Intern Diary: Grace
My time here at JMG has been nothing short of transformative. My journey here has led me to become a part of the most amazing and supportive community I could ever ask for, and it all began when Jenna followed me on Instagram a year or so ago. I immediately assumed it was an accident (because duh), but I noticed that she would actively view my stories. My curiosity led me to search her page and discover JMG. I was in awe. I knew deep down that I would have to work here, in one way or another. I stalked the JMG instagram endlessly, attempting to discover what an internship there would look like. It felt like I was meant to find the little post that said “We Are Hiring!”. For lack of a better term, I immediately locked in. I can remember the night so clearly, April 9th at 9 p.m. I applied on the website like everyone else, and surprisingly heard back from Zel the next day. I didn’t know that, of course. Due to my luck, the email from Zel went straight to spam, and there it sat for a few days. I was completely mortified. I emailed Zel the moment I realized, and after a month of biting my nails, I had an interview scheduled!
My interviewer was Cara, and she made the interview a tremendously easy process by being so approachable and supportive. We clicked instantly, and after that I knew that I belonged at JMG – I also figured that Cara felt similarly, as I was hired on the spot! Of course, once the day rolled around, so did my nerves. This was my first public relations internship, and although I had some writing experience from my classes, I didn’t exactly know what I was getting myself into. I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best, hoping that my optimism would get me past my first week of nervousness. Coming into a team of all women was a dream come true. It was such a close knit community, and I knew that everyone at JMG would welcome our cohort with open arms.
Luckily for me, all of my worries dissipated once I met my supervisor, Ryleigh, on my first day of orientation. We got along instantly, and I felt like I won the supervisor lottery. I never felt like I had to hesitate on any question or ask when it came to reaching out. No matter what it was, she would etch out time in her busy schedule to help me out. In fact, her helpfulness and humor are what kept me afloat during days where I felt more challenged. The days in question typically consisted of finding contacts for our clients and building media lists (which was a first for me), writing briefing memos, building pitches, creating press summaries, and researching for client projects. It felt like every task I assigned was a way to explore the inner workings of how PR in the real world worked. Gaining hands-on experience throughout my days here at JMG is how I was able to solidify my standing passion in PR, and this experience has helped me grow as not only a writer and budding strategist, but as a person.
With constant encouragement from Ryleigh and Cara, I knew I was capable of making a difference for our clients. Everyday was a new day to challenge myself in a field that is driven by passion and communication. To any future JMG interns reading this, you are a part of a wonderful team that will support you through thick and thin, congratulations! I am eternally grateful for my time here at JMG, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds.
