My Summer Internship with Emma Corbus
There was something really reassuring about walking out of my first job post-grad with an overwhelming sense of gratitude and excitement — a feeling of wow, I’ve found what I love. I am so incredibly grateful for this experience with Stoltz, for all I have learned, and for all the ways I have grown this summer. It made the 4:30 pm commute from Boise to Nampa worth it every time.
When I graduated this past May, I was doing everything I could to get a graphic design job. I remember saying, I’m so ready! I want to work and use the skills I’ve been learning. I’m so grateful for this internship as my first step because, in reality, there is so much you can only learn by being in an agency doing the real thing. And there are so many things I’ve learned that have made me feel even more ready than I thought I would be three months ago. And I’ve narrowed them down into three of the most rewarding experiences from my internship.
Stoltz 101s
I started with 1-on-1s — part of Stoltz’s onboarding processes that let me meet everyone in the office in a 30-minute meeting, dedicated to learning about one another and getting to know the people I’d be working with. I immediately felt like I was a part of the team.
From there, nearly every week I got to sit down with a different member of the team for an hour to deep-dive into what they do and all their position entails. I got a full rundown of film production from Keegan (and later got to be a production assistant on an actual video shoot… check out some BTS!), a full strategy breakdown from Molly with real assets to refer back to, and a detailed look at web design and the nitty-gritty of Figma from Clara — to name a few.
This experience wasn’t specifically about making me better at my own work. (It actually made me want to keep learning about all of the other work I was learning about!) But it made me a better teammate! I was able to become more familiar with agency life and more aware of all the work being done around me— and in turn, a better designer.
Meetings That Were Way Over My Head
I sat in on plenty of meetings where I really had nothing to add. And that doesn’t sound the best, but it taught me more than I expected. The first few weeks, it felt like everything I heard was new — new clients, new acronyms, new tasks. What was especially new was sitting in on a strategy or positioning meeting, or a client kickoff.
I got to observe and listen to all the work happening long before I would even see a brief as a designer. And it was so fun. I loved seeing all the different work Stoltz was doing, which helped me understand it better. And as I mentioned before, I became a better designer, more in tune to the variety of work Stoltz is doing.
Proofing. Proofing. Proofing.
I’d call myself an organized, detail-oriented person, and I’m very open to how valuable critique is in the design process. I learned just how valuable proofing and double-proofing can really be.
I was reminded to focus on the details, and from my very first project, designing socks for the Spokane International Airport Transload center, I learned to look for things while designing that I would have missed before. It’s such an important step, but one that’s easy to overlook when I’m designing on my own. I appreciated how much Stoltz prioritizes the proofing process, and I was thankful to have extra eyes and feedback on my work. It also allowed me to look at work others were doing, training my own eye to catch the finest details and offer feedback in return.
And, of Course, the People
It has been the most rewarding experience to be part of this team and to work with the coolest people who genuinely know what they’re doing. Getting to learn from Kirstin, the Workamajig pro; from Kellie and Mitch, who have an eye for design like no one I’ve ever met; and a shoutout to Griffen and Lexy, who are kickball pros. I can’t name them all, but I know it’s a pretty awesome team over here and I am honored to have been a part of it.
The readiness I felt when I graduated was real, but looking back, I’m realizing how much I know now that I didn’t know then. Because I’ve learned so much by actually living in the agency life and working with new people and processes. And I also know, more than ever, that whatever comes next will be another opportunity to learn, grow, and experience the big creative world…(Spoiler alert, I’m sticking around Stoltz a little longer 🙂 !!!! ) and what it feels like to be “ready” has changed. Well, I’m still ready (even more now!) But I also know that that doesn’t mean I have to know exactly what I’m doing. I just have to be ready to give it a go. And believe me, I am.
