It honestly wasn’t crazy different. Typically, if you hear about someone transitioning from a setting that is solely women to one that is solely men, you’d assume that it would be a complete “culture shock” however, this wasn’t really the case.
Last summer, I interned at a PR firm that consisted of roughly 8 women, ranging from 24 to 50. It was mostly what you’d expect; lots of pink, lots of crystals, and lots of Dunkin Donuts runs- for drinking coffee and Instagramming donuts. We gossiped a lot, and since it was an open floor plan, the chit-chat was almost constant. While this made the day fly by, it was sometimes hard to concentrate. We all had a lot of fun, and talking about how bad your period cramps were was totally acceptable.
I started working at The Plaza in May, and it’s been an amazing experience. When I interviewed for the position, I quickly realized it was almost completely run by men in blue suits with really nice shoes. While this was a tiny bit daunting, I felt up to the challenge. About one week into the job, I realized these guys were some of the nicest people I’d ever met, and viewed me as a younger sister. They were always protective of me and looked out for my best interests.
I’ve learned that men have a tendency to be a lot more blunt. This may be a bad thing if you’ve had a rough day, or you’re frustrated with whatever you’re working on. However, it’s nice for people to be straight up and say things like “you did this wrong, try looking at it from this angle” or even “I have something that needs to be done in 15 minutes, and I know you’re up for the challenge.”
I think that having the ability to not skirt around in order to protect someone’s feelings is something that everyone should be able to do. Additionally, women helping women is vital to our success in the long run. Both jobs were just that, jobs. I was given work, and I got it done. While the atmosphere was sometimes a bit different, at the end of the day, I made great friends at each place, and I was able to learn and experience new things.