The Value of Connections
August 23, 2019
By Curley & Pynn
As my internship with Curley & Pynn comes to an end, I can’t help but think back on the incredible opportunities and memories made with this team. I can honestly say I’ve grown more professionally in the last four months than I ever thought possible. Plus, we had a lot of fun along the way. Who else can say their team dressed up like cows to get free Chick-fil-A or has hundreds of “Dan heads” hiding around the office?
One of the opportunities I was given through Curley & Pynn was participating in the Orlando Economic Partnership’s iGRO program, which invites young professionals across the Central Florida area to connect with each other, all while exploring the side of Orlando you never knew existed.
Throughout the program, there was one common theme: Orlando supports your dreams. No matter who we talked to, from the founder of Fattmerchant to the human resources director at AdventHealth, we found that their success was only possible because of the support they had from partners and mentors within the Central Florida region. Orlando truly is a city that supports its residents and their professional endeavors.
With this, it also reinforced the value of networking – a crucial component to any professional’s success. There’s no doubt Orlando is a wonderful place to grow, but it’s up to the individual to seek out those valuable connections. The path to success isn’t a solitary one; it takes the support and encouragement of someone who has gone before you. There’s no benefit to going it alone, so the importance of networking can’t be understated.
Personally, I was fortunate to have a wonderful iGRO small group where I could network with local communications professionals and other students from UCF. The relationships I made with other interns and my mentors will carry far beyond this summer. Through this program, I’ve formed relationships I can lean on in the future, both professionally and personally.
The same goes without saying for the other small, wonderful group of people I’ve grown to know at Curley & Pynn. In our office, I found a team of like-minded communications practitioners who are willing and eager to help me grow in every aspect, from on-the-job skills to branding myself as a public relations professional. And as I’ve discovered in this profession heavily reliant on connections, those types of relationships are invaluable.
Do you have similar bonds within your community? If not, get out into the City Beautiful today and seek out the connections that await.
