Assurance Interns
San Diego, CA
Our day began bright and early, or should we say dark and early as it was 3:30AM when we woke up for our 6:25AM flight out of San Diego. After a little parking construction detour, some pretty big crowds at the airport, and a much needed Starbucks stop, we finally made it on to the plane, and were able to catch some much needed zzz’s before our arrival at O’Hare in Chicago.
The drive to the Q Center was really beautiful and very green, much greener landscapes then what we are used to in California! Upon our arrival, we had some extra time to explore, and enjoy some yummy food at the café. We also reunited with some fellow interns from the Irvine and Los Angeles offices that we had met earlier during orientation and training. It was nice to see everyone and catch up about our first few weeks at McGladrey!
We began our formal activities with an enticing introduction from Kim McKaughlin who gave us an overview of our next few days, as well as introduced the team who put together the wonderful conference. Kim also emphasized that the next few days were really about our self-development in terms of our professional careers and lives. Something we both took away from Kim’s speech was a fortune cookie that she shared with us: “Success will not attack you, you must attack success.” This really resonated with both of us, as it really emphasized that who we will become as professionals and as people is determined by our actions and the decisions we make.
Our next speaker, Ken Bansemer, brought us both tears and joy with his moving, and hilarious stories from personal experience. His stories illustrated six key pieces of advice on “How Not to Fail.” Two that really stood out to us were “embracing change” and “believing in yourself.” As interns, we are beginning to enter careers, and growing from college students into professionals. This transformation is a huge change in our lives, and embracing this change is key to our success. Also, as interns we are exposed to new information and challenges every day. We often don’t know the answers and must ask questions, however, we should not lose confidence but rather view it as a learning opportunity. With that being said, believing in ourselves, and our capabilities allows us to keep a positive outlook and embrace the changes and growth we are undergoing.
Following a delicious dinner, we commenced our last activity with an act of community service. This act entailed making blankets that will be donated to Salvation Army. It was really nice seeing that McGladrey is involved with their community, and that we had the opportunity to be a part of it during our time at the Q-Center.
It’s only been the first day of the conference and we are already taking away with us lifelong lessons as well as new friendships rooted in the common bond of being McGladrey Interns.
Your San Diego Assurance Interns,
Karolina and Mimi
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