5 habits that enable an intern to easily integrate into a working environment.

For interns, integration is often the most difficult side of kicking off in a new working environment. I believe that the main reason for this is that a working environment is totally different from what we encounter while at varsity. While it is partially the responsibility of supervisors and senior staff members to facilitate the intern integration, the learner also has a role to play in this process and habits such as the following often enable a quick and smooth integration:

 1. Asking questions

I will never say this enough; asking questions is the key to growth and work enhancement. There are no smart or dumb questions – all questions are important, especially when integrating into a new environment. Anyone aspiring to be an integrated team member in an organisation should actively strive to ask questions and get a sense of the corporate culture, norms and expectations. 

2. Being open minded and keen to embrace the corporate culture

One of the other keys to integration is being willing to embrace the company’s corporate culture and remain open minded. What often prevents integration is the fact that we are reluctant to try new things, simply because they don’t correspond to what we’ve been used to. Open-mindedness is important in integration because it forces you to come out of your comfort zone and merge into a totally new culture. Note that I am not encouraging you to go against your values and beliefs in order to be accepted as valuable team members, but rather to develop a genuine interest in the corporate culture in which you find yourself. 

3. Speaking out

One of the other points to facilitate integration is learning to raise the flag whenever something goes wrong. It is “ok” to sometimes be in a vulnerable situation and to encounter challenges but the sooner you learn to share them with the relevant people, the quicker solutions can be found. Just like asking questions, sharing concerns helps us recalibrate our work and ensure that we are on the right path. 

 5. Showing that you care

Showing that you care through various paying attention is of utmost important for anyone wanting to integrate a team. You don’t have to go extra miles or try to fake it. You simply have to develop intentional and natural acts of kindness toward fellow team members and surely, they will learn to do the same for you.

This list could actually be longer as numerous other habits could be added to it, but I believe that it can be adapted according to the working environment you find yourself in.