My Internship at Spotted by Locals

It took me a while before I decided to start writing about my internship at Spotted by Locals. To me, the following makes for the statement that officially marks the end of an experience that, albeit short, has enriched me both on a personal and professional level. As we all know, it’s hard to admit when something good is over; that said, this is also my chance to sum up my last three, amazing months as an active member of the company.

Eventually back in Italy from several international peregrinations, I found myself much in need of casting some light on my plans for the future. Still unsure on what to do, I admitted to myself that spending some time at home with my family and friends was as important as finding employment; while browsing through the Internet seeking a position that both appealed to me and didn’t require any sort of displacement, I happened to discover that Spotted by Locals was searching for an intern. As a former Communication, then Urban Geography student bit by the travel bug.. well, just imagine my excitement. I spoke with Bart, it went well: I was in.

Three months pass in a blink of an eye, and indeed it seems yesterday I kicked off with Spotted by Locals; yet those three months have been extremely intense work-wise, and I don’t have to think twice to say that among all my work experiences this has been the one that has taught me the most.

Spotted by Locals gave me the occasion to increase my social media and communication skills by putting myself to the test on their channels; to get acquainted with – and thus gain quite some competence in platforms and programmes I was not much familiar with – to slowly learning not to panic when confronted with tackling situations or a strict deadline; to believe in my capacities, appreciate my work and feel rewarded. Working with Bart and Laura has been extremely fruitful: I was provided support any time I needed, and whenever I had an idea, a doubt, a clarification I wanted to discuss, I found fertile ground in them. I believe sharing, comparing, dissenting and compromising are fundamental steps for the creation of a solid collaboration and productive working environment. I think I can speak for them as well by saying that the outcome was satisfying.

Above all, Spotted by Locals has finally ignited my long-dormant creativity and revived my drive for constant improvement. As soon as I started my internship I proposed a new series of weekly articles to Bart, called ’48 hours in… as a local’; such a format has long been used by world newspapers and magazines, so why not adapt it to Spotted by Locals’ philosophy and mission? Apparently, it’s working alright: despite having finished my internship I’m currently still working as a guest writer, and I’ll be curating the series (‘my baby’, as Laura called it once) until I’ve covered all the cities Spotted by Locals is active on – at least, I hope I will be able to do so!

So, what can I say.. for the moment I haven’t really left Spotted by Locals. Some doubts I cleared, some ideas I have, a new job is awaiting. But Spotted by Locals is definitely a milestone in my career.

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