5 Lessons in 5 days

Intern Programme

My first week as an intern at award winning PR agency Holyrood PR

By Veronica Gomiero
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FIRST times are always something that make us feel nervous and of course, I was extremely nervous on my first day at Holyrood PR, new office, new duties, new everything.

I moved to Edinburgh from Italy and when I got the opportunity to do this internship I felt very lucky, I saw this as the first step to build my career in this country that I love, but obviously I was worried of not being fluent enough in English (or Scottish) as it’s not my first language.

I arrived at work on my first day and as soon as I walked in the door was welcomed by everyone and introduced to all the office members – this atmosphere made me feel better straight away.

In just one week I can already tell that I’ve learned a lot more than I expected. Every day at the agency is different and every day I achieve something new, so here are the 5 lessons that I’ve learned during my first week as an intern (a shy and foreign one).

 Read the bible

As soon as I sat at my desk on Monday I was handed “The Intern Bible”, a massive file folder with all the things you need to know to work as a good intern. This guide helped me figuring out what the main duties would be and helped me throughout the week to solve some problems and be more independent dealing with my daily tasks.

Don’t be shy

First of all I have to say that I’m quite a shy person and I hate talking on the phone, even in Italian, so to do it in English is even harder as I feel the pressure of not being able to express myself and to not understand.

I had to face this issue on my second day as I had to make few media calls to chase up on press releases that had been sent on behalf of clients. But it turned out not to be that bad, I just needed to do it to not be scared of it. Being shy is a huge limit and I’m glad I had to make these calls as it helped me to get over it – quickly.

Write, write, write

I spent a lot of time writing on my notepad – which looks like a battlefield – full of notes things to do and to remember and then because I had to write a draft of all the media coverage for one of clients, Commsworld, to be posted on the Holyrood website.

I love writing but I thought that I wouldn’t have had the chance while working as an intern in Scotland as my English is not perfect, but the team here are keen to get you involved in everything and are happy to make sure your work is up to scratch.

PC Crisis. Don’t panic

I’m not only shy, I’m also clumsy, I fall (almost everyday), I say the wrong thing at the wrong time and I break things (am I selling myself here?).

By Thursday morning I had a lot of work piling up, but as soon as I turned on my computer it wasn’t working- gulp, panic!

07 MAR Interns-0530EDIT

Thankfully Craig, the in-house Videographer, has been very patient and helped me solving the problem. Everyone at Holyrood PR is very down to earth and ready to help, which is something that doesn’t happen everywhere and I really appreciate it.

Time flies

It’s Friday already, I almost can’t believe it. At Holyrood PR there’s always loads of exciting work to do, that’s why time flies, there’s no time to be bored.

I’m glad that this is not the usual internship where you just see other people working without really trying things for yourself. I’m working and learning everyday and seeing how fast time goes I want to use these next three weeks in the best way I can.

Another bonus to working so hard during the week is the reward of a well-earned weekend, but I’ll be looking forward to seeing what my next new thing to learn is on Monday

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