Showing posts with label Caroline Paterson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Caroline Paterson. Show all posts

Saturday, June 8, 2013

The end is near

For most of us, this will be our last semester at your Universities and it is sad. It is heartbreaking to leave the friends and the comfort of university life behind.
But one thing I have learnt from my internship is that the learning never stops and neither does the friends. This internship has really helped me open my eyes that there is life after university, and that things dont stop.
It also taught me that we create our own comfort. Life after university doesnt mean no friends, it just means different ones. And we need to learn to adapt to that. In the world of PR there is no space to be shy or scared. No room for doubt. We need to make all expereince count, because in the world of PR one blink and you could miss out on a lot of things.
I will forever be grateful to my intership for really giving me a transition between university and the real world.

Friday, June 7, 2013

How it starts and how it ends

Best work experience. Thats all I can say about my internship.
Ive learnt so much, and I have been able to expand my network. Contact journalists wasnt the same as I would have imagined and the internship was a great way to learn how to do it.
My boss has not only been supportive of me, he has also been understanding and taught me how things work in the real world.
Since my boss is not from Mauritius, I have also helped him by explaining to him how things work in Mauritius. It has been great learning from him. He has taught me how work should be done in teh real world, and how things are done in other countries.
I found out how to create a website, I found out A lot about internet communication. I found out about different cultures.
All three of these skills will help me into becoming a leader, and has taught me that there is always something new to learn.
I has been interesting working with the other members of the team. While they have all been from Mauritius, they have all studied at different universities, and it has been interesting to find out how things are done at their university and share skills.
The team has been great and we have never let anyone fall down, but worked together to help each other as best as possible.
While my 20 days have been completed. I will continue to work as an intern to the end of the event.
I would just like to thank my team, AIESEC and Charles Telfair for allowing me this experience.

Working in events

During my internship at AIESEC, I have been working solely on a competition that AIESEC has created called Case Challenge 2013.
It has been great working for the event. It has given me a great opportunity to put in practice all I have learnt during my degree and shown me how quick the world of events go.
I have done everything from press releases, to organizing press conferences, to facebook updates, to contacting sponsors.
Using all the skills Ive learnt during my three years has been interesting but challenging, but at the same time it has also showed me that I have a lot to learn and that even though I have my degree there is always something new. Nothing is ever boring in the world of events and PR, and you always have to be on your toes.
I love how fast paced the world of PR is. Every day there is something new to do, and everyday is a new challenge.
It has been a very different experience going from university to the real world, but I am excited for what the future bring and this internship has only helped me.

AIESEC

I started my internship at AIESEC and all I have to say is I love it.
I love how its a student run organisation. Everyone is so understanding of others and everyone has similar ideas.
I love how they encourage you get give your input. It great to find an internship that really values your ideas and opinions. As well as this they encourage you to speak out. No idea is to stupid, and they never make you feel bad.
i love the atmosphere. Because everyone who works there is young and a similar age as me everyone gets along and there is no tension in the group.
I love how they have all accepted me and been so inviting of me. Everyone has spoken to me and I cant say that one person hasnt accepted me with open arms. Not only in work but also in the private life.
I love my boss. My boss is amazing. He is understanding if every I need time off for school work. He understands when I cant do any task because of other assignments. When I need help he is always there. He always is enthusiastic about all I have to say. He has been very expressive about how happy he is that I am working there in the team.
I really am lucky coz I found the best internship.

Friday, October 12, 2012

My last post

I just finished my report and now I am closing this chapter of my life. I have finished all my public relations courses. Probably for the best. I dont know how much I can learn from a textbook or slides. I think the rest comes from the experience of it all now. And I already started my experience.

This internship has taught me to much, not just about public relation but also about myself, the type of place I would like to work and the type of employee I will be.

I started this internship annoyed. It hard to balance studies and personal life as it is. Now add an internship. I didnt think I would get much from this module. Just do my work then go home. I was convinced this was a waste of time. I mean seriously how much can you learn in 20 days. WOW was I wrong.

The lessons I have learnt from this has been great. I love being able to put all my studies together and make it into something meaningful.

