Girls In Tech

I’ve been traveling lots lately and wrapping up my Fall Speaking Tour for Intern Queen Inc. Every day it feels like I’m in a different airport with more gossip mags in front of me – tempting me to purchase them ! It’s so difficult to really focus while you’re flying and encourage yourself to get things done. If you are on JetBlue – all you want to do is watch the television set on the back of the seat in front of you. If you are on Delta, you want to Facebook your way through the skies with their Wi-Fi planes. It is all too easy to put your head on that window and fall fast alseep – you usually even miss the drink cart.

The airplane is a great time to catch up on work/business. Here are a few travel tips to make the most out of your travel days:

1. READING RAINBOW. Most people have that pile of things “to read” and “to go over”. Before you travel print out or collect any magazine articles, blogs, books, papers that you’ve been wanting to read or look over. The plane will provide you with plenty of time to go through and get rid of whatever you no longer need.

2.  TWITTER FAVORITES. I’m always marking plenty of Tweets under the “favorites” category and I usually don’t get around to reading them. The night before I fly I copy paste all of them into a large document to take on the plane with me so that I can catch up. If any of the Tweets send me to interesting articles – I print those out as well. On the plane I make note of things I want to “RT” and interesting “Tweeps” I might want to reach out to.

3. BUSINESS/TECH BOOK. Now is the time to grab that book that you’ve been waiting to read. Try to select a book that is business or tech related so that it has better chances of inspiring you and providing you with ideas for your own business. Always bring a notebook with you ! I just bought and quickly read the Ivanka Trump book, THE TRUMP CARD: Playing to Win in Work and Life, and found the business tips helpful and inspiring.

4. SKIM THE MAGAZINE RACK. Use your layover time to skim any magazine articles you might want to read. I usually end up wasting money on a ton of them and only reading a few articles. I really enjoy WIRED, ENTREPRENEUR, INC, FAST COMPANY, BUSINESS WEEK, and NEWSWEEK.

5. PLAN YOUR FLIGHT. It sounds cheesy, but I always write out my plan for the flight. I’ll even include time for a short nap if the flight is long enough. This keeps me on track during the flight.

6. FOLLOW YOUR MORNING ROUTINE. Normally have a latte or some tea in the morning ? Try to follow this ritual on the plane. It will help you feel more relaxed, organized and put you in a productive mindset. Also, make sure you eat some carbs before you get on the plane so that you have a bit of energy.

FLY SAFE !

Hey Geeky Girls and Guys – I have a new trend to report. This fall is all about getting your “Geek-ternship”, any internship that involvesnew media, virtual communication, graphic design, and web-based functionality. Tons of new internships have opened up, both paid and unpaid, within the online and new media industires. So grab a Geek-ternship and make it a great one.

Below are a few great opportunities that any student looking for the perfect “Geek-ternship” should apply for:

1. Katalyst Films (Los Angeles)

Katalyst Media, headquarters located in Los Angeles, is an original content production company creating Digital Media, Television and Film properties. Founded in 2005 by partners, Ashton Kutcher and Jason Goldberg, Katalyst film credits include The Butterfly Affect and Guess Who, as well as the upcoming feature film Spread. Television property credits include the hit series Punk’d and Beauty and the Geek. Digital Media properties include the Blah Girls (www.blahgirls.com) and the reality series KatalystHQ (www.funspace.com/katalysthq).

To apply visit: http://quarterlife.com/internship/details/3942

2.  Metropolitan Home and Elle Decor Website Internships (NYC)

To apply visit: http://quarterlife.com/internship/details/3902

3.  HowCast.com New Media Intern (NYC)

Girls in Tech LA and Women In Technology International (http://witi.com) cordially invite you to attend our Summer Mixer! We are having the event on the outdoor patio of Wokcano (http://www.wokcanocafe.com/), a delicious Asian restaurant and lounge, in Santa Monica. Come and enjoy a relaxing evening of mixing and mingling. Learn about both the Girls in Tech and WITI organizations from the members themselves! So, grab a friend, come to Wokcano, and let’s celebrate the women that make up the vibrant LA tech and digital scene.

Monday, July 20th

7PM – 9PM

Wokcano – Santa Monica
1413 5th St
Santa Monica, CA 90401

Tickets are $10.00

To pre-register please go to http://gitlawitisummermixer.eventbrite.com/

See you there!

The Los Angeles Girls In Tech chapter introduces the first event with Bloblive on Monday, June 15th at V LOUNGE in Santa Monica. I’ve personally been very involved with Bloblive and I’ve found it to be an excellent outlet for networking and brainstorming new ideas and partnerships for my business.

Bloblive is an urban event for big thinkers, small business owners, entrepreneurs — and dreamers. Each event features idea sharing, audience feedback, a live video feed, twittering and more. Bloblive is the city’s only regular idea meet-up, and whether your idea is half-baked or fully cooked, we’d love to hear about it! Give and get support for your entrepreneurial ideas in an interactive and supportive open mic format. Step up and enjoy the limelight, share your experience and advice and/or sit back and get inspired.

We are also thrilled to be partnering with Stila Cosmetics for this event. They are giving away FREE beauty gift bags to the first 100 guests that arrive for the event that night. So, you better get there early to grab a ticket for your gift bag! 

Bloblives are streamed live online with additional feedback coming in through Twitter.

For more info about bloblive – and presenting your idea on stage – check out http://www.bloblive.com.

Don’t delay, the event is on Monday! You can purchase advance tickets here, or they are $15 at the door. See you there!

In today’s economy, the importance of educating students to be prepared for their future is crucial. As a young entrepreneur, I feel responsible for communicating directly with students and explaining to them the perks of starting and running their own business. With the chaotic behaviors of several corporations, it’s looking more and more appealing for students to graduate college and start their own business.

I’m a huge advocate for internships, I’m actually the “Intern Queen” (http://www.internqueen.com) and I believe that students wanting to go the corporate route or the entrepreneur route should both start with internships. A positive or negative internship experience helps a student learn about who they are and who they want to be.

If I hadn’t interned, I would have no idea how a business is run. Watching and observing different employers and the different processes that went on at each company, I was able to pick and choose which of those I wanted to apply to my own business. I highly suggest internships for future entrepreneurs.

WHY AN INTERNSHIP ? It’s important to encourage students to take the internship initiative. An internship provides a real world experience. Students get to see what it’s like to be part of a team, work in an office environment, manage professional relationships, network, and perform entry-level tasks.

PURSUIT OR ELIMINATION. I held 15 internships during my four years of college. Each internship pointed me in a specific direction. The internships I enjoyed pointed me further into that industry. The internships I didn’t enjoy pointed me away from certain fields. Each experience taught me what I like and what I didn’t like.

THE NETWORKING. The contacts that students can build at an internship are endless. I met hundreds of executives, assistants, and mid-level execs during my internships. Some of these people have gone on to run their own companies, some have gone into other fields. I try to keep in touch with everyone I’ve met through my internships over the years. These people have been instrumental in helping me take the plunge from corporate office to self-starter.

HANDS ON EXPERIENCE.  No one wants to start at the bottom, but sometimes it’s what you have to do. Tasks like making copies, preparing coffee, printing out pages are usually necessary in any entry-level position. Once you know how to do these, you don’t have to waste time learning how to do them once you graduate. These internships put you in a better and more experienced position once you graduate. Along with the crummy tasks are usually some more exciting ones. The perks to interning are getting to sit in on meetings and brainstorming sessions, participating in feedback sessions, meeting clients, getting face-to-face experience with executives, and hopefully  building up your rolodex to help you land a job in the future.