Reflections of Brandon Smith
A streaming of consciousness of where come from, and how I ended up where I am today (don’t worry, I used punctuation). Also, my first foray at becoming a little CP+Bish.
I blame Tom Hanks for my urging desire to constantly be "Big." But I'll always be a 12-year old school girl at heart. Here's what I'm currently up too:
Posts on: intern
CP+B Bound
Today, I signed the official document stating me as a winter 2010 intern at CP+B Miami. I’m trying to stay calm, however, I’m actually freaking out. With most things, I have this uncanny ability to form expectation or have some sort of plan to follow (that is unexpectedly beaten down by reality). In this case, I have nothing. I don’t know what to expect. I’ve never been to Miami, and I’ve never worked at an agency of this size. I’m scared to say the least. I’m scared I won’t be able to find a decent place to stay for 3 months, and I’m scared my performance will be unsatisfactory. I’m scared that by the time I get through this, I might be broke and unsatisfied.
Still, I’m excited. I’m excited about the people I will meet. I’m excited about the things I may learn. I’m excited about the doors this might open. 2010 is truly a new chapter in my life. All this wouldn’t have been possible without the support of my family and friends, and I truly mean that. A big shout out goes to the people at Steketee Greiner Co. They were the first to take a chance on me, and without that, this opportunity probably wouldn’t have been reality.
Thank you!
Diary of an Intern #1 - A Digital World
In an attempt to spread the light on the future generation of the employment force, I’ve decided to keep a loose diary on my experiences/thoughts of the professional world (namely marketing, advertising, and PR related). This is the first entry.
Internships are a no brainer. Especially if you are still a college student. They provide not just job experience, but also insight into the real world — at all angles. You see in college, and I say this with first hand knowledge, things are unintentionally shielded from your young virgin eyes. Coursework teaches you the terms and practices, but rarely does it teach you how those terms and practices are actually put to use or how they tend to change on a daily basis. And that is the biggest problem I wish to point out here.
With technology advancing so rapidly, it is so important to be able to stay in touch with the change. The world is digital now. However, in my five years of school, I did not take a single course on digital technology. And I’m not just talking about how to use twitter or facebook (a small child can figure that out). I’m talking about how these technologies are changing the world. I’m talking theories and trends and how you can use them to create a community. I’m sure as I say this, many colleges are quickly changing their strategy, but I’m sure many aren’t. Which is why it is so important for the student to make up for this. Please bookmark all the technology sites, blogs, whatever. Start with Mashable.com. It’s pretty much amazing. Code your own website. It doesn’t have to be amazing. Simpler is better. Check out all new media outlets, and figure out how to utilze them. How do stories become top stories on digg.com? How does a single youtube video, along with the billion other videos, get noticed? I’m not saying there is one single answer for these, but it is something to think about. Traditional advertising is done. The only people who take it seriously are people in advertising. It is important now, to be able to have a two way conversation with your audience. Listen, learn, talk.
Check out these schools, as they are among the best in the digital world:
