Portfolio

Chrissi Venier

04/29/17

WC: 1107

• What challenges did you face?

I struggled with communication, ironically and trying to maintain a professional relationship while still being fun and open to new ideas. My supervisor and I got along really well and we have a great relationship but when she finds certain things she likes and wants to post on our social pages, our tastes somewhat differed and I worried about our reception from our audience. I think some of the material is great for the page and the vibe that we agreed was right for the business but some of it just doesn’t fit the reputation we are trying to have with our audience. Because I’m staying on next  year I hope we can agree on a mood and theme for both of our social media pages so it’s easier for our audience to adjust to.

• How has it affected your career search?

As a junior, I’m giving it some time before I find a job or start seriously looking. Over the summer I’ll be doing another internship with a non-profit called Freedom 4/24 as well as working for an electrical contracting company doing their PR and event planning. I think when I do start looking for a job I will have a lot of material to fill my portfolio/resume with. I have created a lot of material and have already done an interview with the work I have done.

• Have you gained the skills you hoped you would detailed in the 1st journal entry? Why or why not?

I did gain the experience I wanted in event planning. I planned our First Annual Open Barn held on April 1st of this year. Because everything with BrightEyes is new since they just started out, we had nothing to go from. We did everything from meeting with caterers, gathering donations, publicity, and more. I feel like out of everything I did in this internship that was the most time consuming and the most hectic. I’m glad I got the experience of planing that event and I’m really proud of the turn out and the responses we got from people who attended. I really enjoyed that day and all the work that went towards just a few hours is mind boggling. We had way more people than we thought we would which is a good and a bad thing. I don’t know if event planning is for me but I really enjoyed the fast pace work and getting to meet a lot of new people. I think I have learned new things with technology from working two social media pages and creating ad material. I also have learned a lot about myself and how to better myself as an employee and a person.

• Did you achieve the goals you set during your performance evaluation? How so?

I really wanted to gain experience with event planning and thats a lot of what I did with BrightEyes. I’m glad I got it and I feel more confident with that part of my degree now. I think that I’ve grown as a professional and a student. I’m more confident in my professional work and I really like feeling like more an adult with a real job and real priorities.

• How do you feel you were mentored?

My supervisors were wonderful to me during this whole time. I think because this was so new to them as well, we didn’t know how to handle certain situations and had to figure things out together as we went. They were very accepting to new ideas and always invited me to help them with anything I was interested in. I never felt neglected or like I wasn’t needed and thats such a great feeling as an intern. When I worked for NBC during the debate I was a runner and I felt most of the time that if I didn’t show up it wouldn’t make a difference to them. But with BrightEyes I know that I am apart of a family that is dependent on each other and needs every member of our team to function and work correctly. I feel like I was a valued member of their team and I appreciated that more than anything. I also loved having my professors and fellow students to lean on. I always feel the support from the COMMunity with any endeavor that I go on and that’s why I love my major and my school.

• Would you suggest this organization/company to future students seeking internships?

I would definitely suggest that future students pursue working for BrightEyes. My supervisor is keeping me on next semester but is looking for a student who would want to complete a 392. I think that this experience has been one of the best decisions I have made since coming to Longwood and I’m so thankful for the opportunity. I’m tempted to keep it to myself but I know thats selfish so I think other students could really benefit from this opportunity. They will learn a lot of valuable things about working in the real world and it will change their view of a lot of things involving small businesses.

Work Samples:

The first picture is our Twisted Tuesday segment on our Facebook page. I answer audience questions about alpaca fiber from posts and comments on our page and put them in that form for the answer. The second is similar. That is our Alpaca Fact Friday segment which is the same thing but just answers general alpaca questions, not just fiber questions. I’ve done these since the first week I started my internship and I’ll continue them until the first week of June.

I ended up making two of these post cards on Pages. This one is for our farm tourism and the other one I made is for the airBnB that is held on the farm as well. These turned out to be a good ad to put out because all we had to do was stamp the back and the flyers could be mailed out to interested audience members. I also did a brochure that is not featured here that summarized what our girls personalities are and facts about the farm.

The first picture here is one of our countdown ads that we ran on social media for our April 1st Open Barn. All the pictures I used were of our girls and I made these bold type overlays and uploaded them to let our audience know to set their calendars. The other picture is of one of the flyers I made that were hung all over Farmville and Lynchburg. The printing service on campus ended up hating me after all of this but when we asked people how they heard about our event they said Facebook and our flyers so I guess I did a good job.

I don’t have two pictures of me working at my internship but Dr. Naomi saw me working at one of our events and my supervisor would have no problem vouching that I really did work.

Chrissi Venier
04/07/17
Journal #5
WC: 349

What 2 communication theories have you witnessed during your internship? Explain the theories and explain your observations. For example have you had to frame messages a certain way? Or you have you dealt with misunderstandings that could be explained by symbolic interactionism?

During my internship, I have witnessed a few communication theories acted out in reality. Because internships require constant contact and open dialogue, there is a lot of room for communication theories to take place.

One of the communication theories I witnessed take place during my internship was Cognitive Dissonance Theory, or the theory that people actively attempt to change views that they have to avoid conflict with another person. I disagreed with a few decisions that my supervisor as made during my internship but because I know she’s the owner and ultimately the decisions are hers I stay quiet about some of my beliefs. But as time goes on I feel myself starting to agree with her decisions, not because they follow what I align myself with, but because it’s easier to avoid any kind of negative emotion when I pretend that I think something she does is a good idea. I can understand that she is taking ultimately responsibility for whatever goes on media connected to her name and its much easier to continue a professional relationship when you don’t have negative feelings.

I think that in most internships, Standpoint Theory is present. Standpoint Theory says that relationships follow a certain hierarchy and dependent on a persons position in the relationship they act accordingly. For example, my supervisor considers jobs such as asking for donations from local business owners and discussing their future involvement in the business as something that I should find simple to do. But these business owners typically prefer to discuss topics like where there money goes something to be discussed between adults. This is something I considered when that job was asked of me and I had a feeling they would rather talk to her. When I told her I only received two donations from all of the people I visited and that it might have been a better idea for her to join me she thought that was silly. But when she came along with me, we received many more donations because she seemed much more trustworthy as the owner of the business.

Chrissi Venier
03/22/17
Journal #4
WC: 316

What 3 classes have helped you prepare for this internship? Discuss in specific details, skills from classes you’ve applied in your internship.

The three classes that have helped me the most in preparing for this internship are: COMM 354: PR Writing, COMM 241: Media Writing, and COMM 350: Persuasion Theory.

My internship has been very focused on writing and creating materials to promote the business. COMM 354 has helped me to create a whole portfolio that I have used for job interviews and interviews for positions like the internship I have today. Without that class, I feel like I would have little/nothing to demonstrate what I have learned in COMM Studies so far. With a lot of the classes I have taken, I have retained a lot but most test scores or papers don’t exactly show progress like physical work samples do. Because of COMM 354 I knew how to write radio PSA’s, newsletters, and flyers way before my supervisor asked me to create them.

COMM 241 helped me work under pressure and be a very conscious editor. Often in that class we would have timed assignments and the pressure was on to have work fully completed and well done enough to post immediately. Sometimes my supervisor will ask me to complete an assignment as soon as possible and expect it by the end of the week. I’ve found myself becoming calmer and ready to work because of my experience in COMM 241. I also, because of our AP Style quizzes, have learned to pay much more attention to my work in post rather than simply skimming it.

COMM 350 helped me to work on long-term assignments without losing focus and learning how to create materials to subtly persuade my audience. Working on the final project over the course of the entire semester has taught me about prioritizing needs and making sure that I have a complete timeline for what needs to be done. I also learned what images/text best persuade an audience without being overtly obvious in an attempt. I also think working in a group setting in an important skill to have for an internship, though mine does not require that skill.

Chrissi Venier
02/24/17
Journal #3
WC: 326

What have you learned since your last journal entry?

I have learned that I don’t need constant reassurance to be proud and confident in my work. I have always been a person that needs someone to tell me that I’m doing a good job but the more work I complete and the more positive feedback I receive from my supervisor and others who see it, the more I find myself less concerned with others opinions. I still pride myself in creating work that benefits the company but I don’t make near as many edits as I used to.

What challenges have you faced?

Lately, I’ve struggled with being brave in my communication and fears that one set back will ruin all of the work I’ve put in. I am a naturally anxious person and I have confidence issues with my work stemming from inexperience. I think that the longer I do this internship, the more I learn about myself as a professional. I am making internal decisions about what is appropriate to speak up about and what would benefit me and my internship by speaking up and being willing to take a risk. I think the farther I go in this internship, the more I will learn about myself and about what needs to be done to be a professional in the PR industry.

How are these experiences helping you seek a future career?

I feel like many of my experiences through this internship are adding on to prior experience I have with my involvement in clubs and experience in class that make interview questions a breeze. I have dealt with awkward situations, learning to communicate with new people, adapting to new situations and more. I have gotten so much more experience in creating advertising material and meeting with professionals who help develop a business than I could ever get through class. I would not be nearly as scared to sit in a interview chair than I would have been prior to this internship. I really think this hand on learning is so important to becoming a well-rounded, educated employee.

Chrissi Venier
02/06/17
Journal #2
WC: 337

What have you learned since the start of your internship?

I have learned a lot of information about alpacas such as their purpose on farms, their ability to help the environment, and their fiber. I think that having a lot of information on hand makes it easier to interact with people when they come to me with questions about the business. I have learned a lot about being the social media face for a business. I’m constantly saying our username to people and I’m glad that we have our social media synced and something that is simple because it can be overwhelming to have to remember a lot of information that doesn’t sound related.

