There are many things I thought I would do in my early 30s none of which I have done yet. On the other hand, there are many things I am doing in my early 30s that I didn’t think I would do: move abroad, go back to university, do an internship. It’s the last one on that list that kept me busy throughout the spring. Much ink has been spilled on the rise of unpaid internships, on how interns are treated like slaves and on how internships have become a barrier to upward social mobility. As usual, I had to see for myself if it was really that bad and decided to do an internship in the arts. Needless to say, I assumed I was going to be the exception to the rule. Due to my age, my experience and my general awesomeness, I was not only going to be the best intern the world had ever seen, I was going to change the face of internships forever after. Singlehandedly, of course.
The first challenge was that I did not know anyone in the industry and for this reason could not use Austria’s primary internship procurement method, nepotism. Therefore, I set out to get an internship the way no woman has even gotten an internship in Austria before: I sent an unsolicited application. This application was followed up by phone call, an e-mail, another phone call, an interview and extensive research on how to circumvent a particular Austrian work regulation. After nine months of toil and nothing to show for it, I had a minor breakdown and withdrew my application. Then I spent two months pitying myself and cursing the industry before re-applying (to the same place) and going in for another interview. And believe it or not, it worked. After only 12 months I was offered a 3-month internship at 6 hours per week in a department different from the one I had wanted to work at and at a salary that, after taxes, would buy me two very decent meals per month. I was elated.
While my official task was to research funding options for an orchestra, my unofficial mission was to learn as much as possible about orchestra management. In this regard, I was extremely fortunate because the person I worked with went to great lengths to teach me things. However, the rest of my learning experience depended on relentlessly grilling people (just for the record, I can read body language, I just choose to ignore it when it doesn’t suit me) and showing up at events I wasn’t invited to. Most of my colleagues were more than accommodating when it came to sharing their knowledge with me. There was only one guy who, when I approached him to ask if he would be willing to grant me some insight into what he was doing, looked at me as if I’d just asked him for a kidney and then said no, definitely not. There was no way he could explain to me what he was doing. It was far too complex. At first, I was upset and thought about retaliation but then I realized that he’s really not to blame. Not all of us are cut out to be teachers. Or decent human beings.
A few weeks into the internship, I noticed that I had picked up a set of odd behavioural patterns that added up to a disorder I decided to name GS (Groupie Syndrome). Not only was I running around wearing my fake smile all the time (the one I usually only use when a friend tells me she’s pregnant), but for a solid two weeks the only thing I talked about were the celebrities (most of them probably unknown outside the confines of the Banana Republic of Austria) whose hands I had shaken. The other noticeable change in my life was a very sudden surge in popularity among some lesser known acquaintances of mine, which started the moment they got wind of the fact that I had access to comp tickets. Just for the record: you might want to precede the sentence, ‘When is the next concert and can I come?’, with a tiny bit of small talk so as not to make it quite so obvious that you only talk to me because you want something.
On the whole, I am really glad I went through this experience. Although I did not learn the things I had initially wanted to learn, I learned tons of things I had no idea I needed to know. And I met amazing people. However, I have absolutely no idea if this is going to help my career in the long run. There was a job opening at the organisation during my time there and I duly applied, but was turned down for lack of experience in the field. I briefly felt like telling them that I would have the necessary work experience by now if I’d been given the opportunity to do the internship when I first applied twelve months ago, but in an unprecedented act of self-restraint managed to keep my mouth shut. The only consolation is that I did get the most beautifully written letter of reference ever (if my wedding vows turn out to be half as poetic, I’ll be a very happy bride). And last, but not least, I got the nicest farewell I’ve even been given. The general manager came to shake my hand and told me I had done a good job. And I was sent off with my three favourite things in life: a bunch of flowers, some delicious chocolate and lots of music. It was like Christmas. Actually, it was better than Christmas. It was the way Christmas should be. So, this last day alone was more than enough to make the whole experience worthwhile and to convince me that it is a good idea to try things you never thought you would do.
