Sunday, June 14, 2009
my life as a summer intern: part 1
Just to make sure everyone is on the same page: I was offered a summer internship position at a very large bank back in March. From this point on, I'll refer to them as VLB (Very Large Bank). By very large, I mean that this bank has a very strong global presence and I was privileged enough to be placed in their New York City office, which is by far their largest office in the U.S. It was my only offer but it was by far my best offer and I know without a doubt that the only reason I am only here because it was the Lord's good, pleasing, and perfect will for me to be here. I am fully confident that He has ordained this time for me and I am so grateful.
I just finished my first official week of work and I am getting ready to start week 2 tomorrow. Monday and Tuesday were training days for all the interns, regardless of which division we were placed in. I made a point to introduce myself to as many people as possible and among other things, remember their names. It's been great to hear about their backgrounds and where they are coming from, as well as realize that despite that, we all have so much in common in regard to work this summer - same anxieties, same expectations (or lack thereof), same questions. It's been easy to relate so far and I'm enjoying all the new faces and new stories.
Wednesday was my first real day of work and it has been a crazy whirlwind ever since but I am loving it so far. It turns out, I was placed into the Equities Compliance division of VLB and the specific team I will be working with is kind of like an advisory group. Because they handle a lot of real time questions from traders, they have to be pretty close to the action. In fact, they actually sit on the trading floor and because my manager is kind of awesome (more on him later), I will actually be sitting on the trading floor at my manager's desk with my team as much as possible (my manger has a separate office on another floor as well). Isn't that Crazy??? In case you don't know too much about the financial services industry, a summer intern working on the trading floor is crazy talk.
Like I said, my manager is awesome. He multi-tasks like no one I've ever seen and he has this naturally kind of restless nature. He always seems to be in a bit of a hurry (in fact, I find myself all but running after him through the office) and he's great at thinking on his feet and making his perspective known in a group of people. He's like a Type A cubed. At the same time, he is incredible patient in teaching and mentoring me and he fully and actively supports me getting the absolute most out of my internship experience. In fact, he actually told me that his door is always open to me and that I am here to bug him and make my presence known - he actually expects face-to-face interaction with me on a daily basis. What a unique opportunity I have been blessed with! I can't describe how wonderful it is to know that someone in his position, with his industry knowledge and esteemed reputation is on my side - pushing me to learn and grow as much as possible.
As a result, he has asked me to join him in most of the meetings he had scheduled last week and usually introduces me as "a member of his team" vs. just "a summer intern." He has also taken time out on several occasions to explain everything from the premise of upcoming meetings to important concepts that were discussed within the meeting to the way certain projects the team is working on fit into the overall picture of what the Compliance group of VLB. I was given a few small assignments here and there but most of my time so far has been spent shadowing my manager and other members of my group through their meetings and commitments, getting a few for the culture of VLB, and trying to understand the nature and responsibilities of the Equities Compliance group.
Since I am now a working woman, here are just a few lessons I've learned so far regarding full time work at a global bank:
1. If you go to bed early enough, it is possible to wake up before 6:30 AM.
2. The ability to actively listen and think during meetings is way more important than I realized. I need work on this.
3. The best way to remember Indian people's names is to associate it with an object that sounds somewhat similar to their name.
4. Managing directors, VP's, supervisors, CEO's, etc are just everyday people.
5. 8 hours of work goes by way faster than I thought it was going to.
6. The 4 hours in between work and sleep goes by way, way, way (way, way) faster than I thought it was going to.
I just finished my first official week of work and I am getting ready to start week 2 tomorrow. Monday and Tuesday were training days for all the interns, regardless of which division we were placed in. I made a point to introduce myself to as many people as possible and among other things, remember their names. It's been great to hear about their backgrounds and where they are coming from, as well as realize that despite that, we all have so much in common in regard to work this summer - same anxieties, same expectations (or lack thereof), same questions. It's been easy to relate so far and I'm enjoying all the new faces and new stories.
Wednesday was my first real day of work and it has been a crazy whirlwind ever since but I am loving it so far. It turns out, I was placed into the Equities Compliance division of VLB and the specific team I will be working with is kind of like an advisory group. Because they handle a lot of real time questions from traders, they have to be pretty close to the action. In fact, they actually sit on the trading floor and because my manager is kind of awesome (more on him later), I will actually be sitting on the trading floor at my manager's desk with my team as much as possible (my manger has a separate office on another floor as well). Isn't that Crazy??? In case you don't know too much about the financial services industry, a summer intern working on the trading floor is crazy talk.
Like I said, my manager is awesome. He multi-tasks like no one I've ever seen and he has this naturally kind of restless nature. He always seems to be in a bit of a hurry (in fact, I find myself all but running after him through the office) and he's great at thinking on his feet and making his perspective known in a group of people. He's like a Type A cubed. At the same time, he is incredible patient in teaching and mentoring me and he fully and actively supports me getting the absolute most out of my internship experience. In fact, he actually told me that his door is always open to me and that I am here to bug him and make my presence known - he actually expects face-to-face interaction with me on a daily basis. What a unique opportunity I have been blessed with! I can't describe how wonderful it is to know that someone in his position, with his industry knowledge and esteemed reputation is on my side - pushing me to learn and grow as much as possible.
As a result, he has asked me to join him in most of the meetings he had scheduled last week and usually introduces me as "a member of his team" vs. just "a summer intern." He has also taken time out on several occasions to explain everything from the premise of upcoming meetings to important concepts that were discussed within the meeting to the way certain projects the team is working on fit into the overall picture of what the Compliance group of VLB. I was given a few small assignments here and there but most of my time so far has been spent shadowing my manager and other members of my group through their meetings and commitments, getting a few for the culture of VLB, and trying to understand the nature and responsibilities of the Equities Compliance group.
Since I am now a working woman, here are just a few lessons I've learned so far regarding full time work at a global bank:
1. If you go to bed early enough, it is possible to wake up before 6:30 AM.
2. The ability to actively listen and think during meetings is way more important than I realized. I need work on this.
3. The best way to remember Indian people's names is to associate it with an object that sounds somewhat similar to their name.
4. Managing directors, VP's, supervisors, CEO's, etc are just everyday people.
5. 8 hours of work goes by way faster than I thought it was going to.
6. The 4 hours in between work and sleep goes by way, way, way (way, way) faster than I thought it was going to.
Subscribe to Posts [Atom]
