Guest Post: Annaleisha Rae. Annaleisha spent 3 months at KLP as an intern through AUT’s Industry Host Placement scheme that offers graduates an internship with a US based organisation. BNZ provide financial support for this initiative as part of their Corporate Sponsorship for Kiwi Landing Pad.
At the beginning of my time here, after only two days at the Kiwi Landing Pad, I wrote this blog post about the importance of grabbing opportunities when they are presented to you. Looking at my words retrospectively, I really had no idea exactly how many opportunities were going to be presented to me in such a short space of time. And I would not be exaggerated if I said some of these were life changing.
I have been involved in management, marketing, public relations, event organisation, social media and web content alongside Catherine Robinson, who is an incredible mentor, teacher and role model not only for me but anyone who needs a helping hand or simply just one good connection to get them on their way.
Over the summer I spent at KLP, Catherine and everyone I was able to connect with taught me many lessons that I will take with me throughout my career. From my “nearly-graduated and going into the working world” student perspective, my three best lessons learnt would have to be:
- Asking questions: finding out what people are doing and telling them what you do plays a big part of what opportunities or connections you will find. Thanks to my affiliation with AUT, I was lucky enough to visit AUT alumni Kate Taylor at the Twitter headquarters for lunch, go to the Facebook campus, get invited to some great events and meet plenty of amazing entrepreneurs.
- Saying YES: Even to jobs or opportunities that you might not necessarily know a lot about or be comfortable with. There were plenty of small jobs I put my hand up and volunteered for that ended up leading on to some great connections, friendships, and other odd jobs. I was able to meet people like Sir Stephen Tindall, Consulate General Leon Grice, and NZ ambassador Mike Moore and other entrepreneurs and business owners.
- Adapting to the environment: The US moves very fast and it is not stopping to wait for anyone. Coming into a new country, it takes a while to start operating to suit your surroundings – in San Francisco, business is hard and fast and you have to always be on your toes. It is much more entrepreneurial as there is such a large and competitive market around you.
Having been back in Auckland for almost a month now finishing my studies, I am still realizing how much I gained from such whirlwind trip and how many long-term benefits and lessons I will be able to take with me into my next adventures.
Thanks to AUT for the opportunity to be part of the intern program and to BNZ for their support.