Adios, Lasell!

There have been a lot of last-timers at Lasell for me this week: My last class, last time modeling in the student fashion show, last homework assignment, and now today is my last day of my internship. I remember when I started, wondering how on earth I was going to juggle it all-but it seems as if time figured everything out for me. Deadlines came and went, I presented material or I goofed something up, or I missed a day here and there to do something for myself.

I've had many great experiences here-helping to set up for a dedication, writing an article about it, attending a fashion show to write about, but even the day-to-day was fun. While it seems so long ago I was interviewing on-campus faculty and staff for different assignments, or chasing someone down for Michelle, nothing prepared me for coming in this morning to find a cute little bag with a sweet card, GORGEOUS scarf (which I put on right away) and a mug which felt was SO me: "She packed up her potential and all she had learned, grabbed a cute pair of shoes and headed out to change a few things." Few quotes fit me better than this!

Overall it's been a FANTASTIC semester here, and I couldn't be more ready to take everything I've learned and hit the real world ground running, ready to give my all! Michelle & Diane, thank you all for everything you've taught me. Thank you for every opportunity, every piece of advice, and every ounce of support you've given me throughout this short semester.

Adios, Lasell!

-Emmalyn

Red Carpet Treatment-Literally

Tonight, I'm fortunate enough to be invited to NewTV's Red Carpet Gala 20th Anniversary Event (say that five times fast), thanks to an invite from a professor of mine and Michelle. My first thought was how excited I was to go to a red carpet event for television, since my recent decision to pursue a career in it 125%. My second thought was what to wear! Given, that's probably every woman's thought attending the Gala this evening (and maybe half the men's), but I had a different angle to consider: dressing in a way that was sophisticated, conservative, yet would make me stand out in a crowd to anyone looking for someone to join their station.

Hmm..well, at the last red carpet event I went to I wore a leopard-skin dress, shiny gold heels and long earrings. That surely isn't conservative. Then I thought of a classy little black dress I had sitting in the closet-but what part of that piece stands out? I like to wear something that can be a conversation-starter, and that surely was far too plain. Finally, I've settled myself on an appropriately length-ed navy blue halter dress. Satisfied.

Wait..the shoes? It's important to wear heels, but in representing my internship, they have to also be an appropriate height and color. Hmm..black and blue are generally a no-no. White? Tan? Green for spring? No, the green are too strappy. Crap. And what about a jacket? It's warm out, but it may rain.

For these situations, I believe in plain shoes, and a light blazer or shawl. Just because the title says "red carpet" doesn't mean one has to boast an Oscar de Larenta ball gown, and it's definitely not appropriate to skimp-it-out on this one, especially if you're looking to evolve from college life.

Last but not least is hair and make-up. It's important to present yourself, in addition to your communication skills, well. There's much to be said for overdoing it, or under-doing it for that matter. Here's a list of steps I take when applying make-up for an event out:

1) Boscia Vitamin C treatment- This serves as a base for my super-dry skin, yet also gives it a healthier base than even moisturizer can provide. It moisturizes, yet uses parsley and other repair-focused ingredients to help heal any mishaps on my face while I cake it with makeup.

2) Boscia Tinted moisturizer-OPTIONAL-you've already moisturized, but this is always a cheaper alternative to a base and should be used on a daily basis to keep your skin hydrated. As you can see, I' m a huge Boscia fan.

3) Korres Face Primer-OPTION 2- If you do not feel you need any more moisturizing, even out your palette with Korres Face Primer. A little bit goes a long way, and this is vital for making sure your skin tone is evenly prepared for the biggest step: Foundation.

4) MAKEUP FOREVER Liquid Foundation-MAKEUP FOREVER is popular among makeup artist professionals, and is perhaps the most crucial step to keeping your face fresh for the entire evening. In the summer and spring months powder can come off easy, so I enjoy liquid-yet pay attention to your neck here, so that you don't wind up with an unblended face.

5) NARS Bronzer-NARS is the leading brand of bronzer, which stole the stage once Cargo was set to be sold to CVS and was considered less effective. I suggest an appropriate dusting of bronzer.

6) NARS Blush-NARS makes a great blush, too. Controversial as the name is, the "Orgasm" blush by NARS is a favorite shade.

7) Sephora Eyeliner-There's no need to spend big bucks on eyeliner, honest. Apply as you see fit.

8) Maybelline Mascara-Always voted #1. Don't go overboard on this.

9) Sephora-colored shadows- I love Sephora brand color palettes.

10) TARTE lip gloss-Or your fave.

11) Michael Michael KORS leg bronzer- If you're not wearing tights, this can give you a nice glow.

There you have it, an intern's secret to dressing like a professional in a student's stilettos!

Coffee-less Intern

Today seemed to be one of those days all of us interns have every once and again-slow, sleepy start in the morning where your first reaction is a cup of coffee to jump-start the day. Unfortunately for me, I may as well have given coffee up for Lent. I'm on strike from it.

