. If you’re wondering about why this chapter is “chapter 3″ instead of “chapter 5″, that’s because I reformatted the story on fanfiction. So now what were chapters 1 and 2 are chapter one. (same for 3&4) 

Anyway here we go!~

Two hours later Sam pulled into their garage, reminding herself to pick up her car tomorrow. She hated driving her mother's Lexus, it was too fancy for her tastes. She cut the engine and leaned her head on the steering wheel for a moment. Time to go play nice with mom and dad, She thought. You're only here for the summer then you're back at school where you don't have to deal with them. She allowed herself a few more seconds of self pity and then got out of the car, steeling her nerves.

“I'm home,” She called as she entered the house. Her mother, who had been in the sitting room the garage opened up into, accosted her immediately.

“How did it go?” Pam started, patting the couch beside her with a dainty motion. Sam sat, knowing that abstaining would be 'improper and impolite'. She sighed inwardly. Nineteen is too old to worry about being scolded.

“You were out all night last night and, it was so last minute –very unprofessional, by the way– you probably had no time to prepare. Just look at your makeup, it's far too dark for an interview.” Pam caught her daughter's pointed look and frowned. She made a high sound in the back of her throat and continued. “Did it go well Pumpkin?”

“Yes, actually,” Sam replied, biting down the urge to scream. She drummed her nails on her thigh in an attempt to soothe herself. She plastered a proud smile on her face. “It went very well. I start on Monday.”

“That's wonderful, sweetheart.” Pam exclaimed, clapping her hands together with the same grace all her actions seemed to have. “Which internship was it? The accounting firm? I know your father put in a good word for you with a friend there.”

“No,” Sam said, trying to keep the bitterness out of her voice. “It was the record label. I met one of the producers assistants last night and she recognized me from my application. We hit it off pretty well and she offered to set up a meeting with her boss. Wild, huh?” It wasn't the exact truth, but Sam wasn't sure how well her mother would take the whole 'I Yelled at some Rockstars and they Asked Me To Come Party' thing. She wasn't sure how well she was taking it to be honest.

“Well, at least we know you're good at networking,” Pam said, laughing to herself. Sam shifted on the couch and straightened her skirt. Pam placed a hand on Sam's shoulder. “Why don't we go out for dinner to celebrate. Your father and I haven't taken you out in ages. We could go to the country club! I'm sure everyone would be excited to see you.”

“Sounds good,” Sam said, her voice dripping with the kind of false enthusiasm that her mother had a hard time detecting. There was no arguing. She could tell her mother had already made up her mind. She wanted to parade Sam out in front of her friends, and tell them all how perfect she was. Sam mentally shook those unwanted thoughts away, and stood from the couch. “I'll go change.”

“I should as well,” Pam replied, following suit. She smoothed out her already immaculate dress, and hummed to herself. “Oh! That reminds me; I bought you a dress today you should wear it,” Sam's nose wrinkled up. “don't give me that look, it's not pink.”

“Okay,” Sam sighed, keeping herself from rolling her eyes. With a nod, Pam left to go find her husband and prepare for an evening out. Sam started her trudge up the stairs. She entered her room –the only room in the house not painted in pastels –and eyed the white box on her bed. She kicked off her heels and sat down beside it before pulling out her phone.

Danny Fenton: Congratulations! Jazz told me you got the job! :)

Sam Manson: Thanks. My parents are taking me out to celebrate.

Danny Fenton: Sounds like fun. I'll let you get to your evening.

Says the celebrity taking time from his day to text me, Sam thought, an amused smile on her lips. She still couldn't stop the giddiness that bubbled up in her heart whenever she thought about Danny. Every other minute she would remember that she now had the personal numbers of her favourite band on her phone and her heart would explode a little.

She was determined to not be weird about it. Maybe she'd had a bit of a crush on Phantom since she was sixteen, but that was just some silly fantasy. Now he was Danny. He was real. Once she got to know him –oh my god, she was going to get to know Phantom –the butterflies in her stomach would subside. He'd just be a colleague. A friend maybe. A dreamy blue eyed friend who just happened to be plastered on her wall. Sam buried her face in her hands. Those posters would have to come down now.

With a sigh, Sam steeled herself and tossed her phone down on her bed. Enough stalling, time to see what her mother had bought her. She removed the lid from the box and looked down at the dress in the box. It was lilac with a violet floral pattern. Could be worse. Sam thought, pulling it out of the box. It was a sleeveless tea dress, with a high collar and a white taffeta underskirt. She went to the mirror and held it up to herself. It was probably meant to be knee length, but with Sam's long legs it would end a few inches short. She could make this work.