What challenges have you faced?

I have struggled with making sure that my supervisor is satisfied with my work because I’m naturally a little insecure since I’ve never done anything like this outside of class before. She and her husband tell me constantly that I’m doing a good job but I get nervous that they are just being nice. I also am struggling with holding myself back from doing too much. I try to do enough to get my ten hours a week and leave the rest to her because it’s her business and she tells me to slow down a lot but I get really excited about work.

How are these experiences helping you seek a future career?

I get really excited telling people about work and what we do and I think that is part of being a good publicist. I also have been learning a lot more about technology and social media that I didn’t know just doing things on my own. I think that branching out and trying new things is important so that when you get in a work place, you are adapted enough to not be terrified to start. I have also had a lot of experience creating graphics and talking to small business owners and other local professionals. Being able to talk to people as a professional and be able to connect with them and get them engaged while still being respectful is something I’m getting a lot of practice at.

Chrissi Venier
01/25/17 (new add-on)
Journal #1
WC: 343

What will you do in this internship?

In this internship, I will act as the online face of the company. I will run both the Facebook and Instagram accounts, keeping them consistently updated and interactive with the audience. In March, I will help with the event planning and the production of an “Open Barn” to be held towards the end of the month. In addition, I will create advertisements for the business and reach out to the town of Farmville about supporting BrightEyes Alpaca Retreat. The produced pieces of writing, flyers, and advertising for BrightEyes will be edited and approved by my supervisor. I will reach out to students and faculty on campus to seek assistance/offer student opportunities that interact with the business. I will meet my supervisor every Friday to discuss the past week and plan for the future one.

What skills do you have that you will use multiple times in this internship?

I have skills in simple technology and social media which will definitely come in handy during this internship. I also am familiar with the town and many of the small business owners here so making connections for the business will be simple. I have learned a lot from my PR Writing class that will be used such as creating radio PSA’s and developing flyers that attract the eye of the reader/viewer and keep them interested. I also have a good professional voice in email and person that serves the business well for online and in person communication.

What skills are you missing that you hope to gain from this internship?

I would like to become more creative and learn more about the event planning side of PR. I do not have much experience with event planning so March will be an exciting month to grow in. We also are actively looking for help in both the IT and graphic design fields, two things that I am not very capable at beyond basic comprehension. I would also like to become more attentive to my own faults and be able to accept that I will not always be able to perfect every situation. I have a tendency to think that I am always right and I hope to avoid overstepping any boundaries.

Fake news sites go viral because people love to be the first to share news, even if it isn’t true. There is a sense of excitement in being the first person to share a piece of information. The deception is in the lack of truth in the articles as well as the knowledge that the sites sharing this information know that the things they post are untrue. Part of why people believe the stories could be true is because some people have this notion that if something is on the internet, it is automatically true. Another reason is because many of these fake website have domain names similar names to real news sites. For example, the news site msnbc.com is a popular source for informations. But there is a fake news source called msnbc.website that masquerades as the real thing. People generally should only trust websites that are widely known as popular media sites such as FOX News, MSNBC, CBS, and more. Sites such as The Onion are declared as parody sites and should not be taken as serious news. Most of the time, if it seems like a hoax, it probably is. People should learn to be more critical and do their own investigating before sharing.

Question 1: What is Charles Wolfram’s definition of “puffing” and “chaffering” and what does the involvement with the legal system have to do with everyday deception?

Question 2: The examples of showing and hiding in the chapter are mostly physical so is this chapter more about body language, similar to what Eckman talks about, or is there a different connection?

Trust is arguably the most important thing for politicians to gain from the voters. But the problem with this, as the Huffington Post article points out, is that people somewhat want to be lied to. More than that, we want to hear something that satisfies what we believe in and that justifies our own opinions. If our chosen candidate lies and says something we know could easily be untrue, we want to believe them. We blindly turn the other way because they are less of a liar than the other candidate. The reason that so many politicians walk this carefully crafted line between deception and truth-telling is because it’s easy. They can say what they know will gain votes and followers and when they get called out on their lie, which they most often do, they can say it wasn’t a full lie and make excuses that help the public forget about their indiscretions. Or they can be even more deceptive and resort to pointing the finger at their opponent as a distraction tacit. Deception is not a necessary tactic for politicians to use but it has become so common place and unregulated that people only find themselves angry for a small amount of time before they turn their anger to another source. The Lie Or Lose article touches on that topic when the author says, “Should we be disappointed? Yes. Should we be angry? Of course. Should we be surprised? No.” about lying. It is so common that we witness it right in front of our eyes and yet we have less shock each time. The lying isn’t necessary, but when the politician can get away with it with few consequences other than some childish name calling from the opposing side, why not lie?