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blog Internship | 4min Read

6 Ridiculous Internship Myths That Everyone Needs To Debunk

Published on July 26, 2021

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6 Ridiculous Internship Myths That Everyone Needs To Debunk

Most students know that an internship can be a valuable boost to their resume and a great way to make professional contacts, but there are several myths around these positions. You must’ve heard all the ones listed, I’m sure: Interns just have to fetch coffee for their seniors; their time is not paid; their colleagues and supervisors treat them poorly. Instead of allowing you to keep up with such misunderstandings, I’m here to debunk these rumors as an intern myself.

  1. Myth 1: You Can’t Get An Internship As A High School Student.
  2. Myth 2: You Should Only Take An Internship In The Field You Want To Pursue.
  3. Myth 3: You’ll Be Getting Coffee All Day Long.
  4. Myth 4: You Should Intern At An Established Company
  5. Myth 5: All Interns Are Either Unpaid Or Poorly Paid
  6. Myth 6: Internships Always Happen During The Summer.

Myth 1: You Can’t Get An Internship As A High School Student.

Reality: Interns today are hired by their passion and willingness to work. You just have to dig and find one! I know that today, even getting an internship requires some amount of experience. Luckily, you can get that through working under the same department that you wish to work under at non-profits that are more than willing to have you on board. Once you acquire that skill, you’re as good as any other college-level intern, to apply. At the Big Red Group, I see it happening every day and hence, I couldn’t disagree with this myth more.

Myth 2: You Should Only Take An Internship In The Field You Want To Pursue.

Reality: Interning in unrelated fields just adds to your skillset and prepares you for a wider range of tasks. More often than not, sticking to this mindset wouldn’t let you discover your true potential or passion. Many a time, we come across tasks that we did not expect to have an interest in. However, on getting our hands dirty with them, we find them to be more enjoyable than any other task, hence, discovering our new interests. Moreover, if you’re a budding entrepreneur, this acquired skill range of yours would come in handier than any other when you’re starting out and you’re your own strategist and marketeer at the same time.

Myth 3: You’ll Be Getting Coffee All Day Long.

Reality: Long gone are those days! Interns today work toe to toe with full-time employees, often bagging a permanent place for themselves. In the beginning, Interns might do beginner-level tasks, but that is only when they’re needed to go through it to require essential skills for an intermediate task. As an intern at the Big Red Group, I get to partake in tasks and activities which are far from beginner level. This also encourages me to put in extra efforts to learn skills of higher levels faster, helping me participate more.

Myth 4: You Should Intern At An Established Company

Reality: Interns working at start-ups or small businesses have shown to have gained more skills and hands-on experience than those working at big companies and sticking to their niche. Having worked at a start-up as well as an established company, I can assure you that employees learn more while they’re connected to a start-up. The reason being, with a smaller team, you get to work on possibly everything in any department and have to go through a much more rigorous process which gives you a steeper learning curve. On the contrary, at bigger companies, due to a big number of employees, you only get to contribute to a very specific niche, hence hindering your overall growth.

Myth 5: All Interns Are Either Unpaid Or Poorly Paid

Reality: With increasing awareness, the trend of unpaid internships has started coming to an end around the world, with companies offering highly competitive stipends along with many other cool perks. Of course, this also involves an aspect of an essential skill, which is that of negotiating. In any profession, you’ll encounter several points where you have to come to a middle ground that is beneficial to both parties. In such cases, you put your skills to use and portray yourself as an invaluable candidate that the employee needs.

Myth 6: Internships Always Happen During The Summer.

Reality: There are year-round opportunities for internships. The “Summer Internships” offered by many big names make it seem like they’re the only set of opportunities available to the students. On the contrary, around the rest of the year, fewer students are looking for internships and succeeding more due to the lower competition rate.  

Overall, there’s no point in wasting time assuming the many obstacles you might encounter while interning. Instead, get up, find an internship, and discover the truth for yourself!

The Big Red Group and our Ivy Early Entrepreneur Program

In our entrepreneurial workshop – Ivy Early Entrepreneur, students go through the process of business development and leave the entrepreneur program having completed a business model canvas, competitive analysis, financial model, minimum viable product, and a pitch deck.

Students get an opportunity to learn from successful entrepreneurs who are alumni of reputed universities and are experts in their respective industries.

These experts serve as coaches guiding students through the processes of developing a business concept. Risk-Taking, Decision Making, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, Communication &

Storytelling, Design Thinking & Innovation, and Opportunity Recognition are a few of the key learning areas of our program.

On successfully completing the entrepreneur workshop, the guaranteed internship will be extended to all the students within our partner firms and with most of the mentors teaching the program. Students will be provided with a certificate of participation by The Big Red Group. This certificate can be used for your college portfolio.

Ivy Early Entrepreneur

11th – 17th Jan 2022

Idea Generation | Market Research | Design Thinking | Pitching

Learn More

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blog Leadership | 5min Read

What Does It Take To Be An Effective Leader?

Published on July 23, 2021

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What Does It Take To Be An Effective Leader?

A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way and more importantly, shows the way. A good leader inspires, provides direction and motivates the people around. They nurture strengths and talents, and provide confidence and courage. Leadership is about vision and responsibility, not just power.

So, What Does It Take To Be An Effective Leader?

Leadership is all about action. It is the capacity to translate vision into reality. Integrity, insight and the ability to inspire comes naturally to leaders. Leaders become great not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower. Coming back to our question: What does it take to be an effective leader? Look at the list below to see the common traits that the most effective leaders have!

  1. Decisive
  2. Set an example
  3. Effective Communication
  4. Evolve
  5. Speed and Accuracy
  6. Acknowledge Success

1. Decisive

Leaders have a clear vision and a set goal. They have a decisive idea about what they want, how to achieve it and what success looks like. They are inclusive and carry the team along with them. They nurture the strengths and talents of their people and build teams committed to achieving common goals. Work towards your goal with enthusiasm and your team will draw inspiration from you and get equally motivated!

2. Set an example

The best way to gain the respect of others and inspire them to do better is by setting the right examples. Leaders set high standards and live up to them. This inspires the team to be a better version of themselves. Action, more than words, will make your team more inclined to follow your example.

3. Effective Communication

Communication can make the difference between success & failure. The power of effective communication can motivate others to action and inspire new ways of thinking. The ability to communicate clearly, concisely, and tactfully is a crucial leadership skill.

4. Evolve

Learn, improve, implement, learn. Leaders find resources & means to constantly evolve. They use their learning to improve their actions and use the results of their actions as a means of learning. They are constantly learning and evolving.

5. Speed and Accuracy

The ability to make fast, difficult, yet correct decisions rests on the shoulders of a leader. A leader must make the decision with conviction and follow it through. Being a resolute and confident decision-maker will allow you to capitalize on opportunities and earn the respect of your team.

6. Acknowledge Success

Lastly, a leader must realize that success is not final, neither is failure fatal. It is important to acknowledge the success of the team and appreciate the efforts. This boosts morale and motivates the team to give their best. It is equally important to help the team bounce back from a blunder. A leader must view bad experiences as an opportunity for growth. On a leader’s journey to the top, he/she must acquire skills to be able to foresee. The most serious failure of leadership is the failure to foresee.

How Do You Hone Your Leadership Skills?

Often, leadership does not come naturally. While it is true that inherent characteristics and experience are the best teachers, it is still a skill that can be learned, developed and acquired. Enrolling in leadership development programs can especially go a long way in helping with that. There are various leadership development programs in India run by qualified professionals and mentors who can help you define a purpose and educate you to reach your full potential. A good education consultant or counsellor can tap into your potential and push you in the right direction.

Unleash The Leader In You With Harvard YLC Conference

Youth Lead the Change (YLC) is one such leadership development program. The most important thing while developing leadership skills is getting the right experience and YLC is all about that. YLC is a program created by professors of the Harvard Business School, Harvard Law School, and the Harvard School of education, and conducted by Harvard students. Held for students in grades 8 – 12, the program aims at empowering students and unlocking their leadership capabilities as they develop tangible solutions to global problems. Over the 7 day course, the students work in a group to understand a global issue and develop a social change project to address it. Through this program, students learn about core leadership skills such as collaboration, public speaking, time management, and self-knowledge. 

The Harvard trainers also hold one-on-one sessions with students who continue to serve as mentors after the program. On finishing the program, there is an opportunity to complete mentorship for an entire year, to implement their project. Presented by The Leadership Institute at Harvard College (LIHC), this Harvard student organization aims to provide and promote leadership development opportunities across the world.

Our advice to young students seeking greater leadership skills is to go out there, talk to mentors and build experiences. Find a problem, build a solution that benefits the whole mankind. Leadership can be learned if you have commitment and determination.

The Big Red Group and our Ivy Early Entrepreneur Program

In our entrepreneurial workshop – Ivy Early Entrepreneur, students go through the process of business development and leave the entrepreneur program having completed a business model canvas, competitive analysis, financial model, minimum viable product, and a pitch deck.

Students get an opportunity to learn from successful entrepreneurs who are alumni of reputed universities and are experts in their respective industries.

These experts serve as coaches guiding students through the processes of developing a business concept. Risk-Taking, Decision Making, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, Communication &

Storytelling, Design Thinking & Innovation, and Opportunity Recognition are a few of the key learning areas of our program.

On successfully completing the entrepreneur workshop, the guaranteed internship will be extended to all the students within our partner firms and with most of the mentors teaching the program. Students will be provided with a certificate of participation by The Big Red Group. This certificate can be used for your college portfolio.

