personal

September 7, 2014

A warm welcome into the InternQueen family: reflections on an exciting first week of interning

Last week was great for two main reasons. Labor Day weekend provided me with an ample amount of time to get myself organized, accomplish some homework and relax.

On a more exciting note, I started interning with InternQueen on Tuesday!

I was eager to join the InternQueen team even before I started working last week, but my three days of interning solidified that I’m going to attain important career wisdom while growing as a young professional during my IQ journey. I’ve already learned a lot during my first week and there’s so much more to learn. I’m definitely excited.

The IQ team includes CEO/founder Lauren Berger (the Intern Queen herself); Digital Marketing Manager Lindsey Day and Campus Programs Manager Shayna Dunitz; former interns and now junior executives Savira and Michelle; and my fellow fall 2014 interns Brooke and Kelly. Of course there are campus ambassadors and others who are part of the entire IQ team, but these ladies are the main women I am privileged to work closely with.

These ladies are inspiring professionals who are passionate about what they do. All of them were very helpful when it came to making sure my fellow interns and I knew how to executive our jobs. I definitely felt welcome into the close-knit IQ family.

This week was a bit overwhelming – not in a bad way, of course – because as I briefly mentioned in a previous blog post, my work as an IQ intern entails tasks and responsibilities that are different from the bulk of my professional career thus far, which has been centered on journalism and working for news publications.

However, as someone who is also studying public relations, communications and marketing, those differences are great and well-desired. I have a few experiences in these fields and I’m ready to build up on them.

What a thrill it is to be a part of the IQ family! I’m excited to continue learning from and alongside them as the semester continues to unfold.

Check out this mug I purchased over the weekend! The crown (in my favorite color) obviously represents InternQueen and I am excited to use it during my workdays this week.

My InternQueen mug!

August 26, 2014

Unbelievable sights, indescribable feeling: hello junior year

Soaring, tumbling, freewheeling through an endless diamond sky.

Did I just use this beloved Aladdin tune to begin my first day of junior year post? You bet I did.

As mentioned in my previous post, my ‘whole new world’ began at 5:45 a.m. yesterday.

I had set alarms at 6:15, 6:30, and 6:45 in the morning because I was afraid of being later for my 8 a.m. class, especially after three months of a summer sleeping schedule and two years of starting school at 9:30. Surprisingly, I woke up to silence – not a roaring alarm. I hoped that it was around 6:15, but I knew it was too good to be true. My room was still too dark; there was no way it was passed 6 yet. Sure enough, I checked my phone to confirm what I had already known.

I’m not complaining because I would have rather woken up earlier than later (punctuality is so important and being late stresses me out). So thank you body clock for knowing it was my first day of junior year.

After staring at my ceiling for a good 5-10 minutes, I decided to go into the kitchen and make a cup of coffee, knowing that a long day was ahead of me. As I sipped on my beloved blue mug from Target, I checked my e-mail and came across exciting news: I was officially offered a fall 2014 internship at InternQueen.com! (Read all about my new internship here.)

Suddenly, being awake so early with the knowledge that I wouldn’t be done with class until 6:45 p.m. wasn’t so bad anymore. I quickly texted a few friends who I had talked to about my application and interviewing process, shared the exciting news with my roommates, and sent a text to my parents – who are the best, by the way. Having parents who support your dreams and believe in you? That is precious and I never take it for granted.

My roommate, Charlene, and I left home at 7:15 to avoid parking trouble and head to school for our 8 a.m. classes — not without taking a solo first day of school picture. Here’s my first one in years!

Ready to take on junior year at 7:15 a.m.

I’m not going to discuss each class individually yet because I’m still in the process of seeing what my official schedule for this school year will be, but they were all pretty neat and I just know that I am going to learn a lot. During my college career thus far, I’ve been pretty blessed in terms of having good teachers. Based on yesterday, I’m confident the streak will continue.

I know balancing all my classes, my InternQueen.com internship, the Daily 49er, PCN Board, and other activities will be a challenge. Despite that, I believe I have the potential to thrive during this semester and come out of it as an even more focused and knowledgeable person.

Yesterday marked the beginning of my junior year and the start of my last two years of undergrad. Isn’t that crazy?