So I would just like to say to all other members who did this course. I hope you learnt as much as I did. Both about public relations and about yourself at the same time.

Caroline Paterson

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Find what you love and stick with it

Hi. This is my final post for this module. Hope my posts have been helpful and given an insight to some people.

Anyone who read my previous post will know my feelings for working in a hotel. But something I have learnt is a job is only a job until you love it.

Whether you are working for money, experience, a class that forces you to do an internship, or whatever other reason, the only way to truly succeed to find what you love and stick with it.

While I found out that hotel life it not for me, I did enjoy my internship. Why you may ask. I will tell you.

When at work, I felt like I belonged. This isn't because I knew what I was doing, or loved my job so much. It was because of the people I was working with. The memories I made working at La Pirogue are not from the work I did, but from the way I felt doing it. And I felt great. This is because I felt secure. I didnt feel uncomfortable when asking for help. I didnt feel like an outsider. I felt like someone who had been there for as long as any other person.

Everyone was super friendly. They were understanding of my situation. When I couldnt come because of assignments, they didnt make me feel like I was doing anything wrong, but encouraged me as they knew how important studying is. When I asked for help, everyone helped me. When I went for lunch, they invited me to come and sit with them. They included me in all conversations. They even spoke English when I was there to make me feel more comfortable. When they brought cake, they always saved me a piece. They gave me advice, they made me feel like i belonged.

I think this was one of the most important things I learnt while working at La Pirogue. There are days when you dont want to work, when you have personal stuff and you really arent in the mood. Or you are so tired because you were up all night working on assignments. But what got me out to work was the people who were there. You might not always love your job, but when you love the people who you work with, like I did, you will want to go and you will work better since you are comfortable to ask for help or get advice.

So to conclude. In life there will always be things you dont want to do, especially in work. But as long as you have friends and a great support system work wont be work. But rather a day with friends. Doing what you love isnt as important as doing whatever with people whom you like. So when finding a job, dont just look for what you like, but thepeople you will do it with. This will always make the time pass a bit quicker and make the tasks you do that little bit more interesting.

Thanks to everyone who has read my posts. I hope you had great experiences.

Good experience, but not for me

After working around 2 months at my internship, La Pirogue, one thing is clear. Hotel life isnt for me.

Dont get me wrong, it was great work experience and I learnt so much, especially considering my degree is B-Com tourism management, event management and public relations. I learnt so much about life in the tourism industry as well as working in public relations, which is really like 2 birds on stone for me, but I dont like hotel life.

It isnt anything specifically bad or anything that happened that made me realize this, and for some people it can be great, just not for me. Here is the reason why

My whole time working at the internship I was told I work to fast. I like things which are fast and changing and dynamic. Which isnt hotel life. The people there take there time, they relax, they speak softly, all of which are not me. So many times in the day working I was stuck finishing my work early and just sitting there because there was nothing for me to do since what takes them 3 hours to finish, I finished in 1. Maybe this is because Im still on uni time, late nights, last minute assignments, day before exam revision and multipule assignments at one time. All this forces you to be rapid in a way. And slowing down for the hotel lifestyle isnt for me. I understand why it is done. Hotels require careful planning and a relaxed atmosphere, not people running around or shouting to get things done, to make the hotel a relaxing place for the tourists.

Dont get me wrong. There are many upsides to the hotel life. People working at the hotel are more like a family than anything else. They work together, they joke together, they eat together. They are so close, which i have never seen in any other industry or place that Ive worked in. Even bosses are close with the people that work under them. That was something that really amazed me with the hotel.

Another plus point is the flexible time. You can work day, you can work night, you can work weekends. All this is really helpful. Of course sometimes you dont get a choice, like when you dont want to work weekends, but this is a big plus point for many people. Especially families. Your ability to choose your work times can make hotel life very attractive.

And lastly, the training. All staff members are trained in a language other than French and English so they know at least 3 languages. This is a big plus, and looks very attractive if you plan on moving to another hotel.

So to conclude. Hotel life isnt bad. As  listed above there are many plus points, more than the negative. But you have been warned. If you like the fast, quick paced lifestyle, or have a lot of energy. HOTEL LIFEIS NOT FOR YOU!!!!

Thank you