Friday, November 21, 2008

r|apprentern: a l'il intern with a dash of an apprentice ...

or for those that like math symbols (for which i do):
intern + apprentice = apprentern

merriam-webster's on-line dictionary says -
  • intern
    : an advanced student or graduate usually in a professional field (as medicine or teaching) gaining supervised practical experience (as in a hospital or classroom)
  • apprentice
    1 a: one bound by indenture to serve another for a prescribed period with a view to learning an art or trade
    b
    : one who is learning by practical experience under skilled workers a trade, art, or calling
    2
    : an inexperienced person

r|intern ... the precedent to r|apprentern is r|intern (or REALITY: intern). read a little about r|intern over here through a round of hyperlink hell. (and in future posts, i will repost r|intern content on this blog, where useful, rather than taking a stroll via hyperlink hell)

r|intern and reality tv cross paths ... while engaged in pre-r|intern and r|intern activities, often colleagues (and sometimes interns) would express how the
small business/solo practitioner work experience we offered was more than just busy-work; it was in-your-face work experience that was very experiential.

in addition to the goals and objectives of r|intern, whether an intern wanted to learn about how a business was run, r|intern inherently offered such unintended insights. and whether a solo practitioner wanted an intern to hear about the bitching and moaning low points of business (e.g., non-paying clients, contract violations, subcontractor headaches), it was unavoidable during an r|intern work week.
it was very easy to get cabin fever - relatively close quarters, continuously working, everyone's business was each other's "in-your-face" business (including cute, loving phone calls to significant others - or an occasional cursing-fit after phone calls with ill-mannered subcontractors or clients).

nevertheless, we realized and understood that given the time we spent with an intern, not only would an intern gain work experience but also life experience. and as a small business owner, one is ALWAYS AWARE that time spent is money. given the r|intern experience is essentially that period of time considered "non-billable, administrative" - we very much understood that time spent had to be viewed as an investment.

in the summer of 2004, a former intern mentioned the "unintended (valuable) insights" he gained about small business.
and also around that time, donald trump's "the apprentice" was one of THE reality tv shows. so as we laughed and marveled about the apprentice - and cringed about omarosa - we couldn't deny that there have been r|intern tears shed on and off throughout the years - men & women. that said, we often/frequently reminded prospective, candidate r|interns know that the internship was not just a little job, it was kind of a boot camp for enviro(mental)-slaves (aka enviro-slaves). we always made sure to underscore the intensity and value of the experience. and we ALWAYS made sure to tell candidates that men & women r|interns have shed a few tears.

somewhere along the r|intern memories + reality tv shows chit-chat, there was mention that the r|intern experience seemed like an apprentice experience. so now after several years, having chewed on this for quite some time -

| drawing upon boot camp |
| affectionately acknowledging enviro-slave |
| building upon r|intern |
welcome r|apprentern



No comments: