I'm currently in my senior year -final semester- of my university studies, where my academic focus has been on Political Science, Pre-Law, and Organizational Leadership, though my personal focus is harnessing skills for my professional career.
Imagine my joy when I discovered a nationally recognized company with paid Management Internships for college seniors who focus in leadership, among other things. PERFECT. I applied, submitted, and went through a long interview process -and on-boarding- with every intention of loving it. But nine days in, I quit. And I have little shame in explaining why...
Let's go backwards, y'all.
No names, but this company is a GIANT, worldwide rental car company. That needs to be understood.
The advertisement for the internship said, and quote:
"If you’re looking to hit the ground running, the XXX Management Internship will help you build valuable business and leadership skills. For a university/college student, the real-world professional experience you’ll receive during the internship will help you stand apart from the crowd, and will be more than just a line on your resume."
"From day one as a paid intern with XXX, you'll learn what it takes to run a successful business and acquire highly marketable skills in management. Our university/college interns take on the same challenges as our first and second year full-time professionals. It's a team-based environment; and throughout your internship, your peers will be right by your side helping you learn, grow and have fun."
The first person -talent acquisition guy- that interviewed me was great! He reminded me of an old coworker who I adored; demeanor, personality and even his fun, 'ugly' Christmas sweater. It was like talking about hopes and dreams with an old friend.
After that round one, he sent me to my local market area manager. This person set-up a phone interview with himself, which went great. And for whatever reason, he setup another interview with himself, via video chat, yet asked all of the same questions as before, but could now see what I looked like. Okay, then. I thought nothing of it at the time...
A week later, I received an email from the ugly sweater guy stating, "Congrats! You have been accepted!" and honestly, I was excited.
This entire process began in Mid-December, to note. From my initial application, to my 'final' interview around January 9th.
I was emailed on-boarding information around February 3rd, to which I completed, and then set to begin on February 14, 2023.
Two weeks before my first day, the store manager (a third guy) reached out and called. Super nice person. He asked me what hours I could commit to. I explained I was not looking for full-time (which was already known) due to my studies, so we agree my hours would be 7:30am-12:30pm. Perfect for my student and personal schedule. He also said 'day one' would begin at 8am, and be full of basic safety/harassment videos. No big deal. Been there, done that.
The morning of my first day, the area manager (from the 2nd and 3rd interview) texts me: "See you at 9am"
I was confused about the time, as it wasn't what the other guy told me, but whatever. I went in on day one, ready to jump in; dressed professionally with a smile. Much to my dismay, the two men standing in the front of the building had no fucking clue who I was.
Look, I never expected a red carpet rollout. But you would think a new hire intern coming in would be something the opening team would at least be briefed on. NOPE. They thought I was an early, angry customer, even after I said, "Hi, I'm Tara!"
So, I added, "Ummm...I'm Tara, the new intern," they still looked puzzled. They just sat me in the back, at a PC screen, and told me to wait.
I waited. The lights came on, the doors opened. I waited. Other employees poured in and got to work. I waited. Then finally, someone turned around and asked, "Who are you?"
Without getting too far into it, by 11am, I was shadowing the store manager (whom I can admit I could be BFFs with in any other setting) as he checked customers into their cars. But the area manager that I had to do the safety training with was nowhere to be found. All I understood was that he had a meeting.
Once I finally met with the area manger in his office, well past my 'go home time', he 100% skipped through videos, as if I were taking up his time. Also, there was a long knowledge test about sales/insurance products in this 'training' at the end of the videos. He answered every question on it for me.
Seriously.
Probably a good thing as I had no clue WTF any of it meant. I was never given a study guide on it, and I'm guessing much of the skipped content would have been helpful. He just told me it was important that I get a 100%, and that HE did. That was my first red flag. I didn't get home until late that afternoon, and was kind of pissed about it, considering I had other obligations I had to rearrange.