She went downstairs forty minutes later in purple lipstick and dark eyeliner, her hair pulled into a tight bun. She'd chosen all black accessories, trying to go for a pastel goth look. Her father smiled at her, and looped his arm through Pam's. Pam gave Sam a quick once over and pursed her lips for a moment before smiling. She was displeased enough for it to show on her face, but not enough to say anything. A balance Sam had perfected in her senior year.

“Ready to go ladies?” Jeremy asked, taking no notice of the brief tension between his wife and daughter. Pam's smile became more genuine, and she leaned into him. Sam checked her purse for her phone, and then nodded. “Alright, let's go.”

“I can't believe you got a concussion, dude!” Danny practically howled, dropping his phone onto his bed with a dull thud. Jasmine knocked three times on his wall, a signal she'd used since they were kids to tell him to be quieter. Cujo padded over and sniffed the wall, interested in the sound.

“Whatever,” Simon's voice chimed out of Danny's phone speaker. “I was drunk. Back flips are cool.”

“Only when you stick the landing,” Danny laughed, softer this time. He held a red flannel shirt up to himself in the mirror and then tossed it on his bed. “Between you pulling that and Latch renting a peacock, I'm sure we made a hell of a first impression on Sam.”

“She seemed pretty chill about the whole thing,” Simon replied. Danny could just barely hear Tucker and Latch talking in the background. He strained to hear them. “Yeah, Tuck says they had a good morning. I'm gonna put you on speaker.”

“I mean she was a little flustered maybe, but in my presence who wouldn't be.” Tucker added. Danny heard someone smack him, and snorted. “She's really nice, though. I was a little worried at first to be honest.”

“Yeah, like, we made a pretty big snap decision.” Latch said. Danny nodded to himself. He hadn't had much of a chance to talk to her at the after party. He'd been pulled away by the press pretty early on. Jazz had nothing but good things to say about her, though. Danny had learned to trust her judgment. Latch continued. “She could have been... You know.”

“A stalker...” Simon finished for him. An uncomfortable second of silence passed over the group. Simon cleared his throat and continued.

“But, I agree. She seems very genuine.” Danny let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. Simon never hid what he thought of someone –it had gotten him in hot water more than once –so hearing that he had accepted Sam was a relief.

“Still,” Danny said, a tentative edge to his voice, “we should give her time to prove herself.”

“Of course.” Simon replied. His voice was softer than before. Danny opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by a knock at his door.

“One second,” He said in the direction of his phone. “Come in.”

“Hey sweetie.” Maddie said, opening the door. She still had her lab coat on over her clothes. Cujo bounded to her side and nuzzled her hand. She pet his head in gentle circles.

“Hi Maddie!” Danny's phone chorused. He rolled his eyes.

“Hey, mom.” Danny replied, a warm grin on his face. It was nice to spend time with his family for once. He was glad this tour was over. “What's up?”

“Hello boys, “ Maddie laughed. “I just wanted to say I'm home, and ask if you planned eating with us or not.”

“Oh,” Danny rubbed the back of his neck. He hadn't considered that his mom might want to have dinner. “We made plans already.”

“Dude, are you kidding!? Can we come over instead!?” Latch's voice yelled from the phone. Maddie smiled. “I haven't had a home cooked meal in months.”

“Of course you can.” Maddie replied. She lingered in the doorway for a moment, gauging Danny's reaction. When he didn't object, she smoothed out her lab coat and grinned. “Be here by seven. We're having spaghetti.”

Cheers erupted from Danny's phone, and his heart swelled. He hadn't realized how much he'd missed this.

“Thanks mom.” Maddie shot him a final smile and slipped out the door, pressing it closed with a click.

[ronnykblair]

How to Prepare for Investment Banking Summer Internship Recruiting

This revised and updated article is mostly a reality check.

If you’re wondering why I’m publishing an article about “summer internship recruiting” in February, then you haven’t been paying attention to recruiting.

In the U.S., summer internship recruiting at many banks now begins and ends over a year in advance of internships.

Some large banks have already opened their applications within the past week.

And within the next few months, a lot of recruiting for summer 2019 internships at major banks will be done.

This move to hyper-accelerated recruiting is ridiculous, especially since most 2nd-year university students have no idea what they want to do.

