Little Fish in a Big Corporate Pond

When I started at Charter, my first day was one full of fear and anxiety, knowing that I would be an intern, lowest on the totem poll, and the most irrelevant of the 95,000 employees that the company maintains. Going to a small University, I have been able to interact and create relationships with many people, and entering a company of such a large capacity was scary for me. I wasn’t sure how I was going to make a name for myself, and I found myself hiding in the shadows of one of my supervisors, Sherry, throughout almost the first full week of my internship. I think that Sherry sensed my nervous energy and did everything in her power to make me feel more comfortable in an awkward situation. She took the time and effort to introduce me to everyone that walked by, making sure they knew exactly who I was and why I was there. She encouraged me to speak up in meetings, and ask questions when I was confused, knowing that the cable industry has a vocabulary of it’s own. She took the other intern on her team and I to lunch, and made sure that we knew what we were going to be spending our time doing throughout the semester. She constantly asked me how I was feeling and if I was enjoying what she was having me do. I appreciated these actions by her so much, it brought me a sense of relief and comfort when I was nervous about joining this new, large, company. I really had no idea what exactly I would be doing throughout the semester, so Sherry sat me down and went through a detailed, and well thought out calendar, that outlined each and every project that I would be involved in.

Sherry was outlining the dynamics of a follower leader relationship, outlined in Messick’s theory. She was giving me protection and security, and in return I was gracious and loyal to her and her company and team. She gave me vision and direction right from the beginning, and made sure I knew what to anticipate through out the summer and in return I focused on her and taught myself aspects of cable to prepare for these projects ahead. Now, as my second week comes to a close, I have begun to feel more comfortable in the setting that I am in, however this would not be the case had Sherry not taken me under her wing and demonstrated this theory of leadership.  I feel more prepared and excited to take on the coming weeks in this company because of the way that Sherry helped me to feel comfortable in this environment.