By: Paulina Jankovic
Peer for Career, Majoring in Marketing
As I completed my second year of college, there seemed to be a huge change in what everyone was talking about. Instead of conversations about summer fun, the halls filled with constant chatter of prestigious internships, hard earned jobs, and club leadership positions. And I was struck by feelings of intimidation.I had applied to numerous internships and still did not have a summer job. Tired of watching everyone seemingly progress and succeed, I curtailed my efforts and gave up.It was only a matter of time when all of this disappointment transformed into a new motivation. I realized that I did not want to sit by the sidelines and only watch others progress and succeed in their career paths.
I wanted to be part of the action. I quickly grasped a new mindset that, if you want to achieve something, you need to actively take steps to make it happen. Success doesn’t just fall into your lap.
I knew I wanted to pursue a career in Marketing. To make sure that I prepared, I knew I still needed to gain experience and knowledge in the marketing and sales fields, develop my leadership skills, get more involved on campus, and start building a network of connections.Since then, I have made sure to relentlessly keep trying, with my ultimate goal front and center in my mind.This fortitude has led me to land two marketing internships, and I plan to obtain even more. I have also acquired a sales and marketing position in a company to build a sales background.I am active on campus, holding a position in a student club. To hone in on my leadership skills I joined T.E.A.M. Baruch—Baruch’s on-campus leadership program. I have made sure to engage in any marketing or advertising networking events to gain valuable insight and advice from those already in the marketing field.
I certainly made progress in my career path and aspirations, but there still is a lot more work to do.
If we want something bad enough, we must pave our own paths to success. This valuable lesson learned continues to guide me. Now I know I will not just watch the crowd pass me by, but create my own accelerated path to success.