Ivy Early Entrepreneur

11th – 17th Jan 2022

Idea Generation | Market Research | Design Thinking | Pitching

Learn More

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blog Entrepreneurship | 3min Read

Starting Early, Starting Young – How To Launch A Start-Up?

Published on July 14, 2021

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Starting Early, Starting Young – How To Launch A Start-Up?

“The best way to predict the future is to create it.”

Entrepreneurship is not just about ideas – it is about making the ideas happen. It is about facing challenges regularly and overcoming them. It is about fighting to see your idea turn into a success story. 

So how do you make an idea happen?

How To Launch A Startup

The first & perhaps the most important step in your entrepreneurial journey is to identify your skill & work on converting it into a successful venture. Be so good at something that the world will pay you for it. 

The next important step is to find your target customer base. After all, if you have something to sell, you need someone to sell it to.  

When you have a skill and a customer in want of that skill, focus on completing the project in the best possible manner. Make sure that you deliver and deliver well. Let your service define you. Then, find another customer based on the strength of the work you have done. Once you have a stream of regular customers you are set. 

You just need one skill. Find customers who need that skill and go!

Start Young, Start Smart

Starting young gives you an early-bird advantage and having a mentor to guide you goes a long way in establishing your business. Here’s a fun fact for you: Did you know that more than 40% of successful entrepreneurs start young? Interesting, right? Well, here’s one more: Did you know that 92% of entrepreneurs agree that mentors have a direct impact on the growth and survival of their business? Wow! 

The Young Business Academy program can provide you the mentorship and the guidance you require to kick-start your entrepreneurial venture. 

It is a 6-months program that provides young leaders a platform to solve challenges that bother them, create solutions that are unique to them, and most importantly, it urges them to go beyond just ideating. An idea is only as good as its execution, but execution requires the right set of knowledge and motivation. For learning to be truly transformational and for skills to be picked up and mastered, young leaders need immersion, direction, and commitment. Our program combines all that and brings young leaders and young entrepreneurs the platform to start their entrepreneurial adventures and start strong! 

The Young Business Academy was created to democratize entrepreneurship in India by enabling entrepreneurs across ages and industries to not just think and wonder but to allow them to see their entrepreneurial idea through and to experience the whole entrepreneurial adventure!

  • Our Solopreneur Roadmap will lead you all the way from building your foundation to getting well-paying clients. The program is structured in 3 phases:

    • First Phase: You will focus on building a rock-solid foundation for your business, from identifying the target audience to figuring out price strategies.

    • Second Phase: Here you will build on it further and create a foolproof engine for your system that will help you every step of the way.

    • Third Phase: Here you will ensure the system is ready to be launched by looking at components such as payment links and taxes. You will finish the adventure strong with your new and improved system!

Apply now and in just 180 days, watch your entrepreneurial idea develop into a well paying business!

The Big Red Group and our Ivy Early Entrepreneur Program

In our entrepreneurial workshop – Ivy Early Entrepreneur, students go through the process of business development and leave the entrepreneur program having completed a business model canvas, competitive analysis, financial model, minimum viable product, and a pitch deck.

Students get an opportunity to learn from successful entrepreneurs who are alumni of reputed universities and are experts in their respective industries.

These experts serve as coaches guiding students through the processes of developing a business concept. Risk-Taking, Decision Making, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, Communication &

Storytelling, Design Thinking & Innovation, and Opportunity Recognition are a few of the key learning areas of our program.

On successfully completing the entrepreneur workshop, the guaranteed internship will be extended to all the students within our partner firms and with most of the mentors teaching the program. Students will be provided with a certificate of participation by The Big Red Group. This certificate can be used for your college portfolio.

Ivy Early Entrepreneur

11th – 17th Jan 2022

Idea Generation | Market Research | Design Thinking | Pitching

Learn More

Editor's Pick

blog Internship | 3min Read

Internships For High School Students: Benefits and Guide

Published on June 24, 2021

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Internships For High School Students: Benefits and Guide

For high school students, finding internships can be a daunting task.. Wait, is it even possible to get an internship without any prior job experience? Yes, indeed, it is!

Several companies and organizations provide internships to high school students, even those who do not have much experience.

However, do internships help you? Are they worth the effort and energy? Let’s take a look at how internships benefit you and how you can score them as well!

Internship For High School Students & Their Benefits:

  1. Internships add a lot more significance to your college application because it showcases your work ethic and determination to get tasks done.

  2. Paid internships are also a great way for students to earn along with studying. NGOs hire student interns and volunteers as well.

  3. Heard of “Remote internships” yet? Remote internships help you build essential personality traits such as self-discipline and self-motivation. Online internships for high school students are offered by a variety of companies to help students develop planning, execution, and organizational skills.