Here’s to making the most of the whole new world that awaits me.

August 26, 2014

InternQueen.com, here I come!

Yesterday marked the beginning of my junior year, but it wasn’t a typical first day of school.

I started my day (at 5:45 a.m., but more on that later) by learning I was officially offered a fall 2014 intern position at InternQueen.com! After three interviews throughout the month of August, the last of which was with the Intern Queen herself, I am extremely excited and grateful to be offered what I know will be a valuable learning experience.

It has been almost two years since I first came across InternQueen.com, which occurred while I was browsing the Internet for cover letter and resume advice. That’s an interesting coincidence because I was seeking this information for my first USA Today Collegiate Correspondent Program application.

Over the course of my first two years of undergrad, I have read numerous blog posts and articles on InternQueen.com — all of which are insightful life tips. I’ve always been pretty hardworking and ambitious – at the very least, I try and give my best – and since I started college I’ve been dedicated to doing what I can to move along the path of achieving my dreams. I still remember walking into the Daily 49er newsroom after my first college class ever and asking how I could get involved with the student newspaper.

It took a semester or two to adjust to being out of high school and to fully realize that I am in charge of the rest of my life from now on, a fact that’s both frightening and exhilarating, though mostly the latter. Sophomore year is when I absorbed a career-driven mentality. I started looking at my classes as career workshops because that’s what they essentially are, especially in my fields, where almost everything we do – articles, interviews, podcasts, videos, blogs, public relations campaigns, marketing plans, press releases, etc. – in class is hands on practice.

I have become familiar with the USA Today College and InternQueen.com, attended campus job fairs to simply converse with job recruiters, connected with some professors, and read any relevant publications I came across. I’ve also read internship descriptions and postings so I can possess a better understanding on what opportunities are out there and what skills recruiters are looking for in their interns.

Long story short, I like to think I’m committed to equipping myself with the knowledge and guidance I need to achieve my goals in life.

In light of this, I’m excited to learn new lessons by interning for InternQueen.com! While the internship involves an array of different skills, most of my tasks will be related to public relations, marketing, and communications. This is very exciting because most of my work so far has been focused on news writing and online media. It’s time for a new adventure.

I’m very eager to begin training for this Internship this week and to officially start working as an InternQueen.com intern next week!

Thank you again, Lauren Berger and InternQueen staff for presenting me with this opportunity.

August 15, 2014

Three months of premier journalism: my time as a USA Today College summer correspondent

August 15 marks the official end of my time as a USA Today College summer correspondent. Here are my (many) thoughts.

Fall down four times, get up five: how I got into the program

Flashback to a little more than a year and a half ago, when I was in the middle of my first semester of college: My good friend Gagan had linked me to the USA Today College correspondent program application because she had learned about it at school and thought of me.

The USA Today CCP is a three-month virtual program where correspondents research, pitch and write weekly stories while constantly communicating with the USA Today College team and editors.

Being the ambitious student and big dreamer I am (or at least try to be), I went for it. For the first time in my life, I wrote a cover letter – which took me a day to get perfect – and spent hours working on a resume. I sent three of my favorite articles from my beloved Crown & Shield days, grateful for two years of high school newspaper experience.

I made it passed the application process’ first round and was honestly overjoyed because 1) this is a program affiliated with one of the leading national publications and 2) at the time, I was just a freshman with little professional experience still in the middle of Journalism 110.

I didn’t make it into the third round, and looking back now, I know I wasn’t ready at the time. I’m not going to say it didn’t disappoint me, because it definitely did launch me into a period of self-doubt. Maybe I’m not meant to be a journalist after all, I thought. But it wasn’t enough to stop me applying four more times after that. Yes, four.

Spring 2014 was an incredibly busy semester because of the classes I took, my unprecedented involvement with the Daily 49er, and my participation in PAC, my school’s Pilipino American Coalition. Although free time became very limited and at times I felt I was stretching myself thin, I dedicated myself to these endeavors because they were all important to me.

