This summer, Stahls’ ID Direct™ has implemented its first internship program, with 10 college students gaining real-world experience in the heat printing industry. This is part of an ongoing series of blog posts by our interns, discussing their experiences.
by Bella B., Marketing Intern
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| Bella, who obviously doesn’t have enough to do. |
This summer when I applied for this internship at a large company, I imagined myself running around, picking up coffee, and doing anything that was asked of me. I assumed I would just do whatever was needed for the money and focus on all the nice things I would spend with my paychecks! Walking in on my first day I thought “Wow this is really early in the morning and I am never going to survive this.” Within minutes of being there I was sitting down in a meeting with 4 other colleagues, including my boss. I could not tell you what they were talking about – everything was going so fast I thought I was in way over my head. All I could think about was earning money to help pay for my college expenses and tuition so I could become a teacher.
I got a tour of the offices and met everyone working at Stahls’ ID Direct. To my surprise everyone was extremely welcoming and very professional. Within a week I felt like I was part of the Stahls’ family! Week after week, I learned more about business processes, customer profiles, and operations. And I continued to meet more and more employees who were extremely influential and expressed passion for what they did. Working here at Stahls’, I have been given an opportunity to meet and work with some very hardworking and passionate people. I have learned what it takes to be a loyal employee vs. a normal employee who punches in and out daily; what the difference is between having a job and a career.
When people talk about Stahls’ being a family-oriented business they are not kidding. Everyone treats each other like family, they disagree and argue but they also work together; they are kind to one another and welcoming. Whenever I had an issue with anything, I knew I had people willing and ready to help me. Whether it is the customer relationship management program or not knowing exactly what product something was. Through this experience I have learned more than I ever expected, I have had laughs, jokes, and made friends and “bunkies”. I have also had a boss who has taught me more than I could have learned sitting in a classroom listening to a professor. She also never made me go get her coffee or run around, but she taught me about social media status, customer profiles, and collecting relative data. It is more than I ever expected to learn. Now I have confidence and am an Excel spreadsheet professional, almost an expert, which can only be helpful for the future.
From this amazing experience, little did I know that months later I am awake and ready to go at 7:30 every morning, ready to work and learn more. Now I am saving my paychecks, my dream to be a teacher took a 360 and now I’m working to get into Western Michigan University’s Business College, and narrowing down my business major with the help of my summer internship. A special thanks to all the departments at Stahls’ ID – I have learned so much from all of you. Thank you for this experience.