Waking Up In the City That Never Sleeps

By Leilani Needham, Intern

When I was accepted to intern at Fusion Public Relations, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I’ve lived in a farm town for the past two years, have never been to the East Coast and have never worked an eight hour office job. I was in for an awakening. I knew New York City was the largest city in the U.S. and was home to many famous buildings, shows and people, but that was it.

When it comes to PR, I was unfamiliar with it and did not know how extensive the work was. While at Fusion, I am learning things that I would have never learned in class or at school, and am experiencing things that I probably never would have if I didn’t take this internship. I had the opportunity to sit in on media trainings, which I had no idea was even necessary. It is interesting how much preparation is required and goes into these trainings.

In the training, we had our clients practice interviewing in different scenarios. Every client needs to be prepared with key messages and make sure their messages are properly communicated to the media. We walked them through the steps of what to do in the different situations. This is only one out of the many things I have been able to experience while being at Fusion.

I advise everyone to participate in an internship to help figure out what you want to do. Take the time to make an investment for yourself. Regardless of the city, any internship is going to be worth the time and money. Coming out to NYC has been difficult and unpredictable, but everything I am learning has been well worth the sacrifice.