Somehow, in the middle of producing articles, videos, and podcasts for three journalism electives and completing assignments for two other classes, working in the newsroom, and having four to five hour rigorous dance practices after class for PAC in preparation for PCN (Pilipino Cultural Night), I made time to apply for the summer term of the USATCCP. I didn’t let myself get too excited when I made it passed the first round again, but I was overcome with happiness and pride when I found out I made it into the final round.

The third round – a phone interview with the USA Today College editorial board – took place at 9:00 a.m. on a Tuesday. I was terrified my responses were inevitably going to be flawed because I had gotten home from dance practice around 2:30 a.m. and I had to work on school assignments until 4:00 a.m. Despite this, I pulled myself together and answered the questions to the best of my ability, although I wasn’t sure whether I should be confident after the interview was over.

Here comes truth day: how I found out I was a finalist

April 28, the day of summer 2014 correspondent announcements, came both quickly and slowly. I had been checking my email every 20-30 minutes, eager to hear back from the USATC. Soon enough, it became 3:00 p.m. here (and 6:00 p.m. where they’re based) and I became discouraged – I still hadn’t heard back and it was already late in the day. Surely I hadn’t made it.

And then I received an email from Patrick, which said we should have already gotten a response. Puzzled and a bit embarrassed because I thought I probably hadn’t been selected, I sent him an email explaining I wasn’t sure of my correspondent status.

Patrick then forwarded me this:

A life-changing email.

I was working on a story in the newsroom and immediately did a happy dance in my chair. A few tears may have been shed. Go ahead and call me overdramatic, but it was a very emotional moment for me: after years of trying to get into one of the best programs for a field I was increasingly learning about, gaining experience in, and falling in love with, I had finally made it.

After I let myself celebrate by myself for a few minutes, I finished my story and left the newsroom, excited to call my parents, who were just as happy, if not more joyful, as me. I texted my closest friends who had known how far I made it into the process this time — I am so grateful for their genuine love and support.

I then headed to dance practice, where I miraculously didn’t feel any physical tiredness or muscle soreness for the first time.

It was one of the best days.

Walking the walk: how the program went for me

The last three months have been challenging in the best ways and I am so appreciative of this learning opportunity the USA Today College editorial board has provided me with.

My experiences with the Daily 49er definitely laid a great foundation for me to be successful into this program. Going from a contributing writer to staff writer to assistant editor last semester and specifically serving as the Daily 49er’s ASI (student government) beat reporter taught me a lot about writing, editing, interviewing, researching, networking, attending meetings, etc. constantly and by deadline.

Although there are many similar lessons I learned from writing for both publications, there were clear differences in style, audience, and topic range, which I tried my best to quickly adapt to.

I still vividly remember how disappointed in myself I was when my first story went unpublished, although McKenna, my incredible editor, said it wasn’t uncommon for that to happen to first stories. It had holes despite my constant reporting and the hard work I put into writing and editing it. Self-doubt clouded my mind again. Great Justine, I mocked myself. You managed to get into the program and you can’t even publish your first story.

But I continued to push and published my first story a week later.

Reading my stories among the countless other great articles on the USA Today College is surreal, especially since it has been a dream for almost two years. It’s also incredibly humbling to see people reading and sharing my articles, whether it’s on Facebook or Twitter.

Over the course of the last twelve weeks, I have networked with many hardworking media professionals and student journalists who share my passion; have interviewed university officials, project starters, researchers, leaders of organizations and agencies, professors, and countless students from all over the country, who deserve to have a place to share their voices.

I have received individualized feedback from USA Today editors and have witnessed improvement in my reporting and writing. I have become increasingly better at phone interviews. I am also better at maintaining a professional tone when sending emails and communicating via social media, especially with my editors, since I don’t physically see them.

Additionally, I’ve truly learned the definitions of time management and dedication. While it’s nice to not have to relocate and work from home, it takes commitment to set your own hours aside and to make your desk at home your ‘office.’ I think anyone can sit in a work office for a set number of hours and perform assigned tasks when a boss is nearby, but it takes a different kind of self-discipline to truly be in charge of your time and to get your work completed by all your deadlines.

It wasn’t always easy and there were a few times I waited too long to send an email or to make a phone call, but I’ve definitely learned a thing or two about efficient and professional communication.

Learning by doing is a big part of being a journalism student and I’m so appreciative of all I’ve learned with the USA Today College.

