Week one sweaty commutes, salt and vinegar crisps and speed dating

Week one sweaty commutes, salt and vinegar crisps and speed dating by Michael Cheary Week one: office life, and our friends across the pond…Five interns are spending the summer working for reed.co.uk. We’ve already met the interns, now it’s time to find out how their first week went.Warning: This blog features sweaty commutes, salt and vinegar crisps and speed dating…AndrewI’ve always been wary of doing an internship at a big corporate business.   The stories of my peers in the States who’ve interned for Fortune 500 companies have consisted of 12 hour days, mind-numbing work, and a subsequent crisis over whether or not this is what they really want to do for the rest of their life.However, I’m relieved to say that my so far time at reed.co.uk has been anything but, and I’ve still been able to reap the benefits and experience so desirable as an intern.In my first week I have been buried in the world of recruitment, giving presentations and briefs about what makes the industry tick, and although challenging, the work is equally exhilarating at the same time.The biggest thing about working at reed.co.uk however is that it’s not a business of suited employees stuck in a gridlock of cubicles, but an office made up entirely of creatives.   Every day I get to be a part of a framework of breakout sessions and open brainstorming about how reed.co.uk can help more people love Mondays.Yes, during peak times the Central Line can be a sauna reeking of sweat and salt and vinegar chips (or crisps, I should properly say), and yes, London is possibly the most expensive city to which my now deflated wallet has given its soul.However, even though I’m still getting used to life here in the United Kingdom (where high school is called college and college is called university, and its actually acceptable to put milk in your tea), I think being a part of reed.co.uk, more than anything, has made me feel more at home than anywhere else.Stephanie‘In order to apply for this job, you need a minimum of 1-2 years’ experience to be eligible for this role’. Being a recent graduate, this is the line that has haunted me whilst applying for jobs. It became evident that so many jobs required a lot of experience, but weren’t willing to give any. This shifted my focus to internships, and whilst searching on reed.co.uk I found this internship role advertised, and the rest is history.So many questions ran through my mind, what am I going to wear? How nice and welcoming will everyone be? Am I actually going to learn? And, just how many coffees will I be making for people?Thankfully the kitchen (or, more specifically, the coffee machine) wasn’t to be our new office. I read through our timetable and it was at that moment I was convinced this was no ordinary internship, as it was full with variety and opportunities to learn. Our first week included us delivering SWOT presentation (which was highly praised), meetings with departments, project briefs, inductions and a visit to Wagamama’s and the pub (all paid f or of course).After a busy weekend, I came in on Monday surprisingly with so much energy. Who knew I could actually ‘Love Mondays’?I’m glad I have adjusted to working life and am extremely excited to continue on this journey at reed.co.ukAllyJust finished my first week with reed.co.uk. A whole lot of faces and names and technical terms to process, but all in all a great first week of induction. The highlight would be ‘Speed Reed’, the company’s take on speed dating where the interns and I got to meet all the senior staff and talk about all things reed.co.uk. But a close second has to be a drink at the local after a long Monday’s induction.With big projects looming and planning to be done, it was nice to leave work in the dust this weekend and get out for a couple of days. The other interns and I went out to a couple of pubs near King’s Cross where we stumbled across some live music. We even lounged in one of those mystical pub gardens you sometimes come across, folde d away in the bricks and concrete of the city.Now next to any proper Londoner I’m a lost toddler, but armed with one year’s experience in the city I can convince my fellow interns from the States that I’m as savvy as a cab driver. Sunday involved a casual walk around parts of London I can claim to know quite well. But even that notion was to come under fire as I found out Holland Park hosts several peacocks in its open green. Exotic.Afterwards we went our separate ways for a good night’s sleep in preparation for the week ahead.No more smooth induction for the interns. We’ve got some more challenging paths to carve.ConnorBeing born and raised in a suburban, coastal hometown with the tallest building standing at a staggering eight stories tall, to living in one of the largest cities in the world, in a continent I’ve never even set foot on before, can be a bit overwhelming.Coming straight from a vacation in Hawaii, I got on a five hour plane ride to Los Angeles Airport to b e welcomed with news of a dreadful 12 hour layover before my 11 hour flight to London.Exhausted, I finally arrived at London, Heathrow Airport mid-afternoon on a Sunday; the day before I would wake up to start my first ever 40hr work week.Despite having the privilege of a car at home, I was reassured by several family friends that, in the largely condensed maze of London, the public transport system is efficient and pretty self-explanatory. To my surprise, they were right. I made it to my apartment with ease and, although extremely excited, I set my alarm for work and passed out almost as soon as my head hit the pillow.When I got to work in the morning, I thought I would’ve been scared, jumping right into something I’ve never even come close to experiencing before, but, after anticipating this moment for the past five months, I found myself being too excited at finally being here to be hindered by the nerves.As I entered the office I noticed all the employees around me were surp risingly young, which instantly eliminated some of my daunting expectations. Everyone has been extremely approachable this entire first week.I am working specifically with the Finance department and feel that I’ve learned more in Microsoft Excel than I have in all of the finance/accounting classes that I’ve taken combined.I know, being that I’m pursuing a career in finance, this is exactly what I need to be doing so I can’t wait to see how these next seven weeks unfold.YaseenI’ve been one of the ‘American Interns’ for over a week now at reed.co.uk, and aside from the odd few jokes and general intern/American-based humour (‘our friends from across the pond’ introductions being a particular staple), I’ve really enjoyed my time so far.   It’s quite a shame that I only have a few hundred words to blog about my experiences, because they have really been quite unconventional to say the least.First of all, I’d like to thank James Reed for affording me with such an o pportunity, as well as my lovely colleagues within the office for creating one of the most relaxed environments I could have ever imagined.In terms of office dynamics I must have broken a world record for the least amount of awkwardness within the first five days of an internship ever.   From speed dating to group meetings and unprompted introductions, I can truthfully say I am on a head nod basis with the majority of the office and on a first name basis with every person on my floor.Cheers to finishing the first week and until next time mates*…*N.B. excuse my newfound London jargon, it’s really quite hard to resist overusing these words, until you notice that without the British accent they sound rather odd.Missed our introduction to the interns? Meet them now. The interns have had their first week. Stay tuned to see how they get on in the coming weeks.