But ridiculous behavior defines the finance industry, so you have to deal with it and survive.

Here’s what it means for your timeline, preparation, and strategy:

Why Does Hyper-Accelerated Recruiting Matter?

This change matters because summer internships are the best – and sometimes only – way to receive full-time investment banking offers.

A summer internship is effectively an 8-10-week interview at a bank, and it’s the best way for a bank to assess your performance.

If you miss recruiting season and, therefore, miss a summer internship, you are screwed.

Occasionally you can win a full-time offer without a summer internship, but the odds are strongly against you.

Much earlier start dates have also changed other important points:

1) Your GPA Will Become More Important, So Maximize “Easy A” Classes in Your First 1-2 Years

You’ll have less experience by the time you apply for summer internships, so banks will judge you more based on grades, test scores, and the brand name of your university.

You can’t do much about the last two, but you can game the system to boost your GPA.

You should make every effort to take easy classes to boost your grades in your first 1-2 years and save the harder ones for your last few years.

At my university, language classes were easy A’s, and I used them to offset lower grades in engineering/computer science classes.

Figure out the loopholes at your university and exploit them!

2) If You’re a Transfer Student, You’re Kind of Screwed

Transferring to a better university to improve your recruiting chances is now a much worse strategy.

Transferring between your second and third year makes no sense because you’ll completely miss summer internship recruiting.

Transferring after your first year might be a bit better, but recruiting will still be tough because you won’t have as much time to network with alumni or join student groups.

So, if you’re transferring only to win an IB internship, you might want to reconsider.

3) If You’re at a Non-Target School, You’re Also Kind of Screwed

There’s much less awareness of investment banking and private equity and the recruiting timelines at non-target schools, and the “career centers” there are completely clueless.

So, if you’re at a non-target school and you did not start preparing for IB by the beginning of your second year, you’ll probably have to use a different strategy to get in.

For example, maybe you’ll have to apply for wealth management or corporate banking roles, start working full-time in one of those, and then make a lateral move into IB.

4) Internships After Your First Year, School-Year Internships, and “Upcoming” Internships After Your Second Year Will Become More Important

A long time ago, what you did after your first year of university didn’t matter much because banks focused on second-year internships.

But those days are long gone.

Now, you’re pretty much going to need a finance-related internship after your first year because you won’t have much else to write about on your resume.

And the recruiting process will favor students who line up second-year internships far in advance because they’ll be able to write “Upcoming Finance-Related Summer Internship” on their resumes.

5) Networking via Student Groups Will Be More Useful

With the new timeline, it will be tougher to make multiple weekend trips to NY and build relationships with alumni before interviews begin.

As a result, you’ll have to rely more on student groups, investing clubs, and business fraternities to build connections and get help from older students.

How to Prepare: Your Timeline and Strategy

If you are even vaguely interested in investment banking, you must start preparing for it in your first year of university.

I would suggest this rough timeline:

Step 1: Your First Year in University

Start by picking a major related to finance or something that can be used for other jobs if you don’t win finance job offers (e.g., accounting, computer science, engineering, etc.).

Then, front-load your schedule with easier classes in your first year.

You don’t need to earn perfect grades, but you want to come as close as possible.

Participate in activities that will help you network your way into a finance role: The student investment club, the business frat, or a series of investing or case competitions.

Over the summer, aim for finance-related internships. You probably won’t be able to win an actual investment banking internship, but you might find something in corporate finance at a local company, or perhaps an internship at a boutique PE/VC firm.

Other options would be wealth management, anything in real estate, or something at a Big 4 firm or an independent valuation firm.

There is no set process to apply for these internships, so your approach will be: “Find companies and peoples’ names on LinkedIn, email or call them, and repeat until you find something.”

Step 2: The Summer After Your First Year

This is when you complete your first finance-related internship.

You should also start learning the technical side (accounting, valuation, and transaction modeling) and networking with alumni by setting up informational interviews.

You do not need to devote a lot of time to these efforts. If your internship has normal hours, you could target ~10 hours per week for networking + technical prep.

That might equate to 3-4 informational interviews per week and several hours of tutorials and practice exercises.

You learn best by doing, so don’t just read books, guides, or quick references from our courses: Take real companies and build simple projections and valuations for them.

This summer is also a good time to develop an interesting hobby or experience that you can reference in interviews.

Take something small, such as a week-long trip or volunteer project, and spin it into sounding more significant.

