So this post comes a bit later than I had originally planned, but if you have been wondering why I’ve been a bit quiet/ you follow me on instagram and wondered why I’m posting so many pictures of London…
…I’m interning at gp studio in London!
Yes, I have made the jump and said yes to a placement in London. After my ‘creative crisis’, I picked myself up and went to 2 interviews in London, one of which I was offered a month as an intern. Coming from a small town in The Fens, moving to London is a scary but exciting thought. For months I have wondered how I could get to London – how can I get an internship, find somewhere to stay and afford to live? Thankfully I have some very amazing friends who are letting me stay with them (thanks Ben, Keri and Nadia) and a great mentor in Jo, a fellow Lincoln graduate and Senior Designer at gp studio.
The daily commute has been eventful. It’s as crazy as I had expected; pushy and grumpy Londoners on a mission to get to work and no one is going to get in their way! I’ve been on the tube many times, but nothing is quite like the pre-9am panic. I’ve squeezed into spaces that I didn’t know existed and I’ve seen a tramp sneak a dog in a bag onto a bus and crack open a can of special brew at 8am. Oh and the tube strikes haven’t really helped either but it has given me the opportunity to explore different routes and places that I wouldn’t have before.
Tomorrow is the end of my first week and I feel like I’ve learnt so much already!
Its been scary but exciting. I didn’t really know what to expect but have been trying my best, although I do feel a bit useless at times. I know they say that the real learning begins when you leave University but I don’t think I quite understood how true it would be until now! Jo and Chris (the graphics team – there is an interiors team too) have been understanding, but I feel like I should know more/ be able to do more.
Does University really prepare you for industry? I sure don’t feel like it at the moment, although I know it’s early days and I’m still getting used to the way things work! I hope they don’t think I’m totally useless and hopefully I’ll get the opportunity to impress them within the next 3 weeks. I think it doesn’t help that the clients are so amazing – just check out the projects on their website. It’s exciting for me to see how work is developed with the brands but it’s also a lot of pressure on producing amazingly executed work. I know that everyone has to start from the bottom and I’m not expected to know everything but obviously I want to do well!
Despite my self-doubt, I’m having a good experience so far. Everyone has been really lovely and welcoming even though I’ve admittedly been quite quiet whilst settling in – I know that everyone is super busy so I don’t want to pester them with silly questions. On my first day we had a meeting with breakfast included – Helouise and Mel kindly made crepes for everyone. There is a great mix of people with accents from Ireland, Scotland, France, New Zealand, America, Japan and Holland filling the studio (those are the ones I have guessed so far). And the studio building is amazing:
So, like the Jim Carrey film, my advice is be a YES (wo)man – just say yes. I was scared to accept an internship in London and I wasn’t really sure how I was going to make it work at first, I just knew I would make it work! Determination. There’s no point in me sitting at home and dismissing a great opportunity because it isn’t straight forward – you have to go out there and make it happen. Just do it. Say yes to opportunities – who knows where they will lead you?
I’m saying YES to being a sponge for the next 3 weeks and soaking up all of the experience that I can π What are you going to say YES to?
Sound’s exciting. Good luck in your internship.
What am I going to say yes to? Well this chocolate dessert is looking like the most promising candidate at the moment, but I don’t think that was the kind of thing you were meaning. I haven’t got anything inspiring to offer, other than keeping an eye out for the next thing that makes me a little bit scared and then doing it anyway.
All the best Tasha.
Agree! London is a big, scary but exciting place! Good luck!
Fantastic!
ahh so happy for you!!! this is such lovely news to read, hopefully you’ll settle in!!! I’m in london in the next couple of weeks on a trip for a few days! its such a wonderfl place, i love it!!!
π
Congrats, Natasha, that sounds like a great opportunity and experience! Say hi to the big city for me, I haven’t been there since 2008. π