Starting an internship is always a mix of excitement and low-level terror. You’re surrounded by people who all started at the same time and supposedly equals on paper, but sometimes it quickly becomes obvious who the star pupils are in the boss’s eyes. You try to focus on your own work, but it’s impossible not to notice who’s getting praised for the tiniest things while you’re scrambling to finish your tasks. Add in the fact that everyone’s competing for a very limited number of full-time job offers at the end of the internship, and small mistake feels high stakes.
It’s the kind of situation that makes me think of that Friends episode where Chandler tries to break into marketing. He starts as an intern, clueless, awkward, and desperate for recognition, only to find that dealing with office drama when you’re starting at the bottom is a lot harder than you’d think. You can’t just do the work; you have to manage impressions, form coworker alliances, and make small power plays, all while trying not to burn out.