Day Two, Wednesday:
All day, I was handed keys to rentals and told to shuffle them between bodyshops, Jiffy Lube, and our store. This was scary at first, especially when you don't know where you are going and when you are unfamiliar with the car you are driving. When I wasn't doing that, I was back behind the counter, watching the CSMs answer calls, collect debt, and deal with something called the "Red Car" that no one liked to see on the screen. I started taking notes, as I really wanted to learn about each role in the building.
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| My forehead looks larger than normal |
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| Sitting passenger in the one vehicle I would not drive: A packer van. Airport pickup. |
Day Three, Thursday:
I learned the cool and easy-going manager was known for not coming in. Boo. So I stuck up front and watched the assistant managers work, though no one asked me to. I just thought why not get a flair for their job, as well. I don't think they took it well when customers noticed me observing them and asked if I was the boss. At some point around lunch, the lead assistant started freaking out because it was his flex day and he was supposed to be gone already. The cool manager was supposed to come in and take over, but he still hadn't appeared. I left for the day, as my time was up.
Day Four, Friday:
The lead assistant manager tells me to sit in the back with the CSMs. He says interns generally learn the backend, customer service things; answering phones, writing tickets for cars.
On this day, I learned that a handful of others in the CSM employee pool were Management Interns like myself, but last year or the year before. They tell me they are doing the same exact tasks they were as interns, like myself, as management has little room for growth, if ever.
**There's the second red flag. During my interview with the area manager, he explained that I could receive a job offer at the end of my internship that started at $45k. Every CSM in the room said they were told the same, but literally no one gets hired as a manager within the first few years. They continue to make hourly wages, and continue to do the same exact tasks. I kind of got sad for a few of them who have these great degrees within lucrative fields, but feel stuck there. Every single person said they kept the job as a resume filler or because they can't afford to get out. Not one person explained any love for what they do. One guy told me that he could apply for an open manager position, but he's not willing to relocate to New Mexico, as Augusta is his forever home. This got my wheels turning, as I plan to stay in this general area for good after my husband retires in a few years from the army.
Day Five, Monday:
Same thing, different day again. At this point, I've seen the cool store manager twice. He came in on my day one, probably because he had to. And I saw him Friday when I wasn't out shuffling cars. Now he's on a vacation in New Orleans for a week and a half. Apparently he was in Florida the week before I arrived.
I'm in the back again, being passed around by CSMs. I ask if there's ever been a specific training program that helps new hires or interns learn. They tell me "no". I continue to be passed around, while learning that each person has a different way of handling things.
One tells me she refuses to make reservations, so she sends the caller to the 'reservations' department. Another tells me he likes making reservations because doing so kills time on the clock. So, what is the right thing do? No clear answers here. I take notes, I pick up the phone when told, but have no clue what to do when the customer starts asking questions about their personal insurance stuff.
I also heard the lead assistant manager freaking out over the phone about the schedule, as no detailers to clean cars were showing up. I realize he's yelling at the area manager, basically telling him that it's his fault as he's who approved the schedule with no one on it after a weekend of drop-offs. No cars are rental ready, in other words, but we have 40 cars needing to go out. The area manager comes in to clean cars himself, which was commendable, but he's not at all happy about it...after that, he leaves huffing and puffing like a child that finished detention.
Day Six, Tuesday; One full week in:
I'm doing the usual and starting to get used to it. Then around 11am, the lead assistant manager hands me a folder and explains that this is my guide to the internship. I poke through it, and see a calendar page of events that I was unaware of. They all appear easy, like orientation (which I thought was my day one), learning log submission, tests on products and services, and a presentation. Okay. Close folder and get back to shuffling cars like I am told to do.
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| Dodge Challenger SRT. Hard not to speed |
At noon, the lead assistant manager comes back -while on the phone- and tells me my orientation will be Friday, in Columbia, SC (hour and a half away), from 9am to 4pm.
I kind of lost it.
