Finding my hidden talents at Internshala
Sip countless cups of coffee; scratch my head for ideas; read about marketing campaigns; follow every interesting ad and post by brands on social media; steal food from colleagues; munch snacks with colleagues turned friends; conceptualise creatives; discard papers and ideas multiple times; keep a track of latest news (you know, you gotta post em first); plot murder when business teams say words like ‘Viral’, ‘Grand’, ‘Out-of-the-box’; coordinate with design team; brainstorm; create characters out of my mentor (who by the way, is getting older by the second); test all the creepy and dark and morbid content on my nemesis; write lame puns like “Ye day dekhne ko meri aankhein Thurs gayi thi” along with the designer; and come up with more ideas – phew! Yes, that’s my usual day at Internshala. And a testimony to why I keep getting fatter (a couch potato, if you may)!
Last time I wrote an entry, I was the content writer, but now, I am the social media manager (well, that is what a startup is all about). Social media – I always thought it wasn’t my cup of tea until one day, my sadistic mentor decided to shift to Mumbai. Cut to today – I like the tremendous amount of energy and creativity you have to put into social media. I love the hustle of bringing out a topical as soon as there is breaking news, and some days, you are swifter than a few of the news publications (or not – some channels were on the moon even before Vikram lander – I am not that swift). If I am being completely honest – I love the job now (after exactly 11 months and 9 days). When I was “entrusted” with the responsibility of being the voice of Internshala, I was scared. And to say that I am not scared now would be the kind of lie that sets pants on fire. Especially when the designers keep giving you what they call “negative motivation” – telling you how bad a job you do and how well other brands are doing so that you’d pull up your socks and mean business. Not to mention that my manager keeps my “firing message” in her draft in case I am not surprising her enough (with ideas, I mean).
The hustle at Internshala is admirable – when you have a campaign getting launched at 12 AM, you stretch and stay late in the office thinking of ideas as the designer designs the creatives. You go on the streets of Delhi interviewing people for a video with mics, cameras, backpacks, and a really excited crew, juggling the roles of a director, editor, and spot dada. When one post of a campaign doesn’t work out, you put your head together, analyse, and come up with an idea which turns the tide. You pick up new skills, learn new tools, and obsess over consistent designs, audio quality, and whatnot!
I never really thought that I’d be able to work on social media but every time I came up with a mediocre post, people at office supported me and told me that it wasn’t the end of the world; I’d come up with better posts. Every time I sulked about failing at making things work, my mentor stood with me like a wall. I struggled hard these 11 months, worked day and night to come up with good ideas, cried, and thought of quitting – but people here just couldn’t stop believing in me. They made sure that I don’t sink. And now, I am at least at a stage where when a new thing comes up, panic is not my first reaction. It’s been more than a year at Internshala, and I still think coming here was the best decision I took for myself – people here trust me more than I have ever trusted myself. Plus my dad is happy that I have started following the news.
Editor’s note: If you are someone who is a natural at coming up with fun and humorous content and can bear with the dark soul of our current social media manager, apply here.
