To Get the Internship You Want, Get Started Now
by John T. Carlsen, Psy.D.
Denial is a wonderful thing. It protects us from having
to deal with experiences that are more than we can handle.
As you anticipate applying for internship this fall, you might find yourself in this very situation: You are vaguely aware
that something important and challenging is looming on the horizon. But you have no idea how to approach it.
It seems too big and undefined . . . and entirely overwhelming. So, you might feel tempted to avoid the whole experience,
putting off any thoughts about it until it gets closer. You might want to become completely pre-occupied with the
present, especially now that summer is finally here.
I can hardly blame you.
One of my own internship supervisors helped me to understand the true nature of denial. In trying to help me
see why clients continued such self-destructive patterns, she often told me:
"People can't see what they can't see . . . ‘cause they can't
see it. It's not that they won't look at something or are purposely ignoring it:
They actually cannot see it."
That's where this newsletter comes in. Now, while you still have plenty of time, I want to start shaking you out of
your denial. I want to help you start seeing what is ahead. Specifically, I want to inspire you to get a jump on this
very important part of your professional training. And, I want to provide you with some practical suggestions about
how to do it.
Over my 9 years of working with internship applicants, I have
learned one very important fact: Most internship applicants do not realize how much work they have ahead of them . . .
until it is almost too late to get it done. By mid-September, most of them wish someone had told them
how to get started earlier, so they could have avoided feeling so overwhelmed. They would do almost anything if they could have
just a little more time and one or two fewer demands on their energy.
The secret to getting the internship you want is starting small . . . and starting now.
Most applicants start out feeling completely inadequate. They
believe they have too many gaps in their training to compete successfully with their fellow applicants. What they fail to
recognize is that they are applying for a training experience, not a job.
No one expects you to become something or someone you are not. They simply expect you to sort out clearly what
you have learned and what you still want - and need - to learn. Then, they expect you to have an idea about how
their internship training could help you to fill in these gaps . . . while also exposing
you to areas of knowledge and new skills you did not even know you might want or need.
If you start now, you can gradually shift your perspective from "Turning Myself into their Ideal Internship Applicant" to
"Fiinding the Kind of Training I Want that Will Help Me Reach My Professional Goals".
If you start now, little by little you will increasingly take ownership of the process as your training goals start
materializing in your mind. As you become more clear about what you want and who you have
become, you will gradually worry less about who you believe they want you to be.
And, you will start feeling more confident and focused on your ability to
get what you want.
By the time September rolls around, you will notice a difference between yourself and your classmates. While they seem increasingly fragmented
and scared, you will start moving into your own groove. They will wonder how you found the secret to staying so calm and
focused.
This is something like what happens when your friends start working out in
June and wonder how you already look so good at the beach. (Little do they know that you have faithfully gone to the gym three times a week
since January. And, you have no reason to tell them!)
So, go ahead: Take some time off and enjoy all that summer has to offer.
But, don't get completely carried away. Set aside some time right now to sit down with a notebook and a cup of coffee or tea. Start jotting down
thoughts about what you want from your internship training. (For a few practical suggestions, read the following article.).
As with building muscle, we develop clarity about what we want and confidence in going after it by working at a little every day. No one
workout produces visible results on its own. The change results from a slow accumulation of many small steps.
How do you know whether this strategy will work? All you can do is try it. What do you have to lose? Absolutely nothing. At the least, you will cut
down on your pressure this fall. At the most, you will significantly improve your chances of getting exactly what you want.
John T. Carlsen, Psy.D. is
a licensed clinical psychologist who trains and supervises psychology interns
and externs. He offers personal coaching and training resources for graduate
students applying for internships and post-doctoral jobs. Click here
to learn more about how to write
effective applications and prepare for interviews. Click here
to submit comments, questions, or suggestions for future newsletter topics.