  4. High school internships give you a brief introduction and peeks into what your career might look like in the future.

  5. In case you are not sure about your career choice, you can explore different career paths through internships.

  6. Interning will also give you an insight into the lifestyle of your employers and how your future might look working in the same field.

  7. It helps you learn several essential skills like time management, communication skills and how to work in a team.

  8. Internships are a more productive way to utilise your time, therefore they are best suited for summer breaks and term breaks.

In short, internships are incredibly beneficial, not just for your college application but for your growth as well.

The main question is how to get those internships. Here is a short guide to doing so,

  1. Do your research- The most crucial step is to do your research, figure out where your interests lie, find companies that work towards a similar goal or in a similar field. Students can ask their teachers for help as well.

  2. Update/Build your resume- Having a resume as a high school student might sound odd, but you must have an overview before applying for internships. However, if you cannot find anything to put in the resume, do not send a blank pdf with just your name and school. Make sure the resume or application reflects your personality.

  3. Mail the companies- Often, companies do not have internship application forms on their website. This is why you must email them. If they have internship forms on their website, you can apply through that. However, that is not always the case. In such cases, you can send them an email. The email must include your name, education, a brief introduction (like your interest, hobbies, etc.), your resume, the position you want to apply for, or the field you want to work in (for example, graphic designing, content creation, marketing, etc.) Apart from this, there are several other sites and apps which help you come in contact with the companies for internships, like Intershala, Glassdoor, etc.

Overall, it might be troublesome to find internships or companies that accept high school students as interns. However, it is achievable. These three steps are just the umbrella steps for the entire application process.

Just remember not to take too much pressure or you will burn yourself out!

Editor's Pick

blog | 3min Read

How Mentorship Programs Can Help Students Unlock Their Potential

Published on April 9, 2021

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How Mentorship Programs Can Help Students Unlock Their Potential

 

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We’re generally surrounded by people who want something from us. Parents, teachers, relatives, even some friends. Everyone has their own expectations from us and our lives. And in the middle of all this noise, we tend to forget what we wanted from our own life. Maybe that’s why we need to add someone to this mix, who’ll help us find that path back.

Here enters a Mentor

We all have fuzzy definitions of what a mentor is. A guru? A guide? A teacher? A holy man? A beaming light from the heavens? Well, it could be all of the above, or it could be something else entirely. Depends on what you want. Think of a mentor as just someone to speak with, who can give you a perspective that you never thought existed, who can offer ‘empathetic assistance’ to the questions in your head.

Mentorship is a way to have a frank and open conversation, where you can put your dreams on the table. If this person is a good mentor, they will respond to it with a genuine concern for your ambitions. They won’t put their own ambitions into your head. They can encourage and inspire you, be that sounding board for your doubts, maybe even introduce you to a new career path. This isn’t therapy, it’s a peer you can talk to who’ll help widen your horizons.

Now, why would they do that?

A mentor is someone who doesn’t have a stake in your life, so if you do something wrong, they aren’t going to scold you or shout at you. They have their own lives and their own mistakes to make. Mentors are people who feel like helping others out. They’ve been through the same stuff you’re probably going through – The exam stress, the worry about colleges, about careers, about life. Maybe they had a mentor when they were starting off, or maybe they wish they had one and feel like making sure you do. They’re just there to be an objective voice, to present a different view to the same problem. To tell you how it really is, to not sugar coat things for you.

We often have problems but are too afraid to ask for help. Wouldn’t it be nice to speak to someone who’s faced it as well? If you are confused about colleges, wouldn’t it be nice to speak with someone who’s in Harvard? If you want to be an engineer, wouldn’t you want someone from Google to tell you how to get there? To be a writer, wouldn’t it be great to share a word with a published author? And that’s how mentorship programs help you out. They connect you with mentors. Literally, just that.

You might think that it’s not for you because you’re still young. But we’re more confused when we’re young. We’re carrying more questions when we’re young. We’re also up for a challenge and ready to make changes faster in our lives. We don’t feel the weight of the world yet, and it feels like an exploration. As it should.

But why mentorship for a high school student?

  • It accelerates your progress by removing obstacles.

  • You can test out ideas that you might not be comfortable sharing with others.

  • It can help you gain clarity to find your path.

  • You develop effective communication skills, chatting with people apart from your friends and

    family.

  • They help you see the pitfalls that might come your way.

  • It helps boost your confidence.

  • Set yourself apart from the rest. It could almost be considered a 21st-century skill to have a mentor.

  • You can possibly tap into the network and contacts that they have.

In your life, you will have multiple mentors. People who will come in and out of your life, to help you move just a bit more forward. This isn’t about moving mountains, but helping you gain the momentum you need, to build the life you want. And along the way, to make some new friends.

Always know that mentors come in all forms. Who or what has been a mentor for you? Share below.

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