As a fresh-faced, nervous intern at Niswey, I joined with the basic expectations of learning about content creation, improving my writing skills (my job profile was that of a content wizard), exposing myself to a professional environment and absorb all the knowledge that came way. At the end of my one month stint, I realized what simple thinking it had been on my part.
Everyday as I would scale the climb (there is no elevator to success!) to our humble office on the fourth floor, I did so with a feeling of acute anticipation of all that would follow that day. I received a variety of work assignments which forced me to step out of my comfort zone and encounter new challenges. I slowly understood the underlying nuances of smarter work habits, the importance of thorough research, independent decision making and quickly adapting whenever I found myself in unfamiliar territory.
Niswey follows a fascinating system of a flat organization which frankly, I found a little disconcerting to adjust to at first. It took a little time getting used to the fact that there is no ‘Abhinav sir’ or ‘Priyanka ma’am’, just Abhinav and Priyanka and that in fact, I would be my own boss. That there would be no compulsion to laugh any harder at Abhinav’s jokes than at Abhishek’s (point to be noted though is that Abhinav keeps a constant stream of jokes going). On a serious note, it made everyone in the office completely approachable and I would not need to think twice before shooting a query at them. I also honed the finer skills of self-motivation, prioritisation, time management, coordination, teamwork and goal setting (and following) which I did not reckon needed to be applied explicitly until I encountered the kind of independence at work that is at Niswey.
As I sat down to ponder over my month long stint, it dawned upon me that everyone and everything at Niswey is all about learning. No matter what position you are at, professionally or biologically, learning and reading is a non-negotiable essential and is encouraged vehemently. For my internship, each assignment and session was centered around my choice of topic of learning and to challenge me. The open office space ensures that there is knowledge bouncing off the walls constantly, all I had to do was keep my eyes and ears open to and assimilate it. I was particularly thrilled to have a session by Abhinav on Content Marketing. I received constant feedback on every piece I wrote or researched, getting the opportunity to improve with every piece and in the process, received the validation and guidance to gain confidence and believe in my skills.
At Niswey, I got a small glimpse of how the world of digital marketing works. I refined inherent but important soft skills. I got an opportunity to experiment and question and stumble and learn. I got a chance to sit in a small conference room every afternoon and share a delicious lunch with a set of wonderful, funny and insanely smart people who are like a dysfunctional yet cohesive family. I gained the focus and confidence to know that I can take everything I have gained at Niswey, amplify it and give it back to the world.
— Nandini Bhatia
Editor’s Note: Nandini interned with us during her summer break, June-July’14. As part of the internship, she also made a small presentation on what she learnt at Niswey. Needless to say, we are glad that she learnt so much. If you wish to intern with us, write to us at careers@niswey.com
