Carley McMains

Responsibilities

During my internship with Midwest One, I have been responsible for contacting other organizations to sponsor our brand and events. I assist and order promotional items for events and golf course outings. I assist with many events including the Art's Fest, Filmscene, July 4th Festival, and our own Rock the Chalk event. I have served as the volunteer coordinator for many of our sponsored events and Rock the Chalk. I also assist with many administrative tasks that involve sponsorships, donations, and community involvement.

Accomplishments

My greatest accomplishment throughout my time with Midwest One is being able to help with the biggest event of the year which is Rock the Chalk. I was assigned the task of welcoming the artists and coordinating volunteers for the event. I also helped with the order of promotional items for the event as well as helped book our entertainment. I also went to businesses on the street where our event will take place and spoke with them about different ways we can help them get more business the weekend of our event.

Learning experience

I learned how to be more confident within a professional setting I also learned how to communicate effectively on both email and phone as I would use this every day. I learned it is important to respect everyone in your office building no matter who they are or what they do. The last lesson I learned that was important to me, is to not be afraid to speak up and ask questions. It does not matter if you think they are mindless, they may help you down the road or in a certain situation.

What advice would you give?

My advice for any future student is to learn to grow outside of your own comfort zone. Try something new and go for it. If you would have told me my senior year of high school I would have been interning at a bank in Iowa City, I probably would have thought you were crazy! Since I decided to apply for this internship that was out of my comfort zone and not what I thought my future career would be at all, I learned that I actually love working within a big business and have an interest in working for a big city. Every mistake is just another lesson learned so go for it!