My Exhausted Professional Wardrobe

August is nearly upon us. I cannot believe over two months have gone by since summer began. However, it doesn’t take long to recall just how long I’ve been at my internship when I face the small selection of overused professional attire in my closet every morning.

I have had more and more trouble finding new getups fit for the office as the summer has progressed. I have managed to get by so far with a few staples and oft-worn pieces, but creativity, I’ve found, is one quality I cannot afford to live without. The cost of business casual clothing is simply too expensive to have clothes you can’t wear over and over again in different ways. So, when you hit the point where you have exhausted your wardrobe (as I have), what do you do? Below are a few ideas to perhaps save you some anxiety (and $$) over your mid-summer, overused working wardrobe.

Problem: I do not have enough outfit combinations. I end up wearing the same things over and over again. Won’t my coworkers judge me?

Solution: Honestly, people who have their own work to do will hardly notice if you wear the same pants two times a week. I cannot remember a single ensemble anyone in the office I work in has ever worn. As long as you don’t scandalize your coworkers by showing up in an inappropriate outfit, you will probably be fine. That being said, having options is nice—I invested in slacks (black and khaki), a black pencil skirt, and a few basic dresses. Pairing these basic staples with various articles of clothing I owned pre-internship, like blouses and sweaters, might give the impression that my working wardrobe is more expansive than it actually is.

Problem: I need to buy new shoes. I get by with sandals and athletic shoes at Scripps and grew out of my flats long ago! What do I buy?

Solution: Maybe this is more a personal problem than a universal issue, but I have had the hardest time finding suitable footwear for my internship. In another life I wore ballet flats pretty regularly, but those shoes no longer fit. Since I must walk from the train to my office nearly 3/4 mile away, I cannot get by without wearing comfy shoes. I bought a pair of comfortable black flats this summer and wear them multiple times a week. On the days when I do not wear my new shoes, I just wear flip-flops and pack older flats for the office to mitigate the painful effects of the prolonged wearing of ill-fitting shoes. Resourcefulness is key!

Problem: It’s so hot today, I need to wear as little clothing as possible. What’s the least I can get away with?

Solution: Knee-length minimum skirts. No shorts or t-shirts. Nothing too tight, low-cut, or sheer. Never sandals. Maintaining professionalism is possible in the heat. If you’re even questioning whether something is too skimpy or not, you should probably opt for something else. These examples of work-suitable tank tops provide a nice guide, but bring a sweater just in case. Hopefully your workplace is air-conditioned!

Problem: How can I incorporate clothes that aren’t really business casual into my work attire?

Solution: Certain tops, particularly blouses, can easily make the transition from school-appropriate to office-appropriate when matched with slacks rather than jeans. Sweaters, like cardigans and light pullovers, can also be paired with everything from skirts to dresses of appropriate-length. Tucking shirts into skirts/slacks oftentimes dresses up ensembles marvelously! Subtle jewelry like necklaces and earrings have a nice way of sprucing up an outfit a bit as well. Try different combinations and see what works!

Be economical, and good luck dressing in the next month! For more information about what professional attire means for interns, check out this article I read this weekend.

Affirmation

This summer, I set out to gain some experience and (perhaps) find an avenue down which I could see my academic and professional future heading. With my internship in hand and a plan in my mind, I thought that all the soul-searching I planned on doing would be easy.

I quickly learned that it wouldn’t be that simple.

True, my internship has been great—I have learned so much about the field of environmentalism/environmental policy, the operational mechanics of a nonprofit organization, the tasks appointed to the communications department employees, and all about how office life and professional life really works out. This experience has made me much more certain that I am pursuing what interests me. However, the office setting has not provided me with the inspiration and the affirmation that I initially hoped to find in order to be at peace with the fact that I am in the most exciting, enlivening time of my life, making decisions that will shape the course of my life, with the world at my fingertips. The introspective aspect of this summer of soul-searching had been lacking in the go, go, go setting of my internship, and I felt that if I was to continue working in this environment until the end of August, I would need a brief respite at some point.