Moving forward: where will I go from here?

Although my time as a summer correspondent is over today, I plan on continuing to contribute to this great platform. In fact, I am currently in the process of interviewing several people for an interesting story I aim to have published by the end of this month. It doesn’t stop here – it doesn’t ever stop – and I will gladly contribute to the USATC for as long as I can.

I will take everything I’ve learned when I come back to the Daily 49er this school year and in all future endeavors, whether it’s another writing opportunity or simply a virtual internship for another field.

Thank you USA Today College Correspondent Program for all the important lessons – both in writing and in life – that you’ve taught me and for most importantly the true significance of believing in myself and what I do.

I’d also like to express my gratitude to all my family, friends, and colleagues who have been incredibly supportive as well – your genuine faith in me means a lot.

To read all my USA Today College stories, check out my author list here.

August 12, 2014

Tune out to tune in: reflections on my family’s annual camping trip

In 1999, my dad suggested an event that would remain an important family tradition more than a decade later: camping.

Since then, my entire family – my mom’s side, some of my dad’s side, cousins of my cousins, our family friends – has gone camping for at least three days every summer. We skipped 2008 and 2013 for monetary and reservation issues, but have gone on 13 trips thus far. It’s something my cousins and I yearned for every single year when we were growing up, yet the excitement that comes with it still hasn’t gone away. Even though I’m 20 now.

Pinoy Campers (yes, the adults gave us that name many years ago) 2014 in this year’s color: red!

I came back from my annual family camping trip – five days and four nights this year – on Sunday afternoon, a few shades darker with the skin on my face peeling off because of the sun. No complaints though.

As per usual, this trip consisted of nothing but family bonding (telling stories, fighting over the technicalities of Scattegories rules, playing Guesstures, etc.), driving and riding jet-skis while occasionally falling into the water, swimming in the lake (which was 33% lower than usual because of the California drought, something that really saddened me – I will go into detail in a later post), making s’mores, roasting hot dogs and sausages, and being surrounded by nature.

However, this particular trip stood out to me for several reasons.

First of all, it was noticeably warmer than usual. I wore a jacket only once during the five-day stay, which has never happened because it always gets extremely cold at night and during the morning. This was partly due to the water level dropping about 30 feet. The effects of the drought were clear throughout the campgrounds — heck, one smaller lake was completely dry. Later on I’ll post current pictures alongside some pictures from the past for comparison. It was quite saddening.

As I previously mentioned, we did not go camping in 2013, so this year’s trip was my first one since starting college. I don’t mean to be overdramatic, but so much in my life has changed in the last two years of my life; my first two years of undergrad. It’s the truth. Camping gives me some time to just think about life and discuss it with my cousins who are the same age (I was blessed with a handful) and I couldn’t help but think about how much we’ve all grown since 2012.

But forget the changes that have occurred to me, I was partly fixated on how much my little brother and ‘baby’ cousins have grown since our last trip. Two summers ago, they were all pre-pubescent middle school students with higher-pitched voices, standing below my shoulders. Now they look down at me, or if I’m lucky, at the same level as me. The speak with deep voices about their school drama and various relationships. Where has the time gone? Who’s to know what will be different after my brother finishes his freshman year? Or after I finish my third year of college?

Lots of thoughts and observations taking place in my mind, especially since this was essentially my last big event of the summer. Can’t imagine spending the last few days before school starts again in a better way.

My phone was dead for most of our stay at the lake and I barely charged it by choice. It’s always nice to tune out of everything else  -including social media and all technological platforms – for a few days every year so I can tune into what matters most to me: my family. Constantly being with each other is never really a problem or annoyance.

I’m grateful my parents and my aunties and uncles raised my cousins and me to be appreciative of nature and to always remember we are grounded in our family. I will always look forward to this trip and I hope it continues for decades to come.

I love my parents and my brother very much.

My cousins and I with our nephew, Nathan. It was his first time camping with us and he loved it!

A beautiful sunset by the lake. You can see our family’s four jet-skis at the shore. It was another great year.

 

August 12, 2014

O captain, my captain,

may your soul rest in peace. I hope you’re continuing to make other souls laugh wherever you are.

