Coping with life without summer holidays

My school career is almost over. I have a little less than a month left of classes, and then I will pass through the invisible protection of school and into the real world... which is terrifying. As students, I think we get so used to the protective bubble that university and college provide. We don't have to determine what career we want to enter or pay off our student loans quite yet.. it's a fantastic place to be! But all things great must come to an end, and that's why I'm writing this blog post now.

This is an ode to the 4 months of summer that I used to have free from school or any major responsibilities... a reflection of the days that ended at 1pm because classes ended early that day... a ballad to the professors that would give project extensions so our weekends could be relaxing and fun.

I've never surfed in my life, but it seemed fitting.

The thing about school is that those four months after classes finished served as a reset button. You finished those eight months of hard-work, and maybe you'll try some new courses next semester, or even change your major!! (lord knows, I have). The thing is.. you knew that school was in the near future, but you could worry about it later. Now, those days are over. There's no such thing as 'summer holidays' or 'march break' or even 'christmas break' because this is real life now, kid.

By no means is this blog post a complaint about not having as many vacation days as I did as a student.. it just means that things are changing, and it's time to step up and rise with the challenge of the real world. What does that challenge entail exactly? No idea.

What I do know is this: these past few months have been the most exciting of my life, but also the most stressful. The phrase 'so what are you going to do when you're done school' is almost a daily question you have to answer, and the panic you feel when you can't answer is quite palpable. Thankfully, I've been able to find a career in a field that I love, and have actually landed a position at an agency that I respect and am excited to be a part of. But still... I have been preparing to enter the 'real world' for 5 years now, and it still seems like something just out of reach. I guess in a couple of months I feel finally know what all the hubbub is all about.

Check out the Advertising: Account Management program at Sheridan College.

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Learning How To Get A Grip

So, there I was. Standing with my team in front of 12 industry executives waiting for our campaign to unfold before them. You know that feeling when you have no saliva in your mouth and can barely remember how to talk? Now, imagine having that for 45 minutes while higher ups of your dream agency judge the hell out of your pitch. Why would anyone freely choose to have this happen to them?

Before I answer that, let me give you some context...

About a month ago, I signed up for the Grip Limited Juicer competition-- an annual advertising competition offered by Grip Limited to every college and university in Ontario. I wanted a bit more real-life advertising experience, so I decided to be a part of the Sheridan team. We were equipped with a brief, a real-life challenge to solve, and a deadline. I have never really thrown together an actual advertising campaign, so I really thought I was in over my head. Luckily, there was a lot of seasoned-advertising-competition veterans that provided leadership and made the experience pretty cool.

Fast forward a couple weeks. We had our big idea, research, consumer insights, a budget, media considerations and a strategic plan. All that was left was the presentation.

I step into the agency, and my heart is pounding. I'm in classic freak-out mode, thinking of everything that could possibly go wrong. Will I stumble over my words? or forget the crucial information I am supposed to present? Will I let down my team? Will I mess up and ruin my whole career?! I know self-destructing right before a presentation isn't a 100% fantastic strategy, so I tried to cool my jets. My team walks to the front of the room, and we start our pitch. The next 45 minutes was pretty much a complete blur. If you asked me what I said during the presentation, I probably couldn't tell you. But, we got through it. It was over.

Although we didn't win the competition, I was proud of everyone on my team. We all came together to create a campaign that we were proud of, and I'm happy that I was a part of it. We came up with a unique idea and saw it to completion, which is all I wanted to do.

I've only been in advertising for about 7 months now, but having the opportunity to present my own ideas to industry professionals was something I never thought I'd be able to do. I'm an introverted person, but I took a step out of my comfort zone and tried to provide something of value to both my team and the agency. Even though it was a top-ten most-nervous moment in my life, I would do it again in a heartbeat... even if it's beating dangerously high.

I highly recommend checking out Grip if you're interested in an opportunity like this!

Networking Night 2015!

During this past week, the post-graduates in the Advertising Account Management program were lucky enough to attend a networking night at Sheridan, where past grads mingled and discussed the advertising industry with students. It was pretty cool to be able to speak to the recent grads in an informal setting, and have the ability to speak candidly about their jobs and their paths. I also think that the willingness of these past Sheridan students to take time out of their busy schedules to speak to us speaks volumes about how much they enjoyed both the professors and program here at Sheridan. The one thing I took away from Networking Night is that people in the industry want to help you.. they understand the challenges of breaking into a new industry, and they are genuinely interested in helping you on your way. I've never really experienced that before (especially when trying to get a job) which makes me want to work harder to earn the help that I'm getting.

What a bunch of beautiful post-grads!

The whole event was a type of speed-dating, where past-grads sat in a group with current students and got to know each other and their position in the industry. As an introverted person I was pretty much a zombie by the end of it, but it lead to some great contacts and opportunities! Everyone was really nice and open to any questions we had!

Here's a small clip of Matthew Tower, the SAA Communications Lead, speaking about the event: 

More information about the event and other industry opportunities available through the post-graduate account management program can be found here.