A few weeks ago, I talked with my boss about working remotely for a few days in order to return to a summer camp at which I have volunteered since 2010. She was very receptive to the idea, since much of my work is based on the computer and I would have access to internet and email during my time at the camp. This past week, I returned to this camp, which is based in a remote location and serves children and adults with disabilities, to instill a sense of order and familiarity in what has become a frenzied, nearly over-stimulating summer. I felt I was being brought back to my roots at this camp—being around the beautiful people who flock here every summer reminded me of the goals I have always set for myself about my life: to leave the world in better condition, even if slightly, than I found it. I know this is probably the last year I will return to this camp, which has been a part of me for so long, and that feeling is bittersweet. I do not think I am going into special needs care, and so it doesn’t make much sense, logically speaking, to be at camp. However, psychologically, touching down here was important to me, and so I am glad I was able to achieve some closure about what has been a part of me for so long and simultaneously feel supported in the new steps I am taking towards finding my course through this world. I needed this break to keep my head about all the changes into which I am coming, and I could not be more grateful that I feel at peace with the fact that all these important, exciting changes are happening so quickly.

I have returned from camp, where I was still doing remote work for my internship, and will resume in the Sacramento office on Monday. I feel ready, both to face the rest of the summer and to face the rest of the decisions, the triumphs and travails, the work that comes with working in and contributing to this sometimes crazy, always beautiful world of ours.

Knowing (and Doing) What You Love: An Intern’s Tale

I have just wrapped up the first full week of my internship! In one week I feel like I have learned a great deal not only about the world of nonprofit communications, but about how professional life works in general. As this is my first internship, I have not had the experience many others have had working in an office, donning business attire, taking “coffee breaks,” embracing the challenges posed by employers… but in this week I have done all these things and more. I have a few major projects my employers have entrusted in my care, namely a revitalization of the nonprofit’s blog, a long overdue website revamping, and an assignment that will call for me to work with California state legislators, academic specialists, and field experts dealing with environmental law. As I have just started working with my employers to negotiate these projects, I do not yet have too much to report about them… more details forthcoming!

One thing of which I am certain is my feeling that I will be in a position to gain the insight I so desperately seek into my desired academic future as well as my professional future, as this internship carries on. As an undeclared major with no real certainty about what kind of degree I’ll be holding when I depart Scripps in three years, I wanted this summer to be an opportunity to learn more about myself, my interests, and potential fields I am interested in that may translate into scholastic and career futures.

At this point, I have more certainty and faith in my current direction than I did in the spring, and that mostly can be attributed to the experiences I have had interning and the work I observe my employers and other staff members doing around me. I didn’t know quite how passionate I was about environmentalism, how much I relish any communications work that enables me to write and collaborate with others, and how exciting it can be to work in a dynamic place like Sacramento where things are always happening (even in an office setting!) until I was tossed blindly into this position. Despite the 6:00am alarm I set three days a week, the dwindling thickness of my wallet, and the sometimes-redundant responsibilities I face, this internship has been a blessing. I think I know where I’m headed, and I couldn’t be more confident in my commitment.

An English major and environmental analysis minor, I have decided, is, for now, the path for me. Side note: as a shout out to any other English or humanities majors who, like me, may have felt qualms at one time about the practicality of such a major in this world that puts more and more of an emphasis on vocational training, I encourage you to read this article by a Pomona alum that a peer of mine recently shared.

If you’re reading this and have no idea what kind of degree you hope to pursue, I say don’t worry—such wisdom will come with time, and I dare you to jump headfirst into different interests to find your niche. If you’re reading this and know what you love and have an idea about what you want to do, I say good for you, and stick with it! No matter your major or your interest or your decisions regarding your future, I think that before leaving Scripps it is imperative that you test out working in the field for a time or two, be that in internship form or otherwise. Chances are you’ll learn at least a few things from such a connection, and at this point in our lives any experience is good experience!

Have a good week all!

The Question of Unpaid Internships

After 2.5 weeks spent in Europe with my family, I have returned to California. Thus, my summertime obligations begin now! I write this blog post on a train that will take me to Sacramento, the location of my part-time communications internship with an environmental nonprofit. Today is my first official day in the office working. As I sit here, ruminating, gazing out a window at lovely oil refineries and parched fields of crops at an ungodly hour of the morning, I ask myself an honest question: why am I even doing this in the first place when I’d rather be ___ (sleeping, eating, vegging, etc.)? What even is the purpose of an internship? Shouldn’t I get paid to be up this early?