–

I am deeply saddened by Robin Williams’ passing because I grew up watching, loving, and learning from his films. From Aladdin to Mrs. Doubtfire to Flubber to Good Will Hunting to Dead Poets Society, one of my favorite films of all time.

Dead Poets Society is so dear to me and I remember crying and falling in love with it the first time I watched it. How can you not? It’s an excellent coming-of-age movie with dialogue that is sure to cut through your soul and really make you think. It gets to me because it gets me. Moves me. Inspires me. Challenges me.

We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for.

All my life, words have given me a feeling of fulfillment – regardless of whether I’m reading them or writing them. Language. Communication. Discovering new ideas, people, places, and things. These are the things I’ve always loved and hope to center my career around. I strive to be enthusiastic about everything life has to offer. I don’t know where I’d be without my passion, without my dreams, without my intense desire to do everything I can in life to fulfill these dreams.

But that wasn’t always the case.

I was in deep love with writing by the time I watched this film but at the time I believed that this silly hobby would not provide me with a successful life. I wanted to be respected, which translated into eventually becoming a doctor or scientist, a businessman, an engineer, or a tech person – at least in my young adolescent mind. Even a few years after I saw Dead Poets Society, I still thought I would go on a more conventional route. The devil on my shoulder was my own Mr. Kerry, telling Neil on my right shoulder to quit acting (writing, in my case.)

I’m not going to say that this movie was the sole reason I decided to pursue my passions and travel the road “less traveled by,” as Professor Keating would say. But it was one of the first resources that caused me to really think about what I wanted out of life. The Huffington Post published a great article on how Dead Poets Society has affected and inspired a generation – my generation. I agree wholeheartedly.

Dead Poets Society helps me remember that while I fully respect all other occupations and career destinations, my own path is truly the one for me. It’ll have some bumps and change every now and then, but it’s mine.

No matter what anybody tells you, words and ideas can change the world.

Several years ago, I wrote down a bunch of quotes from Dead Poets Society onto my various notebooks and scraps of paper, as well as transferring quotations onto pastel colored paper to post onto my bedroom walls. I surrounded these handmade posters with some work I was proud of – some poems I wrote as a child, fictional stories, and articles from the high school paper.

Seeing these words on my wall never failed to make me smile or feel inspired.

One of my Dead Poets Society quotation posters became the center of my “journalism wall.”

Some of the other quotation posters I made — another Dead Poets Society one can be found at the bottom right.

I’m reminded to never forget the importance and beauty of words; to never forget how powerful they are when chosen wisely. One of my biggest desires coming into the world of journalism and mass communications is to affect people with my words in whatever way, shape, or form. Williams reminds me in this film that I have the power to do just that.

Carpe, carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary.

Let’s be honest, how many times have you seen someone from my generation quoting carpe diem? More times than I can count – and if I could count, more than I can remember. If that doesn’t testify how moving this film is to thousands, if not millions, of people, I don’t know what will.

It saddens me to know that someone who devoted his time and energy to providing others joy and happiness could not do so enough for himself. Please respectfully remember that depression is real mental illness and can affect single person. Reach out to each other, truly hear each other out, seek to understand. Many of Williams’ roles were mentors, listeners, and advisors — let us aspire to be that for each other every single day. And above all, love.

Thank you Robin Williams for the endless laughter, important lessons, and deep thoughts inspired by you.

July 29, 2014

Let the PCN Board adventures (and work) begin

My day started at 6:15 a.m. – I woke up early to take my Lola to mass for her birthday, as she requested. After being awake for six hours, I fell asleep around 12:45 p.m., right when PCN Board announcements were made.

I woke up two hours later (oops) to five unread text messages and a handful of Facebook notifications and thought, “Okay, let’s hope all these notifications mean good news!” And sure enough, they did.

Eager to know if I had earned my first choice position, I scanned the hilarious PCN Board announcement poster (which is a true winner, in my opinion) for a silly picture of myself. Once I found my face (with a picture that my dear friend Jonas took – why am I not surprised?) and saw “Marketing” written under it, I screamed.

Marketing and public relations are two areas I study in school and have much experience in. I love doing tasks relevant to these areas as well as communications/journalism/social media, especially in regards to organizations or projects that are important to me.