Every day, I'd usually grab a cup all last semester. Until I realized the awful crash I get at about 3 pm, the cup I get to recoup gives me a headache, and by 9pm I can hardly to my homework. I'm really productive the rest of the day, though!

I spoke to a woman last night at work about the severity of caffeine addiction. I had never realized how many college students have this addiction, but it's true. Think about it: if an alcoholic says they're going "for a drink", we would question it. If someone addicted to pain killers is "going to the doctor's", we'd think about it. But if a student says they're going for coffee, who cares? They have to stay up late and study. But from my personal experience, it's nothing for your average student to have coffee morning, afternoon, and night. I personally know people who will drink 5 cups a day, and their day can't start unless it's Dunkin' in their cup.

Me? I'm a morning and afternoon crash-recoup coffee girl, and I've been this way for all three years I've been at Lasell. That afternoon crash honestly made one afternoon a week slightly miserable for me, and based on that experience, I've quit coffee unless necessary (my terms of necessary: trying to stay awake for a specific purpose). Cavemen didn't need coffee to make it through the day. Given, cavemen didn't have this much homework, but truth is, we don't need caffeine to do it all-just proper planning and a healthy lifestyle. Peace out, coffee-I'll take this slow-morning start and a glass of water any day.

Crisis Communication

Today, I got to learn a little something about crisis communication firsthand- coming in to learn that three major local papers wrote online stories about a supposed incident at Lasell on Marathon Monday.

The truth is, a police report was written that made assumptions stating a Lasell student did something that was highly disrespectful to a National Gaurd member during the marathon. Once local newspapers got their hands on it, it was a frenzy. Truth is: not even police have identified who was actually responsible for this disrespectful act, as there was a massive crowd packed with Lasell students, yes-but also locals and out of town visitors.

This morning, it's been up to Michelle to get her hands on the police report itself, see how reporters could have gained that conclusion, get permission to contact the local news sources to get them to fix their stories, and attempt to cease the story from spreading-without making a bigger deal of it by responding too intensely the reporter's about the story's existence, or damaging relationships with these reporters we may wish to send positive stories to in the future.

As for me? I've been lucky to be able to be in on everything-googling the story to find out where it's turned up, I got to look at the police report to understand how reporters may have put this story together, and reading every article I can find to see how it's covered-as well as monitoring student responses on Facebook (which are flooding quickly). Important lessons learned today, that's for sure!

Communication: My "Field of Dreams"

As I near the day of graduation from Lasell College, my eyes have opened a little wider and I've started to realize just how lucky I am to know what I want to do. The things I've learned, both at Lasell as a student and an intern, have helped me to know exactly what I want career-wise. For me, it's a passion I wake up every day and strive to reach my goal, at night I fall asleep dreaming of the day my goal is achieved. Sometimes, wanting something so badly can be overwhelming, and I need to remind myself to step back and appreciate the opportunities I've had while continuing to work towards my dream. Yet there are many people worldwide who don't have a clue what they want to do. While working at my part-time waitressing job, I find myself amongst a range of people. A highschool student, a college graduate studying for a medical exam, college grads who don't have a clue what they want, and then there's me: mingling among the masses, smiling at every table as I practice my camera-face, and trying not to drop the burning-hot plates and remember every order as if it were critical information for an article at my internship. We could all be a tv series, if MTV wanted to know what's REALLY in the "Real World". Many people have warned me that sometimes, sticking around in a waitressing job is what happens when after graduation, you lose a set schedule. I lose the cozy little office at my internship, I lose the classy-comfortable dorm room in a victorian house, I lose the loan-covered food everyday I pay for with a swipe, I lose the mandatory assignments which keep me on my toes, I lose the constant surrounding of fellow struggling professionals-in-training, I lose the clubs, I lose the professors who so lovingly grace me with advice. Personally? I'm not worried about what I leave behind here. I leave behind four years of hard work and achievements I'm proud of. I worry, instead, about doing too much. Strange to some, but ever since I found what I want, I refuse to fail and have a tendency to overwork myself. Even on spring and winter break, my ClassE blogs can't stop. Nor can my acting, my modeling, my songwriting-or my part-time job, which will now go full-time. The question more is, how do I take what I've learned at my internship and Lasell and make sure I don't get stuck waitressing? Constant pitching of myself is the answer-or so I'm told. But I've been trained to do that, too, from pitching stories at my internship and via practice in internship seminar. Maybe there are other grads like me-we're not worried about having nothing to do, because we won't. We're not worried about finding "a job" to please our parents, because nothing will do except a job connected to what we want. (Even if it means scrubbing the floors of the place we want to be VP). We're worried about survival of the fittest in a world that won't operate on a loan system, that instead sends you bills for loans. But I've found it's best not to overstress yourself about these things for weeks at a time (as I've been doing), but to enjoy your experience and remember the old italian saying, "que seda seda": Whatever will be, will be. I believe it we work hard as we can, what will be is exactly what we've worked for: the goal career in my field of dreams.