Admittedly, I am not a morning person, and this grumpy self reflection might have just resulted from the combination of jet lag and a too-early wakeup alarm… but at the same time I do wonder why internships are so vital, and who benefits from them more, the employer or the student.

My friend, who is working in the office of a state assembly member, and I have discussed extensively. She works in an office with seven paid employees and five interns and wondered whether she and her unpaid intern peers were being slighted, when they were working just as hard as employees. She mentioned a pertinent recent NPR broadcast that examines the nuances of unpaid internships, a blessing/burden that many students face.

So who gains the most from such internships?

It’s an important question to ask before accepting one, and the financial burden that might trail such a decision. The answer, of course, is it depends. To me, mind-numbing work like making copies and performing coffee runs, unless you’re interning for the president, isn’t really meaningful or enriching work, and you might as well do the same thing somewhere else where you’ll be paid for your time.

I am paying to ride this train out of my own pocket. If I had ended up renting an apartment in Sacramento to be at my unpaid internship every day of the week, I would have had to pay for that too. “Is it worth it?” The perennial question.

In my case, I feel like the time, effort, and money I am putting in to this essentially volunteer opportunity will pay off in non-monetary ways, despite the fact that I haven’t even really begun yet. My reasons are these:

1. My employers value my help. In the telephone conversations I had with my employers prior to summer, they took my offer to intern with extreme seriousness and gratitude. They told me exactly what they were looking for, exactly what they expected, and exactly they hoped I could accomplish for them. They set up projects for me and gave me legitimate responsibilities, and they were professional and on top of things the whole way through.

2. My employers want this to be a positive learning experience for me. They always ask “is there anything else you’d like to do?” or “what do you hope to gain from this experience?” Such questions and openness to my input reveals their desire that I walk away from this summer with more than just a resume-boost.

3. My location and job description entail hefty responsibilities and promise a never-ending to-do list. I’m working in a nonprofit a block away from the Capitol. Such a job description ensures that I’ll never be bored, or reduced to making copies, as there will always be work to do.

Internships are first and foremost about you, and the skills/experiences you gain. Don’t forget that, and make sure you make the most out of your limited time!

Going with the Flow

Sometimes, no matter how many months of planning or how many agreements we enter with others, plans turn out differently than expected when they finally come to fruition. Sometimes this is good, sometimes it is not. No matter what, we must continuously move forward.

After an initial conversation with the director of the nonprofit at which I am interning this summer, I was counting on my internship to be full-time. To accommodate these plans, I thought I would live in Sacramento in an apartment on my own. The last time I checked in with my soon-to-be overseer, however, I learned that she will only works part-time this summer. Subsequently, she had thought of projects for me to do that were part-time for me as well. After some discussion with both the director and my boss over the phone, they offered to come up with more work for me to do that would enable me to intern full-time, but in the end we decided that my efforts would be most useful if I worked in the office three days per week in addition to some remote work.

This means I will be commuting three days a week rather than renting an apartment in Sacramento. Although I am a little bummed that my experience will not be exactly as I had anticipated, I know my work this summer will still prove to be worthwhile, and I’m sure I will gain the professional experience and knowledge I seek. I have come to expect that things rarely go as planned, but making the most out of the outcome is all anyone can hope to do. I would not have been happy if I did not have enough work to do or if I burdened anyone in the office by making them feel like they needed to provide me with work. As it is, I think I will be able to make a positive difference for this nonprofit while also learning what I hoped to learn.

This change in plans means I will have more free time this summer! But… what am I going to do at this point? I am looking to perhaps go the typical part-time summer job route, poking around at my favorite local bookstores and coffee shops to see if they are hiring. I am racking idealist.org to find recently posted, part-time local internships up my alley. I am asking around to see if any family or friends have any suggestions. All I know is that I want to be doing something; at this point, being idle for half the summer would be the only way I could go wrong!

And so, I will continue to go with the flow and accept that whatever this summer ends up looking like (even though I’m already a week into it), I will find ways to learn, to grow, to connect with others, and perhaps begin to form thoughts regarding what my future holds!