I’ve always been proud to be a Filipino-American; to know my language, my traditions, my roots. I’ve never been ashamed of my ethnicity. But I don’t think I fully realized how important it is to share my culture with the world around me, especially since I am part of the first generation of Americans in my family. Wow. I never realized how big a deal that actually is until I wrote it out.

Joining and participating in my school’s Filipino organization, CSULB’s Pilipino American Coalition, has truly made me realize the importance of celebrating and sharing one’s culture, especially in my amazing experience of this past year’s PCN. And for that, I am grateful.

I’m excited to use my networking and communication knowledge, as well as other marketing and public relations skills, to serve PAC and to make PCN 2015 incredible. Although we never met this last year (it’s almost impossible to know everyone in PAC when there are hundreds of members and more than 200 participants in PCN), I am beyond excited to work with my co-marketing chair, Victoria! We already contacted each other and we’re ready to make a great team.

I am so thrilled to use my talents for something that is so important to me and I am ready to learn and grow even more with this opportunity. PCN Board 2014-15 is full of passionate people and I cannot wait for the year to unfold, PAC and PCN-wise!

 

July 23, 2014

A further explanation

Expanding on the disclaimer I included in my previous post about my visit to Pearl Harbor:

In all past, present, and future blog entries that are relevant to World War II, I am in no way whatsoever romanticizing or idealizing the actual warfare or the climate of the WWII Era. I am well-aware that WWII was ugly and brutal and cost millions of lives in the worst ways while affecting millions of other people.

What I mean to say – and sometimes forget because I just get so excited – is that I am obsessed with learning and reading about WWII, not WWII itself.

And that includes everything: visiting museums and memorials (how bad do you think I feel when I say the Holocaust Museum was the most captivating and memorable part of my 8th grade Washington DC trip?), reading memoirs and accounts by survivors, reading historical fiction set in the WWII Era (from the perspectives of the Jewish people in the concentration camps, from the perspectives of the Japanese affected by the American concentration camps, from the Filipinos affected by the bloody Bataan Death March – which I saw for myself in the Philippines back in 2007), reading WWII nonfiction, watching documentaries and movies, etc etc etc.

I think what makes me so fascinated by it – and gosh, I get so self-conscious saying that sometimes – is the fact that I am just trying to learn and understand how humanity could reach this point for the second time, only on a much grander and deadly scale. And more than that, millions of people died and millions more were affected in some way – don’t their stories deserve to be heard? Aren’t their stories worthy of time?

Maybe I’m weird, but by listening to and reading all these stories I feel as if I’m honoring them somehow; paying tribute in a small way.

Regardless of what it is, I greatly enjoy learning about World War II.

And again, I mean all this with the utmost respect to everyone who was affected by WWII.

June 30, 2014

This could be the start of something new.

No, I promise I won’t start belting out the tune of a cheesy Disney Channel movie. (Although I will admit I am a huge fan of High School Musical and both of its sequels. I still know all the lyrics to perhaps 90% of their songs.)

What I am referring to, dear readers of the Internet, is blogging.

You see, I’ve been an active blogger for almost half of my life. It all started with a Xanga account created in 2006. Since then, I’ve had various blogs on Xanga, Tumblr, Blogspot, and WordPress, but unfortunately, I haven’t been blogging as often in recent years. And I miss it so – my daily and personal recollections of life. (Which I’ve been doing since I was 7, via journaling.)

I’ve been meaning to get back into blogging for the longest time, but I kept telling myself that I’m not ready to go back, whatever the heck that means. Perhaps it’s because I have always made it a goal to blog at least once per day and I know now, after a few failed attempts, that this is not exactly practical. I don’t want to go back and miss a day or two, or three, and then completely stop. I’m so tired of doing that.

But why should I let that stop myself from writing on a public blog again? Am I really so dramatic that I’ve given up public blogging cold turkey?

Maybe. But hey, I’m 20 now, so maybe I’m a little more mature and ready to return. So this first post on my WordPress (how exciting!) is to let the world know that I, Justine, am going to get back into blogging again. I’ll also resume blogging on my Blogspot.

My next post will come after I return from vacation next week!