I said, "That doesn't fall within my hours. I have a prior engagement that afternoon." He shrugs. I realize he's on the phone with the area manager when he repeats the information. "Can you be there from 9am to 1pm?" I explained I could if it were nearby, but I still have to account for driving time home. He gets off the phone. I ask him what's going on, as I thought I had already completed an orientation. He said he never had to do it as a prior intern himself.
But he relays what he was told on the phone just now: During the internship, interns collaborate with other interns (who could be as far as two hours away) to create a recruiting presentation that will be presented back in Columbia at the end of the internship.
WHAT THE FUCK?
Nobody explained this to me. Period. If I had known I'd have outside tasks, on top of everything else, I would not have taken the internship. The worst part? The tests and junk are basically to test what you've learned in each phase. I realize that "test" I took about sales products on day one was one of them. You know, the one the manager answered all of the questions for me on. It was then that I knew I fucked up. Red flag three. Serious communication issues all over this place, and not just regarding myself. Also, a lot of area manager slacking.
He (assistant manager) sees I'm frustrated and tells me that the area manger stated he sent an email about it, so I should have known. Turns out, no one ever helped me setup the Outlook work email. Once I got help with setting it up, after the fact, I found the email, but it was sent that same morning. Ha! Okay, then...
It was this day that I realized I was duped into a company's internship program that stressed leadership values and skill take away, but at the end of the day, it's a glorified way of collecting busy worker bees who get trapped in the hive. They use all types of honey to lure in 'interns', but when it's said and done, they're all just basic, robotic workers. I was never there to learn what I was sold. I was never going to make $45k after the internship was over. I drove home super pissed.
Day Seven:
I decided to go in positive, and absorb the job. I thought to myself, "I'm getting paid, and it could be worse. I'll suck it up and do all the things I am asked." It was actually a good day. I also had the assistant manger help me setup my payroll, because no had helped me yet, and no one would've if I didn't ask. Nothing else to be said.
Day Eight, Thursday:
I go in positive again. But after talking one-on-one with a prior intern, I realize he accepted the same ideals of sucking it up, two years ago. I ask him what's the goal? What do you plan to take away from this? He says he doesn't plan to stay long, as it's not what he thought it'd be, either. There is no goal. He also told me that it was weird that I had three interviews, where he only had one -total- with the same area manager that gave me two.
I get told to shuffle a car to a Chevy dealership, where myself and another coworker sit waiting 45 minutes for a ride to the next place. She tells me that she feels bad for new hires because the company has no training organization, as I have already learned. She then says that she was asked to train me, but told the manager "no", as she doesn't believe she was properly trained herself. It wasn't personal. Another turning point for me. The signs are all there, the red flags waiving in my face, but I am slow at accepting them. This place is dysfunctional as fuck.
I get picked up and dumped at another store to pickup a car. I walk in, identify myself as a new intern at store ###. He asks me how I'm liking it. I just stared at him. He laughed and says "It's that bad?"
I explained that I thought there'd be more guidance on leadership and management skills, and that in talking with prior interns, I now know that's not exactly the internship I was sold. He tells me that I was probably placed at the wrong store, as he's the manager of this location and tries to provide interns with those skills. I tell him he's a missed opportunity (if that's true), grab the keys to the car, and walked out.
As I searched for the car in the parking lot, I had made up my mind, and that store's manager was the tipping point. This was the last day I'd commit to the internship. I located what would be my final drive in a rental, which couldn't have been more poetic: A sexy, black, 2023 Ford Mustang with all the bells and whistles. I drove the hell out of that car, all ten miles back, with White Snack blaring through the speakers, "Here I go again on my own..." I floored that pedal, and let the horses free.
By the time I returned, it was time to clock out. I knew what I knew. I told the helpful assistant manager I would not be returning, and that I would contact the area manager to let him know. I thanked him for his help. He said he understood where I was coming from, and I honestly think he was being genuine, as he was once in my position.