Step 3: The First Half of Your Second Year

You’ll continue networking with alumni and preparing for the technical questions in this period.

You should also start conducting weekend trips to New York or the major financial center closest to you.

One trip is good, and two are better, but once you complete three or more, you’ll get diminishing returns.

You could aim for one trip at the start of the year and another just before internship recruiting begins.

You can keep participating in student groups and activities, and you should aim for a leadership role so that you have more to write on your resume.

Also, you’ll have to start thinking about your internship plans for the upcoming summer (the one after your second year).

Once again, this will probably not be an investment banking internship, but any of the options mentioned above could work.

Step 4: The Second Half of Your Second Year

At this point, many banks will start conducting information sessions at target schools, and interviews will begin and end.

So, you need to know your story perfectly, and you need to be well-prepared for all the fit and technical questions.

If you haven’t yet found an internship for the coming summer, keep looking – writing about an “upcoming internship” on your resume will make a difference.

Step 5: The Summer After Your Second Year

You complete your second finance-related internship at this point.

Also, not all banks finish summer recruiting so early – some will continue with interviews through this summer and into the fall.

It’s not necessarily the end of the world if you miss the earliest recruiting deadlines, so you can certainly keep applying and networking.

However, your chances decrease the longer the process drags on.

Step 6: Your Third Year in University

Some banks will continue recruiting even into your third year, so you may still be able to interview around.

But if you haven’t won an internship within the first few months of this year, chances are that you won’t be in IB for the summer.

If that happens, go for something else in finance, ideally related to transactions.

One solid, frequently overlooked option is corporate banking, which can be a good steppingstone into IB.

What If You Decide on IB Too Late in the Game?

If it’s already your second year, and you haven’t yet had a finance internship or networked with alumni, then you don’t have a great shot at winning IB internships.

You might still be able to win something if you’re at a target school with high grades, but if not, focus on other options: Consulting, wealth management, corporate banking, Big 4 firms, or small PE/VC firms.

Recruiting moves more slowly and sanely in those fields, and it is possible to move into IB as a lateral hire even if you start out full-time in something else.

Also, you might be able to recruit for and win full-time IB roles even without a prior IB internship, as a reader did in this previous article.

To do that, market conditions must be right, you’ll need to do an insane amount of networking in a few short months, and you’ll have to target non-BB/EB firms (i.e., MM banks, IBABs, and regional boutiques).

Other Variations, Regions, and Considerations

In Europe and Asia, the summer analyst recruiting process is not quite as crazy (yet).

It has been trending earlier, but banks do not start and finish it before the end of your second year.

Instead, they tend to open applications in the summer after your second year and set the deadlines a few months after that.

That may seem like a big difference, but it doesn’t necessarily change that much because they conduct interviews on a first-come, first-served basis.

You’re at a huge disadvantage if you delay your applications in these regions – be ready to submit the minute they open.

The real difference in EMEA and Asia is that you can rely a bit more on your second-year internship, and you don’t need to start preparing so far in advance.

Also, it’s easier to win off-cycle internships and use options like spring weeks to boost your chances in Europe.

I’m not sure about other regions (Canada, Australia, Latin America, etc.), so if you have a sense of the timing there, feel free to leave a comment below.

Finally, at the MBA level, not much has changed because banks have a hard limitation: They can’t start recruiting until business school begins.

For 2-year programs, therefore, banks recruit in the first half of your first year and award offers by the middle of the year for internships in that year.

You still need to network and learn the technical side far in advance, but you’ve always had to do that.

Pre-MBA internships are probably more important now because business school students tend to be younger and have less experience.

Will It Ever End?

I’d like to think that at some point, banks will realize that recruiting students with no idea of their career goals is counterproductive.

But then I remember that banks also caused the last financial crisis and do nothing useful for society, and my optimism recedes.

Summer internship recruiting could eventually move up to the start of Year 2 for university students, or maybe even the middle-to-end of Year 1.

I don’t see how it could go much earlier than that; at the minimum, you need to be enrolled in a university to apply for internships.

But maybe I’m wrong.

In which case, we might see Goldman Sachs offering internships to “high-potential” 10-year-olds at the next elementary school job fair.

The post How to Prepare for Investment Banking Summer Internship Recruiting appeared first on Mergers & Inquisitions.

from ronnykblair digest https://www.mergersandinquisitions.com/investment-banking-summer-internship-recruiting/