A LETTER TO A FUTURE INTERN, FROM A GIRL WHO MAKES TIKTOKS
By Amanda Cantale, Corporate Communications Intern, Publicis Health
Dear Friend,
Hi, I’m Amanda. I am a 20-year-old college student, a twin sister, a daughter, a NJ resident, and a dual citizen. And most recently, I have become a girl behind your TikTok screen.
One of my assignments as the corporate communications intern at Publicis Health was to create our company’s first and official TikTok page. (Follow @PublicisHealth Tok if you haven’t already done so.) I am going to offer some tips and tricks to help you navigate your intern experience—from my internship to yours. Hopefully these TikToks will make you laugh, at least a little bit.
When I imagined what constituted appropriate clothing to wear to the office, I was under the impression that I needed to wear a matching blazer and pants with closed-toed shoes everyday. While it is nice to look the part, I slowly learned that I could make business casual fit to my own style. I feel like I still haven’t conquered the true office attire. I guess it varies per person. When I go into the office, I see jeans and hoodies, suits or sneakers with skirts, all very different fashion choices. So my advice to future interns worried about their fits—dress the part to look the part, whatever that is for you.
My commute to work was an eye opening-experience. Being from New Jersey, I was well-aware of the craziness of New York City. On my first day of work, I was terrified. I’m pretty sure I almost cried because I had no idea how the Path Train worked. I soon grew to know public transportation very well and now look forward to the public transit commute. I like the independence and freedom of traveling alone on the train, subway or just walking on the mean streets of NYC. It’s weirdly refreshing. Now, I get on and off trains with ease, blending in with the fast-paced, focused New Yorkers around me.
This TikTok explains it all. My first virtual day of the internship was good. I met my wonderful team, got acquainted with collaboration tools like Microsoft Teams and pretended I understood what everyone was saying in the first few meetings (despite having no idea what was going on). My first day in the office was truly something. I was sick to my stomach that morning, feeling like I was going into a high school classroom. I walked into the office to see 25 or so other scared and serious-looking people my age. I can’t even tell you what I said that day because I don’t remember. No recollection as if someone wiped my brain.
Toward the end of the day, I remember laughing, enjoying the free lunch, and feeling a sense of belonging. I felt welcomed and realized that these interns feel the same way I do. Looking back, I can say that the group of people that I have come to know have been so kind, hilarious, and committed.
When it comes to meetings, you are never really going to know what’s going on, so just embrace it. I am still trying to learn acronyms, people, and job positions—even to this day. It’s a work in progress. Remember: You haven’t been working here for years, you just came into the picture. It’s normal to not know anything yet. Just pay attention, ask questions, and make connections - this is the answer to all of your problems.
Imposter Syndrome has been my biggest enemy this summer. I had never experienced it before, let alone knew what it was. It really hit me in the middle part of my internship, right when I thought I was getting the hang of my position. I would get negative thoughts about how I was not qualified for the job, that my social media abilities were lacking, how I did not do enough for my team. It really got inside my head. After talking to some past and present interns, I realized that I was not alone. Imposter Syndrome is such a common thing in the working world amongst most everyone in any career. Remember to stay confident, remind yourself why you were hired, and own it.
Working from home is my second enemy. It’s great and comfortable, yet so deceiving. I find that I get distracted over anything: A neighbor walking by, my Mom talking, or my dogs. Especially my adorable dogs. Working from home definitely has its pros: No long commute to work, getting to wear sweatpants all day, and sitting on the couch. But, I find I’m not as focused. I don’t have the thrill of traveling to the city, being amongst my peers, socializing with people my age, and getting dressed up for work. I feel better when I am in the office, as weird as it sounds.
My internship position varied greatly throughout the summer. I was doing some things that I had done in school, like editing, writing, and posting on social media, something I already do quite often. I learned new tasks like creating assets and posters in Adobe Creative Suite, writing copy for posts and newsletters, and my personal favorite, running the network’s TikTok page. Publicis Health already had Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter but no TikTok. Being a typical Gen-Zer myself, I was thrilled when my team asked me to create and lead our first and official TikTok page.
To be 100% honest, running the TikTok was challenging at times. I love aimlessly scrolling through the app, but I had never made serious videos and posted them. This was a whole new reality for me. It sounds easy. Film and post. But, it was hard to catch up on all the past and ever-changing present trends as well as getting people to be in them. Some people want to be in TikToks 24/7 and some don’t want anything to do with them. However, I wanted to include everyone and it was hard to maneuver while working hybrid style.
What I did love was the “power” I held and the happiness it gave me. It was so fun to make videos with my intern friends or even by myself. I didn’t get to make all the videos I wanted but, I am so proud of each and every one I have posted.
As I am writing this, I am in my last week of my internship and its bittersweet. I have two days left and I don’t know how to feel. I go back to college in two weeks, which I was dying to go back to at the beginning of summer. Now, I don’t ever want to leave Publicis Health. I’m a bit of a drama queen so I always sound dramatic, but this internship has changed my life. I had my first internship experience, I met incredible people, and worked with an even more incredible team. I created real work and enjoyed every day of it while doing so.
I came into this program as an overthinker, worrier, and doubtful girl who had no idea what to expect. I came out of this program as a more confident, inspired, and motivated young adult who is excited for whatever the future holds.
So, thank you to Publicis Health, this program, my team, and to everyone who has helped me along the way over the past few months. And to you reading, whoever you are, I hope you enjoyed my advice.
Sincerely,
Amanda
Amanda Cantale is a Corporate Communications Intern at Publicis Health in New York City. She is majoring in Journalism and minoring in American Studies at Elon University (Class of 2024). In her free time, Amanda enjoys reading romantic novels, going down the shore, and eating Italian food. A fun fact about Amanda is that she loves going to music concerts.