That evening, I went to my daughter's golf match and tried calling the area manger to tell him of my decision. I'm not going to lie, I hate confrontation with people I hardly know. He doesn't answer. I try again, but the service out in the middle of nowhere drops my call. I got home until super late, at this point I felt like a zombie. At 10:30pm, I realize my phone is still in my handbag on silent, and I have a missed call from him that was around 7pm. I wasn't about to piss him off with a late call, so I started writing an email. Here's how that went:
INSERT NAME,
I was hoping to have a moment to speak with you in person
yesterday or today, but I understand you are a busy man who is tough to catch
in office. Apologies this email finds you late in the night. I was tied to an obligation
throughout the evening.
It is with regret that I inform you of my resignation from my XXX internship, effective immediately. It would be a disservice to you, your employees, and to your company’s resources for me to continue onward.
My short time with XXX has been a whirlwind of learning, and has given me a sincere appreciation for the industry. However, I have come to realize I will not be a positive ROI for this company. I take responsibility for not fully comprehending the expectations/outcomes of this internship role.
Respectfully,
ME
Do I actually blame myself? YES! I could've asked better questions during the interview process about the internship itself, and any expected outside commitments, etc,. I mostly asked about company values, daily operations, the usual. BUT I also blame them, too. I did ask about the development of leadership attributes and if that would be incorporated into the learning process. I was told that's one of the main focuses of Management Interns. From my short experience, and in talking with prior interns, it definitely is not. I was also never told about the benchmark deadlines and out of state trips I would be committing to.
But for the purpose of not making the email salty or accusatory, I took the blame. I could've mentioned tons of the fucked up observations I made during my short stint, but that'd get me nowhere. It also didn't help that I looked up the area manager on Twitter and some of his morals are severely lacking...
What's my entire point here?
A few days before leaving, I found myself Googling "Reasons to quit internship" "I hate my internship" "How to quit an internship" You name the key phrase, I searched it. ALL of the advice out there tells people to stick it out, stay for the money (if paid), stay for the recommendation, give it time, blah, blah, blah.
If you are searching the same things, I promise that you already know the answer. Otherwise, you wouldn't be looking for an answer to validate how you feel!
I'm sorry, but I do not believe in commitment if I know for sure that something is not benefitting me personally or professionally, or if it is utterly toxic. Life's too short to be miserable. Would people say the same things, like 'stick it out', if we were talking about a loveless marriage? I doubt it.
I also was lucky to have great coworkers who kept it real with me. They were the coolest group of people I have met so far in Georgia! I will actually miss them. But even they understood that I didn't belong there, and in talking with some, I think many of them may have come to the realization that they don't belong there either. But they're comfortable. They know the job, the expectations, and they 'stick it out'.
As for me, I knew I had to go before the comfortability set in and trapped me there.
Internships are meant to learn skills and to gain experience in your future field. If you aren't learning those things, or in my case, you know you won't be learning those things, ask yourself "What am I gaining?"
Here's what I gained:
I'm not a fan of Nissan SUVs, muscle cars are fun, most rental car customers are generally people with cars in a shop, renters actually leave guns in returned vehicles, and that I think that a Jeep Grand Cherokee will be my next car.
Yes, I know. All useful skills to carry forward in my professional career...! But that's my point. These same "gains" would have continued. Nothing more, nothing less.
I do not regret leaving, in fact, I feel an enormous weight off my shoulders. This internal struggle affected me more than I realized. I hardly ate, lived off coffee, and felt hungover from exhaustion every morning. I woke up this morning, my first morning free of car shuffling, and finally felt a sense of peace that had been missing for the past nine days.
I take pride in knowing that I did the right thing, for myself, and for the company. Two miserable entities do not equate to happiness.
If you are contemplating quitting, ask yourself what you'll be losing in terms of fulfillment. If the list is short, or non-existent, there's your red flag!
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