The first day of my internship starts tomorrow, and I do not know what I will have to do to manage my time there effectively yet, I have some ideas of how I might do so. To begin, although I do not entirely know what tasks I will be doing most frequently yet, I do know that I was given a wide array of potential jobs I may be assigned while working at D Light Studios. In my initial email from my program supervisor, the internship description included: developing creative spaces with the studio team and expanding use of those spaces, organizing and planning events at the studios with the team, brainstorming and developing ideas for events and uses for the studio spaces, assisting the studio manager with clients including film and TV companies using the studio spaces, developing exhibition tenancies and residencies for artists, research for artists and sponsorship for residencies, and acting as a photography assistant to help on shoot. Clearly this is a large responsibility, and I will have to think in many different ways and carefully manage my time in a calculated manner if I want to be successful in my position. This being established, I will explain some of the ways I plan on successfully managing my time for the greatest success possible in my internship role.

To begin, I think the most basic yet perhaps most important way to manage my time effectively is to listen to and follow the directions of my supervisor at all times. When I can effectively gauge what tasks are the most important and when specific tasks need to be completed by, I am able to understand what projects require the most time and energy, effectively allocating my time to meet these requirements. I think another important way to effectively manage my time is to avoid multitasking for the most part. Although it may sound counterintuitive, as finishing more than one task at a time seems more effective on the surface, it also could lead to lower-quality work and reduced productivity. Something I have learned over time is that, at least for me, giving my top attention and putting my top effort into each task individually typically leads to better outcomes. Another thing that I think can help me succeed in managing my time effectively at my internship is breaking large tasks into smaller, more manageable tasks if necessary. By breaking up long term projects and setting milestones, it becomes easier to manage the jobs that may initially feel overwhelming, and even impossible to complete on time. Completing a smaller segment of a bigger project feels satisfying and rewarding, which may increase motivation to move work and keep working on it. Finishing these micro tasks by smaller, self-set deadlines not only makes finishing the larger task easier, but also increases time management skills in the process, as you are practicing setting and completing timed goals. Building off of the previous ideas, I think that setting a schedule for myself will be very important towards my success at my internship this summer. As I mentioned before, I do not entirely know yet how my tasks will be laid out for me, or even what tasks I will for sure be assigned. However, if my tasks are more spread out and meant to be done on my own time, a schedule or planner could be a great tool for managing my time in the most effective way possible. By doing this, I would have a better understanding of the ways I should be spending my time, and if everything is on track to be done by the time it needs to be. This also would tie in with my personal development, as I have a tendency to procrastinate at times, and this is a skill that could translate to everyday life.

Clearly there are a wide range of strategies that I can employ to manage time effectively at my internship. However, I will not really know which ones to use until my job starts tomorrow morning. Today, I did a trial run of my route to work, finding the optimal bus route and streets to take from the University College Dublin campus to D Light Studios. My internship is about an hour away from my dorm, so I will need to plan accordingly every day to make sure that I arrive on time. This is just another lesson in time management, and I believe this will come to serve me in my job itself. Overall, time management is a very important skill, and I think this my time here will help me improve this skill greatly.