Morals in the Story

Usually, when given an assignment, I ignore every part of me that knows I'm a terrible photographer and go into an event in search of fantastic setups for a shot. I try to keep the camera poised at every possible moment, and hope that one, maybe one, of the 50 or so I take will come out decent enough to land on the web or in the paper. I've been lucky a few times-but for this next event, I'm presented with a challenge: protecting the safety of a speaker at Lasell as I photograph. See, with members of the Secret Service and FBI coming to speak to Lasell students in the criminal justice program this week, it's something that is GREAT to cover from my end. But from theirs, it can be a dangerous risk if someone photographs an agent who may at some point have to go undercover. This leaves me responsible for having to identify who I can and who I can not include in my shots, while also trying to take some that cover the event appropriately. This makes, from my end, a bit of a dilemma: when such esteemed speakers come to Lasell, of course we want to highlight they were there! And who better for a great shot than the entire panel? Now what will I choose as my subject? Yet from a second thought, my morals kick in: No, Emma, this is someone's safety at stake here. And if there's one thing I've learned from my Media Ethics class, it's that being morally and ethically responsible is one of the most respectable things a person can be. In today's society, many reporters are more than willing to do things that can compromise the health, sanity and entire image of an individual just to get a leading story. While temptation is there for any reporter, it's the ones who are the most reputable that in the end will have an enriched career, impressive portfolio and will be granted with trust the more compelling interviews. People want to look good and stay healthy-not too much to ask! Although it's a new challenge, I love being able to be trusted with such responsibility.

The Etiquette of Email

"Emmmaaaa, Can I plz have a quote from u on ur event? thx!! PS- wana get lunch lata? luv uuuuu!" If I ever received this, I'd delete it. If I ever sent something like this, I'd expect it to be deleted. Unfortunately, with the web at our fingertips and T-9 teaching an ever-growing generation how to communicate with others, it's easy to forget how a proper email is fashioned and just how important it is how we address others. The email sample above would never fly in the professional world, and many students aren't properly trained on how to write a formal email. Not being able to do something simple as craft a professional email can seriously damage one's entire career: you represent a company, therefore everything you write is a direct reflection of the company's standards of professionalism. On the contrary, writing a well-versed and flawlessly punctuated email can give your career that extra boost employers these days are searching for. This skill is something that can truly make an intern stand out. Put simply, writing an email is not similar to writing a Facebook wall post. When I'm crafting an email (because there is a proper structure), I always begin with a greeting. "Dear Tim Thomas," for example, if it's someone I don't know very well. If it's someone I do, it is appropriate to open an email with "Hi Tim," or maybe even "Hey Timmy," if it's your best friend. Next comes the body. If I don't know them, asking for a quote would look something like this: "My name is Emmalyn Anderson, representing the Lasell College Department of Communication in Auburndale, MA. I'm just wondering if you may be willing to provide us with a quote for your upcoming event "Working with Children"? If so it would be greatly appreciated." Introduce yourself, and identify where you're from. It's just plain polite, and otherwise, it may look like spam. Next, respectfully ask permission for what you want. Don't assume anyone is entitled to give you anything. If it's a friend, then you may be more relaxed. Something like this would be acceptable: "I'm currently working on a story for Lasell's Comm. Dept. on your "Working with Children" event, and I'm wondering if you'd be okay with providing me with a quote I could use? We'd really love to pump this story up for you!" In this situation, there's no need for introduction, because we're friends. So jump right into what you need, and suck up a little bit: first, I asked his permission for a quote, again. Still not assuming that because we have drinks every Thursday that I'm entitled to a quote from him. Second, I sucked up a bit: mentioning I'd "really love to pump this story up" shows that because you're close friends, it would be like you're doing a favor as well and shows that you care about what has your friends' name on it. You chose them for the quote because you want to give them media exposure. See? It's all in how you phrase it. Finally, it's time to close the email. For someone I don' t know, this is a pretty standard closing: "I look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience. Thank you for your time, Emmalyn" This is putting the ball in their court. You let them know their response is waiting on THEIR convenience, with no rush to them. Then, you thank them for taking time out of their busy day to focus on your specific requests, out of the hundreds you should rightfully assume they get. Lastly, I signed my first name, giving them permission to contact me on a first-name basis in the hopes that he may write back in the same fashion and you can be on a now first-name basis to build a relationship with this person in the future. If it is your friend, you can be far more informal with this, but structure is still imperative. "Please let me know if you'd be interested in helping me out on this one. Hope to hear from you soon!, Emma" Here, you're asking for help so that it doesn't seem too much like he'd owe you anything for doing him the favor of "pumping the story up for you." Next, you write "Hope to hear from you soon!" in an excited manner, because you really like this person, but just because you're friends doesn't mean you expect an immediate response. Again, ball in their court. Then, you can sign off with a shortened name that you would give them permission to address you as. And, send. Simple things such as how you open and close your email are an easy way for higher-ups to recognize just how valuable you are to a company. Writing an email may seem easy-but it's the simple time you take to make sure it's properly formatted that can ultimately help or hurt you. What's in your outbox?